An Idaho bill to require utilities to share the likely rate impact of major generation and transmission projects did not advance this legislative session, but a bill to establish a state Utility Consumer Advocate Office will get a hearing in 2013.
The consumer advocate bill, which has not yet been assigned a bill number, was proposed by Representative Brian Cronin, Democrat of Boise, and was unanimously “introduced”–or approved for discussion–by the House of Representatives’ Ways & Means Committee on March 28 with the understanding that the panel would not discuss the matter further until next year.
Under Cronin’s bill, Idaho’s attorney general would appoint a director of the Utility Consumer Advocate Office as well as the members of a utility ratepayer advisory commission. The office would be charged with representing utility-customer interests in cases before the Idaho Public Utilities Commission.
Meanwhile, House Bill 554, which would require utilities to disclose as part of the planning process the estimated cost and rate effect of large capital projects, failed to advance this session.
The bill had been proposed by Representative Marc Gibbs, Republican of Grace, at the urging of Monsanto Corp., one of the state’s largest employers and the largest customer of Rocky Mountain Power.
Gibbs said that the intent of HB 554 was “to add sunshine to the process so the rate impact of new projects is known as early as possible.”
The Idaho Public Utilities Commission does not take positions on legislation, but said that it was concerned about both the difficulty of predicting the rate effect of projects–particularly those planned for the latter years of a 20-year integrated resource plan–and the potential for aggressive public opposition to projects that are truly needed.
Gary Kajander, manager of energy procurement for Monsanto, said that HB 554 would only have directed utilities to share information they already have, and would empower ratepayers to oppose projects they believe to be of marginal value.
Monsanto had an ally in Idaho’s AARP chapter, which has more than 180,000 members in the state. David Irwin, spokesman for the group, “Utilities now hold all the cards and all the information,” and that Gibbs’s bill would have enabled utility customers “to be part of the process at an earlier stage.”
Rocky Mountain Power opposed the bill. Utility spokeswoman Maria O’Mara said that before Rocky Mountain Power can raise rates to reflect the costs of an investment  in new generation or transmission–or the costs of a long-term contract for firm generation services or transmission services from third parties–it will have gone through the IRP process, the certificate of need process, and a rate case.
–Housley Carr