House Bill 3185c1

    Florida House of Representatives - 1998             CS/HB 3185

        By the Committee on Utilities & Communications and
    Representatives Thrasher, Logan and Wasserman Schultz





  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to the Public Service

  3         Commission; amending s. 367.081, F.S.; limiting

  4         the commission's consideration of

  5         contributions-in-aid-of-construction under

  6         certain circumstances; providing construction;

  7         requiring the commission to approve rates for

  8         certain services under certain circumstances;

  9         providing construction; providing an effective

10         date.

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12  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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14         Section 1.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section

15  367.081, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

16         367.081  Rates; procedure for fixing and changing.--

17         (2)(a)1.  The commission shall, either upon request or

18  upon its own motion, fix rates which are just, reasonable,

19  compensatory, and not unfairly discriminatory.  In every such

20  proceeding, the commission shall consider the value and

21  quality of the service and the cost of providing the service,

22  which shall include, but not be limited to, debt interest; the

23  requirements of the utility for working capital; maintenance,

24  depreciation, tax, and operating expenses incurred in the

25  operation of all property used and useful in the public

26  service; and a fair return on the investment of the utility in

27  property used and useful in the public service. However, the

28  commission shall not allow the inclusion of

29  contributions-in-aid-of-construction in the rate base of any

30  utility during a rate proceeding, nor shall the commission

31  impute prospective future contributions-in-aid-of-construction

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida House of Representatives - 1998             CS/HB 3185

    193-135-98






  1  against the utility's investment in property used and useful

  2  in the public service; and accumulated depreciation on such

  3  contributions-in-aid-of-construction shall not be used to

  4  reduce the rate base, nor shall depreciation on such

  5  contributed assets be considered a cost of providing utility

  6  service.

  7         2.  For purposes of such proceedings, the commission

  8  shall consider utility property, including land acquired or

  9  facilities constructed or to be constructed, to be used and

10  useful in the public service, if:

11         a.  Such property is needed to serve current customers;

12         b.  Such property is needed to serve customers 5 years

13  after the expected date of the commission's entry of a final

14  order on a rate request as provided in subsection (6); or

15         c.  Such property is needed to serve customers more

16  than 5 full years after the expected date of the commission's

17  entry of a final order on a rate request as provided in

18  subsection (6) only to the extent the utility presents clear

19  and convincing evidence to justify such consideration.

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21  Notwithstanding the provisions of this paragraph, the

22  commission shall approve rates for service that allow a

23  utility to recover from customers the full amount of

24  environmental compliance costs. Such rates shall not include

25  charges for allowances for funds prudently invested or similar

26  charges. For purposes of this requirement, the term

27  "environmental compliance costs" includes all reasonable

28  expenses and fair return on any prudent investment incurred by

29  a utility in complying with the requirements or conditions

30  contained in any permitting, enforcement, or similar decisions

31  of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida House of Representatives - 1998             CS/HB 3185

    193-135-98






  1  Department of Environmental Protection, a water management

  2  district, or any other governmental entity with similar

  3  regulatory jurisdiction. The commission shall also consider

  4  the investment of the utility in land acquired or facilities

  5  constructed or to be constructed in the public interest within

  6  a reasonable time in the future, not to exceed, unless

  7  extended by the commission, 24 months from the end of the

  8  historical test period used to set final rates.

  9         Section 2.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

10  law.

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