Electric Industry Restructuring: The States Forge Ahead

Fortnightly Magazine - October 1 1995
This full article is only accessible by current license holders. Please login to view the full content.
Don't have a license yet? Click here to sign up for Public Utilities Fortnightly, and gain access to the entire Fortnightly article database online.
About 30 states have begun (em

either through the legislature, the utility commission, informal working groups, or some combination of these (em to consider issues such as retail wheeling, unbundled utility structures, and alternative rate regulation.1 California's "Blue Book" hearings have drawn the most attention, but significant efforts are also underway elsewhere. Although each state is approaching the issue in its own way, successful industry restructuring will ultimately require coordination across state lines. Ongoing investigations in various states offer a glimpse of restructuring principles in their genesis.New York

New York's current activities grew out of a previous Public Service Commission (PSC) general inquiry that produced guidelines in July 1994, permitting electric utilities to offer discounted rates to contestable customers (Re Competitive Opportunities Available to Customers of Electric and Gas Service, Case 93-M-0229, 154 PUR4th 19 (1994)).2 In August 1994, the PSC initiated a second phase of that proceeding "to identify regulatory and ratemaking practices that will assist in the transition to a more competitive electric industry" (154 PUR4th 35). To that end, the PSC assigned an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) to develop general principles that would form the basis for movement to a more competitive marketplace. Throughout the Fall of 1994, various concerned parties submitted proposals and attended meetings, but failed to reach consensus. In December, the PSC put forth for public comment a set of nine proposed

principles (In the Matter of Competitive Opportunities Regarding Electric Service, Case 94-E-0952, 158 PUR4th 252).

This full article is only accessible by current license holders. Please login to view the full content.
Don't have a license yet? Click here to sign up for Public Utilities Fortnightly, and gain access to the entire Fortnightly article database online.