Regulator Proposes Amount Of Costs To Be Paid By Retail Suppliers For Utility Expenses Related To Supplier Refunds Under Next Cycle Rate Amnesty

The Connecticut PURA has issued a proposed interim decision to assign specific amounts of costs to retail suppliers for expenses incurred by utilities in implementing a mechanism for suppliers to refund amounts owed to customers under a "next cycle rate" amnesty program.

The proposed decision noted that United Illuminating indicated that it had no incremental costs to implement the bill credits ordered under the supplier amnesty program.

Connecticut Light & Power d/b/a Eversource Energy indicated that its costs were $13,115.63, which were associated with incremental IT design, development, test and implementation of a new special program that would ingest the list of customers received from each eligible external supplier, review the data provided against the C2 system, and produce the mailing information required for customer notifications as well as apply the credit on customer bills and ensure the supplier’s name was printed on the bill.

Eversource indicated that its costs would be divided evenly among the 20 suppliers using its billing system to issue next cycle rate bill credits.

The proposed decision would approve the costs submitted by the EDCs

The proposed order states that PURA, "believes these minimal costs (approximately $655 per supplier) were prudent and necessary to effect the millions of dollars of credits to customers for suppliers’ next cycle rate violations."

Under the draft order, the Authority would order Eversource to bill all suppliers their portion of the approved costs and for suppliers to remit the payment.

Docket 18-12-22

Note that these costs related to facilitating the refunds are distinct from costs related to broader next cycle rate billing upgrades, whose cost recovery remains pending before PURA in Docket 14-07-19RE07 (see story here)