Regulator's Staff Directs Utilities To Provide Cost Estimates For EDC System Changes That Would Allow A Cap To Be Placed On Retail Supplier Rates

In a Connecticut PURA proceeding implementing PURA's authority to condition access to utility systems on all retail electric supplier offers being just and reasonable, including, but not limited to, proof that the electric supplier's products are not overpriced or harmful to residential customers (Conn. Gen Stat. § 16-245(a)), PURA Staff has issued interrogatories to the utilities concerning cost estimates for EDC system changes that would permit a cap to be placed on retail supplier rates.

See background on the proceeding here

Specifically, Staff directed the EDCs to provide the estimated time and cost to implement system changes that would:

a) impose a cap on rates charged by suppliers to Residential customers where the cap is updated twice a year concurrent with changes to the Standard Service rates;

b) impose a cap solely at the inception of a supplier contract with a Residential customer, similar to (a). In addition to the time and costs for the two scenarios listed above, the EDCs were directed to identify if there are any system limitations that would prevent the utilities from implementing either of these scenarios.

Staff also issued data requests to EDCs concerning billing and collections costs incurred by the utilities in connection with utility consolidated billing, as well as other costs incurred to support retail suppliers' service to residential customers

Specifically, aside from billing and collection costs, the utilities were also directed to provide a listing of additional estimated costs that the EDCs incurred to support suppliers’ service of residential customers for the years 2017 through 2021. Staff's data request states that examples of such costs could include, but not be limited to, costs for supplier-related customer service inquiries, termination proceedings, general system administration costs, regulatory reporting costs, etc.

Docket No. 18-06-02RE01