Colorado § 40-3-102.5 - Limiting rate case expenses for investor-owned utilities - information included in rate case filings - gas cost or electric commodity adjustment filings - rules - definitions.

§ 40-3-102.5. Limiting rate case expenses for investor-owned utilities - information included in rate case filings - gas cost or electric commodity adjustment filings - rules - definitions.

(1) Limiting recovery of rate case expenses.

(a) The commission shall establish rules to limit the amount of rate case expenses that a utility may recover from ratepayers. In establishing the rules, the commission may consider:

(I) Implementing a symmetrical incentive to motivate the utility to limit expenses;

(II) Limiting the amount of expenses for outside experts, consultants, and legal resources that are recoverable;

(III) Setting an overall percentage of the utility's expenses in a rate case that are not recoverable;

(IV) Establishing discovery parameters and what information in a commission proceeding must be disclosed to interveners or to the commission to reduce time and costs associated with a lengthy discovery process, which information may include:

(A) A source model showing all rate adjustments;

(B) Executable spreadsheets, also referred to as work papers, with links and formulas intact;

(C) A test year based on a recently completed twelve-month period and for which actual costs and investments are analyzed; and

(D) Any other information or documentation, as determined by the commission; or

(V) Requiring a technical conference with intervening parties to address intervening parties' questions and to provide the ability for interveners to analyze the utility's assumptions and calculations supporting a rate case filing.

(b) Before the commission may determine that an investor-owned utility's application to modify base rates is complete, the commission shall certify that, for comparison of test years and other purposes, the filing includes sufficient information, including a comprehensive cost and revenue requirement analysis based on actual, auditable, historical data, which analysis must be accompanied by appropriate work papers and other supporting materials.

(c) Nothing in this section prohibits a utility from including multiple test years for analysis or consideration in a rate case filing, including inclusion of a future test year.

(d) As used in this subsection (1):

(I) "Base rate" means charges used to recover costs of utility infrastructure and operations, including a return on capital investment, not otherwise recovered through a utility rate rider or rate adjustment mechanism.

(II) "Test year" means a twelve-month period that is examined to determine a utility's costs of service in a rate case.

(III) "Utility" means an investor-owned electric or gas utility.

(2) Requirements for filings to increase a rate, charge, fee, fare, toll, rental, or classification.

(a) At the time of filing a request to increase any rate, charge, fee, fare, toll, rental, or classification, the utility shall provide the commission a rate trend report for the previous ten years regarding any historical increases or decreases of the rate, charge, fee, fare, toll, rental, or classification, including:

(I) The amount of each approved increase or decrease;

(II) The incremental increase or decrease from the most recent approved change;

(III) The dates that each approved increase or decrease went into effect;

(IV) The proceeding number related to each approved increase or decrease;

(V) A chart, graph, or other visualization demonstrating the ten-year historical trend regarding each rate, charge, fee, fare, toll, rental, or classification, including all utility bill line items such as rates and rate riders; and

(VI) For each of the ten years, the annual total amount of the rate, charge, fee, fare, toll, rental, or classification.

(b) Each utility shall post and keep current on its website the rate trend report data, including the chart, graph, or other visualization demonstrating the ten-year historical trend submitted as part of the rate trend report. Any visualization must include all utility bill line items, including all rates and rate riders.

(3) Gas cost or electric commodity adjustment filing requirements. A utility that files a gas cost adjustment filing or an electric commodity adjustment filing shall provide copies of all confidential materials and all executable materials related to the filing to the commission's staff and the office of the utility consumer advocate created in section 40-6.5-102 (1).

Source: L. 2023: Entire section added, (SB 23-291), ch. 163, p. 710, § 2, effective August 7.