20241129Final_Order_No_36406.pdf

Office of the Secretary
Service Date
November 29,2024
BEFORE THE IDAHO PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION
IN THE MATTER OF IDAHO POWER ) CASE NO. IPC-E-24-39
COMPANY'S TARIFF ADVICE IN )
COMPLIANCE WITH ORDER NO. 36042 )
RELATED TO CHANGES TO SCHEDULE 79 ) ORDER NO. 36406
On September 19,2024,Idaho Power Company("Company") submitted Tariff Advice
No. IPC-TAE-24-03,requesting"an order(1)approving the Company's proposed changes to both
the Weatherization Assistance for Qualified Customers ("WAQC") and Easy Savings programs,
(2) approving the proposed changes to Schedule 79, effective November 15, 2024, and (3)
acknowledging the Company has satisfied its compliance obligation to work with Staff and the
Community Action Partnership agencies to develop implementation and ongoing administrative
details for the WAQC and Easy Savings programs." Application at 1. The Company filed a
proposed Schedule 79 and requested a November 15, 2024, effective date.
On October 28, 2024, the Commission opened this docket and converted the tariff
advice to an Application, set public comment and Company reply deadlines, and suspended the
proposed effective date until December 1, 2024.1 Order No. 36369. The Commission Staff
("Staff') filed comments to which the Company responded. No other comments were received.
Having reviewed the record in this case, we issue this Final Order approving
modifications to Schedule 79 as discussed below.
THE APPLICATION
Pursuant to the directives in Order No. 36042, (the result of the Commission-approved
settlement and stipulation in Case No. IPC-E-23-11), the Company met with Staff, the Idaho
Department of Health and Welfare ("IDHW"), and Community Action Partnership ("CAP")
agencies to update the implementation and administration of the WAQC and Easy Savings
programs.
The Company's proposed change to the WAQC would: "(1) eliminate the future
carryover of unspent funds from year to year; (2) allow for services rendered in the current year to
be invoiced within 60 days of the start of the following year; (3) remove the dollar limit to funds
'The Commission elected to treat the Company's filing as an Application rather than a tariff advice.See Commission
Rule of Procedure 134.02.
ORDER NO. 36406 1

that can be transferred between CAP agencies; (4) match the maximum annual average cost per
dwelling weatherized to the [Department of Energy ("DOE")] maximum; and (5) modify the re-
weatherization program to allow for other electric equipment, in addition to HVAC, to be
updated."Application at 5.
To improve administrative efficiency and ensure funds are used appropriately and "in
recognition that funding will be provided through the Rider rather than base rates, the Company
proposes to require the CAP agencies to invoice the Company for payment of redeemed coupons,
rather than receive payment upfront."Id. at 7. This should eliminate the need for CAP agencies to
track carryover funds and gives them access to their full allocation, according to the Company.
THE COMMENTS
1. Staff
Staff supported the Company's proposed changes, noting that three of the proposed
changes required adjusting Schedule 79 (eliminating carryover of unspent funds, allowing the
invoice of service rendered within 60 days of the ensuing year, and allowing modification of the
weatherization program for more than HVAC). The remaining requests can be updated based on
agreements with the CAP agencies according to Staff.
Staff described the proposal to expanded use of weatherization funds to reduce the
carryover balance, which it supported because it remains within the original intent of the pilot
program and additional data may be derived from the expansion. Staff recommended the Company
use the remaining year of the weatherization pilot to collect data on CAP agencies' use of the
additional spending authority to enhance savings.
Staff noted the Commission had recently declined the Company's proposal to tie the
average project cap to the DOE's average project cap in Order No. 36331. Instead of tying the job
cap to DOE's approve cap, Staff proposed increasing the job cap to the current DOE job cap of
$8,495 one-time. Staff believed the increased cap would allow additional opportunity to capture
savings and provide flexibility to the CAP agencies. Staff recommended the Company use the
increased cap as an opportunity to collect additional data on incremental savings captured by CAP
agencies. Staff recommended this information be presented in the Company's annual Demand-
Side Management ("DSM") report to support any future requests to increase the cap.
ORDER NO. 36406 2

2. Company reply
The Company supported Staff s recommendation for a one-time increase to $8,495 for
the average annual job cap for WAQC funding. The Company also committed to collecting and
providing additional details of any incremental savings CAP agencies can capture, if the data is
available/quantifiable, for any future request to increase the cap. The Company was cautious that
the data for incremental savings might be difficult to capture but agreed to provide what data is
available to it. The Company requested the remainder of its proposed changes to WAQC and the
Easy Savings program under Schedule 79 be approved as filed. Finally, the Company asked for
the Commission to acknowledge that it has complied with the requirement that it work with Staff
and the CAP agencies to improve its WAQC and Easy Savings programs.
COMMISSION FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
The Commission has jurisdiction over the Company's Application and the issues in
this case under Title 61 of the Idaho Code including Idaho Code §§ 61-301 through 303. The
Commission is empowered to investigate rates, charges,rules,regulations,practices, and contracts
of all public utilities and to determine whether they are just, reasonable, preferential,
discriminatory, or in violation of any provisions of law, and to fix the same by order. Idaho Code
§§ 61-501 through 503.
We appreciate the Company's efforts to comply with the stipulation and settlement
approved in Case No. IPC-E-23-11.The Commission authorizes a one-time increase in the average
annual cost cap to $8,945. We believe this new cap will allow the Company to increase and
enhance its offerings under the WAQC which we hope will increase incremental savings. The
increased cap also provides an opportunity for the Company to learn if additional incremental
savings can be derived from the higher cap or not. The Company is directed to aggregate details
about the incremental savings from the additional funds available to qualifying customers. These
details should be included in the Company's annual DSM report.
The Company's remaining changes to the WAQC and Easy Savings programs are
approved as filed, effective December 1, 2024. We appreciate the Company, IDHW, CAP
agencies, and Staff coming forward with solutions to improve the WAQC and Easy Savings
programs in a way that can benefit customers who qualify.
ORDER NO. 36406 3

ORDER
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the changes to Schedule 79's WAQC and Easy
Savings programs are approved, effective December 1, 2024.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Company is allowed to implement a one-time
increase to the average annual project job cost cap to $8,495.
THIS IS A FINAL ORDER. Any person interested in this Order may petition for
reconsideration within twenty-one (21) days of the service date upon this Order regarding any
matter decided in this Order. Within seven (7) days after any person has petitioned for
reconsideration, any other person may cross-petition for reconsideration.Idaho Code §§ 61-626.
DONE by Order of the Idaho Public Utilities Commission at Boise,Idaho this 29t'day
of November 2024.
ERIC ANDERSON, PRESIDENT
J R. HAMMOND JR., COMMISSIONER
G
EDWARD LODGE, C MISSIONER
ATTEST:
a B -S c i
Commission Secret
I:\Legal\ELECTRIC\IPC-E-24-39_Sch79\orders\1PCE2439_final_dh.docx
ORDER NO. 36406 4