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Home My WebLink About20051103min.docIDAHO PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION MINUTES OF DECISION MEETING NOVEMBER 3RD, 2005 – 1:30 P.M. In attendance were Commissioners Paul Kjellander, Marsha Smith and Dennis Hansen. Commissioner Kjellander called the meeting to order. The first order of business was APPROVAL OF MINUTES FROM PREVIOUS MEETINGS on September 29th, October 11th, October 17th, and October 24th, 2005. Commissioner Kjellander made a motion to approve the minutes. A vote was taken on the motion and it carried unanimously. The second order of business was approval of the CONSENT AGENDA, items 2 – 5. Regarding item 3, Commissioner Smith asked that the City of Kuna be included on the service list for the case because parcel 5 is near Kuna’s water service boundaries. There was no further discussion. Commissioner Kjellander made a motion to approve the Consent Agenda. A vote was taken on the motion and it carried unanimously. The next order of business was RULEMAKING: Beverly Barker’s November 1, 2005 Decision Memorandum re: Proposed Amendments to the Commission’s Customer Relations Rules, Docket No. 31-2101-0402. Ms. Barker reviewed her Decision Memo. Commissioner Kjellander stated that the Commission would consider the proposed rule changes section by section, voting on each one individually. Rule 305.02 – There was no discussion. Commissioner Smith made a motion to approve the amendment as proposed. A vote was taken on the motion and it carried unanimously. Ms. Barker asked if the Commission also approved the amendment suggested by Idaho Power clarifying that the rule would apply only to residential customers. Commissioner Smith amended her motion to include the suggestion made by Idaho Power. A vote was taken on the amended motion and it carried unanimously. Rule 306.01 – Commissioner Kjellander and Commissioner Smith asked for clarification as to the proposed wording “receives financial assistance” as opposed to just being “eligible” for financial assistance. Ms. Barker explained that the those customers who apply and qualify for LIHEAP benefits are given a document verifying they will be receiving LIHEAP funds, and that document could then be provided to a utility as proof that the customer was in fact going to receive LIHEAP benefits. Commissioner Smith asked about customers who don’t get an appointment to apply for LIHEAP in November or December but instead apply in March. Ms. Barker replied that they wouldn’t qualify for the moratorium unless they met one of the other criteria. Commissioner Hansen stated that the proposed change significantly expands the focus of the winter moratorium away from what it was intended for, which was health and safety, to a much broader program of low-income assistance. He said it is unnecessary to make such a significant change, and he thought it would significantly increase the utility companies’ bad debt in the future, which in the end will cost other customers a lot more money. Commissioner Kjellander stated he agreed with Commissioner Hansen and was also concerned that plenty of people could be eligible to receive assistance through LIHEAP but might not actually be receiving those funds. It said it seemed somewhat discriminatory to those who are eligible but who don’t have access to LIHEAP funds either due to a lack of funding or late application. He stated that for this additional reason, he wouldn’t be able to support the proposed rule change. Commissioner Smith stated she would be dissenting because she strongly supported the change and didn’t think it would expand the program significantly, especially if a customer must have a document in hand to demonstrate eligibility to the company. She said it is better to have protection for some people than to leave everyone out in the cold, and it is entirely consistent with the 1987 articulated goals of the Commission to preserve the public health and safety by limiting the circumstances under which service may be terminated in winter months. She added the moratorium doesn’t excuse anyone from paying their bills, and she still strongly supports requiring minimum monthly payments of all customers, whether or not they are protected under the criteria of the moratorium. She said the proposed change would provide some protection in the winter months from literally being left in the cold. There was no further discussion. Commissioner Kjellander moved to approve the proposed changes to Rule 306.01. Commissioner Smith voted in the affirmative, and Commissioners Kjellander and Hansen voted against the motion, with the motion failing two to one. Rule 306.02 - Commissioner Kjellander moved to approve the wording changes. There was no discussion. A vote was taken on the motion and it carried unanimously. Rule 306.03 - Commissioner Kjellander moved to reject the changes. There was no discussion. A vote was taken on the motion and it carried two to one, with Commissioner Smith opposed. Rules 306.04 and 306.05 - Commissioner Kjellander moved to approve the changes in wording from “must” to “shall.” A vote was taken on the motion and it carried unanimously. Rule 306.06 - Commissioner Hansen asked if the change could conceivably allow customers to participate in the winter payment plan year after year without ever bringing their accounts current. Ms. Barker replied that it is possible that could happen but it was highly unlikely and contrary to normal utility collection practices. Commissioner Hansen stated that he was opposed to the change because of the possibility that it could happen. Commissioner Kjellander made a motion to reject the changes to Rule 306.06. Commissioner Smith commented that all the rule says is a customer shall be allowed to establish a winter payment plan in succeeding years if they have honored their payment arrangements made during the prior year. She said as Ms. Barker explained, customary utility practices do not allow customers to carry balances owing over an extended period of time, such as from one winter season to the next, so she didn’t understand what possible objection there could be. She said she would therefore be opposing the motion. A vote was taken on the motion and it carried two to one, with Commissioner Smith opposing the motion. Rule 306.07 - There was no discussion. Commissioner Kjellander moved for approval of the change. A vote was taken on the motion and it carried unanimously. Rule 306.08 - There was no discussion. Commissioner Kjellander moved for approval of the change. A vote was taken on the motion and it carried unanimously. Rule 306.09 - Commissioner Hansen commented that rule 306.08 provides for adequate protection for continued service, so he was confused as to why 306.09 is needed. Ms. Barker explained that during the workshops it was brought up that sometimes people can’t move immediately from one location to another, and might reside with parents or friends before they find another location. She said the objection was if you move within 10 days you are treated one way, and if you move and don’t get service connected some place else, you are treated differently. She stated the goal is to better address the situation where people have to take a little longer to move from one location to another during the winter and still maintain their moratorium status. Commissioner Hansen asked if the utilities felt it would be a burden to provide the extra time. Ms. Barker replied that the concern on the part of the utilities related to training customer service representatives. There was no further discussion and Commissioner Smith made a motion to approve the previously proposed rule 306.09. Commissioner Kjellander commented that 30 days didn’t seem unreasonable, and he supported the motion. A vote was taken on the motion and it carried unanimously. Rule 311 - Commissioner Smith stated that testimony taken at the hearing was clear and convincing that Friday terminations lead to people having to choose between going all weekend without heat or being subjected to higher charges for after hours and weekend reconnections, which are extremely burdensome to this group of people. She said she regrets that the Commission allows terminations on Fridays and would support a rule where we did not allow Friday terminations. Mr. Howell clarified that the Commission is permitted to make changes between a proposed rule and a pending rule if they are a logical outflow of the proposed rule, and in this proposed rule, the Commission had proposed to reduce the hours for termination from 2:00 p.m. to noon, not completely eliminate Friday terminations. Mr. Howell pointed out it would be less risky to simply adopt the rule as proposed, and if the Commission is so inclined, initiate another rulemaking docket to look at other issues. Commissioner Kjellander made a motion to adopt Rule 311 as proposed. There was no discussion. A vote was taken on the motion and it carried two to one, with Commissioner Smith dissenting. Commissioner Kjellander stated that Staff might want to look at eliminating Friday terminations in some future rulemaking proceeding. Rule 701 - There was no discussion. Commissioner Kjellander moved for approval of all changes to Rule 701 as proposed. A vote was taken on the motion and it carried unanimously. Ms. Barker stated one of the issues that came up during rulemaking proceedings was whether or not there should be different languages, especially Spanish, on disconnect notices to warn customers about disconnection. She said that instead of an order or attempt to make further rule changes at this time, Staff was proposing the Commission look at what companies are doing now to respond to customers who speak languages other than English before going forward on this issue. Commissioner Kjellander stated that he didn’t think a formal motion was needed and he asked if there were any objections from members of the Commission to asking Staff to proceed with discussions in this area. Commissioner Smith stated she strongly supported having Staff proceed in this area. She said during the hearing there was testimony that people are being disconnected simply because they can’t read or understand the notices utility companies provide. She said the Commission ought to have some sort of flexible mechanism where each utility can implement solutions that work according to a company’s own procedures. She said one witness testified that the remedy could be as simple as putting a note on the bill in Spanish or other languages with a number to call if a customer is not able to read or understand the bill. She stated the resolution of this difficulty is simple, relatively inexpensive, and certainly necessary. Commissioner Kjellander stated the Commission would look forward to Staff’s report on those discussions with the utility companies. Commissioner Smith asked Mr. Howell for clarification about the rejection of the proposed changes to Rule 306.06 and if the Commission is now left with the pre-existing rule. Mr. Howell replied that in his view, the Commission is proposing no changes to Rule 306.06. Don Howell’s October 28, 2005 Decision Memorandum re: Updating the Commission’s Gas Pipeline Safety Rule 201, Docket No. 31-1101-0501. Commissioner Kjellander confirmed that the update is needed to incorporate changes to the federal safety regulations. He made a motion to approve the changes to Rule 201. A vote was taken on the motion and it carried unanimously. Don Howell’s October 28, 2005 Decision Memorandum re: Updating the Commission’s Railroad Safety Rule 103 Regarding the Transportation of Hazardous Material, Docket No. 31-7103-0301. Commissioner Kjellander confirmed that the changes originated at the federal level. He made a motion to approve the changes to Rule 103. A vote was taken on the motion and it carried unanimously. The only other items on the agenda were under the heading of FULLY SUBMITTED MATTERS and Commissioner Kjellander stated the Commission would deliberate on those items privately. He then adjourned the meeting. DATED this _______ day of November, 2005. ____________________________________ COMMISSION SECRETARY 5