20110104Vol XIII Grace pp 2323-2443.pdf

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BEFORE THE IDAHO PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION
IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION
OF PACIFICORP DBA ROCKY MOUNTAIN
POWER FOR APPROVAL OF CHANGES TO
ITS ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULES
Case No. PAC-E-10-07
HEARING BEFORE:
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COMMISSIONER MARSHA H. SMITH (Presiding)
COMMISSIONER JIM KEMPTON
COMMISSIONER MACK REDFORD
Place:Grace American Legion Hall
50 North First West
Grace, Idaho
Date:December 15, 2010
Time:1:30 p.m.
VOLUME XIII -- Pages 2323 - 2443
(REPORTER i S COUNT Pages 1 - 120)
I............T&T REPORTING
CERTIFIED SHORTHAND REPORTERS
ORIGINAL
REpORTED By
Crystal Hereford,
CSR, RPR
POST ÛFFICE Box 51020
IDAHO FALLS, IDAHO 83405
208.529.5491 · FAX [phone]% · 1.800.529.5491
PUBLIC HEARG - 12115/2010
ROCKY MOUNTAIN CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE, IDAHO= SHEET i PAGE i _ PAGE 3
F' PAGE 41 PROCEEDINGS
2 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you, ladies
3 and gentlemen, for being here. We appreciate it.
4 This is the time and place set for a public hearing
5 before the Idaho Public Utilties Commission in Case
6 No. PAC-E-1Q-07. It's further identified as In the
7 Matter of the Application of PacifiCorp doing business
8 as Rocky Mountain Power for Approval of Changes to its
9 Electric Service Schedules.
10 My name is Marsha Smith. I'm one of the
11 commissioners, and I'll be chairing today's hearing.
12 On my left is Commissioner Jim Kempton, who's also
13 president of the commission, and on my right is
14 Commissioner Mack Redford. The three of us make up
15 the commission, and we're happy to be here today to
16 take your comments regarding Rocky Mountain's
17 application.
18 We'll now take appearances from the
19 parties, beginning with the applicant.
20 MR. SOLANDER: Thank you. Daniel
21 Solander, senior counsel for Rocky Mountain Power. I
22 have with me at the table --
23 AN AUDIENCE MEMBER: He needs to have a
24 mike.
Page 2 25 AN AUDIENCE MEMBER: We can't hear him.
I
I
BEFORE THE IDAHO PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION
I IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION
OF PACIFICORP DBA ROCKY MOUNTAIN
POWER FOR APPROVAL OF CHANGES TO
ITS ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULES
)
)
) Case No. PAC-E-10-07
)
)
I
I HEARING BEFORE:
COMMISSIONER MASHA H. SMITH IPresiding)
COMMISSIONER JIM KEMPTON
COMMISSIONER MACK REDFORD
I Place: Grace American Legion Hall
50 North 1st West
Grace, Idaho
I Date: December 15, 2010
Time: 1:30 p.m.
I
I Crystal Hereford,
CSR, RPR
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F" PAGE 2
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APPEARANCES
For the Company:
DANIEL E. SOLANDER, ESQ.
201 South Main Street
Suite 2300
Salt Lake City, Utah 84111
I For Commission Staff:
NEIL PRICE, ESQ.
Deputy Attorney General
472 West Washington Street
Boise, Idaho 83729IAlso Present:
Ted Weston
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EXHIBITS
No.DESCRI PTION
904 Statement ~ Representative Marc Gibbs
Statement - Mike Veile905
906
907
Statement & Documents - Trent L. Clark
Statement & Documents - Senator Robert L. Geddes
908 Statement - Tim Buller
909 Documents - Rodger Sorensen
910 Statement - John H. Tippets
911 Newspaper Article
912 Statement - William and June Hunter
913 Statement - Orval and Beverly Michaelson
914 Statement - Paul Stenhouse
915 Statement - Verleen K. Toland
916 Statement - Patricia J. Wilder
917 Statement - Robert E. Ziel
Page 3
T&TREPORTING [phone]
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PUBLIC HEARG - 12115/2010
ROCKY MOUNAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE, IDAHO
.. PAGE 7
1 We are pleased to be here to hear your
2 testimony, and i know i speak for all of us when I say
3 that we are very much aware of the current state of
4 the economy and the burden additional rate increases
5 place on customers. This is a significant case, and
6 we are taking it very seriously, as we do all of our
7 work.
8 Our procedure for today is if you wish to
9 testify, you signed up on a sheet near the door. You
10 will be called in the order in which you signed up.
11 Commissioner Redford will ask you to raise your right
12 hand and ask you if you're going to tell us the truth,
13 which we know you wil, but it's a formality in this
14 part of our hearing process.
15 Senator Geddes said that some were
16 concerned because they might be speaking from
17 information they obtained from sources other than
18 their personal knowledge, and that's fine as long as
19 to the best of your belief and knowledge the
20 information is correct.
21 Then Mr. Price will ask you tw important
22 questions. One is your name, and we'll ask you to
23 spell it so it's correct on the record, and your
24 mailing address. And after you've been identified in
25 that manner, you're just free to make your statement
;= SHEET 2 PAGE 5
1 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Do you want to stand
2 up, please.
3 MR. SOLANDER: I'm Daniel Solander, an
4 attorney for Rocky Mountain Power. And I have with me
5 at the table Ted Weston, our Idaho regulatory affairs
6 manager.
7 MR. PRICE: Neil Price. I'm the deputy
8 attorney general. i represent commission staff.
9 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Okay. And i don't
10 think any of the other parties -- there are actually
11 seven parties to this case. I don't think the other
12 five partes are formally making an appearance today.
13 So welcome. I want to take a few minutes
14 to describe our hearing process. A commission hearing
15 is like a district court proceeding. Commission
16 decisions have to be based on evidence that is
17 presented, so we have a court reporter who is here and
18 will take down all that is said today.
19 It's very importnt that only one person
20 speak at a time because the court reporter can only
21 take one person at a time. It is not appropriate.
22 because of the nature of the proceeding, to speak out
23 of turn, to call out from the audience, to clap, or to
24 any other way disrupt the hearing.
25 We're here to hear your comments, and our
¡- PAGE 6
1 procedure doesn't allow for us to answer questions or
2 engage in a discussion or back and forth.
3 The commission is required by state law
4 to consider a rate increase request when it comes to
5 us and to balance the interests of you, the public,
6 with those of the utility. So we don't have the
7 luxury or the abilty to just say no. We are required
8 by law to allow utilities to recover prudently
9 incurred expenses and to have the opportunity to earn
10 a reasonable return on their investment.
11 The commission may deny recovery of a
12 utility's expenses or investment if it fails to
13 provide evidence that adequately support those
14 expenditures.
15 Information about the case and the
16 numerous and complex issues that we will have to
17 consider as part of it can be found on our website.
18 That's ww.puc.idaho.gov. There may also be summaries
19 on a table in the foyer or at the back of the room or
20 other materials provided by other parties.
21 After we're finished creating the record,
22 then the commission will deliberate on the merits of
23 the case and the issues that are presented and make a
24 written decision. Commission orders can be appealed
25 directly to our state supreme court.
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.- PAGE 8
1 before the commission.
2 After you're finished making your
3 statement, there may be questions either from the
4 commissioners or from Mr. Price or Mr. Solander if
5 they need to clarify something you mentioned.
6 If you don't wish to speak orally today,
7 you may use a commentform that is outside the room on
8 the table and submit your comments in writing. Or if
9 it's more convenient, you may also do it online
10 through our website where there is a comment place.
11 If you choose to do either of those, we
12 ask that you please get your comments to us by next
13 Monday, December 20 because that is the date of our
14 last hearing, which wil be a telephonic hearing in
15 the evening where people who wish to testify just call
16 in from their homes on the telephone and give their
17 testimony to us in that manner. After Monday, the
18 record will be ciosed, and the commission will
19 deliberate the case, so we need to have your comments
20 by then.
21 Because there's a large number of people
22 who have an interest in making a comment, i would ask
23 you to please be respectul of the time when you make
24 your comment. And if someone has already said your
25 comment, you can just say "I agree with" and say that
T&T REPORTING [phone]
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PUBLIC HEARG - 12115/2010
ROCKY MOUNTAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE, IDAHO
.. PAGE 11
1 Gibbs, I'm a widow. I don't drive, I don't see well,
2 and I don't write letters."
3 i promised her that i would relay her
4 message to the commission about her concerns. She
5 lives on a fixed income. She said that about 43 years
6 ago Utah Power & Light had told her and her husband
7 about the all electric homes and that there was a
8 discount in their power rate for building their home
9 that way.
10 She said for years they could control the
11 heat in every room, and it was wonderfuL. As time
12 passed, the discounts disappeared for all electric
13 homes, and since her husband has passed away, she has
14 been forced to turn the heat off in some rooms. She
15 wears a sweater or a light jacket to stay warm and
16 make ends meet.
17 She now fears that with another rate
18 increase she will be forced to sell her home and move
19 into a rest home. The lady requested that i not use
20 her name, but if you need know that name, i can
21 provide it.
22 Secondly, i would like to talk about
23 irrigation rates and the Last Chance Canal Company.
24 From a personal standpoint, our farm faces increased
25 costs. A rate increase will make it more diffcult to
F= SHEET 3 PAGE 9
1 person so that we know that's what you would have said
2 without taking, you know, all of the time to do that.
3 Is there anything I missed?
4 i wish to acknowledge the presence -- I
5 saw him earlier -- of Senator Geddes in the room, and
6 I'm not -- hey. I'm not sure if any other elected
7 offcials are back here i should recognize.
8 AN AUDIENCE MEMBER: Representative
9 Lortescher.
10 COMMISSIONER SMITH: You're way back
11 there. Representative Lortescher, good to see you.
12 And we'd like to begin our proceeding by
13 callng Bonne Gibbs, who I think is representing the
14 Gibbs spouse. If she's right here. There she is.
15 Come forward, please. She mentioned she didn't know
16 this was part of the deaL. I'm sure she's going to do
17 well. Thank you.
18 BONNE GIBBS WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
19 MR. PRICE: Can you just start off by
20 stating and spelling your name?
21 MS. GIBBS: My name is Bonne Gibbs,
22 B-O-N-N-E, G-I-B-B-S.
23 MR. PRICE: What is your mailing address?
24 MS. GIBBS: 632 Highway 34, Grace, Idaho
25 83241.
,
¡= PAGE 10
1 MR. PRICE: Thank you. Go ahead.
2 MS. GIBBS: I am representing
3 Representative Marc Gibbs today, who is unable to be
4 here.
5 I want to thank the IPUC commissioners
6 for coming to Grace and Preston to hold these public
7 meetings. I believe that it's importnt to give our
8 constituents an opportunity to testify before the
9 commission about this rate case. My only regret is
10 that my schedule conflicted with the dates of the
11 meetings, and I could not be here. However, I would
12 like to mention a few issues.
13 As you are aware, Senator Geddes,
14 Representative Lortescher, and I have had meetings
15 throughout our district concerning the rate case. We
16 have felt that it was necessary to inform our
17 constituents about this case and to inform them how
18 they could participate in this importnt process.
19 As a result of the meeting held in
20 Franklin County, I received a phone call that I would
21 like to tell you about. A widow from Franklin called
22 me to express her opposition to the rate increase
23 being proposed by Rocky Mountain Power. I told her
24 that she would need to write the IPUC or attend the
25 hearing in Preston, and she said, "Representative
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PAGE 12
1 remain profitable. We will try to pass those
2 increased costs to our seed customers, however, most
3 often we are facing supply and demand issues, and we
4 in agriculture will have to absorb these costs.
5 The Canal Company has an issue with the
6 rate increase. The power company has offered us a
7 load management program to give us a discount on our
8 power rate if they can shut off our pumps for a few
9 hours each day. The problem with this program is that
10 after we've diverted our water from the river and the
11 power company has shut down our pumps, where does the
12 water go? We then end up flooding the people out at
13 the end of the ditch. And in the dry years or short
14 water years, sometimes the water has more value than
15 the cost of power, and we simply can't afford to lose
16 the water while shutting down pumps for the load
17 management program.
18 Lastly, it's my understanding the IPUC
19 has recommended that 50 percent of the cost of the
20 Gateway transmission project be added to the rate base
21 of the power company. I have been told that only
22 10 percent of capacity of Gateway is needed at this
23 time.
24 If this is the case, why doesn't the IPUC
25 only allow 10 percent of the cost of the Gateway to be
T&TREPORTING [phone]
PUBLIC HEARG - 12/15/2010
ROCKY MOUNTAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE, IDAHO
PAGE 15
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= SHEET 4 PAGE 13
1 used in the rate base rather than the 50 percent they
2 are presently recommending? Better yet, why is the
3 cost of the Gateway project being applied to Idaho
4 ratepayers when the power needed from the wind farms
5 in Wyoming is to be sent to other states with
6 renewable energy standards.
7 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you for your
8 statement. Let's see if there are any questions.
9 MR. SOLANDER: No questions.
10 MR. PRICE: No questions.
11 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you very
12 much. The court reporter will take that.
13 Our second person is Mick Merritt.
14 I would note that there's stil a couple
15 of seats on the bench if you want to be really up
16 front.
17 MICK MERRITT WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
18 MR. MERRITT: My name is Mick Merritt,
19 M-I-C-K, M-E-R-R-I- T - T. I live at 86 North 2nd East
20 in Bennington, Idaho. I've come here today to just
21 take a few minutes.
22 First of all, I want to thank you for
23 having it here where we were able to attend and for
24 listening to our input.
25 I've been a paying customer of the power
_ PAGE 14
1 company since 1979, and I feel like that the rate
2 increase they're asking for is too high for the
3 economy at this time and too high for the way that
4 everything seems to be going.
5 If I go to town to buy fuel or I go to
6 town to buy groceries, I have a choice to go to
7 several different places. If I don't find what I want
8 there, I don't find that it's within my price range, I
9 can leave and go elsewhere and purchase what I need.
10 With my power I don't have that choice. The power
11 company is hooked up to my house at my choice, but I
12 pay what they tell me to pay, and I have no choice in
13 the matter.
14 From what I read in the newspaper, it
15 talked like it wouldn't be a very big increase, like
16 maybe a soda pop a day. But from what I've read other
17 places, I don't believe that's correct. I believe
18 it's going to impact us somewhere in the neighborhood
19 of 8 to 15 percent for each individual, and that's a
20 lot more than a can of pop a day.
21 So that's what I wanted to say, and thank
22 you.
23 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Are there any
24 questions?
25 MR. SOLANDER: No questions.
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MR. PRICE: No questions.
COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you very
1
2
3 much.
4 Irene Bergendorf.
5 COMMISSIONER SMITH: We're now going to
6 ask you to please hold the mike so people can hear
7 better. Apparently, they can't hear well in the
8 back.
9 IRENE BERGENDORF WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
10 MS. BERGENDORF: First of all, I'd like
11 to thank you for --
12 MR. PRICE: Ma'am, can you --
13 MS. BERGENDORF: Oh, I'm sorr.
14 MR. PRICE: -- just start off with your
15 name?
16 MS. BERGENDORF: Irene Bergendorf,
17 I-R-E-N-E, B-E-R-G-E-N-D-O-R-F; Post Offce Box 711,
18 Lava Hot Springs, Idaho 83246.
19 MR. PRICE: Thank you.
20 MS. BERGENDORF: Uh-huh. I would like to
21 thank the commission for allowing me to come and
22 vent.
23 I also -- my husband and i, back in 1972
24 when we built our home, were convinced by then Utah
25 Power & Light that if we went all electric, we would
= PAGE 16
1 get a special rate and we would have the cleanest
2 heat. And it lasted, I believe, just a few months, to
3 the best of my knowledge.
4 And all of a sudden I was told that the'
5 legislature, in their infinite wisdom, decided that
6 other residential ratepayers who were not all electric
7 were being discriminated against. And it wasn't -- it
8 was several years after that that we lost our
9 Bonneville Power credit, and our power bil doubled.
10 And at that particular time, we had been
11 using on the time-of-day rate, and we would turn our
12 heat on -- our electric heat on, which is cable heat,
13 in the evening, and then through the day we would burn
14 our wood fireplace. We have now installed a gas
15 fireplace. And our power bill, by the way, doubled.
16 And I have some notes here, but I can't
17 see them because I don't have my glasses. I forgot
18 them. But i also feel that we, as all electric
19 homeowners, are being discriminated against, because
20 our rates would be going up 15.7 percent.
21 And we have ceilng cable heat in our .
22 home, and we can't even install a gas furnace because
23 we have no place to put duct work. And since building
24 our home in 1972, we feel that we have been the brunt
25 of Rocky Mountain Power, formerly Utah
T &T REPORTING [phone]
PUBLIC HEARG - 12115/2010
ROCKY MOUNTAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE, IDAHO
PAGE 19
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F" SHEET 5 PAGE 17
1 Power & Light's, unfair tactics.
2 And in coming from a small town like
3 Lava, there are so many seniors in that town who live
4 on nothing but their Social Security. Over the past
5 few years they haven't even got a cost of living
6 raise, and they're going to be taken right out of
7 their homes.
8 And I feel that now is just really not
9 the time to do this. i appreciate you listening to
10 me. Thank you.
11 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Any questions?
12 MR. SOLANDER: No questions.
13 MR. PRICE: No questions.
14 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Commissioner Kempton
15 has a question, if you don't mind.
16 COMMISSIONER KEMPTON: Just a quick
17 question. Do you happen to know about what your power
18 usage is in terms of kilowatt hours?
19 MS. BERGENDORF: I do because I got my
20 power bill just today, and it's out in the car. I do,
21 but it's out in the car. I got my power bil today.
22 COMMISSIONER KEMPTON: Okay. Would you
23 provide that?
24 MS. BERGENDORF: I will.
25 COMMISSIONER KEMPTON: We can enter it on
1 very much.
2 Mike -- is it Veile?
3 MR. VEILE: Close enough.
4 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Oh, no. Help me
5 out.
6 MR. VEILE: Veile.
7 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Veile. Thank you.
8 MIKE VEILE WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
9 MR. VEILE: Mike, M-I-K-E, Veile,
10 V-E-I-L-E. 2931 Wood Canyon, Soda Springs 83276.
11 Commissioners, I appreciate you coming
12 down here and giving us the opportnity to speak.
13 As a resident of Soda Springs, I'd like
14 to register my deep opposition to this rate case and
15 let you know that I'm deeply disturbed as the current
16 scenario that Rocky Mountain Power is exploiting is
17 simply unchecked investment at a guaranteed rate of
18 return far above what is reasonable for this economic
19 climate.
20 Rocky Mountain Power has invested in
21 renewable energy resources and transmission
22 infrastructure to satisfy legislative mandates from
23 customers on the West Coast, and it seems like they're
24 simply grabbing what they can from Idaho along the
25 way. Our load is not increasing, and we don't need
= PAGE 18
1 the record if you'll just give it to me perhaps when
2 we have a break, or perhaps you can come up while
3 somebody else is testifying. Okay?
4 MS. BERGENDORF: When the Bonneville
5 Power credit was taken away from us, I called
6 Representative Simpson's offce and asked if there was
7 anything that they could do to help us, and I was told
8 that it was in the hands of the Court and there was
9 not much they could do. But at that particular time,
10 I did have the information available for the lady that
11 I talked to.
12 And in all the years before that, we had
13 never had a power bil over a hundred dollars a month,
14 and that was simply because we were on the time-of-day
15 and we heated our house with the fireplace in the
16 daytime. And as soon as that was taken away, our
17 power bill was up to almost $200 a month, and it has
18 been ever since.
19 And in the last couple of months, we have
20 resorted to using one of the infrared little heaters
21 and using that to try and defer some of the cost, and
22 I think it has helped. This is the first power bill
23 that we've received since we bought that little
24 infrared heater, and it has helped.
25 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Okay. Thank you
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PAGE 20
1 this investment at this time.
2 Now, I can appreciate that investment in
3 large infrastructre like generation takes time. But
4 this is wind energy, and wind energy, by its nature,
5 can be added quickly and on an as-needed basis. So I
6 can understand that if it were a coal powered
7 facility, that would be in much larger denominations
8 of capacity, and that would lend itslf to an
9 overbuild situation. But this is wind energy, and
10 wind energy can be built as needed, and the
11 overcapacity isn't justified. Therefore, the
12 justification that Rocky Mountain Power -lies in
13 Rocky Mountain Power having virtally unlimited access
14 to cash that they can demand a 10.6 rate of return
15 on.
16 So the system in itself seems inherentiy
17 flawed. It rewards their spending and building beyond
18 the needs of the customers since they are mandated.
19 That is, the customers are mandated to pay for that
20 rate of return. Where is the check and balance?
21 So we've been informed that we can expect
22 a rate case every year to fund over $10 billion in
23 future investment and should expect an 80 percent
24 increase in our rates over the next five years. Where
25 is the Idaho demand side to balance this massive
T&T REPORTING [phone]
PUBLIC HEARG - 12115/2010
ROCKY MOUNTAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE, IDAHO
,. PAGE 23
1 into it. Thank you.
2 MR. SIEPERT: All right. I'll try to do
3 my best here. Spencer Siepert spelled S-P-E-N-C-E-R,
4 last name, S-I-E-P-E-R- T. I reside at 1214 Bailey
5 Creek Circle, Soda Springs, Idaho.
6 Good afternoon. My name is Spence
7 Siepert. I'm here today representing myself and my
8 family. I have lived in this wonderful area for the
9 last 19 years plus. I've been fortnate to be able to
10 work for tw great companies, both Agrium and Monsanto
11 for those 19 years.
12 I do not come to you as an expert in
13 electricity or economics, but I do feel like I do have
14 some common sense. As I've read and listened to some
15 of the proposals to the increased rates for both the
16 homeowner, around 14 percent, and the industry could
17 increase around 50 plus percent, I can't think that
18 these current -- in these current economic times that
19 a whole lot of common sense is being used. As a
20 matter of fact, even in good economic times, I think
21 that these rate increases are outrageous.
22 I know that in the business I have
23 worked or am currently working is an environment where
24 margins or returns or whatever you want to call
25 them -- or profit, whatever you -- start to tighten or
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i= SHEET 6 PAGE 21
1 supply investment? It's not in the Idaho service
2 territory. Vlere is the incentive to compel Rocky
3 Mountain Power to invest wisely, prudently, and
4 economically? The present incentive seems to be to
5 add as much cost as they can and pass that on to us,
6 as we're mandated to pay for it.
7 Now, this is where you come in. And we
8 need your leadership, and we need you to guide their
9 investment decisions before they are putting this
10 infrastructure into the ground. So I ask you to send
11 the message to Rocky Mountain Power that they need to
12 match the investment they wish to saddle Idaho with to
13 the needs of Idaho. We do not need to pay for a
14 Gateway project that is order of magnitude beyond our
15 needs and was really built to satisfy the dictates of
16 the West Coast.
17 Now, carbon taxing is a wonderful
18 boogeyman to point to as an excuse to throwing in
19 1,100 megawatts of wind generation. This is the most
20 expensive infrastructure in the region. But carbon
21 taxing is not a reality, especially with the changes
22 in the political climate.
23 So why should Rocky Mountain Power be the
24 beneficiary of an ever increasing variable interest
25 rate? Now, I have a 3.75 percent fixed rate on my
_ PAGE 22
1 house. So how does this stand up to Rocky Mountain
2 Power being guaranteed 10.6 percent?
3 Now, i don't want to have to come and
4 testify next year and the year after and the year
5 after for an ever increasing rate that they're after,
6 so I urge you to send that message to them. I urge
7 you to send them that their current game plan isn't
8 justified and that they really should change their
9 course. Thank you.
10 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Are there any
11 questions?
12 MR. SOLANDER: No questions.
13 MR. PRICE: No questions.
14 COMMISSIONER SMITH: I just had one. Are
15 you a Rocky Mountain residential customer?
16 MR.. VEILE: Yes, I am. And you know, I
17 wasn't a year ago. I built a new house, and I built
18 this house -- I don't have access to natural gas. So
19 while my service kind of went down a little bit, a lot
20 more power outages, but at least I pay more now.
21 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Our next person is
22 Spence Siepert.
23 SPENCER SIEPERT WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
24 COMMISSIONER SMITH: I've been asked to
25 remind you to hold it very close and speak directly
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1 lessen, we as a company are expected to make cuts,
2 manage our costs and our inventories. Those become a
3 real focus in the business.
4 It would be nice if we could just raise
5 our prices so we could expect a 10 percent plus profit
6 margin or rate of return so our stockholders could be
7 rewarded for investing in our company. This is not
8 real word for most of us. Unfortunately, this is
9 happening in the world today in some cases, and i
10 think that this is wrong. There needs to be some
11 accountabilty for our utility companies that are
12 supposed to be a service organization, not an
13 investment firm.
14 Let me quote Idaho's energy plan
15 objective. "Ensure a secure, reliable, and stable
16 energy system for the citizens and business of Idaho,
17 and maintain Idaho's low-cost energy supply and ensure
18 access to affordable energy for all Idahoans."
19 Rocky Mountain Power is saying that they
20 are investing for the future. I would ask this: Vlat
21 is the future? Is the answer to spend billions of
22 dollars on utilities that are not the most cost
23 effective and send that power to the other states, as
24 we've heard, where their regulations require them to
25 use a certin amount of that power?
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_ PAGE 27
1 ultimately would have on these students and the
2 ability for our district and myself and my staff to be
3 able to give them the education that they deserve.
4 V\ile we've had a mild increase in the
5 number of students on our campus this year -- which is
6 always pleasing because in the past that always meant
7 we had a little bit more money to spend, to spread
8 out, and take care of the needs of these students,
9 this year quite the contrary happened.
10 we had not only the reduction in
11 salaries, which i think others may testify to, we've
12 had a reduction in our supplies budget. And at the
13 same time with the supplies budget we were given, we
14 were asked to hold back half of that just as a
15 possibility that the State might be even kinder to
16 us -- Senator Geddes.
17 We haven't bought a new desk on my campus
18 for probably ten years. We don't have the money to do
19 the things that we need to to keep our building up.
20 Every week or so we throw another desk out because
21 it's just fallng apart.
22 We have what i would consider to be
23 prudentiy incurred expenses, but we have less money to
24 take care of those prudently incurred expenses. Our
25 students are losing a little bit of what they
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= SHEET 7 PAGE 25
1 I'm proud to be from Idaho and proud of
2 the decisions we have made as a state, and i do not
3 want to pay for their decisions. If we need more
4 power, which I don't think we do at this time, let us
5 do something that makes sense, not windmills that run
6 30 percent of the time. We can't afford, as a
7 state -- or for that matter, a country -- to continue
8 to make mistakes. We need to be going forwrd and not
9 backwrds.
10 I do want to state that when things make
11 sense and they are reasonable, I am willng to pay my
12 share. I have done this with tax increases, school
13 fee increases, and others, but they did make sense.
14 Adding 14 plus percent to homeowners and charging
15 Monsanto an additional 22 million, as stated in the
16 paper, is not reasonable.
17 I know that if this increase takes place
18 at Monsanto, we would no longer be competitive with
19 the Chinese in the phosphorus market, which in turn
20 would cut down -- would shut us down, leaving not only
21 those 700 affected employees and contractors out of
22 jobs, but also would trickle down through the
23 communities, shutting down many businesses and
24 schools. Monsanto is integrated through the hundreds
25 of millions of dollars that are put into the
_ PAGE 26
1 surrounding areas.
2 Commissioners, I would ask that you would
3 please use common sense and look at the facts very
4 carefully and please protect our jobs and communities
5 from a proposal that would devastate the area and
6 continue to drive unemployment from the 8 percent
7 we're currently at to something unmanageable in the
8 state of Idaho. Please make Rocky Mountain
9 accountable for their decisions. Thank you.
10 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Are thera
11 questions?
12 MR. SOLANDER: No questions.
13 MR. PRICE: No questions.
14 COMMISSIONER REDFORD: No.
15 COMMISSIONER KEMPTON: No.
16 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you, sir.
17 Doug Owen.
18 DOUG OWEN WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
19 MR. OWEN: My name is Doug Owen.
20 That's D-O-U-G, O-W-E-N. i live at 229 East
21 3rd North, Soda Springs 83276.
22 And I'm here to, in my words, represent
23 the future. I'm the principal of Soda Springs High
24 School, so I'm here on behalf of my 250 students to
25 express my concerns over the impact that this
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1 typically had in their high school experience because
2 we've shifted more of the costs of our extracurricular
3 activities to their shoulders. We've cut back the
4 number of games and things to try to do everything we
5 could to be prudent and wise stewards of the money
6 that we are given by the taxpayers. But again,the
7 students are bearing more of that cost.
8 Our students, on a day-to-day basis --
9 interestingly enough, this year was probably the best
10 canned food drive we've had. I'm seeing our kids
11 reach out to try to help those around them in spite of
12 their own meager circumstances.
13 But at the same time, this morning I was
14 at the bank helping count the money for our most
15 recent project, which we donate to the Angel Tree.
16 And our students have done very well at this in the
17 past, but right now we're at about 43 percent of our
18 goal. Our kids don't have the same money in their
19 pockets they once did, and that's because mom and dad
20 don't have the same money in their pockets they once
21 did. But our students are giving of themselves and
22 trying to do everything they possibly can.
23 Now to the real crux of the matter. We
24 are not, on our campus, customers of this concern, but
25 our parents are. 50 percent of our parents are
T&TREPORTING [phone]
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F' PAGE 31
1 these things not to make a huge return on our
2 financial investment but to keep our doors open so
3 that we can educate our children.
4 Many of our patrons are unemployed and
5 facing financial hardship. The burden of the rate
6 increase will be an additional hardship to the
7 families of our district.
8 Our local business partners, industry,
9 farmers, and ranchers will be devastated by the
10 proposed increase -- the increase in the power costs.
11 Not only does the school system rely on these
12 entities' support through donation and scholarship,
13 local industry is responsible for over half of the
14 assessed value of our supplement and planned
15 facilties levies.
16 Their financial support in this area is
17 over $1 million to the district. These entiies rely
18 on reasonable power rates to stay in business. The
19 Soda Springs School District could not stay in
20 business without the support of our patrons and
21 business partners. Our levies would simply not pass.
22 The Soda Springs School District pleads
23 with the commission to reject these unreasonable rate
24 increases. Thank you.
25 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you for your
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1 employed by one of the entities that could be severely
2 impacted by this, as somebody else intimated. With
3 approximately half of our workforce employed by one of
4 these entities, and then by extension, half of the
5 additional businesses in town being impacted if
6 something were to happen to these entities, what would
7 happen to our campus? We would dry up and disappear.
8 Our students receive a good education
9 here. We make our AYP. We are doing wonderful things
10 with our students to make sure they achieve the things
11 they need to be able to so they can have successful
12 and productive lives. I'm afraid that in this
13 climate, as many have said, to increase costs to us,
14 indirectly or directly, while we are already cuttng
15 our budgets and trying to find ways to make do with
16 what we have would be unconscionable on the part of
17 any entity that wants to ensure they have a budget to
18 meet their needs and their desires.
19 Thank you very much for your time.
20 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Any questions?
21 MR. SOLANDER: No questions.
22 MR. PRICE: No questions.
23 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you,
24 Mr. Owen.
25 Molly Stein.
= PAGE 30
1 MOLLY STEIN WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
2 MS. STEIN: My name is Molly Stein,
3 M-O-L-L-Y, S-T-E-I-N.
4' I would like to state first that I agree
5 with Mr. Spence Siepert.
6 MR. PRICE: Can you go ahead and state
7 your address?
8 MS. STEIN: 1780 Cedar View Road.
9 MR. PRICE: In what city?
10 MS. STEIN: Soda Springs.
11 MR. PRICE: Thank you.
12 MS. STEIN: Today I'm representing 834
13 children and their families, 132 teachers and staff,
14 and the business and community education partners of
15 the Soda Springs School District 150.
16 It is no secret that many state agencies
17 have suffered extreme cutbacks in the funding this
18 past year. The Soda Springs school district is one of
19 114 districts in the state of Idaho that received a
20 7.5 percent reduction in state revenue for current
21 school year. This equates to just under a half
22 million dollars to our district.
23 We cannot buy textbooks. We cut
24 personnel and raised fees for our students. Our
25 teachers and staff took a 4 percent pay cut. We did
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1 testimony.
2 Next we have Mr. Trent Clark. And just
3 so you can get ready, after Mr. Clark will be Chad
4 Ericsson.
5 TRENT CLARK WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
6 MR. CLARK: Commissioner Smith,
7 Commissioner Kempton --
8 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Mr. Clark, would you
9 just start with your name.
10 MR. CLARK: Trent Clark, T-R-E-N-T,
11 C-L-A-R-K.
12 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Mailing address?
13 MR. CLARK: And a mailing address is Post
14 Offce Box 316 in Soda Springs.
15 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you.
16 MR. CLARK: I am an employee of
17 Monsanto. i also own a horse stable that is in Rocky
18 Mountain Power's service territory. But really I am
19 here as a 12-year member of Idaho's Rural Development
20 Council, and I actually represent rural manufacturing
21 on the State Rural Development CounciL.
22 In any description of the key industries
23 of Southeast Idaho you will find prominent on the list
24 fresh and frozen food processing, metal fabrication,
25 phosphate and phosphorus manufacturing, high-tech R&D
T&T REPORTING [phone]
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= PAGE 35
1 conference call lasting that long?
2 i also submit for the record the meeting
3 report for the fourth public input meeting for the
4 Integrated Resource Plan. That's also in the attched
5 materials. It was held on October 5. Please note
6 that the only Idahoan present on the call was Rick
7 Sterling of the commission staff. And by the way, I
8 give Rick great commendations for being able to bear
9 through the process.
10 Also note that there's nearly a complete
11 void of private sector businesses. . There was one
12 customer from Washington state and the Utah
13 Association of the Energy Users, and they were the
14 sole representatives of all businesses big and small.
15 Well represented, however, were all of
16 those interests who have a financial stake in the
17 promotion, acquisition, installation, and operation of
18 so-called green power. These organizations
19 outnumbered the, quote, unquote, customers by four to
20 one.
21 Also included with my written testimony,
22 by the way, is a quick research summary of the eight
23 green power advocacy organizations attending the
24 resource planning meetings. I've included just the
25 first few sentences that come up on the Internet
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~ SHEET 9 PAGE 33
1 mostly associated with research accelerators and
2 facilities at the Idaho National Lab. Those are the
3 industries of this corner of Idaho. Every one of them
4 is described as energy intensive.
5 Now, that is why I was astonished when,
6 upon announcement of the current rate case, I
7 discovered that it is Rocky Mountain Power's intention
8 to go into massive wind generation and wind energy
9 transmission. And the reason is, as Commissioner
10 Kempton will be able to explain to you, physics.
11 Physics almost prohibits the possibility
12 that we would hope to supply the needs of energy
13 intensive industry by capturing gusts of air. Even in
14 the early days of the western settlement, when, by the
15 way, wind power was a greater percentage of the
16 available power, no one ever imagined that they would
17 power refrigeration with wind power.
18 And by the way, I grew up on a family
19 farm that had a windmilL. We used it for pumping
20 water. We never would have. considered it for running
21 the welder.
22 That's the disconnect. It was obvious to
23 me that in seeking to power energy intensive industry
24 with wind power there was a clear -- it was a clear
25 example of not matching up need with a plan. And so I
_ PAGE 34
1 asked representatives of Rocky Mountain Power how such
2 a disconnect could arise in their resource management
3 plan, and their answer was, well, it's all in the
4 integrated resource plan.
5 And that's why, three months ago, I
6 started subscribing to and participating in the 2011
7 integrated resource planning process. To the extent,
8 by the way, that I could. And today I have found the
9 answer to my question. I now know exactly why such a
10 disconnect is not only possible but it was
11 inevitable. .
12 Participation in the integrated resource
13 planning process is not easy. I respectfully submit
14 for the record -- and it's included with the written
15 materials you have -- my invite to the fifth meeting
16 of the integrated resource planning meeting scheduled
17 for December 15, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
18 Now, ignore for the moment the fact that
19 that meeting is actually going on right now as Rocky
20 Mountain Power is actally having a rate hearing here
21 in Grace, Idaho. My real question is, Who has from
22 10:00 in morning until 4:00 in the afternoon to sit on
23 a conference call? I mean, that is -- for a person
24 who is actually part of a business or involved in, you
25 know, daily work life, who can sit through a
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1 describing each organization.
2 As a listener on the calls, I found the
3 presentations far from layman friendly. The monologue
4 was filled with jargon, and there was no opportunity
5 for a free flow of conversation or open dialogue.
6 Let me just give you an example of one
7 issue that came up. The issue that I think
8 demonstrates why the process is flawed was this:
9 Apparently long before I started participating,
10 certin planning assumptions had to be developed. And
11 one of the planning assumptions was the regulatory
12 environment. Okay?
13 The regulatory environment apparently,
14 before I started joining these calls, was the
15 waxman-Markey cap-and-trade law. Then we had an
16 election in November, and some very wise person -- it
17 wasn't me. I was very quiet in this entire process--
18 someone said, I think there's a chance that the
19 waxman-Markey cap-and-trade law may not pass. That's
20 a huge understatement, by the way.
21 And I said, Is it conceivable that
22 proposal would not become law and yet it's the basis
23 of the plan?
24 In recognition that its prospect had
25 gone from small to nonexistent, there was a discussion
[phone]T&TREPORTING
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= PAGE 39
1 CHAD ERICSSON WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
2 MR. ERICSSON: My name is Chad Ericsson,
3 C-H-A-D, E-R-I-C-S-S-O-N. Address, 1590 Larsen Road,
4 Soda Springs, Idaho.
5 I come here today to represent Monsanto
6 as an employee -- or as a Monsanto employee and also
7 as a ratepayer for PacifiCorp. I feel that it is
8 unreasonable that we are being asked to pay for an
9 increase in power that is being demanded by
10 unrealistic mandates in West Coast states.
11 I also believe that it's unrealistic that
12 we be asked to pay for a large return on investments
13 in a time of deflation, not inflation. And I also
14 agree with Mike Veile and Spence Siepert's comments
15 that it just doesn't make sense at this time to be
16 asking for large rates of return on deflationary
17 economy.
18 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you,
19 Mr. Ericsson.
20 Senator Bob Geddes, and after him will be
21 Cliff Walters.
22 SENATOR BOB GEDDES WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
23 SENATOR GEDDES: Commissioners, thank you
24 very much for being in Grace, Idaho, today. we
25 appreciate the fact that you'd come to this district
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= SHEET 10 PAGE 37
1 about what should replace the assumption in the
2 regulatory environment. The current ongoing
3 assumption for Rocky Mountain Power for their 2011
4 resource management plan is the Bingaman carbon tax
5 bilL.
6 Now, as it so happens, I used to work
7 with Senator Jeff Bingaman -- a great man. I really
8 appreciate him. I happen to know for a fact if we
9 called him up on the phone today and said, Senator
10 Bingaman, how likely is your carbon tax bill to pass?
11 He would say, not a chance.
12 In fact, he's quoted in Reuters as saying
13 it's got no chance in at least the next two years.
14 And yet it's the basis of the regulatory environment
15 for this plan. So we have as the basis of a plan a
16 nonreality. It ain't going to happen.
17 And thus the disconnect, Commissioners.
18 That is why we have a proposal to invest in capital
19 that isn't needed. That carbon tax proposal isn't
20 going to happen. There was no reason not to enhance
21 Bridger and Hunter and expand their capacity instead
22 of building wind. Or take any other option that would
23 provide low-cost, affordable power to Eastern Idaho to
24 support the energy intensive industries we have. 'Ny
25 would Idaho ever let a utility build into its rate
¡= PAGE 38
1 base capital expenditures designed to pursue an
2 unrealistic future?
3 I submit to you that the integrated
4 resource planning process, as it relates to providing
5 Idaho the type and cost of electricity we need, is
6 broken. The fault here lies with the regulated
7 utility, not with the customers. I urge you as the
8 customers' protectors in this process to send Rocky
9 Mountain Power the message that they should plan more
10 wisely for Idaho's needs and exert more effort to
11 involve Idahoans, residential and business customers,
12 in their resource planning process. Thank you.
13 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Questions?
14 Just because i know that you follow this,
15 the next unit at Bridger was in the integrated
16 resource plan of Idaho Power Company several years
17 ago, and they had to remove it because they couldn't
18 get financing. So utilities have a great deal of
19 uncertinty also.
20 MR. CLARK: I could recommend a gentleman
21 by the name of Mr. Buffet who apparently has some
22 money to invest.
23 COMMISSIONER SMITH: If they can get the
24 regulatory approvals. Thank you, Mr. Clark.
25 Chad Ericsson.
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PAGE 40
1 and hear the concerns and testimonies of these good
2 people.
3 I would also like to express my
4 appreciation for so many who have come today to be
5 part of the process.
6 I would like to submit for the record a
7 number of letters that I have received from
8 constituents who were not able to come and present
9 that information personally today.
10 Commissioners, I have testimony that I
11 will provide to you, and so I'LL make my comments
12 relatively brief. First of all, in addition to being
13 a senator, I would like to disclose that I am also an
14 employee of Monsanto Company, but I am not speaking on
15 behalf of Monsanto.
16 I was in attendance at a Boise press
17 conference in May of 2005 when Warren Buffet announced
18 his purchase of Scottsh Power for the amount of
19 5.1 billon in cash with an additional assumption of
20 4.3 billon in debt.
21 He clearly stated that an energy utility
22 was not his ideal prospect for a high profit earning
23 endeavor, but he was acquiring energy companies for
24 other reasons. He explained he was attracted to their
25 predictble cash flow and summarized his strong desire
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= PAGE 43
1 Mountain Power, a fellow named R. Patrick Reiten.
2 Mr. Reiten, in 2009, was asked to make a presentation
3 to Mr. warren Buffet and his board as well as other
4 executives of MidAmerican Energy.
5 This happened over the Fourth of July
6 weekend, and he said that it was not a very fun
7 weekend for his family because he had only ten days to
8 prepare for this presentation. He talked about the
9 fact that when you make a presentation to warren
10 Buffet, you better know all the answers. And it's not
11 good for your career to say "i don't know" or "I'LL
12 get back to you."
13 He went in and asked for approval to
14 spend $6.1 billon to change the business plan of
15 Rocky Mountain Energy. Vlat he said was that in the
16 future there will be more dams dismantled than will be
17 built and that if they were going to look for the
18 future as far as energy need, they would have to
19 transition from hydropower and coal-produced energy to
20 wind power.
21 He also talked about many of the things
22 that Trent Clark discussed, the fact that they were
23 looking at future potential of regulations that would
24 provide things like carbon tax caps and carbon
25 emission caps.
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= SHEET 11 PAGE 41
1 to provide economic stability and growth, needed
2 capital improvements, effcient management, and
3 economical energy to our nation and to Idaho's
4 PacifiCorp service territory.
5 I, like others who have expressed their
6 concerns today, was taken back when I saw the
7 magnitude of this rate case. I have followed rate
8 cases for much of my professional career. This one
9 seems to be exorbitant and higher than anything that
10 we have seen.
11 I've heard it said that this rate case
12 will be precedent setting. i wondered what that truly
13 means, and I didn't quite understand what the
14 precedent would be other than the potential of
15 customers paying more money and a company returning
16 more return on equity. I have spent a significant
17 amount of time looking at all of the information that
18 i could regarding this rate case, looking for what
19 perhaps would be that precedent setting issue, and the
20 other night when I couldn't sleep, i think I found the
21 answer.
22 I found an article that was written in
23 2009, and it was basically summarizing what was
24 happening in the Pacific Northwest's energy
25 environment. It quoted statements from Stephen
_ PAGE 42
1 Wright, the administrator of the Bonnevile Power
2 Administration.
3 He talked about the concern of wind power
4 and what a diffcult thing that is to manage for his
5 energy producing agency. He talked about how
6 diffcult it was to manage the ups and downs of wind
7 and always have backup supply of power that could be
8 incorporated when the wind quit blowing.
9 He talked about the fact that the
10 political influences were forcing them to get more
11 involved in renewable energy sources. I found that
12 renewable energy sources, in the minds of most people,
13 including regulators and legislators in states like
14 Oregon, washington, and California, do not consider
15 hydropower to be renewable. In Idaho, hydropower, as
16 we know, truly is a renewable energy source.
17 Mr. Wright said that if and when they go
18 to the level of wind power that they are demanded to
19 go to, that it will break the back of the camel twce
20 and that his engineers are not able yet to figure out
21 how to integrate wind power into the grid because they
22 cannot make a correlation of when that power is going
23 to be available and when it is not.
24 I was further intrigued by some
25 statements that were made by the president of Rocky
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1 This, I think, is what is precedent
2 setting. We have an individual who convinced a long
3 held utility company to totally change the direction
4 and the method by which they have been providing
5 energy to the customers of this region for over a
6 hundred years. Now, when that happens, much of the
7 existing infrastructure will have to be dismantled or
8 simply go away.
9 Vlat's ironic to me is that we know that
10 wind power is not reliable. Even in a good location,
11 we know that wind will be reliable perhaps 30 percent
12 of the time. The proposal of Rocky Mountain Power is
13 to build as much wind capacity as possibly and back
14 that up with gas-fired generating facilties.
15 Now, it seems ironic and -- to me that
16 you would take something that is unreliable and build
17 an infrastructure to back that up with something that
18 is more reliable. That just seems backwrds. Maybe
19 it's the engineering background and geology background
20 that I have.
21 Vlat is most concerning to me is the
22 method that they are going to export this power from
23 wind farms that they have invested in in Wyoming and
24 that they continue to invest in in Idaho and the
25 transmission line that has been developed to allow
T&TREPORTING [phone]
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1 certinly appreciate your service to this state and to
2 the citizens of Idaho.
3 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you, Senator
4 Geddes, and we also appreciate yours.
5 Any questions?
6 MR. SOLANDER: Could you clarify the
7 position that Pat Reiten holds?
8 SENATOR GEDDES: The position?
9 MR. SOLANDER: Yeah. Is he actually the
10 president of Pacific Power and not Rocky Mountain
11 Power?
12 SENATOR GEDDES: Let me tell you what his
13 position actually is. I believe his name is Jay
14 Patrick Reiten, spelled R-E-I- T -E-N, president of
15 Rocky Mountain Power located in Portland, Oregon.
16 MR. SOLANDER: I don't want to testify,
17 Commissioner, but--
18 COMMISSIONER SMITH: I understand.
19 There's confusion. We believe that Mr. Reiten is
20 actually the president of Pacific Power & Light, which
21 is a sister company of Rocky Mountain Power.
22 SENATOR GEDDES: Okay. I apologize for
23 that mistake.
24 COMMISSIONER SMITH: That's fine.
25 SENATOR GEDDES: This article indicates
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= SHEET 12 PAGE 45
1 that power to be passed through Wyoming and Idaho into
2 other states, some of those states that do have a
3 green energy portolio requirement such as Oregon,
4 washington, and California.
5 . It's also ironic to me to think that
6 those states who have imposed that requirement for
7 green power are the very states that have been most
8 resistant to allowing windmills to be located within
9 their boundaries. They would rather have our
10 landscape impacted.
11 Perhaps the most concerning thing that I
12 see in this proposal is the magnitude of the
13 increase. I have heard it said that the ROE set at
14 10.6 is necessary to attact needed capital and
15 continue to maintain a reliable infrastructure
16 necessary for Rocky Mountain Power to provide services
17 to its Idaho customers. The greater concern that I
18 have is whether or not the citizens and the customers
19. of Rocky Mountain Power can sustain such a level of
20 new investment and a return on that equity.
21 I have heard it said that the utilty
22 doesn't even come close to earning the 10.25 percent
23 that they're already allowed, and perhaps that's
24 true. Some of the reading that I have encountered
25 suggests that they earn slightly under 6 percent. My
;= PAGE 46
1 question is, Wny would the commission even consider
2 granting an increase for ROE if the company cannot
3 even achieve what has already been allowed?
4 For too long the utilities have leveraged
5 rate increases against what it has -- what has been
6 allowed in other similar utilities. Utilities
7 providing services in multiple states have leveraged
8 against those other states' utility commissions. This
9 economy provides an opportunity and a mandate to reset
10 and realign with current and practical economic and
11 market based conditions. I encourage the PUC to do
12 that.
13 Let me give you an example. In 2006 the
14 State of Idaho issued municipal bonds to raise funds
15 to allow us the revenue to restore the Idaho state
16 capitoL. These funds -- these bonds were issued at an
17 interest rate of 3.66 percent. Now, remember this is
18 two years before our economy crashed. We sold, as a
19 state, $130 million worth of state municipal bonds in
20 less than three hours. That's how aggressive
21 investors were. That's how much they wanted a
22 guaranteed return on an investment, and that's how
23 much they were satisfied with just a 3.66 percent rate
24 of return.
25 Thank you for coming, Commissioners. I
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1 that it is Rocky Mountain Power, that he report to
2 PacifiCorp's CEO Greg Abel and MidAmerican Energy CEO
3 David SokoL.
4 COMMISSIONER SMITH: And that's probably
5 correct. Thank you very much.
6 SENATOR GEDDES: I do have a copy of that
7 information that I've attached to my testimony, and
8 I'm happy to provide it to you.
9 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Would you please
10 leave it with the court reporter.
11 . SENATOR GEDDES: Thank you.
12 COMMISSIONER SMITH: It'LL be part of the
13 transcript. Thank you, Senator.
14 COMMISSIONER KEMPTON: Thank you,
15 Senator.
16 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Cliff walters.
17 CLIFF WALTERS WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
18 MR. WALTERS: Cliff walters, C-L-I-F-F,
19 Walters, W-A-L-T-E-R-S, 227 Cody Lane, Fish Haven,
20 Idaho.
21 I'm here actually representing Bear Lake
22 County School District. I am the superintendent.
23 Molly Stein has basically indicated some
24 of the effects that have been on school districts
25 recently. We took a 7 and a half percent reduction in
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1 approximately $120,000 a year, so that's at
2 10 percent.
3 COMMISSIONER SMITH: 10 percent. Okay.
4 Thank you very much for that clarification.
5 Brandon Barnes. And after him we'll hear
6 from Charles Titcomb.
7 BRANDON BARNES WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
8 MR. BARNES: My name is Brandon Barnes,
9 B-R-A-N-D-O-N, B-A-R-N-E-S, 1737 Mountain View Drive,
10 McCammon, Idaho.
11 And I'm here today representing myself,
12 my young family, and BJ Barnes & Sons Trucking. We
13 employ roughly 35 employees from Pocatello to
14 Bear Lake, and we'd like to represent them as well.
15 May I say that I agree with those who
16 have gone before me, and may I just urge the
17 commission to make a wise decision and review the
18 prudence of this case, of the rate increases that have
19 been proposed to them.
20 And I just thank everybody who has come
21 here, and that's alii have to say.
22 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you very much
23 for your testimony. We appreciate your attendance.
24 Charles Titcomb. And after him we'll
25 hear from Joel McCulloch.
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r- SHEET 13 PAGE 49
1 funding this year. We're told to expect another 7 and
2 a half percent next year, which for the Bear Lake
3 County School District in the two years will be around
4 $800,000 or more.
5 And the rate increase to the Bear Lake
6 County School District will cost the district probably
7 a minimum -- depending on what you set the rates at -
8 a minimum of $12,000, and only you can tell me what
9 the maximum would be.
10 And we generally, in a budget, set aside
11 around $20,000 for textbooks. We haven't bought
12 textbooks in tw or three years because we haven't had
13 the money to purchase them.
14 There is no way that a school district
15 can continue to go to the same ratepayers that Rocky
16 Mountain Power are going to and ask them to fund more
17 and more of school district. We're having to make
18 reductions. Rocky Mountain Power at least needs to
19 hold their increases down to something that is
20 reasonable for our ratepayers.
21 The City of Montpelier wants to get some
22 industry in. We have no -- in fact, the Bear Lake
23 County is one of the lowest per capita income counties
24 in the entire state, and those same people are paying
25 more. They're paying more in school taxes. we've
= PAGE 50
1 been told by the legislature the way you increase your
2 funding is to go to your local taxpayers. And they
3 have supported us.
4 But we're in a year that we need to ask
5 more because instead of 7 and a half percent from this
6 year, by next year it's a total of 15 percent
7 reduction. And in order to recoup that, we would have
8 to ask for basically double the -- over what we're
9 asking for now. That's not possible. Our school
10 board will not do that because they understand what
11 it's going to do to the community.
12 And I wish that Rocky Mountain Power
13 would understand, especially in these economic times,
14 that the local people who are paying right now cannot
15 afford the increase. And our school district
16 absolutely cannot afford it. We have regulations. We
17 can't cut certified personnel, or we lose the money.
18 We're not -- we have no idea how we're going to make
19 up the difference, and yet Rocky Mountain Power is
20 saying, well, we need at least 10, $12,000 more, and
21 as I said, that's a minimum. Thank you.
22 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Just one question.
23 Vlat percentage rate increase ~entto the calculation
24 of your 12,OOO?
25 MR. WALTERS: Our power bil right now is
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1 CHARLES TITCOMB WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
2 MR. TITCOMB: Charles Titcomb.
3 MR. PRICE: Go ahead and grab the mike.
4 MR. TITCOMB: C-H-A-R-L-E-S,
5 T-I-T-C-O-M-B, 310 North 4th East, Grace, Idaho
6 83241.
7 I'm representing the Grace community.
8 I'm the mayor of Grace, and I appreciate the
9 opportunity to testify before you and the time that
10 you've taken to come into our small community.
11 I'm greatly concerned about the impact
12 such a rate increase could have on not only the City
13 of Grace but our abilty to budget for such an
14 increase in our power costs. As you well know,
15 electricity is very costly for a city to operate,
16 their water system, their wastewater system, and even
17 something as simple as street lighting. We can only
18 cut costs in these areas so far, and then we're at the
19 mercy of the power company.
20 With the current state of the economy, we
21 are really struggling as a community to try and keep
22 our costs manageable. The increase that is being
23 proposed will be a great burden for our city, our
24 citizens, many of which are elderly and on fixed
25 incomes, as we've heard testimony of the burden that
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¡o PAGE 55
1 engineer for Monsanto company. In my job, we have a
2 serious responsibility to not only understand the
3 regulations of the Environmental Protection Agency but
4 also to make the proper determination as we go forwrd
5 and do the things that we do at our site.
6 And it's been said by some that when we
7 go through that and tr to understand and interpret
8 those laws, that our decision should pass a red-face
9 test. And i think in this case, i would say that
1 0 Rocky Mountain Power fails that test in a couple
11 areas.
12 One being, in my opinion, the investment
13 in an unreliable energy source, that being wind
14 power. The other, the fact that we're being asked to
15 pay by people outside of our community to benefit
16 other people who are outside of our community, and i
17 don't see a huge rate of return for us. And also the
18 significant increase at the economic times that we
19 face right now. So in those three cases, i would say
20 that that red-face test is not passed.
21 I will say that i have a lot of
22 confidence in you. Commissioner Smith, in your
23 opening comments you made the statement that utilities
24 and other entities are entitled to a reasonable rate
25 of return, and so I would defer back to you and ask
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1 places upon those.
2 We rely on the local industrial plants in
3 our area like Agrium and Monsanto and also those in
4 agriculture for the support of our citizens and our
5 community. I know the intended increase Rocky
6 Mountain Power is proposing is going to be a burden on
7 these companies and our local farmers and ranchers.
8 An affordable electrical rate will allow
9 these entities to maintain leading roles in the
10 economy of Southeast Idaho. They are essential to our
11 small communities with the tax base they provide and
12 the people they employ that live here. The money they
13 and their employees bring into our city is essential
14 for the continued support of our local businesses and
15 our city as a whole.
16 I wish I knew that the added revenue
17 would be benefiting Idaho's infrastructure and not
18 demands of Oregon and California. It seems to me that
19 the infrastructure is going through Idaho and not
20 serving Idaho.
21 We all have -- we have all-- sorry. We
22 are all having to make due with less in this present
23 economy, and I feel Rocky Mountain Power can and
24 should get by with a substantially reduced rate
25 proposaL.
= PAGE 54
1 Thank you for the chance to comment. I
2 appreciate it.
3 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you,
4 Mr. Mayor. We are very pleased to be in your great
5 city.
6 MR. TITCOMB: Thank you.
7 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Jim McCulloch. And
8 after him Galen Wilson.
9 JIM McCULLOCH WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
10 JIM McCULLOCH: My name is Jim McCulloch,
11 J-I-M, and then M-c-C-U-L-L-O-C-H. I reside at
12 1526 Larsen Road in Soda Springs.
13 One of the advantages or disadvantages of
14 being this far down on the list is I have to say,
15 okay, most of the things that I wanted to point out
16 today--
17 COMMISSIONER SMITH: You're near the top.
18 MR. McCULLOCH: Yeah -- have already been
19 said, so I will say that I agree with the comments of
20 Mr. Veile and Mr. Geddes, because they both stressed a
21 couple of the main points that I wanted to talk
22 about.
23 But I do want to put my exclamation point
24 on that by saying that I am a residential customer of
25 Rocky Mountain Power. I'm also an environmental
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1 you to use the comments that are provided here and --
2 because I think they're well-founded -- and use that
3 in determining what a more reasonable increase would
4 be in Rocky Mountain's case. Thank you.
5 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you very much
6 for your testimony.
7 Galen Wilson.
8 GALEN WILSON WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
9 . MR. WILSON: My name is Galen Wilson,
10 spelled G-A-L-E-N, Wilson, W-I-L-S-O-N. I live at
11 721 East Hopkins Lane in Soda Springs.
12 I appreciate the opportnity to come up
13 and visit with the commissioners today, and I wasn't
14 really planning on testifying. But I especially
15 support the comments from Mike Veile, Molly Stein, and
16 Spence Siepert, and I would just like to add one brief
17 comment. I'll make it short.
18 I've noticed there's a lot of people in
19 our communities in this region that have had to take a
20 lot of severe cuts. I have a lot of family, frends,
21 and fellow employees that live in regions that are
22 personal or residential power customers, and this cut
23 can be very devastating to -- or this proposed
24 increase could be very devastating to them.
25 Some of those friends and family members
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1 summer the population triples or quadruples, and so
2 does the sewage capacity increases.
3 One of our other concerns right now is
4 the service that you get from Rocky Mountain Power.
5 An example, the land application process consists of
6 basically taking the treated affuent out of the
7 storage lagoon at the end and pumping it through an
8 irrigation system to farm land where alfalfa is
9 grown. V\at you have at the end of the treatment
10 thing is just basically gray water that meets certin
11 testing requirements required by the State.
12 We need to put in this system as part of
13 the mandate from the Idaho Departent of Environmental
14 Quality. This is not a major system. The power
15 company was asked to put in power to the pump station
16 to provide the electricity to power it. Their project
17 consisted of 14 poles, three 50-kilowatt transformers,
18 and a tap onto the main line by highway.
19 We first discussed this project with them
20 in July of this year, and the contract -- the
21 construction from the contractors on the project
22 started at the end of July. Rocky Mountain Power
23 finalized the power project, and a contract was signed
24 at the first of September. We paid them the $77,000
25 to pay for the cost of the line September 18.
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1 work in the school systems, and you've heard some of
2 the cuts that our local school systems have had to
3 take. And it's really going to be devastating to them
4 to have to continue to make these cuts in the future
5 and then have to have these proposed rate increases
6 and the effect it will have on them.
7 And we really need to be considered, what
8 kind of environment we're living in, the economic
9 situation that we have right now and what impact it
10 will have on us. Thank you.
11 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you very much
12 for your testimony,
13 Howard Larsen. And then Tim Buller will
14 be after Mr. Larsen.
15 HOWARD LARSEN WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
16 MR. LARSEN: Howard, H-O-W-A-R-D, Larsen,
17 L-A-R-S-E-N. I normally go by Joe, Howard J. Larsen.
18 COMMISSIONER SMITH: And your mailing
19 address?
20 MR. LARSEN: My address is
21 U.S. Highway -- 2661 U.S. Highway 89, Fish Haven,
22 Idaho.
23 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Go ahead.
24 MR. LARSEN: That's in Bear Lake County
25 for those who aren't acquainted with Bear Lake.
;= PAGE 58
1 I'm a retired chemical engineer. I do
2 not work for Monsanto. I am a member of the
3 Fish Haven Area Recreational Sewer District Board of
4 Directors. We share a common treatment plant with the
5 City of Saint Charles, and the areas that we're
6 concerned -- I'm also a Rocky Mountain Power customer,
7 obviously, as is anybody that lives in that area.
8 Our concern is in two areas. One, our
9 sewer lines extend along the lake and past the City of
10 Saint Charles. The treatment plant is located north
11 of the City of Saint Charles. To get the sewer
12 affuent there, we go through a number of pump
13 stations. Those pump stations, although they have
14 backup generators for emergency purposes, are powered,
15 obviously, by electricity.
16 A large rate increase increases our
17 operating expenses, which are passed on to the
18 propert owners that are required to connect to the
19 sewer system. We've had to recently raise our rate to
20 meet the operating costs caused by new state mandates
21 from the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality.
22 We're in the process now of adding new
23 facilities for a land application process. Our
24 lagoons are evaporative in nature, and because of the
25 surge in the lake -- we live in an area where in the
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1 At that time we were told, You will be
2 first in line. Then we were told, We'll do it
3 October 1. We'll do it in mid-October. We will do it
4 in November 1. We will do it in mid-November. We
5 will do it December 1. We will do it December 9. We
6 will do it -- our last conversation was -- well,
7 actually the second to last - We will do it
8 yesterday. And then today when we called them, they
9 said, Oh, we'll complete it today. Okay.
10 And I'm sure in the grand scheme of
11 things, it's a lot more interesting to put in high
12 tension supply lines than to meet the needs of the
13 customers, but there are consequences. The contractor
14 had to pull men off the job because they couldn't
15 complete their pumping selection on the electrcal
16 MCCs because there was no power.
17 A number of the local farmers put off
18 irrigating their hay fields so that the power company
19 could get in and install the power lines when the land
20 was dry. They didn't do it. So when the farmers had
21 to go back to irrigate their hay fields, then the
22 sewer district had to put in some temporary access
23 roads at our expense when the power company decided to
24 come in and do part of the line.
25 It's one of these 90 percent project
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= PAGE 63
1 worked -- I was involved in manufactring and
2 engineering for a number of companies, and I've worked
3 with public utilties companies, power companies, in
4 four or five states -- three states with major
5 projects -- besides Idaho. And these project, these
6 power project, were much more complex than this.
7 This is mini-project.
8 But i have never, never worked with a
9 company that had poor customer response from their
10 customer service area than Rocky Mountain Power. And
11 it's really -- it's not understandable. So that's my
12 comments.
13 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you,
14 Mr. Larsen. Are there any questions? We appreciate
15 your testimony.
16 Tim Buller, and then Leota Carver.
17 TIM BULLER WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
18 MR. BULLER: Tim Buller, 349 Mountain
19 View Avenue, Soda Springs, Idaho.
20 MR. PRICE: Can you spell your name too
21 just for the record?
22 MR. BULLER: T-I-M, B-U-L-L-E-R.
23 I'm here today representing Agrium
24 NuWest. I've supplied my comments already.
25 COMMISSIONER SMITH: You provided them in
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1 that's 90 percent completed and probably maybe next
2 spring they'll get it done.
3 Because of the late completion of the
4 project, we're not able to do the operational testing
5 that we had to do this year. The district isn't going
6 to be able to check out the operation of the pumps,
7 the sprinkler systems, the chlorination system, and
8 all of the other things - the instrumentation --
9 because there's no power.
10 Because of it also, we're goJng to
11 probably have to delay some state required testing of
12 the lagoons, which can only be done during certin
13 times of the year because they require the lagoons to
14 be shut down but they also require to have
15 temperatures above freezing so you can measure the
16 evaporation rate. We have about six weeks in the
17 spring when we can do these things, but we have to
18 complete testing on all five lagoons by 2012. In
19 order to do that, you have to take them out of
20 operation for a while.
21 Well, if you take them out of operation,
22 what are going to happen to the 830 homes that are
23 connected to either our sewer system or the City of
24 Saint Charles' system? Do we tell them, oh, you're
25 going to have to move out of your house, or you can't
= PAGE 62
1 flush your toilet because we don't have the capacity
2 because Rocky Mountain Power didn't provide us with
3 the power?
4 So as we look at the rate increase,
5 that's one thing. But as we tried to work through
6 this problem with Rocky Mountain Power, one, the
7 customer service representatives are all in the state
8 of Oregon when you call the phone numbers listed in
9 the telephone books. Vven you talk to the local
10 representatives, they say, Well, we don't have any
11 power to control when these things are installed. So
12 that's a problem.
13 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Did you ever call
14 the commission?
15 MR. LARSEN: We didn't call you because
16 we knew you were coming here.
17 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Well, I mean, after
18 you paid your money.
19 I guess just for your information in the
20 future, the commission has several people who do
21 nothing but work with utilities and customers to see
22 that service issues are taken care of properly. So if
23 you have any issues again, call us.
24 MR. LARSEN: Thank you. We will do that.
25 The other problem is, I'm -- I've
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1 writing?
2 MR. BULLER: Yes.
3 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Okay. Thank you.
4 MR. BULLER: The fertilizer industry
5 typically runs on a seven-year cycle. In 2002 we were
6 at the bottom of that cycle, and Conda Phosphate
7 Operation found itself on the verge of collapse. A
8 joint venture between Agrium and Astaris failed to
9 make it through this period, and as a result we had to
10 permanently layoff over 40 employees.
11 Since that time, our electricity rates
12 have increased by approximately 20 percent. We have
13 worked with Rocky Mountain Power and others to reduce
14 our consumption, but we have been unable to fully
15 compensate for the magnitude of the change. Even with
16 an 8 percent reduction in energy consumption, we are
17 facing bills that are in excess of a millon dollars
18 per year, higher than they were at the bottom of the
19 cycle. This million dollar annual increase is more
20 than five times what we made in all of 2002.
21 Most would agree that the fertlizer
22 industry reached the peak of its cycle in 2008. Our
23 facility is currently in excellent health, but a
24 business like ours cannot continue to see these kinds
25 of increases and remain healthy. Foreign competition
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1 Allegra -- is it Belknap or Belknap?
2 MS. BELKNAP: Belknap. Silent K.
3 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Silent K. Thank
4 you.
5 MS. BELKNAP: Yes, ma'am.
6 ALLEGRA BELKNAP WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
7 MS. BELKNAP: I'd like to first start by
8 thanking you for having --
9 MR. PRICE: Ma'am, could you start off
10 with your name?
11 MS. BELKNAP: Oh, sorry. Allegra,
12 A-L-L-E-G-R-A, last name Belknap, B-E-L-K-N-A-P. My
13 address is 200 Pioneer Road in Soda Springs 83276.
14 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you very much.
15 MS. BELKNAP: So again, thank you for
16 coming and giving us an opportunity to provide
17 comments.
18 Again, my name is Allegra Belknap. I am
19 a residential customer of Rocky Mountain Power from
20 Bear Lake County. I'm also a six-year employee with
21 Monsanto Company. And in both respect, it's obvious
22 to me that the country is in a recession.
23 First, i would like to address my
24 concerns as a consumer. Again, it's obvious to me and
25 my family of four that the country is in a recession.
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1 has ramped up significantly this year, and as a
2 result, two phosphate producers have already found
3 that they can no longer compete. This combined with
4 ever increasing electricity rates leaves me deeply
5 concerned not only for our future but for our entire
6 industry's future.
7 In closing I ask that you consider the
8 following: Our industry is already under significant
9 pressure, and we can only withstand so much. Anything
10 you can do to reduce the magnitude of an increase will
11 make a difference.
12 Spreading or delaying the impact of a
13 rate case over several years would at least give us
14 the ability to plan for increases.
15 Also, lastly, fighting these rate cases
16 is expensive and disruptive to our business. Legal
17 fees can easily cost more than the increase itself.
18 Please work towards multi-year agreements and do all
19 that you can to prevent annual rate cases.
20 Thank you. I appreciate you coming here
21 and giving me the chance to be heard.
22 COMMISSIONER SMITH: We appreciate your
23 testimony too, Mr. Buller. Thank you.
24 Leota Carver.
25 LEOTA CARVER WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
_ PAGE 66
1 MS. CARVER: My name is Leota Carver,
2 spelled L-E-O-T-A, C-A-R-V-E-R. My address is
3 216 East Center in Grace, Idaho.
4 I am the CFO of Caribou Memorial
5 HospitaL. The hospital does not get their power from
6 Rocky Mountain, but we do depend on the people of
7 Caribou County.
8 This will cause such a hardship on some
9 of the phosphate plants that they could be in a
10 position of having to close. If we would lose
11 Monsanto, I don't know what would happen to Caribou
12 County. I know for a fact that the hospital wouldn't
13 be able to exist. They support the hospital in so
14 many ways.
15 And so I hope that this size of a rate
16 would be at least decreased considerably just for the
17 area. I feel bad for the people that are living on
18 Social Security and not gettng a cost of income this
19 year. Gateway caused a big rate on that society too.
20 Thank you.
21 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you,
22 Ms. Carver. We appreciate you being here.
23 Dawna Eliason. And then Allegra
24 Belknap -- or did I -- yeah, I hope I got that right.
25 Ms. Eliason? No?
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1 We have tightened our spending and are diligent in
2 curbing our power usage.
3 My background is environmental
4 engineering, and my family constantly lives by the
5 threat of overusing the countr's natural resources,
6 and we conserve. Not only for our checkbooks, but
7 also for our children's future. Therefore, I find the
8 prospect of green power a wortwhile endeavor, and I'm
9 in support of that notion, but not on my dime and not
10 now.
11 As the business unit leader for
12 environmental safety and health at Monsanto, it is
13 also obvious to me that the country is in a
14 recession. Monsanto is experiencing and asking all
15 employees to make deep cuts in spending. In the same
16 spirit of the environmental excellence being preached
17 by Rocky Mountain Power, our company is under heavy
18 scrutiny to fund compliance projects being put forth
19 by regulatory agencies to improve environmental
20 conditions for the planet. These changes are
21 expensive and sometimes produce only small
22 improvements, but they are required nonetheless.
23 We at Monsanto manage our costs in line
24 with the economy, and there are many process
25 improvements we have had to forego to meet our unit
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1 not be allowed to get a 10.6 rate of return on their
2 investments in this economic climate. That's40
3 times -- 45 times what a county hospital can currently
4 get.
5 From what I've been able to learn, demand
6 for power has declined, and Rocky Mountain Power is
7 expanding way too much, including out of Idaho at
8 their Idaho customers' expense.
9 I'm told that Rocky Mountain Power hasn't
10 demonstrated cost effciency, and rates should be
11 based on a fair and reasonable basis not on what other
12 utilities are charging. We certinly can't charge big
13 city prices for health care in Soda Springs.
14 i believe that if Rocky Mountain Power is
15 granted an obscenely large increase in rates, as
16 they're requesting, including to our local industries,
17 then our county's largest employers won't be able to
18 compete and perhaps close plants. This would
19 essentially bankrupt our county, including our county
20 hospitaL.
21 This is all deja vu for me. I was an
22 administrator of the county hospital in Douglas,
23 Arizona. Their largest employer operated a smelter in
24 Douglas. Their costs were unreasonably increased,
25 which made it cheaper to smelt the ore in nearby
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_ SHEET 18 PAGE 69
1 cost goals. This type of rate increase being proposed
2 by Rocky Mountain Power just may cripple our plant in
3 Soda Springs, no matter how well we all do at cutting
4 costs.
5 Vlat i cannot seem to understand is that
6 while we as consumers, employees, and companies are
7 doing our best to live within our means and
8 controllng consumption by using less, the power
9 company now wants to charge more for the power we are
10 using in an effort to support markets and projects
11 that will make their portolio more marketable.
12 Vly is it not obvious to Rocky Mountain
13 Power that the country is in a recession? Vly now is
14 it in vogue to save the planet and push costs off onto
15 their customers? i would ask that the commission ask
16 those questions and maybe also ask that if -there are
17 project that will improve Rocky Mountain Power's
18 portolio within other markets, then rally those
19 markets to pay for the wind power.
20 The Rocky Mountain Power Blue Skies
21 program sounds like something the people in California
22 and Oregon would love to support. i think they should
23 be the ones to help pay for it.
24 COMMISSIONER SMITH: We appreciate your
25 attendance and your comments. Thank you.
~ PAGE 70
1 John Hoopes. Followed by Rodger
2 Sorensen.
3 JOHN HOOPES WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
4 MR. PRICE: Start off with your name and
5 spell it.
6 MR. HOOPES: John Hoopes, H-O-O-P-E-S. I
7 live at 730 Hopkins Lane, Soda Springs 83276.
8 I'm the administrator of the 67 -bed
9 county hospital and nursing home in Caribou County,
10 which is located in Soda Springs. Fortunately, we
11 don't get our power from Rocky Mountain Power. If we
12 did, we couldn't absorb a huge increase in electricity
13 costs because there isn't anyone left to pass the cost
14 on to.
15 The State of Idaho can't afford to pay us
16 what it costs us now to care for Medicaid patients.
17 The number of patients has almost doubled over the
18 past year because of the economy. And to add insult
19 to injury, the State contracted with Molina, which has
20 further messed up our payments.
21 As a county hospital, when we do have
22 cash to invest, we're getting less than a quarter of
23 1 percent on our investment from the Idaho local
24 government investment pool, which is the safest place
25 we can invest. Certinly, Rocky Mountain Power should
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1 Mexico. It bankrupted the hospital as well as the
2 county.
3 I'd hate to see that happen here, and I'm
4 asking you to allow Rocky Mountain Power a much
5 smaller increase than they're requesting at this
6 time. Thank you.
7 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you, sir, for
8 your comments. Questions? No?
9 Mr. Sorensen. Followed by Raven
10 GunnelL.
11 RODGER SORENSEN WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
12 MR. SORENSEN: Rodger, R-O-D-G-E-R,
13 S-O-R-E-N-S-E-N. 245 North Hooper in Soda Springs.
14 MR. PRICE: Thank you.
15 MR. SORENSEN: Previous comments have
16 precluded much of what I wanted to say. However, I
17 would like to only make the following comment.
18 From the MidAmerican Energy Holdings
19 Company website -- and I have a copy of it for you --
20 Rocky Mountain Power is a portion of PacifiCorp. It's
21 one of 34 companies that make up the six subsidiaries
22 of MidAmerican Energy.
23 Also, MidAmerican Energy Holdings reaches
24 further than the name applies. The company generates,
25 transmits, and distributes electricity and natural gas
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1 wanted to talk about the rate increase as a
2 residential customer.
3 I've been a residential customer of Rocky
4 Mountain Power since 1981 and was prett concerned
5 about this bill when it first came up, until I saw the
6 ad that they took out in the Idaho State Journal on
7 Monday. It's right here. This ad states that they
8 are going to raise the rate by about a dollar per
9 residential customer -- per their average residential
10 customer.
11 Since my rates have been running at about
12 a hundred dollars a month since January of 1988 -- or
13 excuse me -- 2008, according to my bils, I can only
14 surmise that the rest of their customers are way lower
15 than that.
16 But I decided to put some figures to
17 that. And if you set an 8 percent increase on a
18 normal rate and it would only be a dollar per month,
19 that family would only be showing a bill of around $10
20 a month. $10.80 to get a one dollar a month increase
21 at an 8 percent for an average rate.
22 Last month for my home, i paid $119. It
23 was at 473 kilowatt hours at 8.2 cents an hour for
24 15 days, and that was the winter rate, and
25 537 kilowatt hours at 10.41 for 17 days. So the
= SHEET 19 PAGE 73
1 to 6.9 millon customers across the U.S. and the U.K.,
2 primarily through MidAmerican Energy Company,
3 PacifiCorp, and CE Electric in the UK The last
4 portion of this paragraph indicates that Warren
5 Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway controls the company.
6 i did my best to find a connecton
7 betwen Berkshire Hathaway and Monsanto, and i could
8 find none. There may be one, but i couldn't find it.
9 However, i also tried to find a connection between Dow
10 Chemical and Berkshire Hathaway. They're heavily
11 invested in Dow. Thank you.
12 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you, sir, for
13 your comments.
14 Did I totally botch your name?
15 MR. GUNNELL: NoUoo bad.
16 ROVEN GUNNELL WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
17 MR. GUNNELL:' Roven Gunnell, R-O-V-E-N,
18 G-U-N-N-E"L-L. 2347 Bench Lago Road, Grace, Idaho
19 83241.
20 MR. PRICE: Thank you.
21 MR. GUNNELL: I'd like to thank you for
22 giving me the opportunity to be here today. I've
23 lived in Caribou County all my life. I've been
24 involved with farming and ranching all my life.
25 From the '60s to today, I've seen the
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1 electrical power rate, in one way or another, be
2 increased over all the years. With the economy the
3 way it is today, the other prices that everyone is
4 hooked in with concerning your home, your cars, your.
5 food, everything, I do not feel that it is a good time
6 for Rocky Mountain Power to increase their rate.
7 I would challenge Rocky Mountain Power to
8 keep the rate the same. I know they may think that
9 that's a little bit rough, but if they want to be an
10 asset to Southeastern Idaho, they need to do something
11 to help business; small, big, farmers, ranchers,
12 everyone. Thank you for the time.
13 COMMISSIONER SMITH: We thank you, sir,
14 for your comments and your attendance today.
15 Mike Farnsworth or--
16 MR. FARNWORTH: Farnworth.
17 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Farnwort. Thank
18 you. And after him we'll hear from Dave Chamberlain.
19 MIKE FARNWORTH WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
20 MR. FARNWORTH: My name is Mike
21 Farnworth. That's M-I-K-E, F-A-R-N-W-O-R-T-H. It's
22 110 North 2nd East, Grace Idaho.
23 I'm an employee of Monsanto also, and as
24 such I'd like to ascribe to the comments made by Mike
25 Veile and Spence Siepert amongst others. But I mainly
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1 blended rate for that is significantly higher than
2 what Rocky Mountain Power is showing in their ads.
3 I pulled some additional information
4 together from a website on the Internet that showed
5 normal usage for different appliances in your home to
6 run a normal home, and what I found was that to run a
7 gas furnace it was 11.50 a month; for a clothes washer
8 and dryer was $8 a month; for an electic oven and
9 range was 9.92 a month; a refrigerator was 4.24 a
10 month; and for twnty 25-watt cn lights was another
11 $3.60 a month. That equals out to 37.26 for a monthly
12 bilL.
13 If you applied an 8 percent increase to
14 that, that's $2.98 cents. At the time-of-day rate
15 increase it's $5.81. But their ad only claimed one
16 dollar.
17 So in order to stay below the one dollar
18 increase at the rates that are shown, mine could have
19 only gone up .83 percent. My daughter's on the other
20 hand, to stay below that one dollar increase -- she's
21 on level paying and pays $155 month -- and for hers at
22 the 15.67 percent increase would be .64 percent
23 increase.
24 With the current recession, Social
25 Security has not increased in the last tw years.
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= PAGE 79
1 over a period of years and not try to get it all at
2 once, because you can kill the golden goose.
3 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you, sir. We
4 appreciate that.
5 MR. CHAMBERLAIN: I'm leaving.
6 COMMISSIONER SMITH: We'll take a
7 ten-minute break now, come back at 3:30, and start
8 with Brad Torgesen.
9 (A recess was taken at 3:18 p.m.
10 Proceedings resumed at 3:31 p.m.)
11 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Okay. Ladies and
12 gentlemen, I think we're ready to begin with
13 Mr. Torgesen, followed by Kevin Keller.
14 BRADLEY TORGESEN WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
15 MR. TORGESEN: My name is Bradley,
16 B-R-A-D-L-E-Y, Torgesen, T-O-R-G-E-S-E-N. I reside at
17 311 South 8th Avenue in Pocatello, Idaho.
18 I'd like to begin by thanking you as a
19 commission for taking the time to come and listen to
20 our comments. Much of what has already been said I'm
21 in agreement with. I'LL try and make my comments
22 short.
23 A little history on me. I am a -- I was
24 born and raised in this part of the state. I've had
25 the -- I currently work for Monsanto. I began with
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1 There's a proposed federal raise freeze for the next
2 tw years. I don't feel that there's justification
3 for the size of the request being made.
4 Based on Mr. Capiro's (sic) testimony on
5 your website, this power transmission project, the
6 Gateway transmission project, will significantly
7 reduce the operation costs to customers. This can
8 only mean customers some place other than Idaho since
9 it's going to raise our rates.
10 That's alii have to say.
11 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you, sir. We
12 appreciate your testimony. Are there any questions?
13 Thank you.
14 Dave Chamberlain. And after
15 Mr. Chamberlain, we'll take about a ten-minute break.
16 . MR. CHAMBERLAIN: Oh, I'm going to be
17 that boring, huh?
18 DAVE CHAMBERLAIN WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
19 MR. CHAMBERLAIN: My name is Dave
20 Chamberlain. I own the Caribou Lodge in Soda Springs.
21 MR. PRICE: Can you spell your name?
22 MR. CHAMBERLAIN: C-H-A-M-B-E-R-L-A-I-N.
23 MR. PRICE: Thanks.
24 MR. CHAMBERLAIN: I haven't heard anybody
25 say what I'm going to say, but I'm going to eliminate
= PAGE 78
1 some of the stuff I had planned to say.
2 MR. PRICE: Can you just start off with
3 your mailing address first?
4 MR. CHAMBERLAIN: I'm one of the guys
5 that we don't get power from Idaho -- or Rocky
6 Mountain, but I'm one of the people that's affected by
7 a loss of business through Agrium, Monsanto, and some
8 of the businesses. Because unlike your Departent of
9 Commerce, about 70 percent of the occupants of my
10 motel and every motel in Soda is put there by people
11 who come here to work.
12 I've seen what Monsanto and Agrium have
13 gone through to get permits for their mines, because
14 most of the professionals are right there at my hotel
15 and they're there for weeks. And they're making 50 or
16 $60 an hour, and Monsanto and Agrium are paying for
17 them.
18 And right now, I think an increase of
19 $22 milion could be the breaking point. I don't do
20 their budgeting, but I know it would really hurt me to
21 be out that much monèy. Not as much as Monsanto
22 because I don't have it.
23 I just think Rocky Mountain Power ought
24 to think about the golden goose and try to spread
25 their increase, if they really think they can get it,
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_ PAGE 80
1 them about eight months ago. And prior to that, I
2 worked Micron Semiconductors, and prior to that for
3 Agrium Phosphate in Soda Springs.
4 The thing that all these three companies
5 have in common, and I think that Rocky Mountain Power
6 tries to do as well, is to be a world-class company.
7 Monsanto, Micron, and Agrium are all strving to be
8 best in class with tens of millons, hundreds of
9 milions, even bilions of spending on the sites of
10 the company and capitaL. The goal is to provide the
11 highest quality product at the lowest possible price
12 and create shareholder value, and we do this in a
13 highly competitive global environment.
14 I want to state that, because later on i
15 hope to refer back to that.
16 The last couple of weeks in the newspaper
17 there's been some artcles about our state. One of
18 them is thatwe presently have a higher unemployment
19 rate, 9.9 percent, than the national average. I
20 believe it was in yesterday's paper as well that it
21 stated that there has been a statistically significant
22 increase in the percentage of Idaho residents living
23 in povert, higher than the national average, and it
24 stated nine of the counties in the state of Idaho
25 where that fact is a reality. Two of those counties,
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1 their next graph, and it's a graph that shows in the
2 red the amount that customers currently pay. The blue
3 is the actual cost of the power. And then the orange
4 gap says this is the reason that we need the price
5 increase.
6 Now, I'm going back to my comments
7 earlier about Monsanto, Micron, and Agrium. In a
8 competitive industry it would be nice if when things
9 got tight we could just say, we'll raise our price of
10 fertilizer or we'll raise our price of phosphorous or
11 the cost of a semiconductor. But as consumers we all
12 look for the best price that we can get.
13 Vlat those companies have -- what I see
14 them doing that I don't see Rocky Mountain Power doing
15 is they are striving to either reduce the cost of
16 capital-- they take drastic measures. Sometimes they
17 lay people off, sometimes they freeze wages. They
18 pull their plans back. They do everything they can to
19 control the costs. It's not -- you know, we don't
20 have the luxury of just saying, I'LL just raise the
21 price and go on down the road.
22 I guess what I would like to see is -- I
23 understand that there probably needs to be some kind
24 of increase. I agree with the comments that were
25 stated earlier that if indeed we just have a
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1 Bingham and Madison, are served by Rocky Mountain
2 Power.
3 Based on previous comments and my
4 thoughts now, now is not the time for Rocky Mountain
5 Power to ask for such a significant rate increase.
6 There is a website sponsored by the Idaho
7 Departent of Commerce called "Just Make the Shift."
8 The governor of our state, I guess, initiated that in
9 the hopes that during this recession and bad times,
10 companies in other states like California, Washington,
11 and Oregon would be tempted to move to Idaho because
12 of some of the competitive advantages that we would
13 offer for having a business in the state of Idaho.
14 About the fourth on his list is, you know, very
15 competitive utility rates.
16 Along with Mike, I wanted to -- the other
17 day there was this article put in the Idaho State
18 Journal, and I found it interesting. This bottom
19 graph on the left that is a comparison of world
20 electricity prices I thought that was interesting,
21 except most of my neighbors dontlive in Mexico,
22 China, or Canada. They live right here in Southeast
23 Idaho.
24 And so interestingly enough, I wondered
25 why Rocky Mountain Power didn't present a graph like
= PAGE 82
1 this that showed their rates compared to those of
2 other utilities in the area, such as the
3 municipalities of Idaho Falls, Idaho Power,
4 Soda Springs, Lower Valley Energy, which is Wyoming
5 but serves kind of the way in, the Henry, Idaho, area.
6 And I guess the reason was because if
7 they'd have done that, this graph would have shown
8 that Rocky Mountain Power's rates were significantly
9 higher already -- the cost of the utility -- than any
10 of those other ones.
11 In fact, we were -- my wife and I are
12 thinking about putting a new gas furnace in our home
13 and pulled up the Intermountain Gas website where, of
14 course, they're trying to, you know, convince you the
15 reasons to use natural gas. They list there several
16 different sources that you can heat your home with.
17 Among those are Idaho Power, City of
18 Idaho Falls, Rocky Mountain Power, and there is a --
19 if I had a choice, of course, natural gas is the
20 cheapest. But Rocky Mountain Power would already cost
21 me 23 percent more to heat my home than if I got
22 electricity from the City of Idaho Falls. It would
23 cost me 3 percent more than if I could get my power
24 from Idaho Power.
25 So having said that, then I looked at
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= PAGE 84
1 10 percent need for additional power, then that's
2 fine. Let us pay for that 10 percent additional
3 power. But I don't feel it's the responsibility of
4 the citizens of the state of Idaho to pay for Rocky
5 Mountain Power's excess capacity or that we need to
6 pay to ship the power to California or Oregon
7 residents at our expense.
8 These are my comments, and I appreciate
9 the time. Thank you.
10 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you for
11 coming. We appreciate your thoughts.
12 Kevin Keller. And after him we'll have
13 Alan Erickson.
14 KEVIN KELLER WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
15 MR. KELLER: I'm Kevin Keller, K-E-V-I-N,
16 last name K-E-L-L-E-R. I reside at 361 South
17 3rd West, Soda Springs. Thank you for the opportunity
18 to testify.
19 I'm in maybe a unique position here as
20 the only one I've heard so far that is a competitor to
21 Rocky Mountain Power, in that I'm in the energy
22 business selling petroleum product with an emphasis
23 on propane gas. Vlen I get to put propane in that
24 water heater, it means you guys didn't.
25 And from a very shortsighted perspective,
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1 Mountain Power.
2 What I'd like to speak of today to the
3 commission -- I'd like to thank you for giving us this
4 opportunity to share our thoughts with you today.
5 One of the things that hasn't been
6 mentioned here today -- we have heard about the
7 schools and our ability to educate our children with
8 the funds that we have. Idaho is -- our funding is
9 based on sales tax. Of course, any time you have a
10 raise in utilties, raise in anything that happens,
11 you know, sales will suffer that effect.
12 What I'd like the commission to consider
13 is if you give Rocky Mountain Power the rate increase
14 that they are requesting, Southeastern Idaho could go
15 away. And not only that, i know Rocky Mountain Power,
16 they only service, you know, a few areas here in
17 Idaho.
18 But I also serve on the school board in
19 our School District 150 here in Soda Springs. I've
20 been on that board for almost four years now. And
21 throughout those four years, I have watched our
22 revenue go down every year. And over this last year
23 it was severely impacted by the economy. It not only
24 hit the state of Idaho but our countr.
25 What I would like you to consider is if
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_ SHEET 22 PAGE 85
1 that could put me in the position, I suppose, of
2 wanting to see a rate increase to make my product more
3 affordable, apparently, to my customers. That's not
4 what I'm here for.
5 As I look at this and look at competitive
6 forces at work here in the marketplace, we share some
7 customers. And I will probably mention Monsanto
8 specifically here.
9 I do a fair amount of business with
10 Monsanto, and I'm very grateful to them. They're an
11 importnt part of our customer base. I sell them a
12 variety of products, and their business is importnt
13 to me. Moreover, the business of the many employees,
14 directly and indirectly, who are around because of
15 Monsanto are very importnt to me.
16 I treat Monsanto, I hope -- and I hope
17 this is their perception -- as an importnt customer.
18 We try to be responsive to their needs. We're careful
19 to take excellent care of them. Once in a while we
20 slip up. We provide the best products and services to
21 them that we are able to. We go to considerable
22 effort to make sure that our delivery methods, our
23 delivery schedules are such that they are conducive to
24 and as economical as possible for Monsanto, and we try
25 to do that.
= PAGE 86
1 Among the things we're not looking for in
2 our little business is a 10.6 rate of return. That
3 would be fun, wouldn't it? But I don't see it
4 happening realistically for us.
5 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Mr. Keller, do you
6 have comments regarding the rate case and Rocky
7 Mountain Power that you want us to know about?
8 MR. KELLER: Yes. I think 10.6 rate of
9 return is too much. I think further that as Idaho
10 customers - it's been stated many times here today --
11 it isn't our responsibility nor should we have to bear
12 the cost of supposed green energy that's generated in
13 other states and going to be transferred to stil
14 other states but we're expected to pay for the
15 infrastructure to move it. I don't believe either of
16 those things are correct. Thank you.
17 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you. We
18 appreciate your comments. Alan Erickson, followed by
19 Fred Toone.
20 ALAN ERICKSON WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
21 MR. ERICKSON: A-L-A-N, E-R-I-C-K-S-O-N.
22 Mailng address is Post Offce Box 356, Soda Springs.
23 I would just like to concur with most of
24 the things that have been said today. I am an
25 employee of Monsanto. I'm also a customer of Rocky
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= PAGE 88
1 you grant them this request, you could have a hand in
2 crippling the State of Idaho and their ability to
3 educate our children, because you're going to take
4 milions of dollars out of that economy that's
5 already, you know, to the state -- as far as education
6 is concerned, you know, almost beyond repair, from the
7 way I look at it. And so I just hope you would
8 consider that.
9 You know, it's not only just this
10 Southeastern Idaho and up in that Rexburg area that's
11 being affected. It could affect the whole -- and it
12 will affect the whole state of Idaho, any kind of rate
13 increase right now. i just would like you to consider
14 those things. Thank you.
15 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you for your
16 comment and your patience in having the opportunity to
17 give it.
18 Fred -- did I get your name?
19 MR. TOONE: Yeah, you did good.
20 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Good. And after
21 him, we'll have Lloyd Mickelson.
22 FRED TOONE WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
23 MR. TOONE: Fred Toone, F-R-E-D,
24 T-O-O-N-E. 598 Bench Lago Road, Grace.
25 MR. PRICE: Thank you.
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1 money that they were getting because everybody is
2 going to be gone. So to me it seems like they're, you
3 know, cutting their own throat. It doesn't make sense
4 to me, and to be honest with you, it sounds like an
5 extremely poor decision on whoever's part that was.
6 . So i guess what I'm asking is for you to
7 go back and aSk them to reconsider this rate
8 increase. Because in dollar figures, yes, it looks
9 like a great idea, but when everybody's gone, they're
10 not going to be getting any money. So that's alii
11 really have to say. Thank you for your time.
12 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you. We
13 appreciate your comments.
14 Mark Mathews followed by John Tippets.
15 Ron, I don't know if anyone else is cool,
16 but maybe we could close down some of the windows.
17 MARK MATHEWS WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
18 MR. MATHEWS: Mark Mathews, M-A-R-K,
19 M-A-T-H-E-W-S. 670 Mingo Road, Grace, Idaho.
20 I'm here today -- I'd like to thank the
21 commission. I'm here today .- I'm the president of
22 the Last Chance Canal Company and also a board member
23 on the Distrct 11 Water Users and a board member on
24 the Bear River Water Users Association.
25 And in each of these cases, we work very
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1 MR. TOONE: I'm thankful for this
2 opportunity to address the commission. I'm
3 representing one of the few dairy farmers left here in
4 the area, and I also raise grain and hay.
5 In an average month for the dairy, we'll
6 pay about 2,000 a month. And then during the summer
7 when we're irrigating and taking care of our crops, it
8 can get as high as 18 to 20,000. These -- I'm sure
9 there are farmers with much larger power bills, but
10 we -- in the dairy industry, milk is down. It's just
11 about at break-even right now. It did improve earlier
12 in the year, and now it's going back down.
13 And with these rate increases, it makes
14 it prett tough to make a go of it. And as a farmer,
15 we're at the tail end. Monsanto can pass their --
16 your rate increase, they can pass it to us. Agrium
17 can pass it to us. We don't have anybody else to pass
18 it on to. And so when we're gone, I guess you guys
19 can look for China to find somebody to feed you.
20 But we stand in opposition of this rate
21 increase, and thank you for this opportunity.
22 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you, sir.
23 Questions?
24 Lloyd Mickelson, and after him Mark
25 Mathews.
_ PAGE 90
1 LLOYD MICKELSON WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
2 MR. MICKELSON: Lloyd Mickelson,
3 L-L-O-Y-D, M-I-C-K-E-L-S-O-N. My mailing address is
4 1998 Niter Bench Road, Grace, Idaho.
5 MR. PRICE: Thank you.
6 MR. MICKELSON: I started -- most of my
7 thoughts that I had have been addressed already. I
8 would like to wholeheartedly agree with Spence
9 Siepert, Mike Farnworth, and also Fred Toone.
10 My main question today is actually --
11 it's kind of a two-part thing. Obviously, I'm a
12 Monsanto employee. I'm also a Rocky Mountain Power
13 customer.
14 The way I see it and from what I've
15 heard, if this rate increase happens, it's going to be
16 detrimental to Monsanto. So it's going to affect me,
17 it's going to affect -- it's going to trickle down.
18 If that happens, I can see this little part of Idaho
19 turning into a ghost town, drying up and blowing
20 away. You know, I can't see it surviving.
21 I guess my main question is, VVose idea
22 was this? I don't see why they would ask for such a
23 huge rate increase if it's going to cause such
24 problems. Because then not only are they not going to
25 have the rate increase, they're not going to have the
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1 closely with Rocky Mountain Power and PacifiCorp in
2 the management of the river system, and I'd just like
3 to say that we really appreciate the major role that
4 they play in the management of this resource that we
5 have in this part of Idaho, and we work very closely
6 with them in the management of the system.
7 And I'd like to echo what Representative
8 Gibbs had to say. If I'd have known he could have got
9 out of it that easy, I'd have asked somebody else to
10 read my statement too.
11 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Do you think your
12 wife would have come?
13 MR. MATHEWS: I don't think she'd do it.
14 I might have had to hire his wife.
15 But I'm also a farmer and participated in
16 the load management program this year that Rocky
17 Mountain Power offers. And it isn't -- in our
18 situation, because the water is pumped out of
19 Bear Lake and delivered through the river system, it
20 is not an effcient management tool for us to use in
21 the Last Chance Canal Company system.
22 And most all of the farmers in this area
23 have participated in the program in times past, and
24 usually it's a one-year participation program because
25 it's such a headache that we can't do it. And it
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GRACE, IDAHO
;. PAGE 95
1 provide the appropriate level of service to its
2 customers. On the other hand, you must consider the
3 needs of the customers and impact the rates have on
4 their quality of life and, in the case of businesses,
5 the impact the rates have on the viability of the
6 business itself.
7 i don't personally have the expertse nor
8 the resources to do a comprehensive analysis of this
9 rate case. The requested increase seems excessive,
10 and others with more knowledge than i have expressed
11 that same opinion. i am confident that PUC staff do
12 have the expertise to make that analysis.
13 There is one request that Rocky Mountain
14 Power has made that I do understand, and i refer to
15 the request that the åuthorized rate of return be
16 increased to 10.6 percent. i understand it's
17 currently at 10.25. I'm quick to acknowledge that
18 Rocky Mountain Power has not been experiencing rates
19 of return that high. However, there would be no
20 reason to make the request unless the goal and
21 expecttion were to achieve rates at that level in the
22 future.
23 i mentioned previously that I view the
24 work you do as analogous to a balancing act. In this
25 case, I believe it's fair to place Rocky Mountain
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1 causes adverse affects downstream because we can't
2 utilize our water.
3 And I just hope the commission is aware
4 of the trickle down effect that this rate increase
5 will have. You know, as the phosphate companies and
6 the mines receive an increase and the school receives
7 an increase and that all comes back to the taxpayers
8 and them as suppliers, to us as end users, and
9 eventually the --like somebody said earlier, the
10 golden goose gets cooked.
11 And sometimes I feel like we're asked to
12 be the money tree at the bottom of this totem pole,
13 and eventually we can't -- we can't always pass our
14 costs on to somebody else because we're based more on
15 a supply and demand for our products, and it's not
16 always that we can ask for a rate increase.
17 But I just want to thank you for your
18 time.
19 COMMISSIONER SMITH: We thank you for
20 your thoughtful comments.
21 Mr. Tippets, followed by Mark Humble.
22 JOHN TIPPETS WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
23 MR. TIPPETS: John Tippets, J-O-H-N
24 T -I-P-P-E- T -So
25 COMMISSIONER SMITH: It may have gotten
,. PAGE 94
1 turned off.
2 MR. TIPPETS: All right. There we go.
3 That sounds better.
4 I'LL say that again. John Tippets,
5 J-O-H-N, T-I-P-P-E-T-S. Mailing address is
6 610 Red Canyon Road, Bennington, Idaho 83254.
7 I'm here on behalf of Agrium, where I'm
8 employed as a human resources and government affairs
9 manager, and I'm also speaking as a concerned citizen,
10 a longtime resident of Southeastern Idaho, and as a
11 residential customer myself of Rocky Mountain Power.
12 And I am opposed to the rate increase
13 requested by Rocky Mountain Power.
14 I'm not opposed to i in fact I support,
15 development of infrastructure in anticipation of
16 future needs as long as that development is needed and
17 based on objective and realistic projections of future
18 needs. I do not have a negative bias against Rocky
19 Mountain Power or its employees. In fact, Rocky
20 Mountain Power people I know and associate with are
21 good, honorable people.
22 I recognize that the decisions that you
23 make as the public utilties commission could be
24 compared to a delicate balancing act. On the one
25 hand, we need a strong and viable utility that can
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1 Power's request for a rate of return that may go as
2 high as 10.6 percent on one side of the scale and to
3 balance that with the impact on its customers.
4 I believe every person in this room is
5 aware of the challenges our economy has fàced in the
6 recent past and is still facing. The impact on
7 business has been dramatic. Locally, it's evident .
8 that businesses are struggling for survivaL.
9 Significant rate increases could add additional
10 negative pressure on these businesses.
11 My guess is that we would have a very
12 hard time finding a local business that wouldn't be
13 ecstatic with a 10 percent return on their
14 investment. Vlen we balance local business need
15 against Rocky Mountain Power's desire for a rate of
16 return as high as 10.6 percent, in my mind the scale
17 tips significantly in favor of local business staying
18 viable.
19 But this isn't just about businesses, as
20 we all recognize. Residential customers and
21 irrigators will be significantly impacted as welL.
22 I'm in a position to know something about how our
23 current economic situation has affected the residents
24 of Southeast Idaho. The impact has been dramatic,
25 including the loss of jobs and reduced pay.
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~ SHEET 25 PAGE 97
1 When I balance Rocky Mountain Power's
2 desire for a 10.6 rate of return against the impact of
3 increased rates on residential customers and
4 irrgators, it feels that granting the request would
5 provide an unusually generous benefi to Rocky
6 Mountain Power with a significant burden being placed
7 on the public.
8 Nor can we stop with consideration of
9 business and residential customers. We also need to
10 consider the impact on municipalities, schools,
11 hospitals, and all the other groups for whom power
12 bills are a significant expenditure.
13 i approve donations from my company to
14 many local entities, and i regularly hear that schools
15 and charitable organizations are finding it
16 increasingly hard to provide levels of service that
17 they have in the past. Requests for donations to keep
18 these programs going have increased dramatically, and
19 I'm regularly told that without our help and the help
20 of others, many of these community effort would
21 cease.
22 I also serve as a trustee on the board of
23 Bear Lake Memorial HospitaL. i speak from firsthand
24 knowledge when i say that the economic conditions we
25 face have made it much more diffcult for us.
~ PAGE 98
1 Employees of Bear Lake Memorial Hospital will not
2 receive a. pay increase in 2011. When i balance Rocky
3 Mountain Power's desire for a rate of return up to
4 10.6 percent to the needs of local government,
5 schools, and hospitals, i have to say it's no contest
6 in my mind. Increasing the authorized rate of return
7 at this time seems almost preposterous.
8 Now I want to say a word about Monsanto,
9 but I want to make it clear that I'm not authorized to
10 speak on Monsanto's behalf. No one has asked me to
11 speak for them, and in fact, no Monsanto employee was
12 aware i would even mention them, but I feel the need
13 to make a couple of comments.
14 I mention Monsanto only because I
15 recognize that because of the enormously large
16 quantity of electric power they use, the rate they pay
17 can have a significant impact on their
18 sustainability. Monsanto has been a blue ribbon
19 employer in this area for several decades. They
20 provide good, high paying jobs, and we can only
21 imagine the impact that it would have on this area
22 were they to curtail operations.
23 The plant where I work was idle for
24 approximately one year, from the summer of 1986 to the
25 summer of1987. The impact was dramatic. Real estate
1 prices dropped to unbelievable levels, and people left
2 the area in droves seeking employment. Many never
3 returned.
4 Again, the need for Rocky Mountain Power
5 to earn rates of return as high as 10.6 percent seems
6 foolish when balanced against the need to keep the
7 local employers like Monsanto running and providing
8 quality jobs to our residents.
9 I want you as commissioners to know that
10 I appreciate the fact that you've conducted hearings
11 in our local communities so that our views could be
12 heard. I know it's been a long day, and it will be a
13 longer day, and you had a long day yesterday, so thank
14 you.
15 Let me just make one closing remark.
16 While I don't know that this is the case in this
17 situation, we all know that one effective negotiating
18 tool is to begin a negotiation with demands or
19 requests that are much higher than needed or even
20 expected, the result being that when a comprise is
21 reached somewhere in the middle, the requester
22 actually receives what he or she was after in the
23 first place.
24 I. hope the commission will consider, in
25 this case, not just a reduced rate from the original
~ PAGE 100
1 request, but whether any increase is, in fact,
2 warranted. Thank you very much.
3 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you,
4 Mr. Tippets. We appreciate your comments. It's good
5 to see you again.
6 MR. TIPPETS: Thank you. My pleasure.
7 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Mark Humble,
8 followed by Delvin Humble.
9 MARK HUMBLE WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
10 MR. HUMBLE: My name is Mark Humble,
11 M-A-R-K, H-U-M-B-L-E. I live at 1205 Hyperion Way,
12 Soda Springs, Idaho.
13 Well, a couple of people have mentioned
14 already the article in the Idaho State Journal. I
15 read that article as well, and I was surprised that it
16 stated that the average residential Gustomer would
17 only see a dollar rate increase. If you backtrack
18 that based on the percentage that we're talking about
19 in terms of increasing, that would actually mean the
20 average residential customer has a $12 a month bil.
21 I know of no one who has a $12 a month bil.
22 Another graph on that newspaper artcle
23 stated that the cost to supply power to the users in
24 Idaho was actually 10 percent above the actual cost
25 that Rocky Mountain Power was gaining by actually
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1 after beginning work for Monsanto as an engineer. I,
2 like many others, I suppose, oppose the Rocky
3 Mountain's rate request for a price increase. The
4 impact of such an increase would be devastating to my
5 family and to my employer.
6 I have taken every action possible at my
7 home to lower my energy costs by adding insulation,
8 purchasing a more effcient furnace, and replacing
9 windows. Just as I was expecting my bil to go down,
10 Rocky Mountain Power requests a rate increase that,
11 frankly, I feel is unreasonable and unrealistic in
12 this struggling economy. i have made personal changes
13 in order to survive in this economy. i know that many
14 others are struggling just as i am.
15 To make matters worse, this rate increase
16 will be devastating to my employer. Adding about
17 $22 million to their operating expense just might be
18 the proverbial straw that breaks all of our backs. We
19 will be out of a job.
20 i hope that you will sincerely consider
21 the public's plea for a reduction in Rocky Mountain
22 Power's request for a double digit rate increase. If
23 approved, it will not only affect me personally, but
24 have a rippling effect throughout Southeastern Idaho
25 that will devastate our local economy. Rocky Mountain
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_ SHEET 26 PAGE 101
1 supplying it to their customers. That would imply to
2 the residents or people reading that paper that
3 they're currently operating at a loss. And it also
4 stated in the article that this was the reason for the
5 rate case.
6 I do believe, as others have stated
7 before, the actual operating profit of Rocky Mountain
8 Power is below what they're actually given right now,
9 and it's something around 7percent.
10 Other people have spoken about the
11 transmission line. I know the transmission line is
12 essentially supplying power to Oregon and California,
13 and others have mentioned that a 10 percent may be a
14 rate need in Idaho. So based on that, i understand
15 the need for infrastructure development within the
16 power company, but based on that, shouldn't the Idaho
17 requirement be 10 percent of the current rate increase
18 if that's all we're actually using in terms of demand?
19 Lastly, and i know a lot of people -- a
20 couple things. I know a lot of people have spoken in
21 terms of the actual double digit rate increase. i
22 know of no one who's actually this year or next year
23 gettng a double digit pay raise. And we've spoken
24 and heard from a lotof people who are actually
25 getting a zero -- or a lot of even teachers that I
_ PAGE 102
1 know are actually getting a 5 percent pay cut next
2 year because of the economy.
3 So lastly, I'd just like to -- hopefully,
4 the commission noticed before the break that in this
5 small building with the back window open, the door
6 open, where we only had standing room only and it was
7 around 20 degrees outside, the thermometer on the back
8 wall said 82 degrees before the break.
9 So thank you guys, and I appreciate the
10 opportunity to speak.
11 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you,
12 Mr. Humble. We appreciate your comments.
13 Is it Delvin Humble? And then after that
14 it'll be Brian Kemmerer.
15 DELVIN HUMBLE WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
16 MR. HUMBLE: Delvin, D-E-L-V-I-N--
17 MR. PRICE: Please use the microphone.
18 Thanks.
19 MR. HUMBLE: Delvin, D-E-L-V-I-N, Humble,
20 H-U-M-B-L-E. My address is 540 East 480 North,
21 Soda Springs 83276.
22 I too am grateful to the commissioners
23 for taking the time to come visit with us and letting
24 us share our feelings and thoughts.
25 I've lived in Soda Springs for 31 years
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1 Power should instead be finding ways to cut our costs,
2 as I have personally had to do.
3 Thank you for your time and
4 consideration.
5 COMMISSIONER SMITH: we thank you for
6 your comments.
7 Brian Kemmerer, followed by Greg
8 Torgesen.
9 BRIAN KEMMERER WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
10 MR. KEMMERER: My name is Brain Kemmerer,
11 B-R-I-A-N, K-E-M-M-E-R-E-R. My address is 835 Cahina
12 Way, Pocatello, Idaho 83204.
13 I've been a resident of Idaho for
14 49 years and a resident of Southeast Idaho for about
15 32 years. I'm here speaking on behalf of residents of
16 Idaho.
17 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Are you a Rocky
18 Mountain Power customer?
19 MR. KEMMERER: I am not a Rocky Mountain
20 customer, but I do work at Monsanto.
21 I've been a fan of Warren Buffet for some
22 time. I've followed his style of investment for many
23 years. I've held funds that have his company since
24 1986, so I've followed his annual report and a lot of
25 what he writes in the media.
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1 back to society. Maybe it would be a better approach
2 for his company not to extract it from Idaho with this
3 potentially severe impact on the local economies. I
4 ask that the commission carefully consider this rate
5 of return for any capital investment, that it
6 determines an appropriate -- and appropriately
7 allocate it to Idaho customers. This concludes my
8 testimony.
9 I want to thank the commission for
10 listening to my concerns and my point of view.
11 COMMISSIONER SMITH: We appreciate your
12 patience in enduring to deliver it to us. Thank you.
13 Greg Torgesen, followed by Mitch Hart.
14 GREG TORGESEN WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
15 MR. TORGESEN: My name is Greg Torgesen,
16 G-R-E-G, T-O-R-G-E-S-E-N, and mailing address is
17 P.O. Box 517, Soda Springs, Idaho.
18 I'm not here today representing Monsanto
19 with my testimony, but I'm speaking as an individuaL.
,20 I have been a Monsanto employee for over 24 years. I
21 also live on and operate a farm in Caribou County, so
22 I am personally a Rocky Mountain Power customer.
23 I am testifying today to express my
24 opposition to the proposed rate increase.
25 I grew up in Caribou County, and I've
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1 One of his big concerns as he got more
2 and more successful is where he was going to deploy
3 his capital.. the capital he was making, where he was
4 going to deploy it. And that's one of the big jobs he
5 has at his company. Of course, warren Buffet is the
6 head of the company, and it's the holding company for
7 the power company that's involved here today.
8 After one of warren Buffet's companies
9 acquired PacifiCorp from Scottish Power in 2006,
10 articles at that time discussed how this acquisition
11 was going to be an avenue by which he could put
12 significant amounts of his capital to work at a
13 guaranteed rate of return.
14 Well, that strategy appears to be working
15 and is at the heart of the large increase that's
16 proposed in this request for increases in this case.
17 Rocky Mountain Power's grand plan for a new
18 transmission grid and delivering wind power to those
19 who have legislated it from places where it can be
20 provided easier is an avenue for that to occur.
21 Vlile I'm not opposed at all to the
22 deployment of capital in productive means, I have two
23 concerns in this case. The first is that these costs
24 should -- is how these costs should be allocated.
25 It seems like Idaho customers are caught
~ PAGE 106
1 in the middle betwen those who have legislated wind
2 power and where the wind power can be deployed with
3 the least diffculty. I do not believe that power
4 customers in Idaho should have to pay to connect
5 windmills with those who have legislated that
6 requirement or provide an avenue to deploy capital for
7 Buffet's organization.
8 Therefore, I urge this commission to do a
9 complete review of the allocation methods used in this
10 case to make sure Idaho customers do not pay for the
11 costs that are not driven by Idaho policies or service
12 growt in that area. I do not believe Idaho customers
13 should have to pay these costs any more than residents
14 of any other state in the union.
15 My second area of concern today is the
16 guaranteed rate of return of 10.6 on capital deployed
17 by this mo~opoly. During the worst economic situation
18 since the Great Depression, with interest rates at
19 record low levels, I question whether a 10.6
20 guaranteed rate of return is fair to any customer of
21 Rocky Mountain Power. Vlile most of the customers
22 would like to get half of this on their lifetime
23 savings, is it really necessary to guarantee or allow
24 up to 10.6 percent with zero risk to this company?
25 warren Buffet is a big advocate of giving
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1 observed over the years the great positive impact that
2 Monsanto and other local industries have on our local
3 economy, schools, medical facilities, businesses,
4 especially the hundreds of households with Monsanto
5 employees.
6 Having local businesses that can provide
7 metal fabrication, welding supplies, machinery part
8 and repair, tools, and other supplies needed to run
9 our farm business is also very importnt to me. And
10 I'm confident that without the support from Monsanto
11 and other local industries, that many of these
12 services and businesses would not be able to remain in
13 Caribou County and Soda Springs.
14 So the double digit rate increase that's
15 being sought by Rocky Mountain Power causes me great
16 concern. Not only for my employer's ability to remain
17 in operation, but also many other businesses, large
18 and small, in our area.
19 The impact to our farm is also a great
20 area of concern to me. My employment is very
21 important to my family. My wife and i have seven
22 sons. We both attended college, and I graduated with
23 an engineering degree. Last year we had four sons
24 enrolled in university, so having a stable employer
25 with better than average benefits has been critical to
T&T REPORTING (208) 52.9-5491
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1 of --like judge's do recommendations -- how you
2 arrived at these conclusions.
3 Now, I'm a plant manager here. i manage
4 potato plants, grain plants, and i have been involved
5 in this community for a number of years. Now, I have
6 firsthand experience working with PacifiCorp. How you
7 arrive at these conclusions would be interesting for
8 me and, i think, the public to find out.
9 Now, the reason I'm saying a 10 percent
10 or 15 percent decrease at the present level comes from
11 an experience five years ago. How you guys weigh-in
12 on these costs, et cetera, et cetera, whatever the
13 capital markets, what can PacifiCorp do, et cetera,
14 et cetera, i don't know how far your legitimacy and
15 your consulting does go.
16 I have had some experience with
17 PacifiCorp with this Cove project down here five years
18 ago. Cove project was put in here. It was number 20
19 in the nation to be put in as a power plant. Now,
20 that's prett young. That goes back a long ways.
21 Number 20.
22 So I solicited and gave articles and
23 stuff like this in the newspapers of why not, why it
24 shouldn't be taken out. It was born and made in
25 1917. It was all paid for. Everything was paid for
_ SHEET 28 PAGE 109
1 our family to allow our children to have an improved
2 future and improved outlook in their lives.
3 It is my opinion that seeking rate
4 increases of 8 to 18 percent or more is not
5 appropriate in the current prolonged economic
6 recession that we are experiencing.
7 And I agree with the testimony that's
8 been given, that a significant portion of this
9 requested rate increase is to fund renewable energy
10 project and to transmit them to the Pacific states
11 where the demand is for those. It's my opinion these
12 costs should not be borne by residents of Idaho but
13 those directly benefiting from them.
14 And I thank the commission for the
15 opportunity to testify. I ask that you carefully
16 consider the economic aspects of this decision.
17 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you for your
18 comments.
19 Mitch. Hart, followed by Stan
20 Christensen. Is Mr. Hart still here?
21 We'll move to Mr. Christensen then.
22 STAN CHRISTENSEN WAS FIR$T DULY SWORN
23 MR. CHRISTENSEN: Can you hear me?
24 COMMISSIONER KEMPTON: Yes.
25 MR. CHRISTENSEN: Good.
.. PAGE 110
1 COMMISSIONER SMITH: But you still have
2 to use the mike.
3 MR. CHRISTENSEN: Excuse me? Oh, I
4 wilL.
5 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you.
6 MR. CHRISTENSEN: Stan Christensen.
7 664 Bench Lago Road, Grace, Idaho.
8 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Do you want to spell
9 Christensen for us, please?
10 MR. CHRISTENSEN: C-H-R-I-S-T-E-N-S-E-N.
11 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Thank you.
12 MR. CHRISTENSEN: Can you hear me?
13 Okay. First off, I'd like to -- I guess
14 thank everybody. I don't know why I should thank
15 anybody. I mean, it's my job and obligation as a
16 citizen to get up here and talk and give testimony.
17 It's your obligation and responsibility to listen and
18 make a decision. Right?
19 So anyway, I propose that we -- that you
20 as this commission reduce the amount of an increase to
21 a negative 10 or 15 percent. Can you take that into
22 consideration? It's your obligation and
23 responsibility.
24 Secondly, I'd like to -- after you guys
25 come to a conclusion, I would like to see some sort
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1 down there. Here's all the things that I did or
2 whatever with the help of the county commissioners,
3 the City of Soda Springs, the City of Grace. The
4 bottom line of it is that they did not take care of
5 their assets.
6 Now, I realize that you people here --
7 and if you want to see a case of what Rocky Mountain
8 Power -- now, Utah Power & Light before, they were
9 bought out by PacifiCorp, they did a better job. If
10 you have time, all you have to do is go rightout here
11 when you cross the bridge. The concrete is going.
12 Down here, the flume. You can see the water shooting
13 out.
14 Cove had a 7.5 megawatt generator there.
15 i could not get the people -- I could not get enough
16 people -- and thank goodness that the commissioner --
17 we had Geddes. So I had depositions from employees
18 that they -- if you would have seen the project down
19 there, they let it deteriorate.
20 Vlat is better than green -- than water
21 hydroelectric power paid for? It's just a strategic
22 idiotic thing when you have this type of green power
23 automatic. You turn on the generator, and there it
24 goes. Except that i didn't get you people enlisted in
25 it to get your evaluation when we were having the
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1 difference, that Rocky Mountain Power has more clout
2 than the citizens of Idaho, and that you're going to
3 give them the increase regardless. It may not be
4 exactly what they want, but they believe that they
5 don't have any impact.
6 And that's sad. Because I think that if
7 you're not part of the solution, you're part of the
8 problem. And for all of those people who complain
9 when they get their power bill, they asked for that.
10 So having said that, they've talked about
11 the impact on tourism. Vlat will happen to this area
12 when it reaches the point that tourism is so affected
13 by our rate increases that they don't stay as long or
14 they don't come? And that affects everybody.
15 They talked about Monsanto. And I'm not
16 speaking for Monsanto, but in Lava Hot Springs there
17 are a number of people that are employed by Monsanto.
18 And maybe they're not all by Monsanto because we just
19 say "the plants." They're employed at the plants over
20 at Soda. So sometimes you don't know which plant they
21 work at, but their living comes from there.
22 I'm a big one on tellng people by
23 Roundup, support Monsanto. Vlen I'm out spraying my
24 yard, Go buy Roundup because it support a local
25 business. In Idaho we have that Buy Idaho, support
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1 discussions about the decommissioning of this plant.
2 But it's not only this plant. It's the
3 other ones we could have had. But PacifiCorp wanted
4 to decommission it. i don't want to go into this
5 anymore because it's not --I mean, we could go on,
6 et cetera, et cetera. I've got letters from Geddes.
7 I've got the county commissioners. I've got everybody
8 else.
9 So please justify to me how you guys can
10 go with an increase because of the strategic amount
11 of -- now, I don't know where you come in on this, but
12 don't come to look to us for more money.
13 COMMISSIONER SMITH: Does that conclude
14 your comment, Mr. Christian?
15 MR. CHRISTENSEN: No.
16 COMMISSIONER SMITH: I want to assure you
17 that, as I stated in my introduction, the commission
18 only act by written order, which can be appealed
19 directly to the supreme court. So every decision we
20 make has to be based on evidence that's in the record
21 that we've created through this proceeding, including
22 the public one.
23 And by giving us your mailng address, we
24 can be sure that you receive a copy of that final
25 order when it's issued.
,. PAGE 114
MR. CHRISTENSEN: Good.
2 Now, what I want to say is that I think
3 that should be taken into consideration in your
4 amount, knowing the management style that PacifiCorp
5 has shown in the past. Thank you very much.
6 COMMISSIONER SMITH: We appreciate your
7 comments and your attendance today. Thank you.
8 We have Gerri Wellard.
9 GERRI WELLARD WAS FIRST DULY SWORN
10 MR. WELLARD: My name is GeITi Wellard.
11 irs G-E-R-R-I, W-E-L-L-A-R-D. My residential address
12 is 9588 Merrick Road, Lava Hot Springs, Idaho.
13 Mailing address is 775 Yellowstone, PNB 114,
14 Pocatello, Idaho 83201.
15 I actually came and brought a written
16 statement because I realized this would be a long
17 session, and on the website it says keep your comments
18 brief. So I thought I had done that, and then the
19 more I listened to everyone, I thought, you know,
20 there's really things that you want to say that you're
21 just so frustrated over.
22 A lot of the people that I talked to
23 about coming to this meeting, about writing comments,
24 have mixed emotions. But on the large part, most of
25 them feel like their comments aren't going to make any
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PAGE 116
1 idaho, and that's one of the things that I think
2 people need to do, and they don't do as much as they
3 could.
4 Vlen Mr. Erickson and Mr. Chamberlain
5 made their comments about their businesses, I wanted
6 to echo what they said, because I do think that has a
7 big impact on it. Vlen you're traveling and you're
8 staying overnight in these places, most of the state
9 employees that come to Lava want to stay at an
10 employee discount. It doesn't matter that that
11 affects the business that they stay at because it's
12 saving the State money.
13 The same thing happens with Rocky
14 Mountain Power. If any of their people come to Lava,
15 they want a discount. We don't get a discount on our
16 power bills when they come and stay, but they expect
17 us to give it to them.
18 I take care of the condominiums in Lava.
19 We have approximately 1,400 owners. They're a
20 timeshare resort. A lot of those people are older.
21 They're--
22 I don't know anybody that I've talked to
23 this year that hasn't been impacted by the economy.
24 They've either had reduced hours, taken cuts in pay.
25 They don't get -- they don't get any extra benefits.
T&TREPORTING [phone]
PUBLIC HEARG - 12115/2010
ROCKY MOUNTAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE, IDAHO
PAGE 119
1 into consideration all the recommendations, the
2 testimony that you've heard, make it fair for
3 everyone. We realize that they're going to get a
4 rate increase, but we think it needs to be fair,
. 5 and it certinly shouldn't be the amounts that
6 they're asking for. Thank you.
7 COMMISSIONER SMITH: we thank you very
8 much for your comments tonight.
9 MS. WELLARD: Thank you.
10 COMMISSIONER SMITH: That brings us to
11 the end of the people who have signed up to
12 testify. If there's no one further who wishes to
13 testify who didn1 sign up, we will declare that
14 this hearing is now adjourned, and we will
15 reconvene at 7:00 p.m. tonight in Preston, Idaho.
16 We want to thank all of you who have
17 been patient. It was a large crowd. It took us a
18 while, but we appreciate your attendance and your
19 interest. Thank you.
20 Oh, I'm supposed to announce that
21 staff needs to begin putting the chairs away
22 immediately following the hearing so that we can make
23 it to Preston on time. Thank you alL.
24 (Proceedings adjourned at 4:28 p.m.)
25 -00000-
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= SHEET 30 PAGE 11 7
1 Their benefits are being cut. Everybody I know has
2 been impacted by that.
3 And so I tr hard to do everything I can
4 to do cost cuttng measures over there. We weather
5 strip our windows. We make sure that we do everything
6 we can. Vlen we've got rooms that -- and especially
7 at this time of the year. It's a slow time for us. I
8 go in. I shut down units. I shut down water
9 heaters. I open my refrigerators. I turn them off so
10 that we're not using any more power than we absolutely
11 have to.
12 If this increase goes in, I anticipate
13 that's going to be somewhere betwen 3,000 to $3,600 a
14 year increase for us. And in spite of what I do, if
15 the increases go in, it still raises our rates. It
16 raises our expenses for everyone.
17 And I guess I'd like to ask whether or
18 not Rocky Mountain Power has asked their employees to
19 do the same thing. Have you asked them to take cuts
20 in pay? Have you asked them to take cuts in
21 benefits? Have you laid people off?
22 I mean, I know that there are people that
23 are laid off that have come back as self~employed
24 contractors, which was great for Rocky Mountain Power
25 because now you don't have to pay their benefits. And
i= PAGE 118
1 there's a lot of animosity out there from those people
2 that I've talked to because of that.
3 And I realize that one of the other
4 things that -- on the website they talk about the
5 construction costs. And when I was talking to
6 Representative Geddes, I said, So let me just
7 understand this. They don't have to ask
8 permission, right, before they go do this
9 constructon in order to do that, but then they're
10 coming back and asking you to approve rate
11 increases to pay for the construction that they've
12 already done, basically.
13 I said, So that's like me going out
14 and buying a brand new car and asking my boss to
15 give me a raise to pay for a car. And he's going
16 to say, So you justify to me why you bought that
17 new car.
18 And in a way, that's kind of what this
19 is. They've already gone out, and they've done the
20 construction without knowing how they were going to
21 pay for it. Then they're coming back and asking us to
22 pay for their construction. I think it's kind of
23 getting the cart before the horse.
24 And I think that the Public Utilities
25 Commission should be fair. I think you should take
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i= PAGE 120 REPORTER'S CERTIFICATE
STATE OF IDAHO ss.
COUNTY OF BONNEVILLE
I, Crystal Hereford, CSR and Notary Public, in and
for the State of Idaho, do hereby certify:
That said public hearing was taken down by me in
shorthand at the time and place therein named and
thereafter reduced to typewriting under my direction, and
that the foregoing transcript contains a full, true, and
accurate record of said deposition.
I further certify that I have no interest in the
event of the action.
WITNESS my hand and seal this 28th day ofDecember 2010.
Crystal Hereford, RPR
Idaho CSR No. SRT-937
Notary Public in and for
the State of Idaho
My commssion expires: 02-28-2014
T&T REPORTING [phone]
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PUBLIC HEARG - 12115/2010
ROCKY MOUNAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE IDAHO
ww.TandTReporting.com T &T REPORTING
,
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15.67 (1176:22 32 (1)104:15 83 (1)76:19 actually (21)5:1032:20 agrium (12)23:1053:363:
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[phone]
$1 - allegra
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PUBLIC HEARG - 12/15/2010
ROCKY MOUNAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE IDAHO
ww.TandTReporting.com T&T REPORTING [phone]
allegra - building
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PUBLIC HEARG - 12115/2010
ROCKY MOUNTAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE IDAHO,
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building - concernSheet 3
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Sheet 4
PUBLIC HEARG - 12/1512010
ROCKY MOUNTAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE IDAHO
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concerned - disrupt
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drying (1) 90:19 eight (2) 35:22 80:1 engineers (1) 42:20 excellence (1) 68:16 faces (1) 11:24
duct (1) 16:23 either(6) 8:3,11 61:2383:enhance (1) 37:20 excellent (2) 64:23 85:19 facilties (5) 31:15 33:2
due (1) 53:22 1586:15116:24 enlisted (1) 112:24 except (2) 81:21 112:24 44:1458:23 108:3
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19:822:2326:1830:1 32:elected (1) 9:6 enough (4) 19:3 28:9 81:excessive (1) 96:9 facing (4) 12:3 31:5 64:17
539:1,22 48:17 61:7 52:1 election (1) 36:16 24112:15 exclamation (1) 64:23 96:6
54:956:857:1563:1765:electric (10)4:911:7,12 enrolled (1) 108:24 excuse (3) 21:18 75:13 fact (18) 23:20 34:18 37:8,
2567:670:372:11 73:16 15:25 16:6,12,18 73:3 76:ensure (3)24:15,1729:17 110:3 12 39:25 42:9 43:9,22 49:
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PUBLIC HEARG - 12/15/2010
ROCKY MOUNTAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE IDAHOI
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disruptive - factISheet 5
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Sheet 6
PUBLIC HEARG - 12/15/2010
ROCKY MOUNAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE IDAHO
ww.TandTReporting.com T&TREPORTING
,.
100:1 104:1 frankly (1)103:11 generators (1)58:14 68:886:12112:20,22
facts (1)26:3 fine (3)7:1847:2484:2 fred (5)86:1988:18,22,23 generous (1)97:5 greg (5)48:2 104:7 107:13,
failed (1)64:8 finished (2) 6:21 8:2 90:9 gentleman (1)38:20 14,15
fails (2)6:1255:10 fireplace (3) 16:14,1518:free (2)7:2536:5 gentlemen (2)4:379:12 grew (233:18107:25
fair (7 71:11 85:995:25 15 freeze (2)77:1 83:17 geology (1)44:19 grid (2 42:21 105:18
106:20118:25119:2,4 firm (1)24:13 freezing (1)61:15 gerri (3)114:8,9,10 groceries (1)14:6
fallng (1)27:21 first (53)9:18 13:17,22 15:fresh (1)32:24 gets (1)93:10 ground (1)21:10
falls (3)82:3,18,22 9,10 18:22 19:8 22:23 26:friendly (1) 36:3 getting (8)66:1870:2291:groups (1) 97:11
familes (2) 30:1331:7 1830:1,4 32:5 35:25 39:1,friends (2) 56:20,25 1,10101:23,25102:1118:grown (1) 59:9
family (12) 23:8 33:18 43:7 2240:1248:1751:752:1 front (1) 13:16 23 growth (2)41:1106:12
51:1256:20,2567:2568:4 54:956:857:1559:19,24 frozen (1)32:24 ghost (1)90:19 guarantee (1) 106:23
75:19103:5108:21 109:1 60:263:1765:2567:6,7,frustrated (1)114:21 gibbs (10)9:13,14,18,21,guaranteed (6)19:1722:
fan (1)104:21 2370:372:1173:1674:19 fuel (1)14:5 21,2410:2,311:1 92:8 246:22 105:13 106:16,20
far (8)19:1836:343:1852:75:577:1878:379:1484:fully (1)64:14 give (15)8:1610:712:718:guess (10)62:1981:882:6
1854:1484:2088:5111:1486:2088:2290:191:17 fun (2)43:686:3 1 27:335:836:646:1365:83:2289:1890:2191:696:
14 93:2299:23100:9102:15 fund (4)20:2249:1668:18 1387:1388:17110:16 11 110:13117:17
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farmer (2)89:1492:15 firsthand (2) 97:23111:6 287:8 109:8 17,17,21
farmers (8)31:953:760:fish (3)48:1957:21 58:3.funds (4)46:14,1687:8 giving (8J 19:12 28:21 66:gusts (1)33:13
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farming (1)73:24 63:464:20111:11,17 furnace (4)16:2276:782:25113:23 102:9110:24111:11 113:
farms (2)13:444:23 fixed (3111:521:2552:24 12103:8 glasses (1)16:17 9
farnsworth (1174:15 flawed (2 20:17 36:8 further (6)4:642:2470:20 global (1)80:13 Hfarnworth (7 74: 16, 16, 17,flooding (1)12:12 72:2486:9119:12 goal (3) 28:18 80:10 95:20
19,20,21 90:9 flow (2)36:540:25 future (17) 20:23 24:20,21 goals (1)69:1 h-o-o-p-e-s (1)70:6
fault (1)38:6 flume (1) 112:12 26:2338:243:16,18,2357:golden (3) 78:24 79:2 93:h-o-w-a-r-d (1)57:16
favor (1)96:17 flush (1) 62:1 462:2066:5,668:794:16,10 h-u-m-b-I-e (2 100:11
fears (1)11:17 focus (1) 24:3 17 95:22 109:2 goodness (1)112:16 102:20
federal (1)77:1 follow (1)38:14 G goose (3)78:2479:2 93:half (9) 27:14 29:3,4 30:21
fee (1)25:13 followed (13)41:770:1 72:10 31:1348:2549:250:5 106:
feed (1)89:19 979:1386:1891:1493:21 g-a-I-e-n (1)56:10 got (13117:5,19,21 37:13 22
feel (15)14:1 16:18,2417:8 100:8104:7,22,24107:13 g-e-r-r-i (1)114:11 66:2482:21 83:9 92:8 106:hand (5)7:1276:2088:1
23:1339:753:2366:1774:109:19 g-i-b-b-s (1) 9:22 1 113:6,7,7117:6 94:2596:2
577:284:393:1198:12 following (3)65:872:17 g-r-e-g (1)107:16 gotten (1)93:25 hands (1) 18:8
103:11 114:25 119:22 g-u-n-n-e-I-I (1)73:18 government (3170:2494:happen (10) 17:17 29:6,7
feelings (1)102:24 food (3)28:1032:2474:5 gaining (1)100:25 898:4 37:8,16,2061:2266:1172:
feels (1)97:4 foolish (1)99:6 galen (4)54:856:7,8,9 governor (1)81:8 3115:11
fees (2)30:2465:17 forced (2)11:14,18 game (1) 22:7 grab (1)62:3 happened (2) 27:9 43:5
fellow (243:1 66:21 forces (1)85:6 games (1) 28:4 grabbing (1)19:24 happening (3) 24:9 41:24
felt (1) 10:16 forcing (1)42:10 gap (1)83:4 grace (16)9:24 10:634:21 86:4
fertilzer (3)64:4,21 83:10 forego (1)68:25 gas (10)16:14,2222:1872:39:2452:5,7,8,1366:373:happens (6) 37:6 44:6 87:
few (9)5:13 10:12 12:8 13:foreign (1)64:25 2576:782:12,13,15,1984:1874:2288:2490:491:19 1090:15,18116:13
21 16:217:535:2587:16 forgot (1) 16:17 23 110:7112:3 happy (2)4:1548:8
89:3 form (1)8:7 gas-fired (1)44:14 graduated (1) 108:22 hard (3)96:1297:16117:3
fields (2) 60:18,21 formality (1)7:13 gateway (7 12:20,22,25 grain (2189:4111:4 hardship (3) 31:5,6 66:8
fifth (1)34:15 formally (1)5:12 13:321:1466:1977:6 grand (2)60:10105:17 hart (3)107:13109:19,20
fighting (1)66:15 formerly (1)16:25 gave (1)111:22 grant (1)88:1 hate (1) 72:3
figure (1)42:20 forth (2)6:268:18 geddes (18) 7:15 9:5 10:granted (1)71:15 hathaway (3)73:5,7,10
figures (2) 75:16 91:8 fortunate (1)23:9 1327:1639:20,22,2347:4,granting (2) 46:297:4 haven (3)48:1957:21 58:
filed (1)36:4 fortunately (1)70:10 8,12,22,2548:6,11 64:20 graph (6)81:19,2582:783:3
final (1)113:24 forward (3) 9:15 26:8 56:4 112:17113:6118:6 1,1 100:22 hay (3) 60:18,21 89:4
finalized (1)59:23 found (10) 6:17 34:8 36:2 general (1) 5:8 grateful (2) 85:10 102:22 head (1) 105:6
financial (4) 31:2,5,1635:41:20,2242:11 64:765:2 generally (1) 49:1 0 gray (1)69:10 headache (1) 92:25
16 76:681:18 generated (1)86:12 great (12) 23:1035:837:7 health (3) 64:23 68:12 71:
financing (1)38:18 four (6)35:1963:467:25 generates (1)72:24 38:1852:2354:491:9 106:13
find (11)14:7,829:1532:87:20,21 108:23 generating (1)44:14 18108:1,15,19117:24 healthy (1)64:25
2368:773:6,8,8,989:19 fourth (3)35:343:581:14 generation (3)20:321:19 greater (2) 33:15 45:17 hear (12)4:255:257:1 16:
111:8 foyer (1)6:19 33:8 greatly (1) 52:11 6,740:1 61:5,2574:1897:
finding (3)96:1297:15 franklin (2)10:20,21 generator (2)112:14,23 green (8)35:18,2345:3,7 14109:23110:12
[phone]
. fact - hear
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heard (14)24:2441:11 46:hopkins (2 56:11 70:7 idaho's (6) 24:14,17 32:19 2596:1697:3,18 18,20111:7
13,21 52:2567:1 65:21 77:horse (2132:17118:23 38:1041:353:17 increases (2017:423:21 interestingly (2128:981:
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34:20119:14,22 hot (3115:18114:12115:identified (2 4:6 7:24 118:11 interpret (1156:7
hearings (1199:10 16 idiotic (11112:22 increasing (6119:2521:intimated (1) 29:2
heart (11106:15 hotel (1178:14 idle (1198:23 2422:565:498:6100:19 intrigued (1)42:24
heat (9111:11,1416:2,12,hour (2) 75:23 78:16 ignore (1)34:18 increasingly (1197:16 introduction (1) 113:17
12,12,21 82:16,21 hours (6) 12:9 17:1846:20 imagine (1198:21 incurred (316:927:23,24 inventories (1) 24:2
heated (1118:15 75:23,25116:24 imagined (1)33:16 indeed (1)83:25 invest (6) 21:337:1838:
heater (2)18:2484:24 house (6114:11 18:1522:immediately (11119:22 indicated (1148:23 22 44:24 70:22,25
heaters (2) 18:20 117:9 1,17,1861:25 impact (21) 14:18 26:25 indicates (2)47:2573:4 invested (3119:2044:23
heavily (1) 73:10 households (11108:4 67:965:1295:3,596:3,6,indirectly (2) 29:14 86:14 73:11
heavy (1) 68:17 howard (4157:13,15,16,17 2497:2,1098:17,21,25 individual (3) 14:1944:2 investing (2124:7,20
held (4110:1936:544:3 however (6110:11 12:2 103:4107:3 108:1,19 115:107:19 investment (1916:10,12
104:23 36:1572:1673:996:19 5,11116:7 industrial (1) 53:2 19:1720:1,2,2321:1,9,12
help (8118:7 19:428:11 69:huge (5) 31:1 36:2056:17 impacted (729:2,545:10 industries (6) 32:22 33:3 24:1331:245:2046:2256:
2374:11 97:19,19112:2 70:1290:23 87:2396:21 116:23117:2 37:2471:16 108:2,11 1270:23,2496:14104:22
helped (2118:22,24 human (1194:8 impacts (1162:11 industry (11123:1631:8,107:5
helping (1128:14 humble (12J 93:21 100:7,8,imply (11101:1 13 33: 13,2349:22 64:4,22 investments (2) 39:12 71:
henry (1182:5 9,10,10102:12,13,15,16,important (1015:197:21 65:883:889:10 2
high (12114:2,326:2328:1 19,19 10:7,1886:11,12,15,17 industry's (1165:6 investors (1)46:21
40:2260:11 89:896:1996:hundred (3118:1344:675:108:9,21 inevitable (1134:11 invite (1) 34:15
2,1698:2099:5 12 imposed (1145:6 infinite (1116:5 involve (1)38:11
high-tech (1132:25 hundreds (3125:2480:8 improve (3168:1969:17 inflation (1139:13 involved (6J 34:24 42:11
higher (7) 41:964:1876:1 168:4 89:11 influences (1142:10 63:1 73:24105:7111:4
80:18,2382:999:19 hunter (1137:21 improved (2)109:1,2 inform (2110:16,17 ipuc (4) 10:5,2412:18,24
highest (1) 80:11 hurt (1178:20 improvements (3141:2 information (916:157:17,irene (3) 15:4,9,16
highly (1) 80:13 husband (3111:6,1315:68:22,25 2018:1040:941:1748:7 ironic (3)44:9,1545:5
highway (4) 9:24 57:21 ,21 23 incentive (2121:2,4 62:1976:3 irrigate (1) 60:21
59:18 hydroelectric (11112:21 included (3134:1436:21,informed (1120:21 irrigating (2) 60:18 89:7
hire (1192:14 hydropower (3142:15,15 24 infrared (2)18:20,24 irrigation (2111:2359:8
history (1) 79:23 43:19 including (6) 42:1371:7,infrastructure (12119:22 irrigators (2196:21 97:4
hit (1187:24 hyperion (11100:11 16,1996:25113:21 20:321:10,2044:7,1745:isn't (9) 20:11 22:737:19,
hold (5110:6 15:622:25 I income (3) 11:549:2366:1553:17,1986:1594:15 1961:570:1386:1192:17
27:1449:19 18 101:15 96:19
holding (11105:6 i-r-e-n-e (1115:17 incomes (1152:25 inherently (1120:16 issue (4) 12:5 36:7,7 41:19
holdings (2172:18,23 idaho (11314:55:59:2413:incorporated (1) 42:8 initiated (1181:8 issued (3)46:14,16113:
holds (1147:7 3,2015:1819:2420:2521:increase (89) 6:410:2211:injury (1170:19 25
home (15111:8,18,1915:1,12,1323:524:1625:1 18,25 12:6 14:2,15 20:24 input (2 13:2435:3 issues (8)6:16,2310:12
2416:22,2470:974:476:26:830:1932:2333:2,3 23:1725:1727:429:1331:install (2) 16:22 60:19 12:3 62:22,23
2276:5,682:12,16,21 103:34:21 37:23,25 38:5,16 39:6,10,1039:945:1346:2 installation (1135:17 it'll (2148:12102:14
7 4,2442:1544:2445:1,17 49:550:1,15,2352:12,14,installed (2116:1462:11 itself (5) 20:8,16 64:7 65:
homeowner (1)23:16 46:14,1547:248:2061:10 22 53:5 55: 18 56:3,2468:instead (3137:21 50:5 104:1795:6
homeowners (2) 16:19 52:553:10,19,2057:2258:1662:464:1965:10,1769:1 J25:14 21 59:1363:5,1966:370:170:1271:1572:574:6 instrumentation (1161:8
homes (518:1611:7,1317:15,2371:7,873:1874:10,75:1,17,2076:13,15,18,20,insulation (11103:7 j-i-m (1) 54:11
761:22 2275:677:878:579:17 22,2378:18,2580:2281:5 insult (1170:18 j-o-h-n (2) 93:23 94:5
honest (1191:4 80:22,2481:6,11,13,17,23 83:5,2485:287:1388:13 integrate (1142:21 jacket (1) 11:15
honorable (1) 94:21 82:3,3,5,17,18,22,2484:4 89:16,21 90:15,23,2591:8 integrated (8125:2434:4,january (1)75:12
hooked (2) 14:11 74:4 86:987:8,14,17,2488:2,93:4,6,7,1694:1295:998:7,12,1635:438:3,15 jargon (1) 36:4
hooper (1172:13 10,1290:4,1891:1992:5 2100:1,17101:17,21103:intended (1153:5 jay (1147:13
hoopes (4170:1,3,6,6 94:6,1096:24100:12,14,3,4,10,15,22105:15107:intensive (4133:4,13,23 jeff (1137:7
hope (10133:1266:15,24 24101:14,16103:24104:24108:14109:9110:20 37:24 jim (514:1254:7,9,10,10
80:1586:16,1688:793:3 12,13,14,16105:25106:4,113:10115:3117:12,14 intention (1) 33:7 job (5155:1 60:14103:19
99:24 103:20 10,11,12107:2,7,17109:119:4 interest (5) 8:22 21 :2446:110:15112:9
hopefully (11102:3 12110:7114:12,14115:2,increased (10111:2412:2 17106:18119:19 jobs (6) 25:22 26:4 96:25
hopes (1181:9 25,25116:1 119:15 23:1564:1271:2474:276:interesting (4) 60:11 81:98:20 99:8 105:4
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PUBLIC HEARG - 12115/2010
ROCKY MOUNAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE IDAHO
ww.TandTReporting.com T&TREPORTING [phone]heard - jobs
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PUBLIC HEARG - 12/15/2010
ROCKY MOUNAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE IDAHO
ww.TandTReporting.com T&TREPORTING [phone]
joe - memorial
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joe (1)57:17 land (4)58:2359:5,860:19 life (4)34:25 73:23,2495:4 14 manner (2) 7:258:17
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I Sheet 9
PUBLIC HEARG - 12115/2010
ROCKY MOUNAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE IDAHO
ww.TandTReporting.com T&TREPORTING [phone]
memorial - opposition
,
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PUBLIC HEARG - 12115/2010
ROCKY MOUNAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE IDAHO,
1489:20 107:24 p pays (1)76:21 1538:9,1643:1465:14 18:5,13,17,2219:16,2020:
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overcapacity (1)20:11 2370:1583:284:2,4,686:pioneer (1)67:13 post (3)15:17 32:13 86:22 preston (4)10:6,25119:
overnight (1)116:8 1489:696:2598:2,16101:place (9)4:47:58:10 16:potato (1)111:4 15,23
overusing (1)68:5 23102:1106:4,10,13116:2325:1770:2477:895:25 potential (241:1443:23 pretty (3)75:489:14111:
owen (5)26:17,18,19,19 24117:20,25118:11,15,99:23 potentially (1)107:3 20
29:24 21,22 placed (1) 97:6 poverty (1)80:23 prevent (1) 65:19
own (4)28:1232:1777:20 paying (8)13:2541:1549:places (5)14:7,1753:1 power (204)4:8,21 5:4 10:previous (2) 72:15 81:3
91:3 24,2550:1476:21 78:16 105:19116:8 23 11 :6,8 12:6,8,11,15,21 previously (1)95:23
owners (258:18116:19 98:20 plan (15)22:724:1433:25 13:4,2514:10,1015:2516:price (39)5:7,77:21 8:49:payments (1J 70:20 34:3,4 35:4 36:23 37:4,15,9,9,15,2517:1,17,20,21 19,2310:1 13:1014:815:
ww.TandTReporting.com
Sheet 10
T&TREPORTING [phone]
opposition - price
I PUBLIC HEARG - 12115/2010
ROCKY MOUNTAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE IDAHO,
1,12,14,19 17:1322:1326:proposal (7 26:5 36:22 quarter (1)70:22 rates (25)11:23 16:2020:recovery (1)6:11
13 29:22 30:6,9,11 52:3 37:18,1944:1245:1253:question (9)17:15,1734:2423:1531:1839:1649:7 recreational (1)58:3
63:20 67:9 70:4 72:14 73:25 9,2146:1 50:2290:10,21 64:11 65:471:10,1576:11 red (2)83:2 94:6
2077:21,2378:280:11 83:proposals (1)23:15 106:19 76:1877:981:1582:1,8 red-face (2) 56:8,20
4,9,10,12,21 88:25 90:5 propose (1)110:19 questions (28)6:1 7:228:96:3,5,18,21 97:3 99:5 redford (3)4:147:1126:
102:17103:3 proposed (10)10:2331:313:8,9,1014:24,2515:1 106:18117:15 14
prices (5)24:571:1374:3 1051:1962:2356:2367:5 17:11,12,1322:11,12,13 rather (2)13:1 46:9 reduce (5) 64:13 65:10 77:
81:20 99:1 69:1 77:1 106:16107:24 26:11,12,1329:20,21,22 raven (1)72:9 783:15110:20
primarily (1)73:2 proposing (1)53:6 38:1347:563:1469:1672:reach (1)28:11 reduced (4)53:2496:25
principal (1)26:23 prospect (2) 40:22 68:8 877:1289:23 reached (2 64:22 99:21 99:25116:24
prior (2)80:1,2 prospects (1) 36:24 quick (3)17:1635:2295:reaches (2)72:23 115:12 reduction (727:10,1230:
private (1)35:11 protect (1)26:4 17 read (5)14:14,1623:1492:2048:2550:764:16 103:
probably (8)27:1828:9 protection (1155:3 quickly (1)20:5 10100:15 21
48:449:6 61:1,11 83:23 protectors (1)38:8 quiet (1)36:17 reading (2)45:24101:2 reductions (1)49:18
85:7 proud (2125:1,1 quit (1)42:8 ready (2)32:3 79:12 refer (2 80:15 95:14
problem (5)12:962:6,12,proverbial (1)103:18 quite (2)27:941:13 real (5)24:3,8 28:23 34:21 refrigeration (1)33:17
25115:8 provide (21)6:1311:2117:quote (2)24:1435:19 98:25 refrigerator (1)76:9
problems (1)90:24 2337:2340:11 41:1 43:24 quoted (2)37:1241:25 realign (1)46:10 refrigerators (1)117:9
procedure (2) 6:1 7:8 45:1648:853:1159:1662:R realistic (1)94:17 regarding (3)4:1641:18
proceeding (4)5:15,229:267:1680:1085:2096:1 realistically (1) 86:4 86:6
12113:21 97:5,1698:20106:6108:6 r&d (1)32:25 reality (2) 21 :21 80:25 regardless (1)115:3
proceedings (2)79:10 provided (4)6:2056:1 63:r-e-i-t-e-n (1)47:14 realize (3)112:6 118:3 region (3)21:20 44:5 66:
119:24 25105:20 r-o-d-g-e-r (1) 72:12 119:3 19
process (16) 6:14 7:14 10:provides (1)46:9 r-o-v-e-n (1) 73:17 realized (1)114:16 regions (1) 56:21
1834:7,1336:936:8,17 providing (4)38:444:4 raise (16) 7:11 17:624:4 really (17) 13:1517:8 21:register (1)19:14
38:4,8,1240:5 58:22,23 46:799:7 46:1458:1975:877:1,9 1522:832:1837:752:21 regret (1)10:9
59:568:24 prudence (1)51:18 83:9,10,2087:10,1089:4 56:1457:3,763:11 78:20,regularly (2)97:14,19
processing (1)32:24 prudent (1) 28:5 101:23118:15 2591:11 92:3106:23114:regulated (1138:6
produce (1)68:21 prudently (4)6:821:327:raised (2)30:2479:24 20 regulations (4)24:2443:
producers (1)65:2 23,24 raises (2)117:15,16 reason (7 33:9 37:20 82:6 2350:1655:3
producing (1)42:5 public (11)4:4,56:510:6 rally (1)69:18 83:495:20101:4111:9 regulators (1)42:13
product (2) 80:11 85:2 35:363:394:2397:7111:ramped (1)66:1 reasonable (9)6:1019:regulatory (7 6:5 36:11,
productive (2)29:12105:8113:22118:24 ranchers (3)31:963:774:1825:11,1631:1849:20 1337:2,1438:2468:19
22 public's (1)103:21 11 65:2456:371:11 reiten (5)43:1,247:7,14,
products (4)84:2285:12,puc (2146:1196:11 ranching (1) 73:24 reasons (2140:2482:15 19
2093:15 pull (2160:1483:18 range (2)14:876:9 receive (4)29:8 93:6 98:2 reject (1)31:23
professional (1) 41:8 pulled (2)76:382:13 rate (115)6:47:4 10:9,15,113:24 relates (1) 38:4
professionals (1)78:14 pump (3)58:12,1359:15 2211:8,17,2512:6,8,20 received (4)10:20 18:23 relatively (1)40:12
profit (4)23:25 24:5 40:22 pumped (1)92:18 13:1 14:1 16:1,11 19:14,30:1940:7 relay (1)11:3
101:7 pumping (3133:1959:7 1720:14,20,2221:25,25 receives (2 93:6 99:22 reliable (5)24:1544:10,11,
profitable (1)12:1 60:15 22:523:21 24:631:5,23 recent (2)28:1596:6 1845:15
program (7112:7,9,17 69:pumps (4)12:8,11,1661:6 33:634:2037:2541:7,7,recently (2)48:2558:19 rely (3) 31:11 ,1753:2
2192:16,23,24 purchase (3)14:940:18 11,1846:5,17,2349:550:recess (1)79:9 remain (4)12:1 64:25 108:
programs (1)97:18 49:13 2351:1852:1263:8,2455:recession (7 67:22,25 68:12,16
prohibits (1)33:11 purchasing (1)103:8 17,2457:558:16,1961:16 1469:1376:2481:9109:6 remark (1)99:15
project (141 12:2013:321:purposes (1)58:14 62:465:13,15,1966:15,19 recognition (1)36:24 remember (1)46:17
1428:1559:16,19,21,23 pursue (1)38:1 69:1 71:1 74:1,6,875:1,8,recognize (4) 9:794:22 remind (1)22:25
61:477:5,6111:17,18112:push (1)69:14 18,21,2476:1,1480:1981:96:2098:15 remove (1)38:17
18 put (17) 16:23 25:25 54:23 586:286:2,6,887:1388:recommend (1)38:20 renewable (7 13:6 19:21
projections (1)94:17 59:12,1560:11,17,2268:1289:13,16,2090:15,23,recommendations (2)42:11,12,15,16109:9
projects (8)60:25 63:5,5,1875:1678:1081:1784:2591:793:4,1694:1295:111:1 119:1 repair (2 88:6 108:8
668:1869:10,17109:10 2385:1 106:11 111:18,19 9,1596:1,9,1597:298:3,6,recommended (1)12:19 replace (1)37:1
prolonged (1)109:5 putting (3)21:982:12119:1699:25100:17101:5,14,recommending (1)13:2 replacing (1)103:8
prominent (1)32:23 21 17,21 103:3,10,15,22105:reconsider (1)91:7 report (1)35:3
promised (1) 11:3 Q 13106:16,20107:4,24 reconvene (1)119:15 reporter (4)5:17,20 13:12
promotion (1135:17 108:14109:3,9115:13 record (10)6:21 7:238:18 48:10
propane (2)84:23,23 quadruples (1)59:1 118:10119:4 18:1 34:1435:240:663:reports (2)48:1104:24
proper (1155:4 quality (5)58:21 59:1480:ratepayer (1)39:7 21 106:19113:20 represent (5) 5:8 26:22
properly (1)62:22 11 95:499:8 ratepayers (4)13:4 16:6 recoup (1)50:7 32:20 39:5 61:14
property (1)68:18 quantity (1)98:16 49:15,20 recover (1) 6:8 representative (8)9:8,11
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Sheet 11
T&TREPORTING [phone]
price - representative
I PUBLIC HEARG - 12/15/2010
ROCKY MOUNTAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE IDAHO,
10:3,14,2518:692:7118:14,2024:631:139:12,16 roven (2)73:16,17 17110:25112:7,12 share (5125:1258:485:6
6 41:1645:2046:22,2455:run (4) 25:5 76:6,6 108:8 seed (1) 12:2 87:4102:24
representatives (4) 34:1 17,2571:1 86:2,995:15,running (3) 33:20 75:11 seeing (1)28:10 shareholder (1180:12
35:1462:7,10 1996:1,13,1697:298:3,6 99:7 seeking (3) 33:23 99:2 she'd (1192:13
represented (1) 35:15 99:5105:13106:16,20 runs (1) 64:5 109:3 she's (319:14,1676:20
representing (10) 9:13 10:107:5 . rural (3132:19,20,21 seem (1) 69:5 sheet (1)7:9
223:730:1248:21 51:11 returned (1) 99:3 5 seems (13) 14:4 19:23 20:shift (1)81:7
52:763:2389:3107:18 returning (1)41:15 1621:441:944:15,1853:shifted (1) 28:2
request (12) 6:4 77:3 88:1 returns (1) 23:24 s-i-e-p-e-r-t (1) 23:4 18 91:2 95:9 98:7 99:5 ship (1) 84:6
95:13,15,2096:1 97:4100:reuters (1) 37:12 s-o-r-e-n-s-e-n (1) 72:13 105:25 shooting (1)112:12
1 103:3,22105:16 revenue (4) 30:20 46:15 s-p-e-n-c-e-r (1) 23:3 seen (4141:1073:2578:12 short (3) 12:13 56:17 79:
requested (4) 11:19 94:13 53:1687:22 s-t-e-i-n (1) 30:3 112:18 22
95:9109:9 review (2151:17106:9 sad (1) 115:6 selection (1160:15 shortsighted (1) 84:25
requester (1) 99:21 rewarded (1) 24:7 saddle (1)21:12 self-employed (1) 117:shoulders (1)28:3
requesting (3)71:1672:5 rewards (1120:17 safest (1) 70:24 23 shouldn't (3) 101:16111:
87:14 rexburg (1)88:10 safety (1)68:12 sell (2)11:1885:11 24119:5
requests (3) 97:17 99:19 ribbon (1198:18 saint (4) 58:5,10,11 61:24 sellng (1184:22 showed (2) 76:4 82:1
103:10 rick (2) 35:6,8 salaries (1) 27:11 semiconductor (1) 83:11 showing (2) 75:19 76:2
require (3)24:2461:13,14 rippling (1) 103:24 sales (2) 87:9,11 semiconductors (1) 80:shown (3) 76:1882:7114:
required (6) 6:3,758:18 risk (1)106:24 same (11) 27:1328:13,18,2 5
59:1161:1168:22 river (4) 12:10 91:24 92:2,2049:15,2468:1574:895:senator (19) 7:15 9:5 10:shows (1183:1
requirement (4145:3,6 19 11116:13117:19 1327:1637:7,939:20,22,shut (6)12:8,11 25:2061:
101:17106:6 road (12) 30:8 39:3 54:12 satisfied (1) 46:23 2340:1347:3,8,12,22,25 14117:8,8
requirements (1)59:11 67:1373:1883:21 88:24 satisfy (2) 19:22 21:15 .48:6,11,13,15 shutting (2)12:1625:23
research (2) 33:1 35:22 90:491:1994:6110:7114:save (1)69:14 send (5121:1022:6,724:sic (1)77:4
reset (1) 46:9 12 saving (1) 116:12 2338:8 side (2 20:25 96:2
reside (4) 23:4 54:11 79:roads (1) 60:23 savings (1) 106:23 senior (114:21 siepert (9) 22:22,23 23:2,3,
1684:16 rocky (114)4:8,16,215:4 saw (3) 9:5 41:6 75:5 seniors (1117:3 730:556:1674:2590:9
resident (4) 19:13 94:10 10:2316:2519:16,2020:saying (6) 24:1937:1250:sense (8) 23:14,1925:5,11,siepert's (1) 39:14
104:13,14 12,1321:2,11,2322:1,15 20 54:24 83:20111:9 1326:339:1591:3 sign (1)119:13
residential (17J 16:6 22:24:1926:832:1733:734:says (2183:4114:17 sent (1) 13:5 signed (417:9,10 59:23
1538:11 54:2456:2267:1,19 37:3 38:8 42:25 43:scale (2)96:2,16 sentences (1135:25 119:11
1975:2,3,9,994:11 96:20 1544:1245:16,1947:10,scenario (1) 19:16 september (2159:24,25 significant (12) 7:5 41:16.
97:3,9100:16,20114:11 15,2148:149:15,1850:12,schedule (1) 10:10 serious (1)55:2 55:1865:880:21 81:596:
residents (8) 80:22 84:7 1953:5,2354:2555:1056:scheduled (1) 34:16 seriously (1) 7:6 997:6,1298:17105:12
96:2399:8101:2104:15 4 58:6 59:4,22 62:2,6 63:schedules (2) 4:9 85:23 serve (2) 87:18 97:22 109:8
106:13109:12 1064:1366:667:1968:17 scheme (1)60:10 served (1) 81:1 significantly (6)65:1 76:
resistant (1145:8 69:2,12,17,2070:11,2571:scholarship (1) 31:12 serves (1) 82:5 1 77:682:896:17,21
resort (1) 116:20 6,9,1472:4,2074:6,775:3 school (23125:1226:24 service (1514:921:1 22:silent (2) 67:2,3
resorted (1) 18:20 76:278:5,2380:581:1,4,28:1 30:15,18,21 31:11,19,1924:1232:1841:447:1 similar (1) 46:6
resou rce (12) 34:2,4,7,12,2582:8,18,2083:1484:4,2248:22,2449:3,6,14,17,59:462:7,2263:1087:16 simple (1) 52:17
16 35:4,24 37:4 38:4,12,21 86:6,2587:13,1590:12 2550:9,1557:1,287:18,95:1 97:16 106:11 simply (6112:1518:1419:
1692:4 92:1,1694:11,13,18,1995:1993:6 services (4) 45:16 46:7 85:17,2431:2144:8
resources (4)19:21 68:5 13,18,2596:1597:1,598:schools (6125:2487:7 97:20108:12 simpson's (1118:6
94:895:8 299:4100:25101:7103:2,10,1498:5 108:3 serving (1) 53:20 since (13) 11:1314:1 16:
respectful (1) 8:23 10,21,25104:17,19105:scottish (2 40:18 105:9 session (11114:17 2318:18,2320:1864:11
respectfully (1)34:13 17106:21 107:22108:15 scrutiny (1)68:18 set (514:445:1349:7,10 75:4,11,12 77:8 104:23
respects (1) 67:21 112:7115:1 116:13117:seats (1) 13:15 75:17 106:18
response (1) 63:9 18,24 second (3) 13:13 60:7106:setting (3)41:12,1944:2 sincerely (11103:20
responsibilty (5155:2 rodger (3)70:172:11,12 15 settlement (1133:14 sir (7 26:16 72:7 73:12 74:
84:386:11110:17,23 roe (2)45:1346:2 secondly (2) 11:22 110:24 seven £215:11 108:21 1377:11 79:389:22
responsible (1) 31:13 role (1) 92:3 secret (1)30:16 seven-year (1) 64:5 sister (1) 47:21
responsive (1) 85:18 roles (1) 53:9 sector (1) 35:11 several (7 14:7 16:8 38:sit (2 34:22,25
rest (2) 11:19 75:14 ron (1)91:15 secure (1)24:15 1662:2065:1382:1598:site (1) 55:5
restore (1)46:15 room (616:198:79:511:security (3) 17:466:1876:19 sites (1) 80:9
result (4) 10:19 64:9 65:2 11 96:4 102:6 25 severe (2) 56:20 107:3 situation (6) 20:9 57:9 92:
99:20 rooms (2) 11:14117:6 see (23)9:1111:113:816:severely (2) 29:1 87:23 1896:23 99:17106:17
resumed (1179:10 rough (1) 74:9 1745:1255:1762:21 64:sewage (1) 59:2 six (2) 61:1672:21
retired (1) 58:1 roughly (1)51:13 2472:383:13,14,2285:2 sewer (6) 58:3,9,11,19 60:six-year (1J 67:20
return (3016:1019:1820:roundup (2) 115:23,24 86:390:14,18,20,22100:5,2261:23 size (2166:1577:3
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Sheet 12
I
T &T REPORTING [phone]
representative - size
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PUBLIC HEARG - 12115/2010
ROCKY MOUNTAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE IDAHO,
skies (1) 69:20 sorry (3115:1353:21 67:standing (1) 102:6 submit (5)8:834:1335:2 19,21
sleep (1141:20 11 standpoint (1111:24 38:340:6 systems (3157:1,261:7
slightly (1145:25 sort (1) 110:25 start (919:19 15:1423:25 subscribing (1134:6 Tslip (1185:20 sought (1) 108:15 32:967:7,970:478:279:7 subsidiaries (1) 72:21
slow (11117:7 sounds (3169:21 91:494:started (5134:6 36:9,14 substantially (1) 53:24 t-i-m (1)63:22
small (9117:235:1436:25 3 59:2290:6 successful (2) 29:11 105:t-i-p-p-e-t-s (2) 93:24 94:
52:1053:11 68:21 74:11 source (2142:1655:13 state (45)6:3,257:325:2,7,2 5
102:5108:18 sources (417:1742:11,12 1026:827:1530:4,6,16,sudden (1116:4 t-i-t-c-o-m-b (1152:5
smaller (1)72:5 82:16 19,2032:2135:1246:14,suffer (1187:11 t-o-o-n-e (1188:24
smelt (1171:25 south (2)79:1784:16 15,19,1947:1 49:2452:20 suffered (1130:17 t-o-r-g-e-s-e-n (2) 79:16
smelter (1171:23 southeast (5132:2353:10 58:2059:11 61:11 62:770:suggests (1)45:25 107:16
smith (9314:2,105:1,99:81:2296:24104:14 15,1975:679:2480:14,17,summaries (1)6:18 t-r-e-n-t (1132:10
10 13:7,11 14:23 15:2,5 southeastern (5)74:10 2481 :8, 13, 17 84:4 87:24 summarized (1)40:25 table (4)4:225:56:198:8
17:11,1418:25 19:4,722:87:1488:1094:10103:24 88:2,5,12100:14106:14 summarizing (1)41:23 tactics (1)17:1
10,14,21,2426:10,1629:speaking (617:1640:14 116:8,12 summary (1135:22 tail (1)89:15
20,23 31:25 32:6,8,12,15 94:9104:15107:19115:stated (11125:1540:21 80:summer (4159:1 89:698:talked (12)14:1518:11 42:
38:13,2339:1847:3,18,24 16 21,2483:2586:10100:16,24,25 3,5,943:8,21 114:22115:
48:4,9,12,1650:2251:3,special (1116:1 23101:4,6113:17 superintendent (1148:10,15116:22118:2
2254:3,7,1756:2266:5 specifically (1186:8 statement (6) 7:25 8:3 13:22 tap (1169:18
67:11,18,2362:13,1763:spell (5) 7:23 63:20 70:5 855:2392:10114:16 supplement (1)31:14 tax (725:1237:4,10,1943:
13,25 64:3 65:22 66:21 67:77:21 110:8 statements (2141:2542:supplied (1) 63:24 2453:11 87:9
3,1469:2472:773:1274:spelled (4) 23:3 47:14 56:25 suppliers (1) 93:8 taxes (1149:25
13,17 77:11 79:3,6,11 84:1066:2 states (16113:524:2339:supplies (4127:12,13108:taxing (2)21:17,21
1086:5,1788:15,2089:22 spellng (119:20 1042:1346:2,2,6,746:7 7,8 taxpayers (3)28:6 50:2
91:1292:11 93:19,25100:spence (7 22:22 23:6 30:63:4,4 76:7 81:10 86:13,supply (8112:3 21:1 24:17 93:7
3,7 102:11 104:5,17 107:539:1456:1674:2590:8 14109:10 33:1242:760:1293:15 teachers (3)30:13,25101:
11 109:17 110:1,5,8,11 spencer (2122:23 23:3 states' (1) 46:8 100:23 25
113:13,16114:6119:7,10 spend (3124:21 27:743:stating (1) 9:20 supplying (21101:1,12 ted (1)5:5
so-called (1135:18 14 station (1) 59:15 support (15131:12,16,20 telephone (218:16 62:9
social (3117:466:1876:spending (4120:1768:1,stations (2) 58:13,13 37:2453:4,1466:1566:13 telephonic (118:14
24 1580:9 statistically (1) 80:21 68:969:10,2294:14108:temperatures (1161:15
society (2)66:19107:1 spent (1)41:16 stay (9111:1531:18,1976:10115:23,25 temporary (1160:22
soda (36) 14:1619:10,13 spirit (1168:16 17,20115:13116:9,11,16 supported (1150:3 tempted (1181:11
23:526:21,2330:10,15,18 spite (2) 28:11 117:14 staying (296:17116:8 supports (2)6:13115:24 ten (2127:1843:7
31:19,2232:1439:454:12 spoken (31101:10,20,23 stein (9129:2530:1,2,2,8,suppose (2) 86:1 103:2 ten-minute (2177:1579:7
56:11 63:1967:1369:370:sponsored (1) 81:6 10,1248:2356:15 supposed (3)24:1286:12 tens (1180:8
7,1071:1372:1377:2078:spouse (119:14 stephen (1141:25 119:20 tension (1160:12
1080:382:484:1786:22 spraying (11115:23 sterling (1136:7 supreme (2) 6:25113:19 terms (4117:18100:19
87:19100:12102:21,25 spread (2 27:7 78:24 stewards (1128:5 surge (1158:25 101:18,21
107:17108:13112:3115:spreading (1165:12 stil (6) 13:14 86:13 96:6 surmise (1176:14 territory (3121:2 32:18 41:
20 spring (261:2,17 109:20110:1 117:15 surprised (11100:15 4
sokol (lJ 48:3 springs (36116:1819:10,stockholders (1124:6 surrounding (1) 26:1 test (3)55:9,10,20
solander (1414:20,21 5:3,1323:526:21,2330:10,15,stop (1) 97:8 survival (1196:8 . testify (11)7:98:1510:8
38:413:9 14:25 17:1222:1831:19,2232:1439:464:storage (1)59:7 survive (11103:13 22:427:11 47:1652:984:
1226:1229:2147:6,9,16 1256:1163:1967:1369:3 strategic (2) 112:21 113:surviving (1190:20 18109:15119:12,13
sold (1146:18 70:7,1071:1372:1377:20 10 sustain (1145:19 testifying (3) 18:3 56:14
sole (1135:14 80:382:484:1786:2287:strategy (1)105:14 sustainabilty (1198:18 107:23 .
solicited (1) 111:22 19 100:12 102:21,25 107:straw (11103:18 sweater (1111:15 testimonies (1)40:1
solution (11115:7 17108:13112:3114:12 street (1162:17 sworn (37) 9:18 13:17 15:9 testimony (1917:28:17
somebody (6J 18:3 29:2 115:16 stressed (1)54:20 19:822:2326:1830:1 32:32:1 35:21 40:1048:751:
89:1992:993:9,14 sprinkler (1)61:7 strip (11117:5 539:1,2248:17 51:7 52:1 2362:2556:657:1263:15
someone (2) 8:24 36:18 stabilty (1) 41:1 striving (2) 80:7 83:15 54:956:857:1563:1765:65:2377:4,12107:8,19
sometimes (6112:1468:stable (3) 24:15 32:17108:strong (2 40:25 94:25 2567:670:372:11 73:16 109:7110:16119:2
21 83:16,1793:11 115:20 24 struggling (4152:21 96:8 74:1977:1879:1484:14 testing (4169:11 61:4,11,
somewhere (3114:1899:staff (7 5:8 27:2 30:13,25 103:12,14 86:2088:2290:1 91:1793:18
21 117:13 35:795:11 119:21 students (12126:2427:1,5,22100:9102:15104:9 textbooks (3)30:2349:11,
sons (3)51:12108:22,23 stake (1135:16 8,2528:7,8,16,21 29:8,10 107:14109:22114:9 12
soon (1)18:16 stan (31109:19,22110:6 30:24 system (16) 20:16 24:16 thankful (1)89:1
sorensen (5)70:2 72:9,11,stand (315:1 22:1 89:20 stuff (2) 78:1 111:23 31:11 52:16,1658:1959:8,thanking (2167:879:18
12,15 standards (1113:6 style (2) 104:22 114:4 12,1461:7,23,2492:2,6,thanks (2) 77:23102:18
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Sheet 13
T&TREPORTING [phone]
skies - thanks
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PUBLIC HEARG - 12115/2010
ROCKY MOUNAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE IDAHO,
themselves (1) 28:21 totally (2) 44:373:14 16 881:1582:994:25 88:790:14100:11104:12
there's (13) 8:21 13:1435:totem (1)93:12 under (4) 30:21 45:25 65:8 utilty's (1) 6:12 118:18
1036:1847:1956:1861:9 tough (1)89:14 68:17 utilze (1) 93:2 ways (4)29:1566:14104:
77:1,280:17114:20118:1 tourism (2)115:11,12 understand (13) 20:6 41:V 1 111:20
119:12 towards (1)65:18 1347:1850:10,1355:2,7 wears (1) 11:15
therefore (3) 20:11 68:7 town (6) 14:5,6 17:2,3 29:5 69:583:2395:14,16101:v-e-i-I-e (1) 19:10 weather (1) 117:4
106:8 90:19 14118:7 valley (1) 82:4 website (9)6:178:1072:
thermometer (1) 102:7 transcript (1)48:13 understandable (1) 63:value (3) 12:14 31:14 80:1976:477:581:682:13
they'll (1) 61:2 transferred (1) 86:13 11 12 114:17118:4
they've (5) 115:10 116:24 transformers (1) 59:17 understanding (1) 12:18 variable (1) 21:24 week (1) 27:20
118:11,19,19 transition (1) 43:19 understatement (1) 36:variety (1) 85:12 weekend (2) 43:6,7
thinking (1) 82:12 transmission (9) 12:20 20 veile (13) 19:2,3,6,6,7,8,9,9 weeks (3) 61:16 78:15 80:
thoughtful (1) 93:20 19:21 33:944:25 77:5,6 unemployed (1)31:4 22:1639:1454:2056:15 16
thoughts (5) 81:4 84:11 101:11,11105:18 unemployment (2) 26:6 74:25 weigh-in (1) 111:11
87:490:7 102:24 transmit (1) 109:10 80:18 vent (1) 15:22 welcome (1)5:13
threat (1) 68:5 transmits (1) 72:25 unfair (1) 17:1 venture (1) 64:8 welder (1) 33:21
three (8) 4:14 34:5 46:20 traveling (1) 116:7 unfortunately (1) 24:8 verge (1) 64:7 welding (1) 108:7
49:1255:1959:1763:480:treat (1) 85:16 union (1) 106:14 viabilty (1) 95:5 well-founded (1) 56:2
4 treated (1) 59:6 unique (1) 84:19 viable (2) 94:25 96:18 wellard (5) 114:8,9,10,10
throat (1) 91:3 treatment (3) 58:4,10 59:unit (3)38:1568:11,25 view (5)30:851:963:19 119:9
throughout (3) 10:15 87:9 units (1) 117:8 95:23107:10 west (5) 1:50 19:2321:16
21103:24 tree (2) 28:15 93:12 university (1) 108:24 views (1) 99:11 39:1084:17
throw (1) 27:20 trent (4)32:2,5,1043:22 unless (1) 95:20 virtually (1)20:13 western (1)33:14
throwing (1) 21:18 trickle (3) 25:22 90:17 93:unlike (1) 78:8 visit (2) 56:13 102:23 weston (1) 5:5
tight (1)83:9 4 unlimited (1) 20:13 vogue (1)69:14 whatever (4) 23:24,25
tighten (1) 23:25 tried (2) 62:5 73:9 unmanageable (1) 26:7 void (1) 35:11 111:12112:2
tightened (1) 68:1 tries (1) 80:6 unquote (1) 35:19 vu (1)71:21 whether (4)45:18100:1
tim (4)57:1363:16,17,18 triples (1) 59:1 unrealistic (4) 38:2 39:10,W 106:19117:17
time-of-day (3) 16:11 18:trucking (1)51:12 11 103:11 w-a-I-t-e-r-s (1) 48:19 who's (2)4:12101:22
1476:14 true (1) 45:24 unreasonable (3) 31:23 w-e-I-I-a-r-d (1) 114:11 whoever's (1) 91:5
timeshare (1) 116:20 truly (2)41:1242:16 39:8103:11 w-i-I-s-o-n (1)56:10 whole (4) 23:19 53:15 88:
tippets (9) 91:14 93:21 ,22,trustee (1) 97:22 unreasonably (1) 71:24 wages (1)83:17 11,12
23,23 94:2,4 100:4,6 truth (1)7:12 unreliable (2) 44:1655:13 wall (1) 102:8 wholeheartedly (1) 90:8
tips (1)96:17 try (13) 12:1 18:21 23:228:until (2) 34:22 75:5 walters (739:21 48:16,17,whom (1) 97:11
titcomb (7 51:6,24 52:1 ,2,4,11 52:21 55:7 78:24 79:unusually (1) 97:5 18,18,1950:25 widow (2)10:21 11:1
2,454:6 1,2185:18,24117:3 up (37) 4:14 5:2 7:9,10 12:wanted (9) 14:21 46:21 54:wife (4)82:1192:12,14
today (42) 4:155:12,187:8 trying (3) 28:2229:1582:12 13:15 14:11 16:20 18:2,15,21 72:1675:1 81:16 108:21
8:6 10:3 13:20 17:20,21 14 1722:1 27:1929:733:18,113:3116:5 wil (69)5:186:16,227:10,
23:724:930:1234:837:9 turn (6) 5:2311:1416:11 2535:2536:737:944:14,wanting (1) 85:2 11,13,218:14,18,1811:18,
39:5,2440:4,941:651:11 25:19112:23117:9 1750:1956:1265:1 70:20 wants (3) 29:17 49:21 69:9 2512:1,413:1217:2431:
54:1656:1360:8,963:23 turned (1) 94:1 72:21 75:576:1982:1385:warm (1) 11:15 6,932:3,2333:1039:20
73:22,2574:3,1486:10,24 turning (1) 90:19 2088:1090:1998:3106:warranted (1) 100:2 40:1141:1242:1943:16,
87:2,4,690:1091:20,21 twenty (1)76:10 24107:25110:16119:11,warren (8) 40:17 43:3,9 73:1644:7,1149:3,650:10
105:7106:15107:18,23 twice (1)42:19 13 4 104:21 105:5,8 106:25 52:2353:854:1955:21 57:
114:7 two (12) 7:21 23:1037:13 ups (1)42:6 washer (1) 76:7 6,10,1360:1,3,4,5,5,6,7
today's (1) 4:11 46:1849:3,1258:865:2 urge (5) 22:6,6 38:7 51:16 washington (4)35:1242:62:2465:1066:869:11,17
together (1) 76:4 76:2577:280:25 105:22 106:8 1445:481:10 77:685:787:11 88:1293:
toilet (1) 62: 1 two-part (1) 90:11 usage (3117:1868:276:5 wastewater (1) 52:16 596:21 98:1 99:12,24103:
tonight (2)119:8,15 type (3) 38:5 69:1 112:22 users (5) 35:13 91:23,24 watched (1) 87:21 16,19,20,23,25110:4115:
took (4) 30:25 48:25 75:6 typically (2) 28:1 64:5 93:8100:23 water (16112:10,12,14,14,11119:13,14
119:17 U using (7 16:11 18:20,21 1633:2052:1659:1084:wiling (1) 25:11
tool (2) 92:20 99:18 69:8,10101:18117:10 2491 :23,2492:18 93:2 wilson (6) 54:8 56:7,8,9,9,
tools (11108:8 u.k (2 73:1 ,3 utah (5)11:615:2416:25 112:12,20 117:8 10
toone (7) 86:19 88:19,22,u.s (3) 57:21 ,21 73:1 35:12112:8 waxman-markey (2)36:wind (27) 13:420:4,4,9,10
23,2389:1 90:9 ultimately (1) 27:1 utilties (15) 4:56:824:22 15,19 21:1933:8,8,15,17,2437:
top (1)54:17 unable (2) 10:3 64:14 38:1846:4,6,655:2362:2242:3,6,8,18,21 43:20unbelievable (1) 99:1 way (24)5:249:10 11:914:torgesen (10) 79:8,13,14,21 63:371:1282:287:10 316:1519:2533:15,1834:44:10,11,13,2355:1369:
15,16 104:8 107:13,14,15,uncertainty (1) 38:19 94:23118:24 835:7,2236:2049:1450:19105:18106:1,2
15 unchecked (1) 19:17 utilty (11) 6:6 24:11 37:25 windmil (1)33:19171:774:1,375:1482:5
total (1)50:6 unconscionable (1) 29:38:740:21 44:345:21 46:windmils (3)25:545:8
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Sheet 14
[phone]
themselves - windmils
T&TREPORTING
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PUBLIC HEARG - 12115/2010
ROCKY MOUNTAI CHAGES TO ELECTRIC SERVICE SCHEDULE
GRACE, IDAHO
106:5
window (1)102:5
windows (3)91:16103:9
117:5
winter (1)75:24
wisdom (1)16:5
wise (3)28:536:1651:17
wisely (2) 21:3 38:10
wish (7 7:88:6,159:421:
1250:1253:16
wishes (1)119:12
within (5)14:845:869:7,
18101:15
without (5)9:231:2097:
19108:10118:20
withstand (1)65:9
wondered (2)41:1281:24
wonderful (4)11:11 21:17
23:829:9
wood (2)16:1419:10
word (2) 24:8 98:8
words (1)26:22
work (21) 7:7 16:2323:10
34:2537:657:1 58:262:5,
21 65:1878:11 79:2585:6
91:2592:595:2498:23
103:1 104:20105:12115:
21
worked (6)23:2363:1,2,8
64:1380:2
workforce (1)29:3
working (3)23:23105:14
111:6
world (2)24:981:19
world-class (1) 80:6
worse (1)103:15
worst (1)106:17
worth (1)46:19
worthwhile (1)68:8
wright (2)42:1,17
write (2)10:2411:2
writes (1)104:25
writing (3) 8:8 64:1 114:23
written (6)6:2434:1435:
2141:22113:18114:15
ww.puc.idaho.gov (1)
6:18
wyoming (4)13:544:23
45:182:4
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yard (1)115:24
year (35)20:22 22:4,4,4,17
27:5,9 28:9 30:18,21 49: 1,
250:4,6,651:1 59:2061:5,
1364:1865:1 66:1970:18
87:22,2289:1292:1698:
24101:22,22102:2108:
23116:23117:7,14
years (33)11:5,1012:13,
1416:817:518:1220:24
23:9,11 27:1837:1338:16
44:646:1849:3,1265:13
74:276:2577:279:1 87:
20,21 102:25104:14,15,
23107:20108:1 111:5,11,
17
yellowstone (1)114:13
yesterday (2)60:899:13
yesterday's (1) 80:20
young (2)51:12111:20
Z
zero (2)101:25 106:24
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Sheet 15
T&T REPORTING [phone]windmils - zero
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REPORTER i S CERTIFICATE
STATE OF IDAHO
ss.
COUNTY OF BONNEVILLE
I, Crystal Hereford, CSR and Notary Public, in and
for the State of Idaho, do hereby certify:
That said public hearing was taken down by me in
shorthand at the time and place therein named and
thereafter reduced to typewriting under my direction, and
that the foregoing transcript contains a full, true, and
accurate record of said deposition.
I further certify that I have no interest in theevent of the action.
WITNESS my hand and seal this 28th day of
December 2010.
Jl ~ ,r-I :.r j.J M).c~~~reford, (FPR
Idaho CSR No. SRT-~ 37
Notary Public in and for
the State of Idaho
My commission expires: 02-28-2014
'MARC GIBBSI ..~
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HOME ADDRESS
632 HIGHWAY 34
GRACE, IDAHO 83241
[phone]
[phone]
EMAil: mgibbs~house.idaho.gov
DISTRICT 31-A
BEAR LAKE, BONNEVillE, CARIBOU,
FRANKLIN & TETON COUNTIES
House of Representatives
State of Idaho i:..~c.::Z
Ig... c.....""~
I want to thank the IPUC Commissioners for coming to Grace and Preston to hold these pU~~t€"eaf:gs. .,::::
I believe that it is important to give our constituents an opportunity to testify before the ca~~iSSW
about this rate case. My only regret is that my schedule conflicted with the dates of the m~~tings¡pd I
could not be here, however, I would like to mention a few issues. ::,:: co
As you are aware, Senator Geddes, Rep Lortescher, and I have had meetings throughout our district
concerning this rate case. We have felt that it was necessary to inform our constituents about this case
and inform them how they could participate in this important process. As a result of the meeting held in
Franklin County, I received a phone call that I would like to tell you about.
A widow from Franklin called me to express her opposition to the rate increase being proposed by Rocky
Mountain Power. I told her that she would need to write the IPUC or attend the hearing in Preston. She
said, "Rep Gibbs, i am a widow, i don't drive, and i don't see well enough to write letters." I promised
her that I would relay her message to the commission about her concerns. She lives on a fixed income.
She said about 43 years ago, Utah Power and Light had told her and her husband about the "all electric
home" and that there was a discount in their power rate for building their home that way. She said for
years they could control the heat in every room and it was wonderfuL. As time passed, the discounts
disappeared for the all electric home and since her husband has passed away, she has been forced to
turn the heat off in some rooms. She has to wear a sweater or light jacket to stay warm and make ends
meet. She now fears that with another rate increase, she wil be forced to sell her home and move into
a rest home. This lady has requested that I not use her name but i can provide it if needed.
Secondly, I would like to talk about irrigation rates and the Last Chance Canal Co. From a personal
standpoint, our farm faces increased costs. A rate increase wil make it more difficult to remain
profitable. We will try to pass those increased costs to our seed customers, however, most often we are
facing supply and demand issues and we in agriculture, wil have to absorb these costs.
The canal company has an issue with the rate increase. The power company has offered us a load
management program to give us a discount on our power rate if they can shut off our pumps for a few
hours each day. The problem with this program is that after we have diverted our water from the river
and the power company shut down some of our pumps, where does the water go? We then end up
flooding the people out at the end of the ditch. Also in dry years or short water years, sometime the
water has more value than the cost of power and we simply can't afford to lose the water while shutting
down pumps for the load management program.
Exhbit No. Qo4
Date: J~0:Y"tt
T&T REPORTIG
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Lastly, it is my understanding that the IPUC has recommended that 50% of the cost of the Gateway
transmission project be added to the rate base of the power company. I have been told that only 10%
of capacity of Gateway is needed at this time. If this is the case, why doesn't the IPUC only allow 10% of
the cost of Gateway to be used in the rate base rather than the 50% they are presently recommending?
Better yet, why is the cost of the Gateway project being applied to Idaho rate payers when the power
needed from the wind farms in Wyoming is be sent to states with renewable energy standards?
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12/15/2010
Idaho Public Utilities Commission
Re Case# PAC-E-1O-07
PO Box 83720
Boise Id 83720-0074 lOll JAN -3 AM 9= 19
Dear Commissioners
As a resident of Soda Springs I would like to submit my opposition to this rate case. I am deeply disturbed as the current
scenario that RMP is exploiting is simply unchecked investment at a guaranteed rate of return far above what is
reasonable for this economic climate.
RMP has invested in renewable energy resources and transmission infrastructure to satisfy legislative mandates from
customers on the west coast and are simply grabbing what they can from Idaho along the way. Our load is not
increasing; we don't need this investment at this time.
I can appreciate that investment in large infrastructure like generation takes time, but this is wind energy which by its
nature can be quickly added on an as needed basis. A coal powered facility would be in much larger denominations of
capacity and would lend itself to an overbuilt situation. Wind energy can be built as needed and the overcapacity is not
justified.
Therefore the justification lies in RMP having access to virtually an unlimited supply of cash that can be put to work with
a staggering rate of return of 10.6%. The system in itself is inherently flawed. It rewards lavish spending and building
beyond the needs of the customers since they are mandated to pay for the return.
We have been informed that we can expect a new rate case every year to fund over SlOB in future investment and
should expect an 80% increase over the next 5 years. Where is the Idaho demand side to balance this massive supply
investment? It is not in the Idaho service territory. Where is the incentive to compel RMP to invest wisely, prudently
and economically? The present incentive is to add as much cost as they think they can get away with.
That is where you come in. We need your leadership to guide their investment decisions before they are put in the
ground. I ask you to send a strong message to RMP that they need to match the investment they wish to saddle Idaho
with to the needs of Idaho. We do not need to pay for a Gateway project that is order of magnitudes beyond our needs,
and was built to satisfy the dictates of the west coast.
Carbon taxing is a wonderful boogie man to point to as an excuse to throwing in 1100MW of the most expensive
infrastructure in the region, but carbon taxing is not a reality. Why should RMP be the beneficiary of an ever increasing
variable interest rate? I received a fixed of 3.75% on my house, how does this add up to RMP being guaranteed 10.6%
that we have to pay for.
I don't want to be testifying to opposing another rate increase next year and the year after and so on. I urge you to send
that powerful message that RMPs current game plan is not justified and should change course.
Thank You
MikeVeile
2931 Wood Canyon
Soda Springs, Id 83276
Exhibit No. qD
Date: L;& iUte
T&TREpORTlG
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Testimony of Trent L. Clark
90 North 2nd East
Soda Spring~ ID 83276
cfcs7 (9 icsofida hO.com
[phone]
lOll JAN-~
v AH 9: 19
My name is Trent Clark, I am an employee of Monsanto, and own the 3-Mile Knoll horse stables in the
Rocky Mountain Power service territory of Caribou County. I am currently a member of the Idaho Rural
Development Council Board of Directors, representing rural manufacturing in Idaho, and have served 6
years as Chair of that organization.
In any description of the key industries of southeast Idaho you will find, prominent on the list, fresh and
frozen food processing, metal fabrication, phosphate and phosphorus manufacturing and high-tech
R&D, most of which is associated with the research accelerators and facilities of the Idaho National Lab.
All of these industries are classified as "energy intensive."
That is why I was astonished when, upon announcement of the current rate case, i discovered that it is
Rocky Mountain Power's intention to go into massive wind generation and wind energy transmission.
Physics almost prohibits the possibilty that one could hope to supply the needs of "energy intensive
industry" by capturing gusts of blowing air. Even in the early days of the western settlement, when wind
made up a much larger percentage of available power, noone imagined powering refrigeration with it.
The family farm had a windmill to pump water, we never considered welding with it.
The obvious oddity of seeking to power "energy intensive industry" with wind power seemed to me a
"disconnect," a clear example of need not matching up with plan. So I asked Rocky Mountain Power
representatives how such a disconnect could arise. Their answer was: "It's all in the Integrated
Resource Plan."
That was 3 months ago. I have since subscribed to and participated in the 2011 Integrated Resource
Planning (IRP) process, to the extent of my abilty. Today I have found the answer to my question. I now
know exactly how such a disconnect was not only possible, but inevitable.
Participation in the IRP is not easy. I respectfully submit for the record my invite to the 5th IRP planning
meeting, scheduled for December 15th, from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm. Ignore for the moment the fact that
this meeting overlaps one of RMP's long scheduled rate case hearings in Grace. The question I have is
"who has a work day that allows participation in a planning call from 10:00 in the morning until 4:00 in
the evening?"
I also submit for the record the Meeting Report for RMP's 4th IRP public input meeting, which was held
on October 5th. Please note that the only Idahoan present on the call was Rick Sterling of the
Commission staff. Also note that there is a near void of private-sector business. One "customer" from
Washington and the Utah Association of Energy Users were the sole representatives of all business
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CLARK, TRENT L (AG/1850)
REef:From:
Sent:
Subject:
Attachments:
IRP Mailbox (IRP(9Pacificorp.com)
Thursday, December 09,20106:29 PM
PacifiCorp IRP - Public Meeting on December 15th (Presentation)
PacifiCorp_2011lRP _PIM5_12-15-10.pdf
To All IRP Participants:
1011 JAN -3 AM 9: 19
PacifiCorp wil hold the fifth general public IRP meeting on Wednesday, December 15, 2010 in both Portland and Salt Lake City. This
meeting was originally planned to be a full day event (9-3pm PT / 10-4pm MT). However, due to a recent discovery of a problem
with the portfolios, PacifiCorp wil not be presenting portfolio results as planned. As a result, the meeting is expected to end early
afternoon. The Company will send out portfolio results when the new runs are completed, and wil devote the next public meeting
to discussing the results. Lunch wil still be provided, and hard copies of meeting materials wil be available. A phone conference line
will be available for those who cannot make the meeting locations.
Please RSVP your attendance to either of the meeting locations in Portland or Salt Lake City.
Presentation
Next Public Meeting Date
Date: December 15, 2010 (Wednesday)
TIme: 9-3pm PT / 10-4pm MT
Place: Portland - Lloyd Center Tower Room 956
Salt Lake City - North Temple Office Room 130 K
Phone #: [phone] or 205.263.1056
Code: *1388791 *
. The Star key II * II is needed for entry
· Helpful Hint: Mute - * 6 *
· Please do not use the "Hold" function on your phone.
Regards,
PacifCorp IRP Department
825 NE Multnomah, Suite 600
Portland, Oregon 97232
[phone]
IRPt!PacifCorp.comI
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~ PACIFI(ORP
iUI l JAN - 3 AM 9= 19Meeting Report
2011 Integrated Resource Plan
Fourth Public Input Meeting, October 5, 2010
Meeting Date: Tuesday, October 5, 2010,
Meeting Time: 9:00 am - 3:00 pm (Pacific) /10:00 am - 4:00pm (Mountain)
Location: Portland, Oregon; Salt Lake City, Utah; and telephone conference
Organizations Attending
. Alpern Myers Stuart LLC (Interwest Energy
Allance)
. Bella Energy Inc.
. Encana
. General Electric
. Idaho Public Service Commission (ID-PSC)
. Northwest Energy Coalition (NWEC)
. Northwest Pipeline GP (NWPGP)
. Northwest Power and Conservation Council
(NWPCC)
. Oregon Public Utilty Commission (OPUC)
. PacifiCorp
. Portland General Electric (pGE)
. Renewable Northwest Project (RNP)
. Utah Association of Energy Users (UAE)
. Utah Clean Energy (UCE)
. Utah Division of Public Utilties (DPU)
. Utah Offce Of Consumer Services (OCS)
. Utah Public Service Commission (UT -PSC)
. Wasatch Clean Air Coalition
. Washington Customer (WA Customer)
. Washington Utilties and Transporttion
Commission (WUTC)
. West Wind Wires (WWW)
. Western Resource Advocates (WRA)
. Wyoming Offce of Consumer Advocates
. Wyoming Public Service Commission (WY-PSC)
The list of individual meeting attendees is provided as Appendix A.
Meeting Overview
The integrated resource planning topics covered at this meeting included updates to the IR
schedule, Energy Gateway Transmission construction update and financial evaluation, load
forecast, hedging strategy analysis, market reliance analysis, the preliminary capacity load &
resource balance, and continued discussion on the portfolio development cases.
Pete Warnken, Manager of Integrated Resource Planning, provided an update on the remaining
IRP schedule, presented as a Gantt chart. Participant comments centered on further wind
integration study activities and public meeting follow-up for PacifiCorp's geothermal potential
study.
Cory Scott and Bil Cunningham, PacifiCorp Transmission Department, presented an update on
planning, permitting, and construction of Energy Gateway Transmission project segments, as
well as past and currently ongoing economic evaluation of Gateway project scenarios. Mr. Scott
2011 IRP - October 5, 2010, Public Meeting Report 1
2011 IRP - October 5,2010, Public Meeting Report 2
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~ PACIFICORP
also summarized the key strategic principles behind the Energy Gateway project and the signing
of the Memorandum of Understading (MOU) with Portland General Electric. Participants
inquired as to the regulatory status of the Gateway segments, such as granting of Certificates of
Public Convenience and Necessity.
Romita Biswas, Director of Load and Revenue Forecasting, presented the September 2010 load
forecast being used for the 2011 IRP. Ms. Biswas provided a system and state-level overview of
the forecast through 2020, with comparisons to the 2008 IR Update load forecast (October
2009) and associated assumption changes driving the forecast differences. On a system basis,
average annual peak load growth for 2011-2020 is projected at 1.9% compared to 2.1 % for the
2008 IRP Update load forecast, although peak load growth is higher than the October 2009
forecast in the early years.
Brian Osborn of the IRP group presented the preliminary initial capacity load & resource balance
used to determine the resource need for the 2011 IR. Changes relative to the capacity balance
developed for the 2008 IRP Update were highlighted. Significant capacity is stil needed
beginning in 2012 (1,354 MW), but the need is slightly less than projected after 2012 relative to
the capacity balance used for the 2008 IRP Update.
John Fritz, Director of Risk Management, presented PacifiCorp's perspectives on risk hedging
analysis and led a discussion on complying with the Utah Public Service Commission's 2008
IRP acknowledgement order requirement pertaining to natural gas price hedging strategies. This
requirement is to include hedging costs in the IRP analysis and pedorm sensitivity analysis of
hedging strategies that minimize customer costs and risks.
Mr. Warnken presented an overview of the proposed approach for analyzing market reliance
risk. The strategy involves developing an iliquid market scenario with high market prices and
sharply curtailed firm market purchase availability. PacifiCorp wil use its stochastic production
cost model to simulate resource portfolios with differing firm market purchase levels under the
scenario conditions, and focus on evaluating tail outcomes of the Monte Carlo portfolio
simulations.
Finally, Mr. Warnken provided an updated version of the portfolio development case list,
highlighting changes prompted by stakeholder comments and further consideration by the
Company. The updated list included an additional 16 cases for evaluating Energy Gateway
scenarios that would be developed prior to locking down Gateway transmission topology
assumptions for the remaining portfolio development cases.
Discussion Highlights
IRP Schedule Update
1. Mr. Warnken noted that slippage of the portfolio modeling schedule has occurred due to
ongoing bid evaluation work for the all-source Request for Proposals issued in December
2009.
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~ PACIFICORP
2. Participants wanted to know if the wind integration cost values were being used in the
2011 IRP and are considered finaL. PacifiCorp responded that the wind integration study
is final, and that the resulting integration cost, $9.70/MWh, is being applied for portfolio
development while incremental wind reserves wil be reflected in the production cost
simulations. The Company noted that it wil evaluate stakeholder comments on the
methodology.
3. Paricipants requested additional public discussion on the geothermal resource potential
study and resource modeling prior to the next public meeting being scheduled for
December 2015. PacifiCorp agreed to schedule a conference call to discuss the study and
geothermal resource modeling.
4. One of the participating organizations requested that parties be given an opportnity to
inspect the solar photovoltaic resource data to determine if PacifiCorp incorporated
stakeholder comments (Note: PacifiCorp distributed an updated solar PV input
assumptions memo prepared by the Cadmus Group on August 16, 2010 in response to
verbal and written comments received on the original memo dated July 28,2010.)
Energy Gateway Transmission Construction Update and Evaluation
1. PacifiCorp covered construction status, expected in-service date ranges, and regulatory
process status for the five main transmission segments: Populus-Terminal (Gateway
Central), Mona-Oquirrh (Gateway Central), Sigurd-Red Butte (Gateway South), Aeolus-
Mona (Gateway South), and Windstar-Hemingway (Gateway West). A status report on
west-side projects and initiatives-the Wallula-McNary line and Memorandums of
Understanding with Idaho Power and Portland General Electric-were also provided.
2. PacifiCorp re-iterated that Gateway transmission project discussions and associated
planning activities have been conducted in other forums including sub-regional and
regional transmission organizations, specifically the Northern Tier Transmission Group
(NTTG) and WECC Transmission Expansion Planning Policy Committee (TEPPC)
3. Confirmed that PacifiCorp is moving forward with the transmission expansion plan that
wil provide 1,500 MW on Gateway West and 1,500 MW on Gateway South (Stage 1).
4. Paricipants asked for the status of Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity
(CPCN) requests for the various transmission projects. Gateway Central segments, with
the exception of the Limber-Terminal segment under Stage 2, now have CPCNs granted.
A CPCN request has been fied for the Wallula-McNary project in Washington.
5. PacifiCorp asked Utah commission staff to clarify the criteria by which transmission
projects may be incorporated as part of the topology base case as opposed to treatment as
a resource option. Commission staff reaffirmed that granting of a CPCN should be
sufficient and that the modeling should be able to distinguish incremental costs/benefits
of the transmission project. Participants then debated whether the Sigurd-Red Butte line
and Harr Allen substation upgrades constituted a base topology addition given that they
are reliability/grid reinforcement investments necessary for serving southwestern Uta
loads.
6. PacifiCorp discussed the history of Energy Gateway financial evaluation beginning in
2007, including assessment of single-circuit versus double-circuit 345 kV investment
options.
2011 IRP - October 5, 2010, Public Meeting Report 3
2011 IRP - October 5, 2010, Public Meeting Report 4
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~ PACIFICORP
September 2010 Load Forecast
1. PacifiCorp summarized the main forecasting assumption and methodological changes
with respect to the October 2009 forecast used for the 2008 IR Update. Changes
included (1) forecast driver updates from Global Insight and the U.S. Energy Information
Administration, (2) incorporation of additional retail sales, normalized weather history,
and load research data, (3) industrial forecast updates from the Company's customer
account managers, and (4) line loss updates.
2. Participants asked about the line loss study methodology and the state-by-state line loss
percentages. PacifiCorp provided the percentages, but committed to describe the line loss
study methodology as a parking lot item.
3. PacifiCorp summarized the key load growth drivers by state. Positive drivers included
new data centers in Oregon and Utah, a positive outlook for the residential sector and
food product industry in the west side, and new industrial customers in Utah and
Wyoming. Negative drivers included pessimism in the wood product industry in several
states (due to continued weakness in the housing market) as well as a pessimistic outlook
for industrial loads for Utah and Wyoming in the out years of the forecast.
4. Paricipants discussed the impact of projected data center additions on some of the state
load forecasts presented. PacifiCorp described how it treats announced commercial and
industrial facilty additions for load forecasting purposes: it assigns a probabilty of going
forward with interconnection because commitment levels are not always known or the
estimated online date is uncertin. This forecast information is confidentiaL.
5. Washington participants asked if the energy effciency forecast methodology is consistent
with that used by the Northwest Power and Conservation CounciL. PacifiCorp responded
that it is. PacifiCorp's demand-side management potential study, being prepared by The
Cadmus Group, reflects updated assumptions and closer alignment to the Council's
methodology.
Preliminary Capacity Load & Resource Balance
1. PacifiCorp summarized the primary changes to the capacity load & resource balance
relative to the one used for the 2008 IRP Update. These changes included updates to
turbine upgrade project capacity, changes in status of two wind projects from planned to
existing in 2010 (Dunlap I and Top of the World), a modeling change for the Monsanto
curtilment contract (47 MW reduction in peak hour capacity), and a shift in the timing of
the planned Klamath dam removal from year-end 2020 to January 2020. The final
balance wil reflect an updated hydroelectric forecast.
2. PacifiCorp clarified that east-west capacity transfers are determined as part of the
capacity expansion optimization solution by the System Optimizer model rather than
fixed amounts determined outside of the modeL.
3. Participants inquired as to the treatment of operating reserves in the load & resource
balance. These are included as part of the planning reserve margin.
Hedging Strategy Analysis
1. PacifiCorp provided an overview of the IRP team's modeling capabilties for
investigating hedging. The Planning and Risk (PaR) model can potentially be used, but
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~ PACIFICORP
the Company has not tested or performed such analysis before. The System Optimizer
capacity expansion model is not an appropriate tool because it is a deterministic modeL.
2. John Fritz summarized the company's current hedging strategy and outlined key tenets of
risk management: that hedging is intended to reduce risk and not cost, that cost and risk
cannot be reduced simultaneously, that market prices cannot be predicted, and that the
optimal hedging level is a subjective determination and dependent on risk tolerance.
3. PacifiCorp described hedging costs, which are classified into post-settlement outcomes
(gain or loss on a hedged position) and program costs (broker fees, bid/ask spreads,
collateral funding costs). Utah regulatory staff clarified that their interest is in capturing
hedging gains and losses in the IRP, and what outcomes are expected to arise from
alternative hedging strategies.
4. Participants debated whether the IRP is the proper forum for evaluating gas price hedging
strategies; i.e., whether hedging influences resource selection.
5. Participants discussed the mechanics of modeling hedging impacts on gas prices and
volumes using the PaR modeL. PacifiCorp wil consider the input received in determining
its hedging analysis approach.
6. A number of participants thought it appropriate to focus on evaluating the trade-off
between hedging cost and risk. PacifiCorp proposed an approach where the current
hedging strategy and transaction costs-and the range of resulting hedging outcomes
using the 95th percentile as the worst case and 5th percentile as the best case-is compared
against the expected outcomes and transaction costs from alternative hedging strategies.
7. Utah commission staff emphasized the connection between the hedging strategy analysis
conducted via the IR and the pending Utah Energy Cost Adjustment Mechanism
proceeding.
Market Reliance Analysis
1. Pete Warnken summarized the purpose of market reliance analysis: to determine the risk
of relying on various market purchase levels given a worst-case market scenario (high
prices, reduced liquidity). PacifiCorp earlier sought clarification from Utah parties on the
desired analysis approach.
2. PacifiCorp outlined details on the market reliance analysis. The Company wil evaluate
several top-performing portfolios with significantly different levels of front offce
transaction (FOT) levels. Shar curtilment of FOT availabilty for a two-year period,
along with steep FOT price escalation, wil be reflected in the PaR stochastic production
modeL. Mobile gas generators wil also be included in the model to simulate short-term
emergency supply acquisition. The Company wil evaluate and compare upper-tail costs
and cost distributions for the modeled portfolios.
3. Utah regulatory staff reiterated that the study should address who bears the risk for
market transactions (shareholder or customers) and the regulatory implications.
4. Participants discussed the impact of C02 regulation on market transactions. PacifiCorp
cited its recent study prepared for the Oregon Commission on the rate impact of meeting
state greenhouse gas emission reduction goals. This study incorporated market sales and
purchase assumptions tied to carbon emission constraints.
2011 IR - October 5, 2010, Public Meeting Report 5
2011 IRP - October 5, 2010, Public Meeting Report 6
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~ PACIFICORP
5. For a western market assessment, Utah participants recommended that PacifiCorp
evaluate entities that it transacts with, such as examining changes in utility load &
resource balances.
Portfolio Development Cases
1. Pete Warnken reviewed the changes made to the portfolio development case definition
list in response to earlier participant comments and PacifiCorp refinements. For example,
additional CO2 hard cap cases were added to the list based on alternative natural gas price
scenarios.
2. Participants inquired as to how the coal plant utilization cases would be modeled and
results used for subsequent resource decision-making. PacifiCorp reiterated that these
cases would factor in incremental emission control and fuel supply costs, and are
intended for sensitivity analysis only. The IRP analysis wil serve as one data point for
continued company evaluation of coal plant utilization options.
3. Participants offered recommendations on cases to add or remove. For example, cases
with high load growth and high CO2 cost are least probable and could be removed to
make room for others. (Note: a paper documenting changes to the case definition list
made subsequent to this meeting was distributed to IRP participants on November 18,
2010. This paper also includes written comments from participants and a table
summarizing how the Company addressed the comments.)
4. Participants discussed treatment of state and federal renewable portfolio standards and
renewable energy credits (RECs) in the portfolio modeling.
5. Participants reiterated that the case definitions should result in a wide variety of resources
among the portfolios. PacifiCorp affirmed that this was a primary goal in constructing the
case definition list.
6. A number of participants expressed dissatisfaction with the handling of the wind
integration cost value in the case definitions. One organization was disappointed in not
seeing many core cases with their lower suggested value ($5.38/MWh, in contrast to
PacifiCorp's $9.70/MWh value).
Responses to Parking Lot Questions
IRP Public Meeting - August 4, 2010
Load Forecast
1. Please describe the methodology for line loss calculation used for the September
2010 Load Forecast.
Response:
PacifiCorp measures line losses based on the difference between actual system input
energy and actual consumption by customers as measured at the retail meter. Percentages
are updated every year using a 5-year rollng average. The line loss calculation for the
September 2010 load forecast used the 5-years ending December 31,2009.
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~ PACIFICORP
2. Please explain the bumps in Washington state loads, such as in years 2012 and 2018
(Slide #21)
Response:
The Company forecasts system coincident peak using peak producing weather. The
weather calendar is developed with peak producing weather occurring in the latter half of
July. However, the Washington jurisdiction peaks earlier -- in the week with the 4th of
July. To reflect the possibility that the Washington peak producing weather could occur
on the 4th of July, in 2012 and 2018, Washington's peak producing weather was rotated
to the 4th of July. The Washington jurisdictional peak then shifts to the second hottest
peak producing weather condition (i.e. July 20th). This shift causes bumps in 2012 and
2018 for Washington's contribution to coincident peak.
Action Item Follow-up
1. Utah Clean Energy requested that PacifiCorp provide the distributed solar PV data
being used for portfolio modeling.
Response:
An Excel workbook (Dispersed Generation Resource Attibutes.xlsx) with The Cadmus
Group's solar resource data and inputs to the System Optimizer model have been
provided as an accompanying fie to this meeting report.
2. Provide participants the Oregon Commission's greenhouse gas emissions reduction
goal report provided to the Oregon state legislature when available.
Response:
The report is now available for download from the Oregon Commission's Web site. The
Web address is:
http://www.puc.state.or.us/PUC/2020 Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Goals.sht
ml
PacifiCorp's report submission is provided in the appendix volume.
2011 IRP - October 5, 2010, Public Meeting Report 7
~ PACIFICORP
Lisa Tormoen Hickey
Ron Barness
Roger Belland
Dave Johnson
Rick Sterling
Steve Weiss
Teresa Hagins
Michael Schilmoeller
Ken Corum
Kelcey Brown
Erik Colvile
Romita Biswas
Eric Arzola
Greg Duvall
Brian Osborn
Brian Fritz
Irene Heng
Dan Swan
Jim Lacey
Michael Liljenwall
Brian Osborn
Mark Tallman
Pete Warnken
Connie Clonch
John Fritz
Jeff Ihle
Eric Chung
James Campbell
Bil Cunningham
Shane Sims
Shay LaBray
Dennis Desmarais
Cory Scott
Ken Houston
Yvonne Hogle
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Appendix A:
Meeting Attendance List, Individuals
Alpern Myers Stuart LLC (Interwest Energy Alliance)
Bella Energy Inc.
Encana
General Electric
Idaho Public Service Commission (ID-PSC)
Northwest Energy Coalition (NWEC)
Northwest Pipeline GP (NWPGP)
Northwest Power and Conservation Council (NWPCC)
Oregon Public Utility Commission (OPUC)
PacifiCorp
2011 IRP - October 5, 2010, Public Meeting Report 8
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Portland General Electric (PGE)
Renewable Northwest Project (RNP)
Wasatch Clean Air Coalition
Washington Customer (W A Customer)
Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission
(WUTC)
West Wind Wires (WWW)
Western Resource Advocates (WRA)
Wyoming Office of Consumer Advocates
Wyoming Public Service Commission (WY-PSC)
Ted Drennan
Ken Dragoon
Megan Decker
Gary Dodge
Don Hendrickson
Sophie Hayes
Sarah Wright
Brent Collns
Artie Powell
Charles Peterson
Sam Liu
Phil Powlick
Doug Wheelwright
Joni Zenger
Dan Gimble
Bela Vastag
Joseph Holland
Carol Revelt
Becky Wilson
Jerr Maio
Kathy Van Damm
John Klingele
Utah Association of Energy Users (UAE)
Utah Clean Energy (UCE)
Utah Division of Public Utilties (DPU)
Utah Offce Of Consumer Services (OCS)
Utah Public Service Commission (UT-PSC)
David Nightingale
Roger Hamilton
Nancy Kelly
Denise Parrish
Don Biederman
Marci Norby
Dave Walker
2011 IR - October 5, 2010, Public Meeting Report 9
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Western Resource Advocates - WRA defends the West's most special places
from oil and gas development. Some places are simply too special to drilL. And where
drillng occurs, ...
Bella Energy -Commercial Solar Installer, Bella Energy of Denver Colorado, ..
Interwest Energy Allance- The Interwest Energy Allance is a trade association
that brings the nation's renewable energy industry together with the West's advocacy
community
NW Energy Coalition-An allance of organizations promoting renewable energy and
conservation in the Pacific Northwest.
Renewable Northwest Project-Describes solar, wind and geothermal energy
sources and makes a convincing case for switching to a green energy provider.
Utah Clean Energy- Utah Clean Energy partners to build the new clean energy
economy.
Wasatch Clean Air Coalition- The Wasatch Clean Air Coalition was founded to
provide education to the public, advocates, legislators and government officials about
health effects of poor air quality
West Wind Wires-West Wind Wires N\ is a project of the Western Resource
Advocates in Boulder, CO. We advocate for the wind industry before transmission
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DISTRICT 31
BEAR LAKE, CARIBOU,
FRANKLIN, BONNEVILLE &
TETON COUNTIES
OFFICE ADDRESS
STATE CAPITOL
P.O. BOX 83720
BOISE, IDAHO 83720-0081
[phone]
FAX: [phone]HOME ADDRESS
370 MOUNTAIN VIEW AVENUE
SODA SPRINGS, IDAHO 83276
HOME: [phone]
Idaho State Senate
SENATOR ROBERT L. GEDDES
fliiiit PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE
d). .
December 15,2010
Idaho Public Utilties Commission
P.O. Box 83720
472 W. Washington Street
Boise, Idaho 83720-0074
-d)
re: Rocky Mountain PowerRateCasePAC-E-lO-07
Dear Commissioners,
Than you for holding public hearngs ii:my legislative district to allow my constituents and the
customers of Rocky MountainPower to..testify on this proposed rate case. I appreciate your
wilingness to come to Caribou and Franklin counties, to hearthe concerns and receive input
useful as you resolve this very critical and precedent setting proposal.
Prior to expressing myresearchandthou.ghts,I wish to disclose that I am and have been a Soda
Springs Monsanto employee since March 27,1985. As such, I am concerned regarding the
impact that this rate case and future rate increases that have been promised wil create for this
industry. During my employment o.f nearly 30 years inthe phosphate industry and nearly 26
years with Monsanto, input costs to produce elemental phosphate in the form of electricity, ore
supply and transportation are. very niuchthe limiting factors. Electrcity cost is the most
significant for the elemental phosphorus industr is generally listed as the primar factor for
facilty closures. Increasing electrcity costs, subsidized foreign competition, federal and state
environmental requirements wil and have all made the products produced by Soda Springs
industry and by Monsanto extremely fragile in such a competitive global market.
During much of my employment history, I have also been honored to serve in the Idaho State
Senate. As a Senator representing the communities and the people that for a large par support
and find employment within these industries. The step changes being embraced by Rocky
Mountain Power and the uncertainty of my constituent's abilty to pay and to truly benefit from
these changes characterize my concerns. As a lay legislator, my efforts have been to increase the
input that wil occur during the rate case hearing process. I feel that is a critical component of
my responsibilties and have always felt that the IPUC process is somewhat weak to aggressively
advertise and involve those who may be asked to pay more for the services provided.
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c,
I was in attendance at the Boise press conference in May of2005 when Waren Buffet
anounced his purchase of Scottish Power for the amount of $5.1 bilion in cash along with the
assumption of an additional $4.3 bilion of debt. He clearly stated that an energy utilty was not
his ideal prospect for a high profit earing endeavor; but that he was acquiring energy companes
for other reasons. He explained he was attacted to their predictable cash flow and sumarized
his strong desire to provide economic stability and growth, needed capitol improvements,
effcient management and economical energy to our nation and the Idaho's PacifiCorp service
terrtory.
This acquisition was looked at as a relief and a welcomed change from the management and
mismanagement created by Scottish Power; who took ownership of a profitable company in
2001 and created a debt ridden and unprofitable utilty during their four long years of ownership.
Citizens in this area begged in mass for the Idaho Pubic Utilties to reject the sale ofPacifiCorp
to Scottish Power in 2001. That didn't happen and the history regarding the first foreign
ownership of a U.S. utilty company has now been established.
Idaho law requires that rates be set at a level that is based on cost of service and a reasonable and
fair retu on equity. That seems simple enough, but obviously it is not so easy to determine
what reasonable and fair is. I do not envy the position that the IPUC again finds itself in, as you
endeavor to establish what reasonable and fair means.
I have been very puzzled regarding the magnitude of this increase, why and how such an
increase can be proposed and justified. To the extent that my web-based research is accurate and
correct, I believe that I have now found the basis for double digit increases and a higher than
expected rate increase.
If I were to title my comments, it would be something like... Is Wright Right or Is Reiten
Wrong?
My research has identified a significant and major shift from the established business strategy
that PacifiCorp/Rocky Mountain Power has previously maintained. This shift is a massive and
aggressive move into wind power using gas powered backup. Such a shift raises major concerns
because of the unproven, expensive and significant infrastrctue needs. A high risk assumption
and the anticipation of a regulatory mandate (not yet been implemented at the federal level - and
one could argue is losing support) is or was anticipated and has become the basis for this
corporate shift. A renewable portfolio requirement has been mandated in Oregon, Washington
and California; but not in Idaho. Not surrisingly, all states with such a mandate have been
resistat to allowing the so called "green power" sources of generation to be developed
extensively within their boundaries. This dependence on uneliable and unproven wind
generation should be of significant concern and a consideration that the IPUC must not tae
lightly. Such a deviation from time tested and proven coal and hydro generation will create a
tremendous financial burden and promote reliability risks for Idaho customers.
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Jim Piro, CEO of Portland General Electric and a 35-year veteran of the utilties industry was
reported in Energy in the News as saying, the shift has already stared toward wind power. BPA,
PacifiCorp and PGE all claim to be leading the nation in wind, and they are all correct. BPA
leads the way in incorporating wind into its transmission lines. PacifiCorp, in parnership with
its parent company, is far and away the largest investor in wind among the nation's utilities.
PGE is NO.1 in convincing homeowners to pay a premium for clean power. But for all of the
breezy gains, they aren't even close to where they need to be by 2025.
Steven Wright, Administrator and CEO of Bonnevile Power Administration was reported in the
same aricle to say that he is very apprehensive regarding wind, which is proving more
problematic than BP A's engineers had expected. Here's how he explains the situation: "So
when the wind is going up or down, we have to make sure that other generation goes up or down
to balance it. It has been amazing to find that the ramp rates on these facilties are substantial,
much more so than we've ever had to deal with before. Think how culturally hard this is,
because we in the utilty industry are control freaks. We have to be. And now you thow in this
resource that's going up and down all the time, in the random patterns that we have not been able
to draw statistical correlations with, and we're trying to make that work. It's scar. The thing
is, plans are under way to boost BPA's wind load to 6,000 megawatts over the next few years, to
meet the demand for new sources of renewable power. That would break the camel's back
twice. In an unsolvable problem with the current system we have in place."
Obviously, the dramatic changes in the methods and approaches being chased PacifiCorp and
based on a federal regulatory requirement that has not been and may not be put into place and
having Idaho pushed by the "green power" portfolio requirements of neighboring states, Idaho is
being sucked into this bleeding edge frenzy and asked to pay its share of the staggering cost. All
at a time when resources are so scarce and the risk is most apparent for industry, business,
schools and citizens. We find ourselves in the most difficult economy since the great depression.
Economic growth has been stifled by greed, profit schemes and mismanagement. Much of this
has been driven by governental oversight gone bad and financial safeguards that have been
found to be ineffective and unsuccessfuL.
The citizens of the U.S. sent a message on November 2 and a new level of accountabilty wil
either be established or many aspects of our economy and society wil be re-established. That
same message should not be lost on this rate setting process. We can il afford to move in a
direction that is not sustainable, secure and proven to be successful and affordable.
R. Patrck Reiten, President of Pacific Power, a division of PacifiCorp located in Portland
Oregon, made a presentation in August 2009 to the MidAmerican Energy and Waren Buffet
recommending the $6.1 bilion investment to transition from coal generating to renewable
sources of energy to meet Oregon's renewable portfolio standards and to prepare for national
carbon caps. Reiten said, "In a time when dams are more likely to be tom down than built,
PacifiCorp's strategy is to continue investing in wind power, supplemented by gas plants and
2,000 miles of new transmission lines. The transmission lines (the $6.1 bilion project Reiten
presented to Buffet and his Board last July) would extend from PacifiCorp's wind fars in
Wyoming into Idaho, Utah, Nevada and Oregon. Reiten plans to minimize costs through
efficiencies inherent to all companies under the Berkshire Hathaway umbrella." Reiten stated
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fuer, "There are some real advantages of having this holding company in terms of access to
expertise, access to great management and access to low-cost capitaL."
Reiten was recruited to PacifiCorp in 2006 and was reported to receive $647,482 in total
compensation during 2008. (Energy in the News, Power Players - August 2009 by Ben Jacklet,
http://ww.symbioticsenergy.com/news/future.html)
This very aggressive recommendation accepted by Mr. Buffet and MidAmerica Energy to
transition from coal and hydro generation to wind generated power supplemented by gas plants
and new transmission lines required to move this power to states that require a "green energy"
portfolio has placed the Idaho rate payers of Rocky Mountain Power in potential financial periL.
Over $2 bilion has been spent to acquire wind generating capacity and curent estimates indicate
that 90% of the Gateway transmission line capacity is unused. Obviously, there must not be a
shortage of available capitol. So much capitol supplied through the umbrella holdings of
Berkshire Hathaway that the Gateway project has been overbuilt and being constructed at higher
costs/mile than any other comparable transmission line construction project. This development
and investment will scarcely benefit the Idaho ratepayers, as this transmission line is designed to
move power out of or through Idaho without distribution to serve Idaho customers.
I have heard it said that a ROE set at 10.6% is necessary to attract needed capitol to continue to
maintain a reliable infrastrcture necessar for Rocky Mountain Power to provide services to its
Idaho customers. The greater concern is how can the citizens of Idaho pay for this capitol along
with an ROE set at such a high level?
It has also been publically stated that the curent 10.25% retur on equity is not being met and
that the actual ROE is slightly less than 6%. I do not understand, if they are not curently
reaping an ROE at the approved level, then why would an increase to that rate even be
considered for approval?
More concerning is that during this economic time period a level of 10.6% ROE seems
absolutely unfair and unreasonable. Such levels certainly do not comply with Idaho statutory
requirements or a level that should be acceptable to this commission or to the citizens of this
state. An ROE of 10.6% canot and should not be defended, justified or approved as reasonable
and fair.
To approve a rate of retur that is so disproportionate with the curent economy wil ultimately
encourage imprudent investments and uneasonable expenditure of monies made to an
infrastructure that does not provide reliabilty or benefit to the customers of Idaho. In addition to
the cost of the capitol, it requires a payment for the profit margin that the rate payers simply
canot afford.
A transition to incorporate more wind generated power wil also require the construction of
natural gas fired generation to provide the needed reliabilty. That is costly and inefficient to
install something that is more reliable (Gas) to backup something that is less reliable (wind).
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Because electricity is such a critical component of our economy, a 10.6% no risk rate of retur,
when other investments with risk pale in comparison, is absolutely not appropriate. Such an
ROE will do little except to discourage business, industr, schools and residential users to invest
or even remain viable. This level of guaranteed profit merely puts all of us face to face with the
threat of enormous inflation. The cost of basic services, commodities and living expenses wil
have to be increased to absorb the potential increase to cover higher electricity rates and an ROE
that is not appropriately set, but that should be set at an appropriate rate and one that will temper
imprudent investment.
I am reminded of the bonds sold by the State ofIdaho in 2006 to provide necessar funding to
renovate the Idaho Capitol building. These bonds were issued about 4 years ago at a rate of
3.66%, for the amount of$130 milion and were sold in less than 3 hours. This level of funding
was raised prior to the failure of our economy. In light of this, how can a claim be taken
seriously that 10.6% ROE is necessary to raise capitol. This example proves without doubt that
the requested rate is completely out of line with current financial investment opportunity and
market investment reality.
The ROE must not be higher than what this utilty has proven it can curently manage and return
for itself. 5.7% sounds high, but is realistic, reasonable and fair. Now wouldn't that be
precedent setting and protective of the public (ratepayers) instead of just protective of the utilty?
For too long, the utilties have leveraged rate increases against what is allowed to other similar
utilties. Utilties providing services in multiple states have leveraged against those other state's
utilty commissions. This economy provides an opportunity and a mandate to reset and re-align
with curent and practical economic and market based conditions. I encourage Idaho's PUC to
do just that.
If that is not done, then the information provided during the Rocky Mountain Power Customer
Appreciation luncheon held in Idaho Falls on December 14, just prior and durng the public
hearngs at Shelley wil come to pass. I was told that, Mr. Walje, Rocky Mountain Power stated
that this is the first of many future rate cases to be filed. He committed that rates must increase
by approximately 80% within the next few years. Idaho obviously canot sustain that level of
cost increase.
Than you for your service to our state and its citizens.
Sincerely,h~~
Robert L. Geddes
attachment: Energy in the News - Power Players - August 2009
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Energy in the News
May 2010
July 2009
December 2009 November 2009 September 2009
June 2009 April 2009 Archive 2008
August 2009
Power players
Articles - August 2009
The chiefs of BPA, Northwest Natural, PGE and Pacific Power can't see the
energy future, but they know one thing: Change is coming and it won't be
simple.
STORIES BY BEN JACKLET
PHOTOS BY LEAH NASH
Jim Piro, the new CEO of Portland General Electric and a 35-year veteran of
the utilties industry, recalls a time not long ago when electricity rarely made
headlines.
"We'd go months without being in the newspaper," he says.
Not anymore. utilty executives are no longer the dependable if somewhat
predictable suppliers of the literal power that runs the economy, reliably
running regulated monopolies that most people take for granted and
blissfully ignore. Environmental concerns are growing. Emission caps are
coming. Momentum for a radical shift toward a new economy, cleaner
and greener than the current one, is building. The future of power
generation isn't just a part of the debate over what comes next. It is at the
core of the matter.
No one in Oregon is more acutely aware of the energy challenges ahead
than Jim Piro, Pacific Power President Pat Reiten. Bonnevile Power
Administration CEO Stephen Wright and Northwest Natural CEO Gregg
Kantor. These four men (they're all men again after the recent retirements
of Peggy Fowler and Judi Johansen) are seasoned utilty executives who
are quick to praise the grid as it is. But they know change is coming, possibly
radical change.
The shift has already started with wind power. BPA, PacifiCorp and PGE all
claim to be leading the nation in wind. and they are all correct. BPA leads
the way in incorporating wind into its transmission lines. PacifiCorp, in
partnership with its parent company. is far and away the largest investor in
wind among the nation's utilties. PGE is NO.1 in convincing homeowners to
pay a premium for clean power.
But for all of their breezy gains, they aren't even close to where they need
to be by 2025. Barring substantial changes in Oregon law, many more
windmils wil need to be built, and wind is proving even less reliable a power
source than expected. Which brings us to natural gas. Each of these
executives - even Wright, whose company burns no fossil fuels - agrees
the best way to back up the intermittency of wind is with natural gas plants,
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which rev up quickly and emit half the carbon of coal plants. That's the
trend behind Kantor's determined quest to bring a Iiquified natural gas
(LNG) terminal and a new pipeline to Oregon, to keep prices from rising out
of control as the "race to gas" takes off.
The LNG plan has been roundly criticized by environmental groups and
elected offcials, but Kantor, who launched his career as a staffer for ex-
Gov. Neil Goldschmidt, knows how to sell a deaL. A big mentor of Kantor's
was Richard Reiten, who served as president of PGE and CEO of Northwest
Natural- and also happens to be Pat Reiten's father. Kantor's daughter
and Pat Reiten's son are close friends and schoolmates.
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Oregon's top energy executives know each other welL. They have much in
common. most significantly an appreciation that the coming transition into
a new era for energy wil be neither simple nor dulL.
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The Control Freak
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That's nothing compared to
what lies ahead for the
federal agency that supplies
40% of the power used in the Pacific Northwest from 3 i dams and a nuclear
power plant. Given the inherently intense position Wright occupies and the
constant contortions he must undergo in the name of balance. it's not
surprising that he sounds a bit hesitant as he addresses questions that are
not easily answered. BPA's original mission of cranking out and transmitting
massive volumes of cheap, reliable power seems almost quaint amid the
intensifying push for new sources of renewable electricity and the
increasingly vocal support for (and recent examples of) dam removaL..
When Wright discusses the radical changes ahead, the word he returns to
frequently as a sort of unresolved refrain is "scary."
One major source of Wright's apprehension is wind, which is proving more
problematic than BPA's engineers had expected. Here's how he explains
the situation:
"If you get on an airplane and fly out of Portland today going east and you
look out the window, you'll see a thousand match sticks that weren't there
before, sticking up with turbine blades on them. That is almost all within
Bonnevile's balancing authority. At the end of the day. the transmission
operator is responsible for making sure that loads and resources are in
balance every second of every day. And we have very little abilty to store
electricity.
So when the wind is going up or down we have to make sure that other
generation goes up or down to balance it. It has been amazing to find that
the ramp rates on these facilties are substantiaL, much more so than we've
Stephen Wright's tenure as
top odministrator and CEO of
Bonnevile Power
Administration has been
marked by one monumental
challenge after another: a
tumultuous power crisis
brought on by California's
deregulation debacle, new
long-term contracts with the
i 35 power fiefdoms that are
the agency's preferred
customers. a huge deal with
Native American tribes
regarding salmon, and the
most expensive fish and
wildlife restoration project in
the nation.
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ever had to deal with before.
Think how culturally hard this is.
because we in the utilty industry
are control freaks. We have to
be. And now you throw in this
resource that's going up and
down all the time, in random
patterns that we have not been
able to draw statistical
correlations with, and we're
trying to make that work. It's
scary.
"It's also fun. Things can be
scary and fun at the same time.
Roller coasters are great." So
long as they don't deraiL. Wright's latest intellgence indicates that BPA is
frighteningly close to reaching its wind limit. The agency has about 2,000
megawatts in the system and "we think somewhere between 3,000 and
3,500 is the straw that breaks the camel's back."
The thing is, plans are under way to boost BPA 's wind load to 6.000
megawatts over the next few years, to meet the demand for new sources
of renewable power. That would break the comel's back twice. "It's an
unsolvable problem with the current system we have in place," says Wright.
Clearly Wright is a big fan of the current system. which has cranked out
reliable, inexpensive hydropower with no carbon emissions since BPA was
founded in Portland in 1937. Recent agreements to restore salmon habitat
by removing dams in the Klamath Basin and elsewhere have not convinced
him even remotely to reconsider dams within the federal system. As a loyal
28-year employee of the agency, Wright reserves much of his enthusiasm
for applauding the hydro system. which he praises as "fabulously efficient."
But thousands of new wind turbines and steady scrutiny from fish advocates
mean the system that has worked so efficiently for so long wil have to
change, substantially. That's no small task for a government agency
employing nearly 3,000 people.
Part of the solution may come from smart-grid technology. BPA was an
early leader in smart-grid research and has collaborated with Pacific
Northwest National Laboratory in Richland. Wash.. to develop the
technology that enables utilties to communicate instantaneously with end
users and modify electricity use to maximize effciency.
"This is the first big experiment any place in the world to try to figure these
things out," Wright says. "It's a big change in our mindset and how we
operate systems, and everybody's a little nervous about this because
we've done it one way and it works. and now we're talking about a radical
change. But can it work? Yeah."
It wil have to. Wright's new boss is Energy Secretary Steven Chu, a Nobel
Prize-winning physicist on a mission to transform the nation's electricity
system into a new era. Leaders resistant to radical change wil not last long
under Chu's watch. Asked about his future at the BPA, Wright soys: "i serve
at the pleasure of the secretary. If he wants somebody new. he'll let me
know and i'll move on."
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I The Insider
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The last time Pat Reiten made a presentation to Warren Buffett, it involved a
$6.1 bilion investment that required board approvaL. He had just 10 days to
prepare, right around the July 4th holiday.
"i wasn't a lot of fun for the family over that holiday," Reiten recalls. "But for
that meeting, or any MidAmerican meeting, you don't want to say, 'i don't
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know, I'LL have to get back to
you.' Or even worse, 'I never
thought of that.'"
Reiten launched his career as
an aide to Sen. Mark Hatfield.
His father Richard Reiten ran
Oregon's economic
development department
before serving as president of
PGE and CEO of Northwest
NaturaL. The junior Reiten, 47,
has deep roots in the Oregon
business community, a warm,
personable style and lively
sense of humor.
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He joined the Buffett team in
September 2006, not long
after Berkshire Hathaway's
MidAmerican Energy
Holdings Co. bought
PacifiCorp from Scottish
Power for $5.1 billon. As
president of 1,261-employee
Pacific Power, one of three business platforms within the restructured
PacifiCorp, Reiten reports to PacifiCorp CEO Greg AbeL. MidAmerican CEO
David Sokol (one of the heirs apparent of the Buffett empire) and Buffett
himself. And it doesn't take long to figure out that he is thriled to be a part
of that chain of command.
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"The reason that MidAmerican hos been successful and the reason that
PacifiCorp has been and wil be successful is that we try to do the simple
things well," he says. "Make investments that make sense. Run your business
effciently. Keep your costs down. Deal with regulators and legislators and
governors with integrity. Do what you say, say what you mean. It's a very
straightforward, Midwestern ethic, but i think it works very well here in the
Northwest, too."
That may be. But for all of the emphasis Buffett and his loyalists put on
keeping things simple, they face extremely complex times in the energy
industry. By far the most important source of electricity for MidAmerican,
PacifCorp and Pacific Power is coal, the largest producer of greenhouse
gases in the world. Replacing coal with renewable sources of energy to
meet Oregon's renewable portfolio standards and prepare for national
carbon caps is a costly proposition.
The first step PacifiCorp has taken to achieve a cleaner portfolio has been
to invest $2 bilion in wind power over three years. "When I walked in the
door in September of '06, we owned 32.5 megawatts of wind," says Reiten.
"Today we own approximately 800 megawatts of wind. By the end of the
year we wil have 1 ,340 megawatts either owned or purchased. That's a
substantial investment."
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According to the American Wind Energy Association, PacifiCorp and
MidAmerican own more wind power than any other utilty in the nation. But
at less than 5% wind, PacifiCorp wil have to do much more to meet
Oregon's requirement that utilties generate 25% of their electricity from
renewable sources by 2025.
Adding to the challenge is a headline-generating development within
Pacific Power's service area that wil result in a loss of power rather than a
gain. A fter coming out strongly against the removal of four PacifiCorp dams
in the Klamath River Basin a year ago, Reiten has reversed his position and
signed an agreement with regulators that wil eventually remove 169
megawatts of carbon-free hydro power from PacifiCorp's portfolio. Here is
how he explains the reversal: "We viewed this not as a political matter but
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as a business proposition for our company. The keys for us were limiting our
exposure to dam removal costs and absolving our customers of the liabilty
involved."
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In a time when dams are more likely to be torn down than built, PacifiCorp' s
strategy is to continue investing in wind power, supplemented by gas plants
and 2,000 miles of new transmission lines. The transmission lines (the $6.1
bilion project Reiten presented to Buffett and his board last July) would
extend from PacifiCorp's wind farms in Wyoming into Utah, Idaho and
Oregon.
To help fund these developments PacifiCorp is asking state utilty regulators
for a 9.1 % rate increase. Reiten allows that it is a difficult time to raise rates
with the recession spreading and unemployment rising, but he argues, "We
haven't had a rate case in Oregon since 2006, and we have been and wil
remain one of the lowest-cost utilties in the country."
Reiten plans to minimize costs through efficiencies inherent to all companies
under the Berkshire Hathaway umbrella. "There are some real advantages
to having this holding company in terms of access to expertise, access to
great management and access to low- cost capitaL"
Another company Buffett recently invested in is BYD, the Chinese battery
giant that has released an electric vehicle with a range of 250 miles. Reiten
met with BYD executives while in China with Gov. Ted Kulongoski on a trade
mission, and those discussions have led to a compellng new collaboration
Reiten calls "potentially a game-changer," with super-efficient batteries
storing the extra electricity while the wind is humming or the sun is beating
down, to transmit it through the system at a later time when it is needed.
"BYD is the NO.1 cell phone battery manufacturing company in the world,"
says Reiten. "They have staked their company on being the best in terms of
batteries and we think there are utilty applications."
The partnership could develop into something exciting. Then again, it could
flop. Either way, there wil be no quick fix to the challenges Reiten and
PacifiCorp face. As he lays out his strategy Reiten has a lot to say about a
lot of things, but he doesn't say much about coaL, which is PacifiCorp's
greatest asset and its greatest liabilty.
Pressed on the subject, Reiten nods and says: "Sure, we'll probably see coal
plants phased out over time. And the new investments wil be higher cost.
The key wil be making the transition at a pace that makes sense for our
customers and doesn't put the businesses and the states we serve at a
competitive disadvantage."
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The Spark Plug
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Keeping up with the new CEO of Portland General Electric takes energy.
Tightly wired, ebullent and humming with his own intemal electricity, Jim
Piro is both blunt and thoughtful as he races through the list of challenges
that he faces running Oregon's largest utilty during a time of looming
uncertainties. Whether the subject is the undecided future of the Boardman
coal plant, the troubled past of the Trojan nuclear plant, or the futuristic
potential of smart-grid technologies and electric vehicles, Piro tackles each
new subject with candor and enthusiasm, rarely if ever seeming to censor
himself.
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It's not uncommon for him to shrug and say, "We don't know the answers to
any of those questions," or "Whether that's good news or bad news, it's the
truth." Late in the interview, he jokes that sometimes the company's
corporate communications staff wishes he would be more cautious about
what he says and doesn't say, but by then it is too late to take anything
back.
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Unlike other top executives in
Oregon's energy sector, Piro
is neither a political
appointee nor a longtime
political insider. He is a
technocrat, a former Oregon
State University engineer with
35 years in the electricity
business. He joined PGE in
1980 as a civil engineer,
developed his financial
acumen working on rate
cases, and served as CFO
from November 2000 through
the end of 2008 before taking
over for former CEO Peggy
Fowler this year.
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complicated by the implosion
of former PGE owner Enron and
takeover attempts by the
private equity group TPG and
the City of Portland. Since going
public in April 2006, PGE has
reasserted its viability as an
independent, vertically
integrated electric utilty. Its
stock, however, has not
performed well, losing a third of
its value over the past three
years.
The biggest immediate change
Piro inherits involves wind
power. PGE is investing a billion
dollars in the 450-megawatt
Biglow Canyon Wind Farm in
the Columbia River Gorge. But
wind accounts for just 4% of
PGE's current power mix. Wind's share is expected to grow to 11% by 2012,
but those electrons mostly would replace power generated by hydro dams,
not coal or gas plants, meaning pollution gains would be modest.
Furthermore, growing PGE's renewable portfolio to 25% by 2025 as required
by Oregon law wil be an engineenng challenge as well as a fiscal one,
because wind is proving even less predictable as a source of energy than
was originally expected. Too much wind is proving even more problematic
for utilty engineers than not enough of it.
That means PGE wil need to back up its wind investments with something
reliable and easily cranked up, Le., natural gas power plants. That means
more emissions, because while gas plants pollute less than coal plants, they
stil pollute.
"We're not going to go back to being a Third World country and say,
'Guess what? The wind's not blowing so we're not going to have any
electricity today,'" says Piro. "At the end of the doy, if we're going to
replace coaL' we're going to need new molecules."
That's a big if, and it raises a complex issue for PGE. PGE owns and operates
the Boardman coal plant, which is by far the largest source of greenhouse
gases in Oregon. PGE also holds a 20% interest in the Colstrip coal plant in
Montana. Both plants are low-cost power producers, as well as increasingly
risky environmental liabilties. After years of scrutiny, the Oregon Department
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of Environmental Quality has required major investments at Boardman, with
strict deadlines.
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"The company has two choices," says Piro. "Run the plant through 2014 and
shut it down, or spend $700 milion, implement all those measures, and run
the plant basically forever. This is not an easy analysis. If we shut down
Boardman we'll have to replace it with natural gas. That's the only really
viable resource. The questions are: What are gas prices going to be? What
are coal prices going to be? And the biggest uncertainty is how much is
carbon going to cost? We don't know the answer to any of those
questions."
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There are only two coal power plants in Oregon and Washington, and
environmental groups are considering a campaign to shut down both of
them. Piro is a veteran of PGE's controversial foray into nuclear power
(which he considers a mistake in retrospect), so he is familar with the
political implications of operating unpopular plants. Stil, he says, "We have
a responsibilty to be prudent about fuel diversification, so we have to think
seriously about what shutting down Boardman would mean for our
dependence on natural gas and the availobilty of gas or lack thereof.
There's only a limited supply of natural gas, and we would have to study the
supply side very carefully."
So does he support the proposal to build a liquefied natural gas terminal
near Astoria? Piro shakes his head and says he "wouldn't want to burn any
bridges" by backing LNG.
Clearly, Piro is more comfortable discussing technology than taking political
stands. His enthusiasm returns once the conversation turns to smart-grid
technology and electric vehicles. PGE is spending $130 millon to install
850,000 smart meters by 2010, allowing two-way communication between
the utilty and residential and commercial customers. The utilty is also
working to recruit electric car companies such as Think, Nissan and
Mitsubishi to Oregon.
The efforts to encourage electric cars and build a smarter grid are
connected because a smart grid would grant the utilty some control over
when and how electric cars and other appliances are charged and used,
to maximize effciency.
"Eventually as we put our smart meters out there and create a smart grid
with smart appliances, we'll be able to do some load control when the
wind stops blowing, to manage the uncertainty," Piro says. "And when the
wind is really blowing, you can add load by doing things like charging your
electric vehicles at night. Over time, oppliances wil have these smart chips
installed, as wil electric vehicles. And technology wil improve for
communicating with those devices. That's where the smart grid's ultimately
going. It just makes sense from an efficiency standpoint."
If only all of the industry's uncertainties could be so smartly resolved.
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The Natural
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Gregg Kantor is a born communicator. He served as communications
director under Gov. Neil Goldschmidt in the 1980s, held public affairs
positions with BPA, PGE and Northwest Natural during the 1990s, and
gradually worked his way up the ranks at NW Natural on the strength of his
abilty to persuade.
Since taking over as CEO in January, Kantor has kept his message consistent
and clear. In his view, it is time to increase Oregon's gas supply by building
a liquefied natural gas terminal on the Columbia River and the new
Palomar pipeline from Madras to Molalla that would extend to the LNG
terminal if it is built.
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I http://ww.symbioticsenergy.com/news/future.html 12/15/2010
As he builds his case for the LNG
terminal and the proposed
Palomar pipeline, Kantor's style
is so personable and relaxed
that it almost becomes difficult
to recognize that the far-sighted
plan he is describing is the same
one that has infuriated so many
environmental groups, property
rights advocates and public
officials across Oregon. There's
a reason Kantor is front and
center in the effort to complete
these two projects, even though
his company would contribute
just a quarter of the $1.6 billion investment. He has been honing his skils as a
messenger for decades, to the point where he sounds more like a politician
laying out his vision to win over voters than a CEO unveilng his strategy for
sustained growth.
"You're talking about $1.6 billon in private investment (between the two
projects)," he says. "They would create huge numbers of jobs, and lots of
money on the tax rolls."
Environmental groups opposing LNG say it wil add C02 emissions and
make the climate change problem worse. Kantor's countenntuitive
response is that a larger gas supply wil decrease emissions, since gas emits
half as much carbon dioxide as coaL. "The only way we're going to replace
coal-fired generation is with natural gas," he says.
. ,S,mbiotics I A New Generation of Hydropower
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I http://ww.symbioticsenergy.com/news/future.html
Page 8of9
LNG would "open Oregon to
the world," in Kantor's words,
allowing for inexpensive gas
imports from Indonesia,
Australia and Qatar, to be
stored at Northwest Natural's
underground gas storage
facilty in Mist and distributed
through a newly expanded
pipeline connecting the
coast with major supply
routes west and east of the
Cascades.
"An LNG terminal would
bring into the region about a
half as much energy as is
produced by the Columbia
River hydropower system,"
Kantor says. "This is a huge
amount of energy. And look
at the enormous role that the
hydro system has played in
our economy. If you believe
as we do that natural gas for
decades to come is going to
playa crucial role in shutting
down coal and backing up
wind, why wouldn't we want
to have that asset in our
region? Especially when,
unlike the hydro system, it's
not paid for by the public. It
seems like an enormous
opportunity. "
12/15/2010
.. ..1
'Symbiotics I A New Generation of Hydropower Page 9 of9
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That may be true. But the plan for new pipelines and LNG terminals was
hatched in a very different economy from our current one. In March 2008,
the wellhead price of natural gas in the United States was $8.29 per
thousand cubic feet. By March of 2009 the price had plummeted to $3.72,
its lowest level since November of 2002. That's because supply is growing
while demand is fallng. New supplies of gas keep flooding pipelines from
the Rocky Mountain states, not to mention the plethora of new shale wells
being developed around the nation.
The ensuing price collapse led directly to NW Natural's recent
announcement that it would return $32 million in refunds to customers. In
addition, domestic and Canadian supplies of natural gas have been far
cheaper than imported LNG gas fed into the pipeline from terminals in
Louisiana and elsewhere.
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In Kantor's view, it pays to take the long view, since it would take five to 10
years to complete the projects if they are approved. He argues that the
recession wil be temporary, while the "dash for gas" wil accelerate over
time, as utilties build more gas plants to back up intermittent wind power
and other renewable sources. "This is not about running out of natural gas,"
he says. "It's really about what cost are Oregonians going to pay for their
natural gas? How competitive are we going to be compared to the Gulf,
the Midwest and the East Coast?I
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"We've got an electricity strategy that is driving prices up, because of
climate change and the shift to renewables. Does it make sense to create
a high-price electricity strategy and the highest-price gas strategy? If you
really want to support renewables, don't you want gas at the lowest price
to avoid backlash?"
I
As with most of the rhetorical questions Kantor asks while building his case,
that last one is easy enough to answer. It's hard to argue with an
increasingly clean energy portfolio at the lowest price possible - as long as
it doesn't include new LNG terminals. So long as LNG is at the center of
Kantor's core strategy for Northwest Natural, there wil be plenty to argue
about. and plenty of people wiling to argue with him.
No doubt he wil be well prepared with a smooth, well-reasoned pitch. It
remains to be seen whether his vision wil ultimately sell politically. If it does,
Kantor's company wil become a much more powerful player in the
business of storing and distributing natural gas.
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I Source: http://ww.oregonbuslness.com/articles/64-august-2009/2011-power-players
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I htt://ww.symbioticsenergy.com/news/future.html 12/15/2010
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Âgium
f) r: r-' r-i~L\..I::.
Zftl, JAN -3 AM 9: 20
Agrium Conda Phosphate Operations.
3010 Conda Road
Soda Springs
Idaho
83276
208-547-4381 Tel
208-547-2550 Fax
IDAHO
UTII ¡-f!T~j~-.. Ii_,=
Date: 12115/2010
To: Idaho Public Utilities
Commission
From: Tim Buller
Subject: 2010 Rate Case - Public Comment for the December Grace Idaho Meeting
The fertilzer industry typically runs on a seven year cycle. In 2002 we were at the bottom of that cycle and the Conda
Phosphate Operation found itself on the verge of collapse. A joint venture between Agrium and Astaris failed to make it
through this period and as a result we had to permanently layoff over 40 employees. Since that time our electricity rates
have increase by approximately 20%. We have worked with Rocky Mountain Power and others to reduce our
consumption, but have been unable to fully compensate for the magnitude of the change. Even with an 8% reduction in
energy consumption we are facing bils that are in excess of $1 millon per year higher than they were at the bottom of
the cycle. This millon dollar annual increase is more than five times what we made in all of 2002.
Most would agree that the fertilizer industry reached the peak of its cycle in 2008. Our facility is currently in excellent
health but a business like ours cannot continue to see these kinds of increases and remain healthy. Foreign
competition has ramped up significantly this year and as a result two phosphate producers have already found that they
can no longer compete. This combined with ever increasing electricity rates leaves me deeply concemed not only for
our future but for our entire industries future.
In closing I ask that you consider the following:
Our industry is already under significant pressure and can only withstand so much. Anything you can do to
reduce the magnitude of an increase wil make a difference.
Spreading or delaying the impact of a rate case over several years would at least give us the abilty to plan.
Fighting these rate cases is expensive and disruptive to our business. Legal fees can easily cost more than the
increase itself. Please work towards multi-year agreements and do all that you can to prevent annual rate
cases.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,~i.~
Tim Buller
Engineering Manager
Agrium (NuWest) - Conda Phosphate Operations
* A Registered Name ofNu-West Industies, Inc_
T&T REPORTIG
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rO~Hll~j¡~"GY HOlD1NG' C-"NY
~ .
C$~
d'.(.$è~
FACTS & FIGURS
MidAmerica Energy Holdings Company
(year-end 2009)
Operating Revenue:
Total Assets:
Customers (total electric and natural gas):
Electric:
Natual Gas:
Total Generation Capacity:
Total Elecricity Distributed (2009):
Total Natual Gas Supplied (2009):
Electricity Transmission and Distribution Lines:
Natual Gas Transmission and Distribution
Pipelines:
Natural Ga Transmission Pipeline Design
Capacity:
Total Employees:_J!ll.lI.lI~i!tKlB1l.'l1f.iii
* Owed and contracted
Senior Management
David L. Sokol:
Gregory E. Abel:
Patrick J. Goodma:
Douglas L. Anderson:
Maureen E. Sammon:
Primar Subsidiares
MidAmerican Energy:
PacifiCorp:
CE Electric UK:
T &T REpORTING
CalEnergy Generation:
Ker River Gas Transmission:
Northern Natural Gas Company:
HomeServices of America, Inc.:
General Inormation
Headquarers, Physical Address:
Headquarers, Mailing Address:
Web site:
On the web: http:Uwww.midamerican.com
M idAmerica n Energy Hold i ngs reaches farther than its name implies. The company generates,
transmits, and distibutes electricity and natural gas to 6.9 milion customers across the US and the UK, primarily
through subsidiaries MidAmerican Energy Company, PacifiCorp, and CE Electric UK. UK regional distribution subsidiaries
Northern Electric and Yorkshire Electricity serve about 3.8 miUion electricity customers. MidAmerican Energy Holdings
also has independent power production; real estate (HomeServices of America); and gas exploration, production, and
pipeline operations (Kern River Gas Transmission and Northern Natural Gas). Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway
controls the company.
Oficers:
Chairman: David L. (Dave) Sokol
President, CEO, and Direcor; CEO, CE Electric UK; Chairrnan and CEO, PacifiCorp: Gregory E. (Greg) Abel
SVP and CFO: Patrick J. Goodman
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Published: Thursday, 10 JuI2008110:50 AM ET K~
By: Alex Crippen .~ A.è'A.S c§
Executive Producer
Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Is helping to finance
Dow's just-announced deal to buy specialty chemical maker
Rohm and Haas for over $15 billon In cash. Berkhire is
contributing an equity investment In the form of $3 bilion
worth of convertible preferred securities.
The Kuwait Investment Authority is also making a $1 bilion
investment.
In a statement posted on the company's web site, Dow
Chairman and CEO Andrew Liveris calls the acquisition a~~...---~.
"game-changing" deal for Dow, and added, "We are also thriled with the investment by Berkshire Hathaway
and the Kuwait Investment Authority, which we believe underscores the merits of this transaction, our strategy
and the great growth potential resulting from DOw's transformation."
AP
It's part of Dow's strategy to try to insulate itself from the ups and downs of the basic chemical business, which
is influenced by economic cycles more than the market for higher-margin specialty chemicals.
it'S the second financing deal for Buffett this year. .Berkshire is putting money into Mars' deal to buy Wrigley.
Comments on Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A) (BRK-B)
GuruFocus data shows that Weitz's firm owned 354 shares of c1ass-A and 2.76 million shares of c1ass-B shares of
Berkshire Hathaway. The stock takes a lion share of the firm's long equity portolio of Sl.G5 bilion. This is what Weitz
had to say about the stock:
One important holding that held us back somewhat was Berkshire Hathaway, which gained only 2.7% in2009. Berkshire
had prepared beautifully for the financial crisis and was able to deploy tens of billons of dollars on very attractive terms
over a period of a few months. Arguably, the recent bear market was among the mostsuccessful and producth,eperiods
of Warren Buffetts 45 years at Berkshire. Yet, Wall Street yawned. We hate it when a stock under-performs because we
over-paid for it or becaus~ management did something to destroy value. But when a company's value grows
significantly, and investors are slow to respond, we are content to buy more shares and wait patiently.
In case you did not notice, both classes of Berkshire stocks climbed about 24% since the beginning of the year, helping
the performance of the firm's funds overall.
Comments on Monsanto Company f. and Accenture pic. (ACN)
In the Weitz Value Fund (one of the five stock funds) commentary, Weitz and co-manager Bradle Hinton provided the
following comments on Monsanto Company and Accenture Pic.
We purchased two new companies during the quarter, Monsanto Company and Accenture pic. Monsanto is a leading
provider of agricultural product to farmers, in particular branded seeds, genomics and herbicides. The company enjoys
a strong competitive position and a long structural tailwind, as yjeld-enhancing technologies continue to gain acceptance
around the globe. The stock declined intra-quarter on short-term concerns about the initial effectiveness of new
advanced products, which we think are overblown. Accenture is a leading management consulting, technology services
and outsourcing company domiciled in Dublin. The company has a terrific business that has generated significant free
cash flow throughout a very challenging environment. Accenture has a desirable, long-tenured client list and a pristine
balance sheet. When business conditions eventually turn, we think their results may surprise to the upside.
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.'.
Testimony before Idaho Public Utilities Commission
Date: December 15,2010
Location: American Legion Hall, Grace, Idaho
Delivered by: John H. Tippets
2011 JAN-3
lD,¿\hlCJUTfLfTiES-
An 9=21
I am John Tippets, and I am here on behalf of Agrium where I am employed as the Human
Resources and Governent Affairs manager. I am also speaking as a concerned citizen, a long-
time resident of southeastern Idaho, and as a residential customer, myself, of Rocky Mountain
Power.
I am opposed to the rate increase requested by Rocky Mountain Power.
I am not opposed to any company making a reasonable profit. I am not opposed to (in fact I
support) development of infrastructure in anticipation of futue needs as long as that
development is needed and based on objective and realistic projections of future needs. I do not
have a negative bias against Rocky Mountan Power or its employees. In fact, the Rocky
Mountain Power people I know and associate with are good, honorable people.
I recognize the decisions you make as the Public Utilties Commission could be compared to a
delicate balancing act. On the one hand we need a strong and viable utility that can provide the
appropriate level of service to its customers. On the other hand, you must consider the needs of
the customers and the impact that rates have on their quality of life and in the case of businesses
the impact that rates have on the viability of the business itself.
I don't personally have the expertise nor the resources to do a comprehensive analysis of this rate
case. The requested increase seems excessive, and others with more knowledge than I have
expressed that same opinion. I am confident that PUC staf do have the expertise to make that
analysis.
There is one request that Rocky Mountain Power has made that I do understand. I refer to the
request that the authorized rate of retur be increased to 10.6%. I am quick to acknowledge that
Rocky Mountain Power has not been experiencing rates of retur that high. However, there
would be no reason to make the request unless the goal and expectation were to achieve rates at
that leveL.
I mentioned previously that I view the work you do as analogous to a balancing act. In ths case,
I believe it is fair to place Rocky Mountain Power's request for a rate of retur that may go as
high as 10.6% on one side of the scale and to balance that with the impact on its customers.
I believe every person in this room is aware of the challenges our economy has faced in the
recent past and is stil facing. The impact on business has been dramatic. Locally it is evident
that businesses are strggling for surivaL. Significant rate increases could add additional
negative pressure on these businesses. My guess is that we would have a very hard time finding
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-
a local business that wouldn't be ecstatic with a 10% retu on their investment. When we
balance local business need against Rocky Mountain Powers desire for a rate of retur as high as
10.6% percent, in my mind the scale tips significantly in favor oflocal business staying viable.
But this isn't just about businesses. Residential customers will be significantly impacted, as
well. I am in a position to know something about how our curent economic situation has
affected the residents of southeast Idaho. The impact has been dramatic, including the loss of
jobs and reduced pay. When I balance Rocky Mountain Powers desire for a 10.6% rate of retur
against the impact of increased rates on residential customers, it feels that granting the request
would provide an unusually generous benefit to Rocky Mountain power, with a significant
burden being place on the public.
Nor can we stop with consideration of business and residential customers. We also need to
consider the impact on muncipalities, schools, hospitals, and all the other groups for whom
power bils are a significant expenditure.
I approve donations from my company to many local entities, and I regularly hear that schools
and charitable organizations are finding it increasingly hard to provide levels of service that they
have in past. Requests for donations to keep these programs going have increased dramatically,
and I am regularly told that without our help many of these community efforts would cease.
I serve as a trstee on the board of Bear Lake Memorial HospitaL. I speak from firsthand
knowledge when I say that the economic conditions we face have made it much more diffcult
for us. Our employees wil not receive a pay increase in 2011. When I balance Rocky Mountain
Power's desire for a rate of retu up to 10.6% to the needs of local governent, schools, and
hospitas, I have to say it is no contest in my mind. Increasing the authorized rate of retu at
this time seems almost preposterous.
Now, I want to say a word about Monsanto, but I want to make it clear that I am not authorized
to speak on Monsanto's behalf. No one has asked me to speak for them, and, in fact, no
Monsanto employee was aware I would even mention them, but I feel the need to make a couple
of comments.
I mention Monsanto only because I recognize that because of the enormously large quantity of
electrical power they use, the rate they pay can have a significant impact on their sustainabilty.
Monsanto has been a "blue ribbon" employer in this area for several decades. They provide
good high paying jobs, and we can only imagine the impact it would have on this area were they
to curil operations. The plant where I work was idled for approximately one year, from the
sumer of 1986 to the sumer of 1987. The impact was dramatic. Real estate prices dropped to
unbelievable levels and people left the area in droves seeking employment. Many never
retured. Again, the need for Rocky Mountain Power to ear rates of retu as high as 10.6%
seem foolish when balanced against the need to keep local employers like Monsanto ruing and
providing quality jobs to our residents.
I want you to know that I appreciate the fact that you have conducted hearings in our local
communties so that our views could be heard.
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..
Let me make just on closing remark. While I don't know this is the case in ths situation, we all
know that one effective negotiating tool is to begin a negotiation with demands or requests that
are much higher than needed or even expected--the result being that when a compromise is
reached somewhere in the middle, the requestor actually receives what he or she was after in the
first place. I hope the commission will consider, in this case, not just a reduced rate from the
original request, but whether any increase is, in fact, waranted.
Than you very much.
Beca~se there has been so much wrong
information circulating about Rocky Mountain
Power prices, we want you to know the fact:
. The notion that we're building anything to
export power to California is nonsense.
We build to serve our o~nretailcustomers,
..."We"expar¡c;.t~e-eler:c syste.rn when..our..,
own customers need it. For electrical facilities
shared by several states, Idaho customers pay
only for the share they use, about 6 percent
of the total costs.
We undersand price increases are never
popular. But we need to invest to serve our
customers in good economic times and bad,
so electricity will always be there. The Idaho
Public Utilities Commission has been analyzing
Rocky Mountain Power's request and will
decide what prices should be so they are fair
to our customers.
. The company's request would mean an
average residential customer would pay
less than a dollar more per month.
. That's about the cost of a 32-ouncedrink
at the convenience store.
o Idaho's electric rates will still be among the
lowest in the world.
Comparison of world eleciêit prices
12.00 11.4
s.IO.OO
.2*j:s
8-
I 4.00
2.00
0.00
It is only right that those low rates be fair for
all our Idaho customers. Some large industrial
customers have paid well below the cost to
provide them electricit.
.(,0.00
Eleetricityusage by Idan.(,clJ~.(mer class
..::o.i
~.2:s
&
I
8.00
6.00
4.00
2.00
0.00.
Residenal Comme I Irrigaon MonsantoInd
II Amount custers currntly pa for the service they receive
II Actal cost to provide service to that custmer grp
II Gap - Reason for price increase
At Rocky Mountain Power, we undersand
nobody likes a price increase. We ask only
for what is necessary to provide you with
safe, reliable service. If you come to the
public hearings this week, we'll have more
information for you. If you'd like to see
it before the meeting. go to
rockyrountainpower.net/idahorequest.
:;mnm~mt:
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December 15,2010
Mr. Jim Kempton, President
ID Public Utilities Commission
P.O. Box 83720
Boise, ID 83720-0074
RECE
2011 JAN - 3 AM 9: 21
Dear Commissioner Kempton:RE: Case Number PAC-E-1O-07
As a Monsanto employee, I'm in favor of industrial expansion, when practicaL. It would be nefarious and
duplicitous for me to have a contradictory stace for a fellow industrial operation that Rocky Mountain Power
is. That said, I'm also against the notion that existing consumers of electricity should bear the burden of
expansion which gives them no benefit. To me, this belies the capitalist market strcture, which is the
fudamenta tenet for America's business.
Let me explain my position and use a poignant example. Again, I'm for the expansion of business. It
strengthens our economy, provides jobs, and solidifies our communities. I support the expansion of business
only when it does not cause fuher har to existing businesses. In the proposed rate case, it is apparent to me
from the information I've garered, expanding the generation and transmission capabilties for Rocky Mountain
Power provides har to the existing consumers by way of increased pricing for exactly the same level of
service provided. Because of this scenario, we, the consumers of Rocky Mountain Power, will bear the cost of
the companies expansion with no benefit.
I liken this expansion to the example of going to a restaurant, with the expectation of having an existing
restaurant building already in place and the expectation to order, pay for, and receive a meaL. Ths expansion
with no local benefit is, to me, similar to going to a restaurant to eat, but having to pay for the meal well before
the restaurant is ever built. Even harder to justify, the meal is going to be given to someone else.
If Rocky Mountain Power wants to sell energy to neighboring states, that's none of my business. But, when
Rocky Mountain Power is attempting to make it my business for fuding their expansion, that's when I have to
say no. Let the consumer pay for the new service and let the existing consumers continue to enjoy the rate
strctue already in place.
Under the proposed scenario, this expansion would be a step in the right direction for Rocky Mountain Power.
But, it's a step in the wrong direction for the existing consumers and hinders the effectiveness and viability of
existing businesses to operate in an already struggling economic environment.
Please see your way to deny or postpone this increase on the existing users. If Rocky Mountain Power wants to
expand their business, let the cost be borne initially by their coffers and pass the existing costs onto the
consumer of the new generation and transmission capabilities.
Sincerely,~/ ~2=
Paul Stenhouse
Senior Environmental Regulatory Specialist
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October 21,2010 RECE
Idao Public Utilities Commssion
P.O. Box 83720
Boise, Idao 83720-0074
ion JAN -3 AM 9= 2 ,
Attention:
Jim Kipton
Marha Smith
Mack Redford
Rocky Mountan Power Co. fied a rate increase case on May 28, 2010 askig for
signficant increases in the rates they charge for power. They sad we enjoy some of the
lowest prices in the nation. Ths is not a valid reasn for raising the rates. Most wages
in Idao are not as high as in other places in our countr.
They want to bolster revenue and give their stockholders a higher retu on investments.
Right now, unemployment is high and the economy is strggling. In Montplier, we have
the or four homes on every block that are for sae. They are not expensive houss.
People have left their homes with the of hope of getting a job elsewhere or have
combined famly households to share the bils. We have many retired people living here
who are strggling finacially. Becaus of the economy, retirement fuds are not able to
give cost of living raises. Interest rates are low for those trng to live on investments.
Food, clothng and gasoline prices have risen, basic wages have not. Many companes
are having to fulough their workers for short periods of time to keep their employees
workig.
Ths is not the time to increase electrcity bils. All of us have to work together to do
with less. Because of the way our homes ar constrcted and the appliances we us, we
have to have electrcity. We ca not choose who we buy our electrcity from as we do our
clothes and food.
I will not be able to attend the public heargs tht have been scheduled to give
testimony on the rate case. Pleae accept my letter.
I'm sending a copy of it to my Senator, Robert Geddes in Soda Springs.Tht!¡:s;;~
Verleen K. Toland
255 Woodlawn
Montpelier, il 83254
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Statement to the Idaho Public Utilities Commission on lJf:r-..
Rocky Mountain Power Company's proposed rate in~reasès"Jt:
for its Idaho consumers and scheduling of this heDlgAN-3
during the year end holiday season Ji: II.. IDAFt)\.) TlLlTIEá'"
Robert E. (Bob) Ziel
152 Dove Avenue
Rigby, ID 83442-1246
[phone]
AH 9: 22
December 14,2010
Good afternoon.
I appreciate the opportity as a Rocky Mountain Power residential customer
to testify on the utility's rate hike request. Also, I appreciate assistance from Gene
Fadness, your public information officer, who has been most helpful in answering
questions I had concerning my testimony today.
Since time is valuable, I'll be as brief as possible.
There are two issues here which really concern me.
First, Rocky Mountain Power Company is requesting an 8-point-0 rate hike
for residential service and nearly double that amount at 15-point-6 percent for
Time of Use Residential service. Time of Use or Time of Day, as it was originally
known, has been around for at least three decades. When my wife and I moved
into our home in Rigby over 30 years ago, Utah Power & Light Company, as the
utility was known then, encouraged us to sign up for the Time of Day plan since
we were a young couple with a child on a tight budget. We desired to keep our
monthly power bills as low as possible.
A customer servce agent from UP &L explained to us that by using more
electrcity late at night and durng early morning hours, we are helping to even
out power consumption with so-called "peak loading." He further explained that
as an incentive to use more power during off-hours, our per kilowatt rate durng
that time period would be considerably lower. That made plenty of sense to my
wife and me so we signed up for the Time of Day plan. We have been on the
program ever since then.
The Time of Use Program is great! It's a win-win situation for both Rocky
Mountain Power and its residential consumers. I like to use the term "sweet
money" in reference to additional revenue for Rocky Mountain Power. In other
words, the utility is receiving greater income as a result of more residential
power usage that normally would be wasted and not consumed overnight.
Exhibit No. 'i 11Dl5t~1?1I0y~ i
T &T REPORTING
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.
--2--
Also, it should be pointed out that by stabilizing peak loading that could delay
constrction of a new expensive multi-billion dollar power plant.
This, too, is a great program for residential consumers where our per kilowatt
hour charge is about one-third that of day usage.
Rocky Mountain Power is sending out a mixed message. On one hand, the
utility encourages conservation. For example, enclosed with one of my recent
monthly power bills was a flier where they encouraged consumers to cut winter
energy bills. Also, Rocky Mountain Power ran an ad recently in the Idaho Falls
newspaper, the Post Register, bragging about how they're helping schools and
companies upgrade lighting with more efficiency lowering costs through a
program known as "FinAnswer."
I applaud the utility for encouraging energy conservation, but now I have to
ask: What is Rocky Mountain Power doing by requesting a 15-point-6 percent
rate hike for their Time of Use Program? They are taking away the incentive for
late night and early morning power consumption. That does not make any sense.
If the utility is going to encourage energy conservation, then they have no
business requesting a 15-point-6 percent hike for the Time of Use Program.
We consumers, who are environmentally and energy conscious, are being
punished for helping to even out peak loading. That doesn't sound right.
I urge the Idaho Public Utilities Commssion not to grant Rocky Mountain
Power a rate increase for their Time of Use Program. To do so would discourage
this very successful program.
Secondly, I have an issue with public hearings being held in the middle of
December. I know and I fully understand that the IPUC is mandated by law to
hold hearngs within a few months of the filing of a rate hike request. But folks,
holding them now in the midst of the holiday season could not be at a worst
possible time of the year!
Thing about this: John & Jane Doe in Idaho are wrapped up in the holiday
season and a public hearing on a rate increase request by an electrcal utility is the
last thing on their minds right now.
If there is a way to do so without violating the law, next time I suggest that
hearings be delayed by about three weeks and held in early Januar when people
are able to concentrate more on utility issues.
Thank you for your consideration of my testimony.
\l~.L~
RobertE.l~
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IDAHO
PUBLIC UTiliTIES
COMMISSION
PUBLIC HEARING
PAC-E-I0-07
December 15,2010
PUBLIC WITNESS LIST ~..-
Case No. PAC-E-10-07 c.):::
iwIf you wish to testify during this hearing
please provide your name and address below::i:i
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Grace, Idaho
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IDAHO
PUBLIC UTiliTIES
COMMISSION
PUBLIC BEARNG
P AC-E-I0-07
December 15, 2010
PUBLIC WITNESS LIST
Case No. PAC-E-10-07
~~~
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