20160526Rosentrater Direct.pdf

DAVID J. MEYER
VICE PRESIDENT AND CHIEF COUNSEL FOR
REGULATORY & GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
AVISTA CORPORATION
P.O. BOX 3727
1411 EAST MISSION AVENUE
SPOKANE, WASHINGTON 99220-3727
TELEPHONE: [phone]
FACSIMILE: [phone]
[e-mail]

BEFORE THE IDAHO PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION

IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION ) CASE NO. AVU-E-16-03
OF AVISTA CORPORATION FOR THE )
AUTHORITY TO INCREASE ITS RATES )
AND CHARGES FOR ELECTRIC SERVICE ) DIRECT TESTIMONY
TO ELECTRIC CUSTOMERS IN THE ) OF
STATE OF IDAHO ) HEATHER L. ROSENTRATER
)

FOR AVISTA CORPORATION

(ELECTRIC)

Rosentrater, Di 1
Avista Corporation
I. INTRODUCTION 1
Q. Please state your name, employer and business 2
address. 3
A. My name is Heather Rosentrater and I am employed as
the Vice President of Energy Delivery for Avista Utilities, at
1411 East Mission Avenue, Spokane, Washington.
Q. Would you briefly describe your educational 7
background and professional experience? 8
A. Yes. I received a Bachelor of Science degree in
electrical engineering from Gonzaga University, and hold a
Professional Engineer (PE) credential. I joined Avista in 1996,
and worked initially as an electrical engineer at Avista’s 12
former subsidiary Avista Labs, where I developed electrical
systems for fuel cells. I joined Avista Utilities in 2003, and
have broad experience on both the electric and natural gas side
of the business, having managed departments and projects in
transmission, distribution, SCADA, asset management and supply
chain, as well as business process improvement using LEAN and
Six Sigma techniques. I was named to my current position in
December 2015. In this role, I am responsible for electric and
natural gas engineering, operations, and shared services –
fleet, facilities, and business process improvement.
Rosentrater, Di 2
Avista Corporation
I currently serve on the board of directors for the Vanessa
Behan Crisis Nursery and the West Valley Education Foundation
in Spokane. In addition, I am a member of the Washington State
University School of Engineering and Computer Science Executive
Council.
Q. What is the scope of your testimony? 6
A. I will provide an overview of the Company’s electric 7
energy delivery facilities, our distribution capital investment
as well as our Asset Management programs. Finally, I will
summarize Avista’s customer support programs in Idaho.
A table of the contents for my testimony is as follows:
Description Page
I. Introduction 1
II. Overview of Avista’s Energy Delivery Service 3
III. Distribution Capital Investment & Asset Management 4
IV. Customer Support Programs 18

Q. Are you sponsoring any exhibits in this proceeding? 18
A. Yes. I am sponsoring Exhibit No. 7, Schedules 1-4.
Schedule 1 shows the number of customers and customer energy
usage for each customer class. Schedule 2 is the Company’s 21
Electric Transmission System 2016 Asset Management Plan,
Schedule 3 is the Company’s Electric Substations 2016 System
Review performed by Asset Management and finally Schedule 4 is
Rosentrater, Di 3
Avista Corporation
the Company’s Electric Distribution System 2016 Asset
Management Plan.

II. OVERVIEW OF AVISTA’S ENERGY DELIVERY SERVICE 4
Q. Please describe Avista Utilities’ electric utility 5
operations. 6
A. Avista Utilities operates a vertically-integrated
electric system in Idaho and Washington. In addition to the
hydroelectric and thermal generating resources described by
Company witness Mr. Kinney, Avista has an electric transmission
system of 685 miles of 230 kV lines and 1,534 miles of 115 kV
lines. The Company has approximately 18,300 miles of primary
and secondary electric distribution lines.
A map showing the Company’s electric and natural gas 14
service area in Idaho, Washington, and Oregon is provided by
Company witness Mr. Morris in Exhibit No. 1, Schedule 2.
As detailed in the Company’s 2015 Electric Integrated
Resource Plan1, Avista expects retail electric sales growth to
average 0.6% annually for the next ten years in Avista’s service 19
territory, primarily due to increased population and business
growth.

1 A copy of the Company’s 2015 Electric IRP has been provided by Mr. Kinney
as Exhibit No. 4, Schedule 1.
Rosentrater, Di 4
Avista Corporation
Q. How many customers are served by Avista Utilities in 1
Idaho? 2
A. Of the Company’s 374,962 electric customers (as of
December 31, 2015), 128,499 were Idaho customers. 4
Q. Please describe the Company’s operation centers that 5
support electric customers in Idaho.
A. The Company has construction offices in Coeur
d’Alene, Spokane, Colville, Othello, Pullman, Clarkston, Deer
Park, and Davenport. Avista’s three customer contact centers,
located in Spokane, Washington, Coeur d’Alene and Lewiston,
Idaho, are networked, allowing the full pool of regular and
part-time employees to respond to customer calls in all
jurisdictions.

III. DISTRIBUTION CAPITAL INVESTMENT & ASSET MANAGEMENT 15
Q. Would you please describe the factors driving 16
Avista’s investment in electric distribution capital assets? 17
A. Avista’s investment in electric distribution capital 18
assets is primarily driven by a combination of the following
factors: (1) new customer connections and changing customer
usage, (2) maintaining system reliability and safety, (3)
realizing operational and electrical efficiencies, and (4)
Rosentrater, Di 5
Avista Corporation
minimizing life cycle costs of assets (e.g., Asset Management
programs).
Q. What distribution plant investment is driven by the 3
new customer connections and changing customer usage category? 4
A. Distribution plant capital investment related to new
customer connections and changing customer usage consists of
the distribution plant assets required to serve new customers
and includes the costs to construct new overhead and underground
lines, as well as the costs for devices, such as transformers,
meters, and network transformers and protectors. Additionally,
as individual new customer connections aggregate over time,
additional investment may be required for either new or upgraded
feeders, transformers, substations, or other distribution
assets. Finally, changing customer loads in a given area may
require new or upgraded distribution plant equipment in order
to continue to serve customers reliably. Given Avista’s
obligation to provide safe and reliable service to customers,
responsible capital investment in response to customer
connections and customer usage is imperative.
Q. Turning now to Asset Management, and its role in 20
maintaining system reliability and safety, realizing 21
operational and electrical efficiencies, and minimizing life 22
Rosentrater, Di 6
Avista Corporation
cycle costs of assets, would you please describe the history of 1
Avista’s Asset Management function? 2
A. Yes. Avista’s asset management approach began in
2003 with a report analyzing electric asset optimization. In
2005, the Asset Management group was formally established,
focusing on Electric Distribution, Substations, and
Transmission assets. In 2008, a number of organizations, led
by the Institute of Asset Management, published PAS 55:20082,
which provided a top down description of the goals and
objectives of Asset Management programs. This specification
was formalized in 2014 as an international standard, ISO 55000,
by the International Organization for Standardization.
Avista’s Asset Management function is informed by this 13
standard.
As discussed by the Institute of Asset Management,3 ISO
55000 defines Asset Management as the “coordinated activity of 16
an organization to realize value from assets.” “Asset 17
Management involves the balancing of costs, opportunities, and
risks against the desired performance of assets, to achieve the
organizational objectives.” Summarized briefly, “Asset 20
Management is the art and science of making the right decisions

2 PAS is an acronym for Publicly Available Specification.
3 “What is Asset Management,” https://theiam.org/What-is-Asset-Management
(accessed February 3, 2016).
Rosentrater, Di 7
Avista Corporation
and optimizing the delivery of value. A common objective is to
minimize the whole life cost of assets.”
Q. What is the mission of Avista’s Asset Management 3
function? 4
A. The Asset Management group works to maximize the
value of Avista’s physical assets by applying a systematic 6
evaluation and modeling approach which determines the optimum
mix of cost and value. Asset Management strives to prioritize
and plan work that results in maximizing the lifecycle values
associated with maintenance and replacement of our assets by
integrating information about repairing, maintaining,
inspecting, monitoring, and replacing physical assets into a
comprehensive analysis. This analysis encompasses strategic
and tactical consideration of materials, labor, equipment,
risk, safety, supply chain, training, system capacity and
growth, energy efficiency, regulations, and other stakeholder
issues.
Q. Would you briefly describe the Company’s Asset 18
Management approach to optimizing and managing the lifecycle 19
costs of various assets in its system? 20
A. Yes. The Company regularly reviews and assesses all
elements of its Asset Management effort through program plans
that document the management of its facilities, along with
Rosentrater, Di 8
Avista Corporation
metrics of results and impacts associated with that investment.
Through the active management of each individual asset type,
and overall review of the entire Asset Management program, the
Company is able to better-optimize its system investments. The
Company looks at many factors when determining how it should
manage a type of asset and the associated costs, such as safety,
reliability, avoided costs, operational ability, capital
offsets, code requirements, clearances, street relocations, and
others. All planning and assessment is done for the benefit of
our customers, and with the safety of our employees in mind.
Additionally, the Asset Management group evaluates assets
for which Asset Management programs do not currently exist, to
determine whether the implementation of a new asset management
plan is necessary. This evaluation periodically results in new
asset management programs. In other instances, the evaluation
may determine that the economic benefit of a program would be
insufficient, and no further action is taken at that time.
Q. Would you provide examples of the Company’s electric 18
distribution Asset Management programs? 19
A. Yes. The “Wood Pole Management” asset management 20
program is one of Avista’s most mature Asset Management
programs. Wood poles and their accompanying fixtures are the
backbone of Avista’s electric distribution system (Avista’s net 23
Rosentrater, Di 9
Avista Corporation
distribution plant assets related to distribution poles,
towers, and fixtures represent nearly 25% of the Company’s net 2
distribution plant assets), which made distribution wood poles
prime candidates for an asset management program. The average
age of a wood pole in Avista’s electric distribution system is
28 years old. Additionally, nearly 20 percent of Avista’s wood 6
poles are over 50 years old. Given the age profile of Avista’s 7
distribution poles, the Asset Management department determined
that the inspection and maintenance of distribution wood poles
on a 20 year cycle was the optimal asset management plan. That
is to say, over a 20 year period, under this plan, each
distribution wood pole in Avista’s system will be inspected one 12
time (along with the inspection of crossarms, distribution
transformers, wildlife guards, and other components on the
pole). Any poles or components that are identified for follow
up through inspection are subsequently repaired or replaced.
The implementation of this plan has enabled to Company to better
maintain the distribution system by proactively performing
maintenance and has resulted in the reduction of the number of
outages due to wood pole-related issues.
In addition to the distribution wood pole program, the
Company currently has active distribution plant asset
management programs in the following areas, grid modernization,
Rosentrater, Di 10
Avista Corporation
transformer change-out, segment reconductor and feeder tie
switch installation, improving worst feeders, street light
management, and underground residential district (URD) cable
replacement. All of these proactive maintenance programs are
driven by one or more factors, such as age of assets or feeder
overloading, among other reasons. The most recently completed
Electric Distribution System 2016 Asset Management Plan report
has been included as Exhibit No. 7, Schedule 4. Certain of
Avista’s substation capital maintenance activities are driven 9
by asset management programs as well and the 2016 Substation
System Review has been included as Exhibit No. 7, Schedule 3.
The Electric Transmission System 2016 Asset Management Plan has
been included as Exhibit No. 7, Schedule 2.
Q. Finally, please discuss the distribution plant 14
investment and related drivers for the remaining investment not 15
driven by new customers or changing customer usage or by Asset 16
Management strategies. 17
A. These remaining investments generally address
responding to distribution system issues that do not lend
themselves to Asset Management-type maintenance. Examples of
investments that fall under this group include storm damage
repair, non-discretionary rebuild of structures due to an
unplanned trouble or emergency event (e.g., replacing burned or
Rosentrater, Di 11
Avista Corporation
damaged poles and equipment), overhead to underground line
conversions or other service changes, and replacement or
relocation of facilities due to franchise agreements, among
other activities. The capital investment associated with these
activities is the direct result of an external influence which
must be addressed in order to maintain system reliability and
safety.
Additionally, other electric distribution plant investment
in this group is related to maintaining compliance with
regulatory requirements or mandates, or to keep the Company’s 10
system up to code. For example, the standards and regulations
associated with the distribution of electric power have evolved
over time. Updating the Company’s feeders to meet the current 13
requirements is a comprehensive activity that requires
substantial investment. While some of this investment is
managed through Asset Management programs, compliance
requirements must also be considered as end-of-life or damaged
plant assets are replaced.
Q. Is the distribution plant investment presented in 19
this case necessary in order to provide safe, reliable service 20
to customers? 21
A. Yes. The factors driving Avista’s electric 22
distribution investment included in this case represent a
Rosentrater, Di 12
Avista Corporation
prudent balance of maintaining the efficacy of the electric
distribution system to enable the Company to continue to provide
safe, reliable service to our customers, maintain a high level
of customer service, and meet the current and future needs and
expectations of our customers and other stakeholders, while at
the same time being sensitive to the rate impacts to customers
resulting from the investments. As Company witness Mr. Thies
states in his testimony:
Although we could choose to put off for tomorrow what does
not absolutely need to be done today, it would be imprudent
to allow the system to deteriorate and begin to jeopardize
reliability, as well as potentially create a “bow-wave” of 12
investment that needs to be made in a relatively short
period of time.4
Avista’s approach to managing its electric distribution 15
plant investment is no different from that of any other
functional group, in that the focus is on the ability to
continue to provide safe, reliable service to our customers. 18
Q. Would you please provide a brief description of the 19
electric distribution-related capital projects that are 20
included in the Company’s Pro Forma Study from January 1, 2016 21
through December 31, 2017? 22
A. Yes. As shown in Table No. 1 below, the electric
distribution capital projects that include investment in Idaho

4 Thies, Di, page 15, lines 2-7.
Rosentrater, Di 13
Avista Corporation
Business Case Name
2016
$ (000's)
2017
$ (000's)
Meter Minor Blanket $ 403 $ 403
Elec Replacement/Relocation 2,750 2,600
Distribution Minor Rebuild 8,609 8,867
Storms (Distribution)2,090 2,183
Primary URD Cable Replacement 200 500
Street Light Management 1,500 2,720
Substation - Asset Mgmt. Capital Maintenance 18 52
Worst Feeders 1,500 2,499
Distribution Transformer Change-Out Program 8,406 8,115
Distribution Wood Pole Management 7,840 12,000
Substation - New Distribution Stations 400 275
Distribution Grid Modernization 6,359 13,118
Segment Reconductor and FDR Tie Program 3,801 4,175
Distribution Line Protection 125 125
Environmental Compliance 350 350
$ 44,351 $ 57,982
total $48.0 million for 2016 and $59.5 million for 2017, on a
system basis. Details about these electric distribution-
related capital projects are discussed below. Please note that,
while I have briefly discussed Avista’s electric transmission 4
operations, Company Witness Bryan Cox discusses the Company’s 5
electric transmission operations in greater detail, including
capital investments related to electric transmission
operations.
Table No. 1: Distribution-Related Capital Projects (System $) 9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
Meter Minor Blanket – 2016: $403,000; 2017: $403,000 [System] 30
This project covers the replacement of failed, damaged, or
otherwise improperly functioning electric meters at service
locations where a meter has previously been installed. Meters
are replaced in order to ensure accurate billing for electricity
usage. 35
36
Rosentrater, Di 14
Avista Corporation
Electric Replacement/Relocation – 2016: $2,750,000; 2017: 1
$2,600,000 [System] 2
This annual program replaces sections of existing
infrastructure that require replacement due to relocation or
improvement of streets or highways. Requirements may come from
our franchise agreements or permits. Avista installs many of
its facilities in public right-of-way under established
franchise agreements. Avista is required under the franchise
agreements, in most cases, to relocate its facilities when they
are in conflict with road or highway improvements.

Distribution Minor Rebuild – 2016: $8,609,000; 2017: $8,867,000 12
[System] 13
This program is for distribution minor rebuilds as requested by
the customer or initiated by Avista. Examples of construction
work includes replacing meters, services, transformers, primary
overhead or underground lines, or devices. This also includes
addressing trouble related jobs (i.e. replacing burnt or
damaged poles).

Storms – 2016: $2,090,000; 2017: $2,183,000 [System] 21
Weather events associated with wind, lightning, rain, and snow
create a number of outage situations. Estimated capital spend
is based on historical averages. 24
25
Primary URD Cable Replacement – 2016: $200,000; 2017: $500,000 26
[System] 27
This program involves replacing the first generation of
Underground Residential District (URD) cable. This project has
been ongoing for the past several years and focuses on replacing
a vintage and type of cable that has reached its end of life
and contributes significantly to URD cable failures. 32
33
Street Light Management – 2016: $1,500,000; 2017: $2,720,000 34
[System] 35
This program is a five year planned replacement of street light
fixtures to LED, which includes replacement of photocells too.
Currently, existing street lights are only being replaced with
LED when they fail. Efficiencies result from converting 100
and 200 Watt street lights from High Pressure Sodium to LED.
The savings come from eliminating the labor, equipment,
material, and overhead costs associated with repairing older
lights. 43
Rosentrater, Di 15
Avista Corporation
Substation Asset Management Capital Maintenance – 2016: 1
$18,000; 2017: $52,000 [System]
Avista has several different equipment replacement programs to
improve reliability by replacing aged equipment that is beyond
its useful life. These programs include transmission air switch
upgrades, restoration of substation rock and fencing, recloser
replacements, replacement of obsolete circuit switchers,
substation battery replacement, meter replacements and
upgrades, relay replacements, high voltage fuse upgrades,
transformer replacements, breaker replacements, installation of
diagnostic monitors, substation air switch replacements, and
voltage regulator replacements. These projects improve system
reliability and customer service. The equipment is generally
replaced when its useful life has been reached or exceeded.
The System-Install Autotransformer Diagnostic Monitor program
is one of the projects included in Substation Asset Management
Capital Maintenance. 17
18
Worst Feeders – 2016: $1,500,000; 2017: $2,499,000 [System]
In 2009, Avista initiated a program to target the reinforcement
of the most underperforming electric circuits. This program is
coordinated with regional engineers and focuses treatment on
those feeders (FDRs) whose sustained outage statistics (SAIFI)
and customer experiencing multiple interruptions (CEMI) are at
the top of the ‘worst performing FDR list’. Most of these 25
circuits are located in rural areas and many involve significant
exposure to tree related outages (national forests). In 2016
in Idaho, the circuits served from Sandpoint, Jaype, Weippe,
and Cottonwood substations will be targeted for reliability
projects. Project scope generally involves the addition of
protection devices, circuit hardening, facility conversion from
overhead to underground, and circuit rerouting.
33
Distribution Transformer Change Out Program - 2016: $8,406,000; 34
2016: $8,115,000 [System] 35
The Distribution Transformer Change-Out Program has three main
drivers. First, the pre-1981 distribution transformers that
are targeted for replacement average 42 years of age and are a
minimum of 30 years old. Their replacement will increase the
reliability and availability of the system. Secondly, the
transformers to be replaced are inefficient compared to current
standards. Thirdly, pre-1981 transformers have the potential
to have PCB containing oil. The transformers to be removed
early in the program are those that are most likely to have PCB
containing oil and their replacement will reduce the risk of
oil spills containing PCBs. 46
Rosentrater, Di 16
Avista Corporation
Distribution Wood Pole Management – 2016: $7,840,000; 2017: 1
$12,000,000 [System] 2
The distribution wood pole management program evaluates wood
pole strength of a certain percentage of the wood pole
population each year such that the entire system is inspected
every 20 years. Avista has over 240,000 distribution wood poles
and 33,000 transmission wood poles in its electric system.
Depending on the test results for a given pole, the pole is
either considered satisfactory, needing to be reinforced with
a steel stub, or needing to be replaced. In addition to pole
condition and strength, inspection crews inspect crossarms,
insulators, transformers, guy wires, ground and bonding wires,
and primary and secondary conductors. This project also funds
the work required to resolve those issues (i.e., potentially
leaking transformers, transformers containing more than or
equal to 1 ppm polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), failed
arresters, missing grounds, damaged cutouts, failed insulators
and other visible issues). Transformers older than 1981 have
the potential to have oil that contains PCBs. These older
transformers present increased risk because of the potential to
leak oil that contains PCBs. Poles installed during the pre-
World War II buildup have reached the end of their useful life.
Avista’s Wood Pole Management program was put into place to
prevent the Pole-Rotten events and Crossarm – Rotten events
from increasing. The Company estimates the cost of an event
associated with a bad wood pole based on crew response and labor
is approximately $600. For 2017 we anticipate a reduction of
107 events.
29
Substation – New Distribution Stations – 2016: $400,000; 2017: 30
$275,000; [System]
This program adds new distribution substations to the system in
order to serve new and growing load as well as for increased
system reliability and operational flexibility. New
substations under this program will require planning and
operational studies, justifications, and approved project
diagrams prior to funding. Planned new substation projects
include Tamarack (NE Moscow), Greenacres and Irvin (Spokane
Valley), and Lewiston Mill Road.
40
Distribution Grid Modernization – 2016: $6,359,000; 2017: 41
$13,118,000 [System] 42
In 2012, Avista began a program to upgrade distribution feeders
to reduce energy losses, increase efficiency, improve safety
and operations, and to increase long-term reliability. The
program includes the replacement of undersized and
Rosentrater, Di 17
Avista Corporation
deteriorating conductors, replacement of failed and end-of-life
infrastructure materials including wood poles, cross arms,
fuses and insulators. Inaccessible pole alignment, right-of-
away issues, and undergrounding and clear zone compliance
issues are addressed for each feeder section as well as regular
maintenance work such as leaning poles, guy anchors,
unauthorized attachments and joint-use management. Also being
installed is distribution automation with elements of Avista’s 8
Smart Grid on select feeders where appropriate. Electric
circuits are selected based on a selection criteria including:
1) reliability, 2) avoided costs, and 3) capital offset of
future O&M. Once selected, circuits are analyzed by engineering
staff to determine the scope of work including structure
replacement, line reroutes, conversion from overhead to
underground, automation scheme, transformer & equipment
replacement, and reconductor segments. This program along with
other asset maintenance programs uses the Distribution Feeder
Management Plan to define the scope for the designers and
construction personnel.

Segment Reconductor and Feeder Tie program – 2016: $3,801,000; 21
2017: $4,175,000 [System] 22
This program improves the capacity and reliability of the
Company’s distribution grid through targeted 24
reconductoring/rebuild and feeder tie projects. In Idaho there
are thirty (24) segment reconductor projects scheduled between
2016 and 2017 (2016 – 13 projects). These projects are
identified, prioritized, and coordinated through the combined
effort of Avista’s central system planning function together 29
with the assistance of regional operating engineer analysis and
study. This is an on-going effort to identify and mitigate the
capacity constrained portions of Avista’s 18,000 mile 32
distribution grid. In addition to circuit capacity projects,
Avista constructs several new feeder tie points annually in
order to effect seasonal and or permanent load shifts from
either heavily loaded circuits or to relieve substation
transformer loading. 37
38
Distribution Line Protection – 2016: $125,000; 2017; $125,000; 39
[System] 40
Avista's Electric Distribution system is configured into a
trunk and lateral system. Lateral circuits are protected via
fuse-links and operate under fault conditions to isolate the
lateral in order to minimize the number of affected customers
in an outage. Engineering recommends treatment of the removal
and replacement of Chance Cutouts, the removal and replacement
Rosentrater, Di 18
Avista Corporation
of Durabute cutouts and the installation of cut-outs on un-
fused lateral circuits. This is a targeted program to ensure
adequate protection of lateral circuits and to replace known
defective equipment.
5
Environmental Compliance – 2016: $350,000; 2017: $350,000; 6
[System] 7
This item includes implementation of Forest Service Special Use
Permits, waste oil disposal, including PCBs, and environmental
compliance requirements related to storm water management,
water quality protection, property cleanup and related issues.
12
IV. CUSTOMER SUPPORT PROGRAMS 13
Q. What customer support programs does Avista provide 14
for its customers in Idaho? 15
A. Avista Utilities offers a number of programs for its
Idaho customers, such as energy efficiency programs, Project
Share for emergency assistance to customers, a Customer
Assistance Referral and Evaluation Service (CARES) program,
senior programs, level pay plans, and payment arrangements.
Through these programs, the Company works to build lasting ways
to ease the burden of energy costs for customers that have the
greatest need.
To assist our customers in their ability to pay, the
Company focuses on actions and programs in four primary areas:
1) advocacy for, and support of, energy assistance programs
providing direct financial assistance; 2) low income and senior
outreach programs; 3) energy efficiency and energy conservation
Rosentrater, Di 19
Avista Corporation
education; and 4) support of community programs that increase
customers’ ability to pay basic costs of living.
Q. Please describe the recent results of Project Share. 3
A. Project Share is a community-funded program Avista
sponsors to provide one-time emergency support to families
where Avista provides service. Avista customers and
shareholders help support the fund with voluntary contributions
that are distributed through local community action agencies to
customers in need. Grants are available to those in need
without regard to their heating source. In 2015, Avista
Utilities’ customers donated $458,406 on a system-wide basis,
of which $143,664 was distributed by Idaho Community Action
Agencies.
Q. What other bill-assistance programs does the Company 14
offer? 15
A. In an effort to assist and educate customers about
payment options such as Comfort Level Billing, flexible payment
plans, and preferred due dates, we developed a campaign
(Customer Bill Assistance Campaign) encouraging customers to
learn about and enroll in the various bill assistance options
available to them. This Campaign was launched in December 2013
in all of the Company’s service areas. It briefly explains the
Rosentrater, Di 20
Avista Corporation
payment options above and encourages the customer to contact
Avista to enroll or find out more.
In addition, the Company’s Contact Center Representatives 3
work with customers to set up payment arrangements to pay energy
bills, and choose a preferred due date. For the twelve month
period ending December 31, 2015, 19,562 Idaho customers were
provided with over 31,212 such payment arrangements.
Q. Please summarize Avista’s CARES program. 8
A. In Idaho, Avista is currently working with over 794
special needs customers in the CARES program. Specially-
trained representatives provide referrals to area agencies and
churches for customers with special needs for help with housing,
utilities, medical assistance, etc. One of the benefits we
have in utilizing CARES representatives is the ability to
evaluate each customer, based on their specific need, and to
educate them on what assistance is available within the
community. A goal of the program is to enable customers to
manage not only their Avista bill, but other bills and needs as
well.
Q. Does the Company perform any other outreach to its 20
customers? 21
A. Yes. The following are examples of outreach programs
that are available to customers:
Rosentrater, Di 21
Avista Corporation
1. Senior and Low-Income Outreach: Avista has developed
specific strategic outreach efforts to reach our more
vulnerable fixed and low-income customers (with special
emphasis on seniors and disabled customers) with bill
paying assistance and energy efficiency information
that emphasizes comfort and safety. Avista accomplishes
this outreach mainly through Energy Workshops. During
the 2014/2015 heating season 18 workshops were conducted
reaching nearly 621 seniors and low-income individuals.
All workshop participants were given Home Energy
Efficiency kits along with tips for low-cost/no-cost
ways to manage energy use. Each kit contains energy-
saving items such as LED light bulbs, plastic window
covering, draft stoppers for exterior light switches
and outlets, v-seal for drafty doors and a polar fleece
lap blanket. The Company also conducts general outreach
in partnership with organizations that are in contact
with vulnerable individuals through resource fairs or
in-home services. For example, home energy kits have
been provided for distribution through senior meal
delivery programs. Through all of these venues,
individuals are provided with information to
effectively manage their home energy use and the
Company’s bill assistance programs.

2. Senior Publications: Avista has created a one-page
advertisement that has been placed in senior resource
directories and targeted senior publications to reach
seniors with information about energy efficiency,
Comfort Level Billing, Avista CARES and energy
assistance.

3. Energy Fairs: In 2015, Avista hosted two energy fairs,
in which nearly 550 individuals were reached. These
outreach events provided information and demonstrations
on energy assistance, energy efficiency and home
weatherization to limited income families and senior
citizens as well as provided an environment for
customers to learn about billing options and energy
assistance, while offering them tips and tools to use
to help manage their limited financial resources.

4. Mobile Outreach Van: Avista offers many opportunities
throughout the year for customers to attend energy fairs
or workshops to learn more about energy assistance,
energy efficiency and the resources available to them.
Rosentrater, Di 22
Avista Corporation
But some of our more vulnerable customers have a hard
time getting to an event to access these resources. So
to ensure that we’re reaching as many customers who need 3
our help as we can, Avista created the Energy Resource
Team van. The van is fully loaded with energy
efficiency items such as rope caulk, V-seals and coil
cleaners, as well as informational materials about bill
options, assistance and efficiency. A laptop resides
with the van, so employees can demonstrate our many
online tools in action. In 2015, (see Illustration No.
1 below) the van expanded outreach efforts to 6,596
individuals through 69 events throughout Avista’s Idaho 12
and Washington service territory, many of which were in
conjunction with Second Harvest Food Bank mobile food
pantry.
16
Illustration No. 1 - Customers being assisted through the Mobile 17
Outreach Van

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Q. Please describe how the Company measures customer 29
satisfaction, and how important it is to Avista. 30
A. Our customer satisfaction is very important to
Avista. We measure satisfaction by conducting a quarterly
Rosentrater, Di 23
Avista Corporation
survey we refer to as “Voice of the Customer” (VOC). The
purpose of the VOC Survey is to measure and track customer
satisfaction for Avista Utilities’ “contact” customers – i.e.,
customers who have contact with Avista through the Call Center
and/or work performed through an Avista construction office.
Customers are asked to rate the importance of several key
service attributes. They are then asked to rate Avista’s 7
performance with respect to the same attributes (time for
connection to a representative, representative being courteous
and friendly, representative being knowledgeable, being
informed of job status, leaving property in condition found,
etc.). Customers are also asked to rate their satisfaction
with the overall service received from Avista Utilities.
Customer verbatim comments are also captured and recorded.
Our most recent 2016 results show an overall customer
satisfaction rating of 93% in our Idaho, Washington, and Oregon
operating divisions. This rating reflects a positive experience
for customers who have contacted Avista related to the customer
service they received.
Q. Does this conclude your pre-filed direct testimony? 20
A. Yes it does.