20171207press release.pdf

Case Nos: PAC-E-17-12
Final Order: 33943
Contact: Matt Evans
[phone] office
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www.puc.idaho.gov

Regulators approve agreement between
Rocky Mountain Power and city of Idaho Falls
BOISE (Dec. 7, 2017) – The Idaho Public Utilities Commission has approved a customer exchange
agreement between Rocky Mountain Power and the city of Idaho Falls.
The agreement establishes processes for determining which entity will provide electric service to
new consumers in certain areas and for handling transfers of service among Rocky Mountain Power
customers in areas annexed by the city.
A previous agreement governing the service transfers expired in 2015 at the city’s request. The two
sides had worked since then to forge a new agreement.
Idaho Code requires that contracts between electric utilities conform with the Idaho Electric
Supplier Stabilization Act (ESSA), which is intended to discourage the duplication of facilities,
prohibit pirating of consumers, stabilize service territories and consumers, and promote harmony
between electric suppliers.
Idaho Falls’ municipal boundaries are surrounded by the service territory of Rocky Mountain
Power, which has approximately 77,000 customers in eastern Idaho, including some inside Idaho
Falls city limits.
The city’s electric department, known as Idaho Falls Power, provides electric service to
approximately 28,000 customers primarily within the city’s municipal boundaries, though service
is provided to some customers outside city limits.
The six-page agreement approved by the Commission establishes the service territory of each
utility and calls for the two parties to work together to identify facilities that are duplicative and to
avoid duplicity when constructing new facilities.
“We find the Agreement serves to supervise the electric suppliers’ conduct and stabilize the service
territories and consumers served by the City and Rocky Mountain,” the Commission said.
“Accordingly, we find the Agreement consistent with the ESSA, and we approve it.”
The agreement does not restrict the rights of consumers to petition the Commission for relief under
the ESSA.
The agreement is for five years, but renews automatically unless one party notifies the other of its
intent to end it.
The commission’s order and other documents related to this case are available on the commission’s
Website here. Click on “Open Cases” under the “Electric” heading and scroll down to the case
number, PAC-E-17-12.