Bill Text - SB123 (2019)

Relative to lost and unaccounted for gas, and relative to electric distribution companies investment in natural gas operations.


Revision: May 28, 2019, 1:15 p.m.

SB 123 - VERSION ADOPTED BY BOTH BODIES

 

03/28/2019   1196s

2019 SESSION

19-0876

10/06

 

SENATE BILL 123

 

AN ACT relative to lost and unaccounted for gas, and relative to electric distribution companies investment in natural gas operations.

 

SPONSORS: Sen. Fuller Clark, Dist 21; Rep. Balch, Hills. 38; Rep. Mann, Ches. 2; Rep. Somssich, Rock. 27; Rep. McGhee, Hills. 40

 

COMMITTEE: Energy and Natural Resources

 

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ANALYSIS

 

This bill requires the public utilities commission to adopt rules for reporting lost and unaccounted for gas by natural gas companies.  The bill also prohibits electric distribution companies from acquisition of natural gas capacity or supply or interests in natural gas infrastructure at ratepayers' expense.

 

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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.

Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]

Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

03/28/2019   1196s 19-0876

10/06

 

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

 

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Nineteen

 

AN ACT relative to lost and unaccounted for gas, and relative to electric distribution companies investment in natural gas operations.

 

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

 

1  Public Utilities; Report; Lost and Unaccounted for Gas.  Amend RSA 365:8-a to read as follows:

365:8-a  Suppliers of Natural Gas and Aggregators of Natural Gas Customers; Rulemaking.

I. The commission is authorized to adopt rules, pursuant to RSA 541-A, establishing requirements for suppliers of natural gas and the aggregators of natural gas customers, including registration of such suppliers and aggregators before soliciting or doing business in the state, registration fees, disclosure of information to customers, standards of conduct, submission to commission jurisdiction for mediation and resolution of disputes, imposition of penalties for failure to comply with commission requirements, and consumer protection and assistance requirements.

II.  The commission shall adopt rules under RSA 541-A which require all natural gas companies to report to the commission, the senate president, and the speaker of the house of representatives, in a uniform manner, lost and unaccounted for gas for each year.

(a)  Such rules shall include a method using operational and billing data to determine the total amount of lost and unaccounted for gas and to identify and measure each of its components.

(b)  The commission may grant waivers from the rules as necessary for the development of innovative projects to reduce lost and unaccounted for gas.  Such innovative projects shall be intended to reduce costs to ratepayers and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.  An application for a waiver shall include the goals of the innovative project, the expected cost, the expected benefit to ratepayers and the expected reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.

(c)  For the purposes of this paragraph, "lost and unaccounted for gas" shall mean an amount of gas that is the difference between the total gas purchased by a gas company and the sum of:  (1) total gas delivered to customers; and (2) total gas used by a gas company in the conduct of its operations.

III.  This section shall not in any way affect the utility or non-utility status of any supplier of natural gas or aggregator of natural gas customers, nor shall it be construed to limit the commission's existing authority with regard to the regulation of gas utilities or the scope of the commission's authority in considering whether to expand the availability of competitive natural gas supplies through the distribution system of gas utilities.

2  New Section; Electric Utility Restructuring; Investment in Natural Gas.  Amend RSA 374-F by inserting after section 8 the following new section:

374-F:9  Investments by Electric Distribution Companies in Natural Gas.  An electric distribution company shall not engage in the acquisition of natural gas capacity or supply, or purchase interests in natural gas infrastructure or the siting thereof, at the expense or financial risk of its ratepayers.

3  Effective Date.  This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.