69-3-1612. Electric utility customer protection. (1) Because the commission‘s approval of a financing order is irrevocable, typically addresses very large amounts of financing undertaken, and is not reviewable by future commissions, in addition to its other powers and duties, the commission shall perform comprehensive due diligence in its evaluation of an application for a financing order and shall oversee the process used to structure, market, and price Montana energy impact assistance bonds.

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Terms Used In Montana Code 69-3-1612

  • commission: means the public service commission provided for in 2-15-2602. See Montana Code 69-1-101
  • Customer: means a person who takes electric service from an electric utility for consumption of electricity in Montana. See Montana Code 69-3-1603
  • Electric utility: means any electric utility regulated by the commission pursuant to Title 69, chapter 3, including the electric utility's successors or assignees. See Montana Code 69-3-1603
  • Financing costs: means , if approved by the commission in a financing order, costs to issue, service, repay, or refinance Montana energy impact assistance bonds, whether incurred or paid on issuance of the Montana energy impact assistance bonds or over the life of the bonds. See Montana Code 69-3-1603
  • Financing order: means an order issued by the commission in accordance with 69-3-1606 that grants, in whole or in part, an application filed pursuant to 69-3-1605 authorizing the issuance of Montana energy impact assistance bonds in one or more series, the imposition, charging, and collection of Montana energy impact assistance charges, and the creation of Montana energy impact assistance property. See Montana Code 69-3-1603
  • Montana energy impact assistance bonds: means low-cost corporate securities, including but not limited to senior secured bonds, debentures, notes, certificates of participation, certificates of beneficial interest, certificates of ownership, or other evidences of indebtedness or ownership that have a scheduled maturity of no longer than 30 years and a final legal maturity date that is not later than 32 years from the issue date, that are rated AA or Aa2 or better by a major independent credit rating agency at the time of issuance, and that are issued by an electric utility or an assignee pursuant to a financing order. See Montana Code 69-3-1603
  • Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
  • Process: means a writ or summons issued in the course of judicial proceedings. See Montana Code 1-1-202
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201

(2)In addition to any other authority, the commission:

(a)may attach conditions to the approval of a financing order as the commission finds appropriate to maximize the financial benefits or minimize the financial risks of the transaction to customers and to directly impacted Montana workers and communities;

(b)may specify details of the process used to structure, market, and price Montana energy impact assistance bonds, including the selection of the underwriter or underwriters;

(c)shall review and determine the reasonableness of all proposed upfront and ongoing financing costs; and

(d)shall ensure that the structuring, marketing, and pricing of Montana energy impact assistance bonds maximizes net present value customer savings, consistent with market conditions and the terms of the financing order.

(3)(a) Within 120 days after the issuance of Montana energy impact assistance bonds, the applicant electric utility shall file with the commission information regarding the actual upfront and ongoing financing costs of the Montana energy impact assistance bonds. The commission shall review the prudence of the electric utility’s action to determine whether the costs resulted in the lowest overall costs that were reasonably consistent with both market conditions at the time of the issuance and the terms of the financing order.

(b)Except as provided in subsection (3)(c), if the commission determines that the electric utility’s actions were not prudent or were inconsistent with the financing order, the commission may apply any remedies that are available.

(c)The commission may not apply any remedy that has the effect, directly or indirectly, of impairing the security for the Montana energy impact assistance bonds.

(4)(a) In performing its responsibilities in accordance with this part, the commission may engage outside consultants and counsel experienced in securitized electric utility ratepayer-backed bond financing similar to Montana energy impact assistance bonds, and the expenses associated with the engagement may be included as financing costs and included in the Montana energy impact assistance charge. The costs are not an obligation of the state and are assigned solely to the transaction.

(b)Expenses incurred by the commission to hire and compensate additional temporary staff needed to perform its responsibilities under this part must be included as financing costs and included in the Montana energy impact assistance charge.

(5)If a utility’s application for a financing order is denied or withdrawn for any reason and Montana energy impact assistance bonds are not issued, the commission’s costs of retaining expert consultants, as authorized by subsection (4), must be paid by the applicant utility and are considered by the commission as a prudent deferred expense for recovery in the utility’s future rates.