§ 17-250. Terms defined.

As used in this act:

1.  “Affiliated person, subsidiary, firm or corporation” means any person, subsidiary, firm or corporation which:

a.controls or is controlled by a public utility,

b.is controlled by an entity that also controls the utility, or

c.the utility or an entity controlling the utility has directly or indirectly the power to control;

2.  “Commission” means any state regulatory body which has jurisdiction to regulate public utilities or electric cooperatives;

3.  “Emergency sales of gas” mean sales of natural gas made by a public utility or subsidiary thereof to one or more interstate pipelines or other out-of-state customer pursuant to federal law which exempts such transactions from the jurisdiction of the Federal Power Commission;

4.  “Fair field price” means the value attributed to gas produced from wells owned by a public utility, or a subsidiary or affiliate of a public utility, which shall be the going price paid by the utility, subsidiary or affiliate to others in the field where such production is located.  If the utility, subsidiary or affiliate is not purchasing gas in such field, then such value shall be the price paid by the utility, subsidiary or affiliate in the nearest field where conditions are similar.  The value to be attributed to residue gas owned by a public utility, or a subsidiary or affiliate of a public utility, from gas processing plants shall be the going price paid by the utility, subsidiary or affiliate to others from the same plant.  If the utility, subsidiary or affiliate is not purchasing gas from said plant, then the value shall be the price paid by the utility, subsidiary or affiliate at the nearest plant where conditions are similar.  However, the Commission may require an adjustment of the fair field price when it deems it proper to do so based on information before it.  The fair field price shall not be applicable to gas purchased by a public utility from a subsidiary or affiliate of a public utility pursuant to a competitive bid process;

5.  “Fuel adjustment clause” means any mechanism which allows a public utility or electric generating cooperative to automatically adjust its charges above or below the base amount included in its rates, based upon changes in costs of fuel for generation of electricity, purchased power or purchased gas;

6.  “Heat rate” means a measure of the efficiency of an electric generating station, computed by dividing the total British Thermal  Unit content of the fuel burned by the resulting net kilowatt-hours generated;

7.  “Line loss” means the kilowatt-hours of electricity lost in the operation of an electric transmission or distribution system;

8.  “Public utility” or “utility” means any individual, firm, association, partnership, corporation, or any combination thereof, other than a municipal corporation or their lessees, trustees and receivers, owning or operating for compensation in this state equipment or facilities for:

a.producing, generating, transmitting, distributing, selling or furnishing electricity, or

b.transmitting, directly or indirectly, or distributing combustible hydrocarbon natural or synthetic natural gas for sale to the public or for wholesale, unless its wholesale rates are regulated by a federal agency; and

9.  “Purchased power adjustment clause” means any mechanism which allows an electric public utility or electric distribution cooperative to adjust its charges above or below the base amount included in its rates based upon changes in costs of wholesale power purchased from others.

Added by Laws 1977, c. 252, § 1, emerg. eff. June 15, 1977.  Amended by Laws 2004, c. 410, § 1, emerg. eff. June 3, 2004.