Assembly Bill A10533

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   10533
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                               March 6, 2026
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. CONRAD -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Energy
 
 AN  ACT  to amend the public service law, in relation to requiring inve-
   stor-owned gas or electric  corporations  to  refund  ratepayers  when
   their  achieved return on equity exceeds authorized rates of return by
   fifty percent
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. Subdivision 20 of section 66 of the public service law, as
 added by chapter 394 of the laws of 1978, is amended to read as follows:
   20. (A) Notwithstanding any general or special law, rule or regulation
 TO THE CONTRARY, the commission shall have the power to provide for  the
 refund  of  any  revenues received by any INVESTOR-OWNED gas or electric
 corporation which cause the corporation to have revenues in  the  aggre-
 gate  in  excess of its authorized rate of return for a period of twelve
 months.
   (B) SUCH CORPORATIONS SHALL BE REQUIRED TO RETURN ONE HUNDRED  PERCENT
 OF EARNINGS THAT EXCEED THE EARNINGS COLLAR TO RATEPAYERS IN THE FORM OF
 A  DIRECT  BILL CREDIT. SUCH BILL CREDIT SHALL BE PROVIDED TO RATEPAYERS
 NO LATER THAN NINETY DAYS FOLLOWING A DETERMINATION  BY  THE  COMMISSION
 AND  SHALL  BE  CLEARLY  LABELED ON THE RATEPAYER'S BILL. The commission
 [may] SHALL initiate a proceeding with respect to such  a  refund  after
 the conclusion of any such twelve month period.
   (C)  SUCH  CORPORATIONS SHALL ANNUALLY RECONCILE THEIR ACHIEVED RETURN
 ON EQUITY TO THEIR AUTHORIZED RETURN ON EQUITY.
   (D) THE COMMISSION SHALL NOT APPROVE  ANY  SETTLEMENTS  OR  RATE  PLAN
 PROVISIONS WHICH ALLOW ANY INVESTOR-OWNED GAS OR ELECTRIC CORPORATION TO
 RETAIN  REVENUES DERIVED FROM THEIR ACTUAL RETURN ON EQUITY IN EXCESS OF
 THE OF THE EARNINGS COLLAR.
   (E) THE COMMISSION MAY TEMPORARILY SUSPEND  REFUND  REQUIREMENTS  ONLY
 UPON  THE FINDING OF EXTRAORDINARY CIRCUMSTANCES MATERIALLY AFFECTING AN
 INVESTOR-OWNED  GAS  OR  ELECTRIC  CORPORATION'S  FINANCIAL   INTEGRITY,
 INCLUDING NATURAL DISASTERS OR SIGNIFICANT REGULATORY MANDATES, PROVIDED
 SUCH DETERMINATION IS MADE IN A PUBLIC PROCEEDING.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD15038-01-6
 A. 10533                            2
 
   (F)  ANNUALLY,  THE  COMMISSION  SHALL  SUBMIT TO THE GOVERNOR AND THE
 LEGISLATURE, A REPORT OUTLINING THE FINDINGS AND DETERMINATIONS  OF  THE
 FINAL AUTHORIZED RETURN ON EQUITY, ACHIEVED RETURN ON EQUITY, THE REFUND
 AMOUNTS  RETURNED  TO  RATEPAYERS  AND THE DELIVERY CHARGE GROWTH TRENDS
 OVER  THE PRECEDING FIVE YEARS. THE REPORT SHALL BE MADE PUBLICLY AVAIL-
 ABLE.
   (G) FOR PURPOSES OF THIS SUBDIVISION, THE FOLLOWING TERMS  SHALL  HAVE
 THE FOLLOWING MEANINGS:
   (1)  "AUTHORIZED  RATE  OF  RETURN ON EQUITY" SHALL MEAN THE RETURN ON
 EQUITY PORTION OF THE RATE BASE THAT REGULATED UTILITIES ARE  AUTHORIZED
 TO COLLECT IN RATES.
   (2) "ACHIEVED RETURN ON EQUITY" SHALL MEAN THE ACTUAL RETURN ON EQUITY
 EARNED BY  AN INVESTOR-OWNED GAS OR ELECTRIC CORPORATION IN A GIVEN RATE
 YEAR, AS DETERMINED BY AUDITED FINANCIAL RESULTS.
   (3)  "EARNINGS  COLLAR"  SHALL  MEAN A TOLERANCE BAND OF PLUS OR MINUS
 FIFTY BASE POINTS AROUND THE AUTHORIZED RATE OF RETURN ON EQUITY.
   § 2. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivi-
 sion, section or part of this act shall be  adjudged  by  any  court  of
 competent  jurisdiction  to  be invalid, such judgment shall not affect,
 impair, or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall  be  confined  in
 its  operation  to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section
 or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judg-
 ment shall have been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of
 the legislature that this act would  have  been  enacted  even  if  such
 invalid provisions had not been included herein.
   §  3.  This  act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to rate
 years commencing on and after the first of January next  succeeding  the
 date on which it shall have become a law.