Bill Text: CT HB05343 | 2018 | General Assembly | Comm Sub

Connecticut House Bill 5343 (Prior Session Legislation)

Bill Title: An Act Concerning Fines Ordered By The Public Utilities Regulatory Authority, Civil Penalties For Failures To Comply Related To Excavation, Demolition Or Discharge Of Explosives And Certain Time Frames For Calculating Lost And Unaccounted For Gas.

Spectrum: Committee Bill

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2018-05-09 - Transmitted Pursuant To Joint Rule 17 [HB05343 Detail]

Download: Connecticut-2018-HB05343-Comm_Sub.html


General Assembly		*Raised Bill No. 5343*
*February Session, 2018*		LCO No. 1845
		_____HB05343ET____032018____
Referred to Committee on ENERGY AND TECHNOLOGY
Introduced by:
(ET)

AN ACT CONCERNING FINES ORDERED BY THE PUBLIC UTILITIES REGULATORY AUTHORITY, CIVIL PENALTIES FOR FAILURES TO COMPLY RELATED TO EXCAVATION, DEMOLITION OR DISCHARGE OF EXPLOSIVES AND CERTAIN TIMEFRAMES FOR CALCULATING LOST AND UNACCOUNTED FOR GAS.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:

Section 1. Subsection (a) of section 16-41 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):

(a) Each (1) public service company and its officers, agents and employees, (2) electric supplier or person providing electric generation services without a license in violation of section 16-245, and its officers, agents and employees, (3) certified telecommunications provider or person providing telecommunications services without authorization pursuant to sections 16-247f to 16-247h, inclusive, and its officers, agents and employees, (4) person, public agency or public utility, as such terms are defined in section 16-345, subject to the requirements of chapter 293, (5) person subject to the registration requirements under section 16-258a, (6) cellular mobile telephone carrier, as described in section 16-250b, (7) Connecticut electric efficiency partner, as defined in section 16-243v, (8) company, as defined in section 16-49, and (9) entity approved to submeter pursuant to section 16-19ff shall obey, observe and comply with all applicable provisions of this title and each applicable order made or applicable regulations adopted by the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority by virtue of this title as long as the same remains in force. Any such company, electric supplier, certified telecommunications provider, cellular mobile telephone carrier, Connecticut electric efficiency partner, entity approved to submeter, person, any officer, agent or employee thereof, public agency or public utility which the authority finds has failed to obey or comply with any such provision of this title, order or regulation shall be fined, ordered to pay restitution to customers or ordered to pay a combination of a fine and restitution by order of the authority in accordance with the penalty prescribed for the violated provision of this title or, if no penalty is prescribed, not more than ten thousand dollars for each offense, except that the penalty shall be a fine, restitution to customers or a combination of a fine and restitution of not more than forty thousand dollars for failure to comply with an order of the authority made in accordance with the provisions of section 16-19 or 16-247k or within thirty days of such order or within any specific time period for compliance specified in such order. Each distinct violation of any such provision of this title, order or regulation shall be a separate offense and, in case of a continued violation, each day thereof shall be deemed a separate offense. Each such penalty and any interest charged pursuant to subsection (g) or (h) of section 16-49 shall be excluded from operating expenses for purposes of rate-making.

Sec. 2. Section 16-356 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):

Any person, public agency or public utility which the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority determines, after notice and opportunity for a hearing as provided in section 16-41, as amended by this act, to have failed to comply with any provision of this chapter or any regulation adopted under section 16-357 shall forfeit and pay to the state a civil penalty of not more than forty thousand dollars, provided any violation involving the failure of a public utility to mark any approximate location of an underground utility facility correctly or within the time frames prescribed by regulation, which violation did not result in any property damage or personal injury and was not the result of an act of gross negligence on the part of the public utility, shall not result in a civil penalty of more than one thousand dollars. Any civil penalty assessed under this section shall be paid by the person, public agency or public utility to whom the notice is addressed. If any such person, public agency or public utility recovers any portion of the penalty from any outside source and, if the authority deems appropriate, the recovered penalty shall be forfeited, as directed by the authority in such notice. Notwithstanding the provisions contained in subsection (d) of section 16-41, the person, public agency or public utility receiving a notice of violation pursuant to subsection (c) of section 16-41 shall have thirty days from the date of receipt of the notice in which to deliver to the authority a written application for a hearing.

Sec. 3. Section 16-34a of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2018):

(a) Not later than July 1, 2015, and annually thereafter, the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority shall submit a report, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a, to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to energy. Such report shall include (1) a description of the reasons for each gas company's percentage of lost and unaccounted for gas, (2) recommendations for each gas company's gas leak reduction strategy, (3) a description of each gas company's current gas leak monitoring system program, and (4) the number of leaks and causes of such leaks throughout the entire gas distribution system in the state and any other information the authority determines to be relevant.

(b) The authority shall initiate a docket to investigate the lost and unaccounted for gas of a gas company if the percentage of lost and unaccounted for gas of such gas company in any [calendar] fiscal year beginning July first and ending June thirtieth exceeds a total of three per cent. In such docket, a gas company shall report (1) leak detection and monitoring procedures, (2) emissions reduction strategies in addition to leak repair, and (3) any additional requirements the authority determines to be relevant. In such docket, the authority shall establish a cost mechanism to comply with long-term emissions reductions required by section 22a-200a and to incentivize a gas company to (A) reduce lost and unaccounted for gas, including the number of leaks throughout the entire gas distribution system in the state, (B) replace aging infrastructure, and (C) comply with any additional requirements the authority determines to be relevant. Such cost mechanism may be incorporated in the purchased gas adjustment clause pursuant to section 16-19b.


This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1	from passage	16-41(a)
Sec. 2	from passage	16-356
Sec. 3	October 1, 2018	16-34a