A08406 Summary:

BILL NO    A08406 

SAME AS    No same as

SPONSOR    Gianaris (MS)

COSPNSR    Pheffer, Cahill, Kellner, Hevesi, Cook, Reilly, Gunther, Aubry,
           Lupardo, Alessi, Hooper, Lancman, Fields, Hyer-Spencer, Magnarelli,
           Schimel

MLTSPNSR   Boyland, Burling, Calhoun, DelMonte, Errigo, Galef, Giglio, Glick,
           Gottfried, Jaffee, Jeffries, Jordan, Koon, Lopez P, Magee, Maisel,
           McDonough, McEneny, Molinaro, Nolan, Perry, Saladino, Scarborough,
           Spano, Stirpe, Sweeney, Townsend

Amd S4, Pub Serv L

Requires that at least one commissioner of the public service commission have
experience in utility consumer advocacy.

A08406 Actions:

BILL NO    A08406 

05/19/2009 referred to economic development
01/06/2010 referred to economic development

A08406 Votes:

A08406 Memo:

BILL NUMBER:A8406

TITLE  OF BILL:   An act to amend the public service law, in relation to
requiring at least one commissioner of the public service commission  to
have experience in utility consumer advocacy

PURPOSE  OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:  By requiring that at least one member
of the Public Service Commission must be an experienced  consumer  advo-
cate,  this  bill  will  help  restore the effectiveness of that body in
ensuring that public utilities operate  in  the  best  interest  of  the
public.

SUMMARY  OF  SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:  Bill S1 amends subdivision 1 of S4 of
the Public Service to add a requirement that at least  one  commissioner
of  the  Public Service Commission (PSC) must have experience in utility
consumer advocacy.

EFFECTS OF PRESENT  LAW  WHICH  THIS  BILL  WOULD  ALTER:    Other  than
provisions for political party balance, there are currently no statutory
standards for appointments to the PSC. This stands in marked contrast to
statutes  in  many  other  states,  which provide various mechanisms for
determining qualifications for utility regulators -- including  require-
ments  in  two  of our neighboring states that at least one commissioner
must have experience in consumer protection and advocacy.

JUSTIFICATION:  The Public Service Commission is responsible  for  over-
seeing  the  operations  of  "public  utilities" -- providers of energy,
telecommunications and cable services that  provide  essential  services
through  the  use  of public rights-of-way and similar common resources.
It has long been recognized that, as was stated by then-Governor  Frank-
lin  Roosevelt  in 1932, the PSC is not a "mere arbitrator" but acts "as
agent of the public" in seeing that utilities  "do  two  things:  first,
give people adequate service; second, charge reasonable rates...."

In  recent  years, many people believe that the PSC has strayed from its
core mission of ensuring consumers receive adequate service  at  reason-
able  rates.  To  rectify this situation, this legislation would require
that at least one PSC commissioner must have  experience  in  advocating
for  the  interests  of  utility consumers. This provision is already in
force in the State of Connecticut (C.G.S. 516-2). Another of our  neigh-
bors,  Massachusetts,  similarly  requires that one of its commissioners
must have a background and experience in consumer protection and advoca-
cy issues (Mass. Gen. Laws title 25, 52).

Placing a dedicated consumer representative on the PSC will help  ensure
that the interests of working families, small businesses and other rate-
payers  are  not  subordinated  to the interests of public utilities and
other commercial interests that  are  already  well-represented  in  PSC
proceedings.

PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:New bill.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:  None.

EFFECTIVE DATE:  Thirtieth day after becoming law, and will apply to any
appointments to the PSC made on or after such date.