16 U.S.C. § 2624 — Lifeline rates

Page 2206 TITLE 16—CONSERVATION § 2624 (b) Establishment The following Federal standards are hereby es- tablished: (1) Master metering To the extent determined appropriate under section 2625(d) of this title, master metering of electric service in the case of new buildings shall be prohibited or restricted to the extent necessary to carry out the purposes of this chapter. (2) Automatic adjustment clauses No electric utility may increase any rate pursuant to an automatic adjustment clause unless such clause meets the requirements of section 2625(e) of this title. (3) Information to consumers Each electric utility shall transmit to each of its electric consumers information regard- ing rate schedules in accordance with the re- quirements of section 2625(f) of this title. (4) Procedures for termination of electric serv- ice No electric utility may terminate electric service to any electric consumer except pursu- ant to procedures described in section 2625(g) of this title. (5) Advertising No electric utility may recover from any person other than the shareholders (or other owners) of such utility any direct or indirect expenditure by such utility for promotional or political advertising as defined in section 2625(h) of this title. (c) Procedural requirements Each State regulatory authority (with respect to each electric utility for which it has rate- making authority) and each nonregulated elec- tric utility, within the two-year period specified in subsection (a), shall (1) adopt, pursuant to subsection (a), each of the standards established by subsection (b) or, (2) with respect to any such standard which is not adopted, such authority or nonregulated electric utility shall state in writ- ing that it has determined not to adopt such standard, together with the reasons for such de- termination. Such statement of reasons shall be available to the public. (Pub. L. 95–617, title I, § 113, Nov. 9, 1978, 92 Stat. 3123.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT This chapter, referred to in subsecs. (a) and (b), was in the original ‘‘this title’’, meaning title I (§ 101 et seq.) of Pub. L. 95–617, Nov. 9, 1978, 92 Stat. 3120, which enacted subchapters I to IV of this chapter and section 6808 of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare, and amended sections 6802 to 6807 of Title 42. For complete classification of title I to the Code, see Tables. § 2624. Lifeline rates (a) Lower rates No provision of this chapter prohibits a State regulatory authority (with respect to an electric utility for which it has ratemaking authority) or a nonregulated electric utility from fixing, approving, or allowing to go into effect a rate for essential needs (as defined by the State regu- latory authority or by the nonregulated electric utility, as the case may be) of residential elec- tric consumers which is lower than a rate under the standard referred to in section 2621(d)(1) of this title. (b) Determination If any State regulated electric utility or non- regulated electric utility does not have a lower rate as described in subsection (a) in effect two years after November 9, 1978, the State regu- latory authority having ratemaking authority with respect to such State regulated electric utility or the nonregulated electric utility, as the case may be, shall determine, after an evi- dentiary hearing, whether such a rate should be implemented by such utility. (c) Prior proceedings Section 2634 of this title shall not apply to the requirements of this section. (Pub. L. 95–617, title I, § 114, Nov. 9, 1978, 92 Stat. 3124.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT This chapter, referred to in subsec. (a), was in the original ‘‘this title’’, meaning title I (§ 101 et seq.) of Pub. L. 95–617, Nov. 9, 1978, 92 Stat. 3120, which enacted subchapters I to IV of this chapter and section 6808 of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare, and amended sections 6802 to 6807 of Title 42. For complete classifica- tion of title I to the Code, see Tables. § 2625. Special rules for standards (a) Cost of service In undertaking the consideration and making the determination under section 2621 of this title with respect to the standard concerning cost of service established by section 2621(d)(1) of this title, the costs of providing electric serv- ice to each class of electric consumers shall, to the maximum extent practicable, be determined on the basis of methods prescribed by the State regulatory authority (in the case of a State reg- ulated electric utility) or by the electric utility (in the case of a nonregulated electric utility). Such methods shall to the maximum extent practicable— (1) permit identification of differences in cost-incurrence, for each such class of electric consumers, attributable to daily and seasonal time of use of service and (2) permit identification of differences in cost-incurrence attributable to differences in customer demand, and energy components of cost. In prescribing such methods, such State regulatory authority or nonregulated electric utility shall take into account the extent to which total costs to an electric utility are likely to change if— (A) additional capacity is added to meet peak demand relative to base demand; and (B) additional kilowatt-hours of electric energy are delivered to electric consumers. (b) Time-of-day rates In undertaking the consideration and making the determination required under section 2621 of