Common use of Rate Case Expenses Clause in Contracts

Rate Case Expenses. The Settling Parties agree and recommend the Commission approve Lakes Region’s recovery of its reasonable rate case expenses for this proceeding through a surcharge to customers. Lakes Region’s rate case expenses may include, but are not limited to, legal and consultant expenses, incremental administrative expenses such as copying and delivery charges, and other such rate case related expenditures allowed under N.H. Admin. R., Puc 1906.01. Lakes Region agrees to file its final rate case expenses and proposal for surcharge recovery, pursuant to Puc 1905.02, no later than 30 days from the date of the Commission’s order approving the Step I adjustment in this proceeding. The Settling Parties agree that the Department will review Lakes Region’s proposal and provide a report for the Commission’s consideration prior to the issuance of an order on rate case expense recovery. The resulting surcharge shall be reflected as a separate item on all customers’ bills. The Settling Parties agree, however, that the surcharge may be offset by the possible credit an individual customer may be entitled to from the temporary to permanent rate recoupment. As such, the Settling Parties agree that final report provided by the DOE should combine both its review of the temporary to permanent recoupment, described in the prior section, and rate case expenses. This provides administrative efficiency for the Settling Parties and for the Commission, as the Commission could address both issues in a final order issued after its order on the Step I adjustment. Upon issuance of the Commission’s order approving rate case expense recovery, Lakes Region agrees to file, within 15 days of that order, a compliance tariff supplement including the approved surcharge relating to the total recovery of rate case expenses, as well as the average monthly surcharge per customer, if applicable.