As Amended by House Committee
Session of 1999
HOUSE BILL No. 2495
By Committee on Utilities
2-12
10 AN ACT concerning competition in retail electric service; amending
11 K.S.A. 1998 Supp. 66-1901, 66-1902 and 66-1903 and repealing the
12 existing sections.
13
14 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
15 Section 1. K.S.A. 1998 Supp. 66-1901 is hereby amended to read as
16 follows: 66-1901. (a) There is hereby established the retail wheeling task
17 force. The task force shall consist of 23 the following members, as
18 follows:
19 (1) Two members of the house of representatives appointed by the
20 speaker of the house of representatives and one member of the house of
21 representatives appointed by the minority leader of the house of
22 representatives;
23
24 member of the house standing committee on utilities and another
25 minority member of the house standing committee on utilities ap-
26 pointed by the minority leader of the house of representatives;
27 (2) the chairperson, vice-chairperson and ranking minority
28 member of the senate standing committee on utilities;
29 (2) two members of the senate appointed by the president of the
30 senate and one member of the senate appointed by the minority leader
31 of the senate;
32 (3) a member of the staff of the state corporation commission des-
33 ignated by the chairperson of the commission;
34 (4) a representative of the citizens' utility ratepayer board designated
35 by the chairperson of the board;
36 (5) a representative of the department of commerce designated by
37 the secretary of commerce;
38 (6) an environmental technology expert who is an authority on re-
39 newable energy, designated by the legislative coordinating council;
40 (7) (5) a large commercial or industrial electric customer, designated
41 by the legislative coordinating council;
42 (8) (6) one representative of each of the following, designated by the
43 governing body of the association: Kansas electric cooperatives, inc., and
44 Kansas municipal utilities, inc.;
45 (9) (7) one representative of each of the following, designated by the
46 chief administrative officer of the company: Kansas City Power and Light,
47 Kansas City Board of Public Utilities, Kansas Electric Power Cooperative,
48 Empire District Electric Company, Midwest Energy, Sunflower Electric
49 Power Corporation, Western Resources and West Plains Energy;
50 (10) (8) a small commercial or industrial electric customer, desig-
51 nated by the legislative coordinating council; and
52 (11) (9) a residential electric customer, designated by the legislative
53 coordinating council.
54 (b) Not more than two members of the legislature appointed to mem-
55 bership on the task force shall be residents of the same congressional
56 district. No members designated pursuant to subparts (7), (10) and (11)
57 of subsection (a) shall be residents of the same congressional district. The
58 legislative coordinating council shall designate two of the legislative mem-
59 bers of the task force to serve, respectively, as chairperson and vice-chair-
60 person of the task force.
61 (c) The task force shall meet at least four times a year on call of the
62 chairperson of the task force.
63 (c) Members serving on the task force on December 31, 1998, shall
64 continue to serve as members on and after the effective date of this act
65 and until April 18, 2000, at which time new appointments shall be made.
66 (b) The members serving as chairperson and vice-chairperson
67 of the task force on the effective date of this act shall continue to
68 serve as chairperson and vice-chairperson until expiration of their
69 terms as members of the task force, at which time the legislative
70 coordinating council shall designate legislative members of the
71 task force to serve as chairperson and vice-chairperson.
72 (c) Except as provided by subsection (d), members described
73 in subsection (a)(3), (4), (5), (6), (7), (8) or (9) and serving on the
74 task force on the effective date of this act shall continue to serve
75 as members of the task force until April 18, 2000, at which time
76 new designations shall be made pursuant to those subsections.
77 Members described in subsection (a)(1) or (2) shall serve until the
78 first day of the regular legislative session in 2001. Upon a vacancy
79 in the membership of the task force, a successor shall be desig-
80 nated in the same manner as the original member for the remain-
81 der of the unexpired term.
82 (d) If Kansas City Power and Light and Western Resources
83 merge, the representative of Kansas City Power and Light shall
84 cease to be a member of the task force.
85 (d) (e) The staff of the office of the revisor of statutes, the legislative
86 research department and the division of legislative administrative services
87 shall provide such assistance as may be requested by the task force and
88 authorized by the legislative coordinating council. The legislative division
89 of post audit shall provide such assistance as may be requested by the
90 task force and authorized by the legislative post audit committee. The
91 state corporation commission and each other state agency shall provide
92 assistance to the task force as may be requested by the task force.
93 (e) (f) Task force members enumerated in subparts (1), (2), (6), (7),
94 (10) and (11) of subsection (a) shall receive amounts provided by subsec-
95 tion (e) of K.S.A. 75-3223 and amendments thereto for each day of actual
96 attendance at any meeting of the task force or any subcommittee meeting
97 approved by the task force. Such amounts paid to members shall be paid
98 from appropriations to the legislative coordinating council pursuant to
99 vouchers prepared by the director of legislative administrative services
100 and approved by the chairperson or vice-chairperson of the legislative
101 coordinating council.
102 (f) The task force shall study issues related to competition in the
103 furnishing of retail electric service in this state, including but not limited
104 to:
105 (1) Actions of the federal energy regulatory commission;
106 (2) the obligation of electric utilities to serve customers;
107 (3) the economic impact on each class of electric utility customer;
108 (4) the social impact on Kansas citizens;
109 (5) the impact on state general fund revenues and local franchise and
110 tax revenues;
111 (6) the status of electrical generating facilities in a competitive
112 environment;
113 (7) savings that may be achieved by electric utility mergers and down-
114 sizing;
115 (8) recovery of stranded costs;
116 (9) unbundling of generation, transmission and distribution services;
117 (10) leveling the financing of capital investment;
118 (11) retail wheeling, including loop losses;
119 (12) brokerage;
120 (13) incentives for renewable energy investment;
121 (14) the feasibility of establishment of retail customer service areas,
122 consisting of all classes of customers, for which retail suppliers would
123 compete to serve;
124 (15) stranded benefits such as the cold weather rule and charitable
125 contributions by retail suppliers;
126 (16) nonprice issues such as customer service, storm damage repair,
127 energy conservation and billing;
128 (17) the impact on municipal electric utilities and rural electric co-
129 operatives; and
130 (18) the impact on existing statutes.
131 (g) The task force shall submit a preliminary report to the house and
132 senate committees on energy and natural resources on or before January
133 15, 1997, and a final report of its findings and recommendations to the
134 house and senate committees on energy and natural resources on or be-
135 fore January 11, 1998.
136 (f) The task force shall meet as necessary to review any proposed
137 legislation providing for competition in retail electric service and to study
138 other matters relating to electric service, including generation ca-
139 pacity and taxation of electric service providers, and may make rec-
140 ommendations to the legislature regarding any such legislation or
141 matters.
142 Sec. 2. K.S.A. 1998 Supp. 66-1902 is hereby amended to read as
143 follows: 66-1902. Before July 1, 1999 2001, the state corporation com-
144 mission shall continue to regulate retail electric suppliers in accordance
145 with the provisions of K.S.A. 66-1,170 through 66-1,176, and amend-
146 ments thereto, and shall not authorize competition in the furnishing of
147 retail electric service in this state. The commission may open one or more
148 generic dockets to study the issue of competition in the furnishing of
149 retail electric service.
150 Sec. 3. K.S.A. 1998 Supp. 66-1903 is hereby amended to read as
151 follows: 66-1903. The provisions of K.S.A. 1998 Supp. 66-1901 and 66-
152 1902, and amendments thereto, shall expire on July 1, 1999 2001.
153 Sec. 4. K.S.A. 1998 Supp. 66-1901, 66-1902 and 66-1903 are hereby
154 repealed.
155 Sec. 5. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
156 publication in the Kansas register.