Brief(1)
H.B. 2495 would continue the Retail Wheeling Task Force until July 1, 2001. Existing law requires the Task Force to sunset on July 1, 1999. (See the background section for further explanation.) The bill includes the following provisions.
Membership. The bill would modify the existing composition of the Task Force. The bill would specify that leadership of the Senate and House Committees on Utilities serve on the Task Force, with the addition of a House Democrat to be appointed by the House Minority Leader. The member designated as the environmental technology expert and the representative from the Kansas Department of Commerce and Housing would no longer serve on the Task Force. The other members specified in the bill would continue to serve although provision is made in the bill for vacancies, new appointments, and the disposition of the representative of Kansas City Power and Light if that company merges with Western Resources. (The existing Task Force has representation from each company.) The Chairperson and Vice Chairperson would continue to serve in their respective capacities until the beginning of the 2001 Legislative Session.
Task Force Responsibilities. The bill would require the reconstituted Task Force to meet as necessary to review any proposed legislation providing for competition in retail electric service (retail wheeling). The bill would authorize the Task Force to study other matters related to electric service, including generation capacity and taxation of electric service providers. The Task Force would be authorized to make recommendations to the Legislature regarding legislation or other related matters.
Extension of Moratorium on Retail Wheeling. The moratorium on retail wheeling, which is scheduled to expire on July 1, 1999, would be extended until July 1, 2001. This means that the Kansas Corporation Commission could not authorize retail wheeling prior to July 1, 2001.
Effective Date of Act. The bill would take effect upon publication in the Kansas Register.
Background
The introduced version of H.B. 2495 was supported by spokespersons for Western Resources, Kansas Electric Power Cooperative, Inc., Kansas Electric Cooperatives, Inc., and Kansas City Power and Light. There were no opponents.
The House Committee amended the bill to: modify the composition of the Task Force; specify terms of the Chairperson and Vice Chairperson, vacancies on, and new appointments to, the Task Force; and authorize study of other related matters, such as generation capacity and taxation of electric service providers. The House Committee reconsidered its initial action on amendments to the Task Force composition. The Committee's subsequent action is reflected in the brief above.
The Retail Wheeling Task Force was established in 1996 H.B. 2600. The 23-member Task Force held its first meeting on August 5, 1996 and its last meeting on November 24, 1997. The Task Force: heard presentations on all aspects of electric utility restructuring; identified the major issues to be addressed in deliberations on restructuring; identified areas of agreement and disagreement on those issues; submitted a preliminary report to the 1997 Legislature; engaged a consultant (McFadden/Resource Data International (RDI)) to analyze the impacts of restructuring on Kansas, and reviewed the consultant's activities and report; received reports on studies examining the impact of restructuring on municipal electric utilities and areas served by rural electric cooperatives; reviewed an economic impact report commissioned by the Kansas Corporation Commission; and formulated the concepts and honed the language of a bill, which was submitted with a final report to the1998 Legislature.
1. *Supplemental notes are prepared by the Legislative Research Department and do not express legislative intent. The supplemental note and fiscal note for this bill may be accessed on the Internet at http://www.ink.org/public/legislative/bill_search.html.