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Minutes for SB68 - Committee on Utilities
Short Title
Providing incumbent electric transmission owners a right of first refusal for the construction of certain electric transmission lines.
Minutes Content for Wed, Feb 8, 2023
The Chairman resumed the hearing on the bill and called for opponent testimony.
Jim Rossi stated his concerns regarding the bill's constitutionality (discriminates against non-Kansas entities), what he termed an anti-competitive barrier and felt it limited the options available to the market.
Sharon Senger claimed that the key goal of FERC Order 1000 is to harness the benefit of competition in transmission development by facilitating the identification, development and ultimately the effective cost of construction of a project. Ms. Senger reiterated the main concerns of the previous speaker. Ms. Senger pledged to bring ROE concessions and that her organization would make application to become a complying Kansas Utility.
Matt Palowski discussed his organization's history in Kansas and the need for competition in developing current and future transmission projects. Mr. Palowski also discussed the projected costs, penalities and cost containment guarantees that shift cost overrun risks from consumers to transmission companies. Mr. Pawlowsi referenced the Wolfcreek to Blackberry transmission and other projects to establish the resiliency of his organization's transmission projects.
Heath Koehler touted his organization as the largest private-sector employer in Kansas and explained that anti-trust laws are intended to create competition. Mr. Koehler explained that once a project is approved the cost recovery mechanism for transmission infrastructure can be embedded in rates for many years.
Paul Snider was very critical of the primary electric utility in Kansas and suggested that the utility intends to take unfair advantage over national and international competitors and local rate payers. Mr. Snider cited the the Blackberry project to demonstrate that "competition works" and pointed out what he termed the transmission surcharge issue regarding some Kansas transmission lines.
Committee questions and comments ensued.
Chairman Olson suspended the hearing until the next meeting.
