An Act To Ensure Transmission and Distribution Utility Accountability
Maine Legislature, Session 130, LD 1959
Committee Amendment CA_A_HA_A_H1043 (House)
Amends: 35-A MRSA §1508-A, 35-A MRSA §1513, 35-A MRSA §3146, 35-A MRSA §3147

HOUSE AMENDMENT "-4" to COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "N' to S.P. 697, 
L.D. 1959, "An Act To Ensure Transmission and Distribution Utility Accountability" 
Amend the amendment by insetting after the title the following: 
'Amend the bill by striking out the title and substituting the following: 
'An Act Regarding Utility Accountability and Grid Planning for Maine's Clean 
Energy Future' ' 
Amend the amendment in section 1 in subsection 1-A in the 2nd line (page l, line 15 
in amendment) by inse1ting after the following: "rules" the following: 'for utilities with 
over 50,000 customers' 
Amend the amendment in section 1 in subsection 1-A by inserting after paragraph E 
the following: 
'F. Annually. the commission shall evaluate the data provided by a transmission and 
distribution utility in accordance with paragraph E for the prior calendar year to 
determine if the standal'ds established by the commission pursuant to this section have 
been met.' 
Amend the amendment in section 1 in subsection 1-A in paragraph H in the first line 
(page 2, line 12 in amendment) by striking out the following: "Once every 3 years, the" and 
inserting the following: 'The' 
Amend the amendment in section 1 in subsection 1-A by inse1ting after paragraph H 
the following: 
'Nothing in this subsection prohibits the commission from establishing service quality 
standards for transmission and distribution utilities with fewer than 50,000 customers.' 
0 
Amend the amendment in section 1 in subsection 1-A by re lettering the paragraphs to 
read consecutively. 
Amend the amendment by striking out all of section 5 and insetting the following: 
'Sec. 5, 35-A MRSA §1508-A, sub-§1, ~ 
is enacted to read: 
E. In accordance with section 301, subsection 1 ~A. paragraph G. the commission shall 
S 
impose an administrative penalty on a transmission and distribution utility in an amount 
HOUSE AMENDMENT 
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HOUSE AMENDMENT '_i4 "to COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to S.P. 697, L.D. 1959 
that does not exceed $1,000,000 01· 10% of its annual gross revenue received from 
ratepayers in the State, whichever amount is less, that fails to meet a standard 
established by the commission pursuant to section 301, subsection 1-A in the previous 
calendar year. Each calendar year that the transmission and distribution utility fails to 
meet the standard constitutes a separate offense. 
The commission shall use the 
proceeds from the penalty imposed under this paragraph to assist low-income 
customers.' 
Amend the amendment by striking out all of section 6 and insetting the following: 
1Sec, 6. 35-A MRSA §1513 is enacted to read: 
§1513. Divestiture of underperforming transmission and distribution utility 
The commission shall initiate an adjudicatoty proceeding, on its own motion or at the 
request of the Public Advocate. in accordance with this section to dete11nine whether 
divestiture of an investor-owned transmission and distribution utility is warranted if the 
utility consistently fails to meet the service standards established in section 301. subsection 
1-A. consistently fails to meet the requirements of section 301. subsection 1 or is unable to 
fulfill its statutmy duties as a public utility because it is financially impaired. If. at the 
conclusion of the adjudicatory proceeding, the commission determines that divestiture of a 
transmission and distribution utility is warranted, the commission shall order divestiture of 
or by the utility in accordance with this section: 
1. Determination by the commission. The commission shall order the owner of the 
transmission and distribution utility to divest the utility if the acquisition of the utility from 
a qualified buyer: 
A. Will result. over the long term. in net benefits to ratepayers in the form of lower 
rates or better service than the rates and service provided by the transmission and 
distribution utility; 
B. Is for a fair and reasonable purchase price negotiated by a qualified buyer and the 
transmission and distribution utility 01· as determined by the Superior Comt in 
accordance with subsection 2: 
C. 
Demonstrates that the qualified buyer has sufficient financial and technical 
capability, expe1tise and experience to own and operate the utility and the ability to 
comply with all of the legal requirements, including but not limited to achievement of 
policies pursuant to Title 38. section 576-A and section 577. subsection 1, of a 
transmission and distribution utility: and 
D. Will benefit ratepayers as determined in accordance with section 708, subsection 
2. paragraph C. subparagraph (2). 
2. Superior Court review. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Title, a 
transmission and distribution utility may apply by petition to the Superior Comt of 
Kennebec County to determine a fair and reasonable price that provides just compensation 
for the sale of the transmission and distribution utility or its assets if the qualified buyer 
and transmission and distribution utility are unable to negotiate a price. The court shall 
hold a hearing on the petition in which the patties are permitted to present factual and expe1t 
testimony and other evidence conceming the value of the utility or its assets and shall 
render a decision. The decision of the Superior Court may be appealed to the Supreme 
HOUSE AMENDMENT 
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HOUSE AMENDMENT ''A "to COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to S.P. 697, L.D. 1959 
Judicial Court sitting as the Law Court in the same manner as an appeal taken from a 
judgment of the Superior Court in a civil action. 
3. More than one buyer. If more than one qualified buyer proposes to acquire the 
transmission and distribution utility 01· its assets, the commission shall order divestiture to 
the qualified buyer that will provide the greatest net benefits to ratepayers.' 
Amend the amendment by striking out all of section 7 and inserting the following: 
'Sec, 7. 35-A MRSA §3146 is enacted to read: 
§3146. Climate change protection plan 
No later than December 31. 2023. and eve1y 3 years thereafter, a transmission and 
distribution utility shall submit to the commission a l0~year plan that includes specific 
actions for addressing the expected effects of climate change on the utility's assets needed 
to transmit and distribute electricity to its customers. The commission shall provide a 
process to allow for the input from interested parties on the transmission and distribution 
utility's plan. The commission may use the plan and the input received from interested 
patties in rate cases or other proceedings involving the transmission and distribution utility.' 
Amend the amendment by striking out all of section 8 and inse1ting the following: 
'Sec. 8. 35-A MRSA §3147 is enacted to read: 
§3147. Integrated grid planning 
1. Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the 
following terms have the following meanings. 
A. "Covered utility
means a large investor-owned transmission and distribution utility 
as defined in section 3201, subsection 12. 
B. "Environmental justice" means the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of 
all persons regardless of race, color, national origin or income with respect to the 
development. implementation and enforcement of environmental laws. rules, 
regulations and policies. 
C. "Grid plan" means a 10-year integrated grid plan developed in accordance with this 
section designed to improve system reliability and resiliency and enable the cost-
effective achievement of the greenhouse gas reduction obligations and climate policies 
pursuant to Title 38, section 576-A and section 577. subsection 1. 
D. "Hosting capacity" means a threshold at a circuit at which new distributed energy 
resources will trigger upgrades or changes to the electdcal distribution system and cost 
considerations of related upgrades and changes. 
2. Priorities identified; stakeholder input. Beginning November 1. 2022, then every 
years thereafter, the commission shall initiate a proceeding to identify the priorities to be 
addressed in a filing by a covered utility regarding a grid plan that will assist in the cost-
effective transition to a clean. affordable and reliable electric grid. The commission shall 
hold technical conferences or stakeholder workshops before the filing to identify priorities, 
assumptions, goals, methods and tools that will assist the covered utility in developing a 
grid plan. 
HOUSE AMENDMENT 
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HOUSE AMENDMENT '.A " to COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to S.P. 697, L.D. 1959 
3. Commission ol'der. At the conclusion of the technical conferences and stakeholder 
workshops held under subsection 2. the commission shall issue an order directing a covered 
utility to submit a filing to the commission that addresses the priorities identified in the 
proceeding initiated pursuant to subsection 2 and includes the additional components 
identified in subsection 4. 
4. Additional components; submission. A covered utility shall submit a filing to the 
commission within 18 months of the issuance of an order by the commission pursuant to 
subsection 3. In addition to addressing the priorities specified in the commission order. the 
filing must: 
A. Assess the electric system of the covered utility and its relationship to the regional 
grid: 
B. For elements of the filing related to customer energy consumption and usage 
characteristics, reference and incorporate relevant elements of the Efficiency Maine 
Trust triennial plan developed under section 10104, subsection 4. including all of the 
trust's analysis of cost-effective energy efficiency potential and plans to implement 
energy efficiency programs, demand management programs, beneficial electrification 
programs such as heat pump and electric vehicle initiatives, energy storage initiatives 
and analysis of nonwires alternatives: 
C. Include at least 2 potential planning scenarios, at a minimum, a baseline scenario 
and a scenario of high-penetration distributed energy resources and end-use 
electrification. When applicable. the planning scenarios must incorporate mechanisms 
for achieving the priorities established pursuant to subsection 2. including. but not 
limited to. cost-effective policies. programs. rates. use of software or technology and 
infrastructure planning. including nonwires alternatives: 
D. Include. at a minimum. the following: 
(1) Forecasts of projected load. including forecasts of end-use electrification, 
energy efficiency and distributed energy resources: 
(2) Baseline energy supply data and assessments, including but not limited to 
planned generation retirements: new generation that is planned or needed. 
including generation of electricity from renewable sources: and energy storage 
installations; 
(3) 
Analysis of hosting capacity. including locational benefits of distributed 
energy resources and areas of existing 01· potential system congestion: 
(4) Analysis of available and emerging technologies necessary to enable load 
management and flexibility: 
(5) An assessment of the environmental, equity and environmental justice impacts 
of grid plans; and 
(6) An identification of cost-effective near-term grid investments and operations 
needed to achieve the priorities identified in subsection 2: and 
E. Reference and incorporate. as appropriate. all relevant analysis conducted as part 
of the State1s climate action plan under Title 38. section 577 and relevant information 
from repo1ts and analysis completed by other state agencies and quasi-independent 
state entities. 
HOUSE AMENDMENT 
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HOUSE AMENDMENT '.:4 "to COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to S,P. 697, L.D. 1959 
The commission shall make the filing for each covered utility available for public comment 
for a period of no less than 60 days. The commission may order a covered utility to revise 
the filing to address any deficiencies. The commission may use the filing and the input 
received from interested patties in rate cases 01· other proceedings involving the covered 
utility. 
5. Access to information. Consistent with section 1311-A a covered utility shall 
ensure to the greatest extent practicable that any information related to the filing is provided 
in a forum accessible to interested patties and all relevant data and distribution planning 
modeling tools are available to interested parties. 
Nothing in this section prohibits the commission from holding additional proceedings if 
the commission determines it is necessary to meet the purposes of this section.' 
Amend the amendment in section 9 in the 3rd line (page 8, line 39 in amendment) by 
striking out the following: 
11grid plans under" and insetting the following: 'an integrated 
grid plan as 1·equired by4 
Amend the amendment in section 11 in the 5th line (page 9, line 12 in amendment) by 
striking out the following: "implement" and inserting the following: 'comply with the 
integrated grid planning prnvisions of' 
Amend the amendment by striking out all of section 12 and inserting the following: 
'Sec. 12. Competitive procurement inquiry, By October 1, 2022, the Public 
Utilities Commission shall initiate an inquiry to assess the use of competitive procurement 
methods for purchases by transmission and distribution utilities, as defined in the Maine 
Revised Statutes, Title 35-A, section 102, subsection 20-B, of specific goods and services 
of a quantity that in the aggregate could reasonably impose significant costs to ratepayers. 
The inquiry must consider the activities for which competitive procurement methods may 
apply, exceptions to competitive procurement methods, the cost-effectiveness ofrequiring 
the use of competitive procurement methods and any other considerations the commission 
finds are necessary to assess the use of competitive pl'ocurement methods. Upon the 
conclusion of the inquiry, the commission may adopt routine technical mies as defined in 
Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A regarding competitive procurement methods fot 
transmission and distribution utilities. On or before February 27, 2023, the commission 
shall submit a repo1t regarding the inquiry to the joint standing committee of the Legislature 
having jurisdiction over energy and utilities matters. The committee may report out a bill 
to the 131 st Legislature in 2023. 
Sec. 13. Appropriations and allocations. The following appropriations and 
allocations are made. 
PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION 
Public Utilities - Administrative Division 0184 
Initiative: Provides allocations for one Staff Attorney position and 2 Utility Analyst 
positions and associated All Othe1· funding, 
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS 
POSITIONS - LEGISLATIVE COUNT 
Personal Services 
All Other 
2021-22 
0.000 
$0 
$0 
HOUSE AMENDMENT 
2022-23 
3.000 
$464,348 
$34,680 
o'b 
~ 
s 
HOUSE AMENDMENT 'A- "to COMMITTEE AMENDMENT "A" to S.P. 697, L.D. 1959 
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS TOTAL 
Public Utilities - Administrative Division 0184 
$0 
$499,028 
Initiative: Provides one-time allocation for contracted services to study similar investor-
owned utilities and regulatory efforts. 
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS 
All Other 
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS TOTAL 
PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION 
DEPARTMENT TOTALS 
OTHER SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS 
DEPARTMENT TOTAL-ALL FUNDS 
2021-22 
$0 
$0 
2021-22 
$0 
$0 
2022-23 
$400,000 
$400,000 
2022-23 
$899,028 
$899,028 
Amend the amendment by relettering or renumbering any nonconsecutive Patt letter or 
section number to read consecutively. 
SUMMARY 
This amendment combines the substance of Senate Amendment "A11 and Senate 
Amendment "B," except that the provision regarding competitive procurement methods for 
purchases by transmission and distribution utilities includes services as well as specific 
goods. 
SPONSORED BY: li, !LAL::::' 
(Representative KESSLER, C~ 
TOWN: South Portland 
FISCAL NOTE REQUIRED 
(See attached) 
HOUSE AMENDMENT 
( 
Approved: 04/20/22 feac:.. 
LD 1959 
LR 2562(15) 
An Act To Ensure Transmission and Distribution Utility Accountability 
Fiscal Note for House Amendment ~ 11 to Committee Amendment "A" 
Appropriations/Allocations 
Other Special Revenue Funds 
.evenue 
Other Special Revenue Funds 
Fiscal Detail and Notes 
Sponsor: Rep. Kessler of South Portland 
( 
Fiscal Note Required: Yes 
\j/ -101/3) 
Fiscal Note 
FY 2021-22 
$0 
$0 
$206,237 
$206,237 
Projections 
FY 2023-24 
Projections 
FY2024-25 
($2,005,623) 
($1,662,542) 
($2,009,623) 
($1,662,542) 
This amendment reduces the number of Public Utilities Commission positions added by the bill from 5 Staff Attorney 
positions and 6 Utility Analyst positions to 1 Staff Attorney position and 2 Utility Analyst positions. It also reduces 
the one-time allocation for contracted services from $650,000 to $400,000 for a study, but moves it into fiscal year 
2022-23 from fiscal year 2023-24. The net incremental change is to increase allocations by $206,237 in fiscal year 
2022-23, but the allocations in subsequent years will be considerably less. As amended, in fiscal year 2022-23 the bill 
will include ongoing allocations of $499,028 for positions and related costs and the one-time allocation of $400,000 
for contracted services. 
LR2562(15) - Fiscal Note - Page 1 of 1