An Act To Ensure Transmission and Distribution Utility Accountability
Maine Legislature, Session 130, LD 1959
Committee: Energy, Utilities and Technology
Sponsors: BRENNER, LAWRENCE, STEWART, VITELLI, FECTEAU, WADSWORTH
Amends: 35-A MRSA §301, 35-A MRSA §1316, 35-A MRSA §1508-A, 35-A MRSA §1513, 35-A MRSA §3146

Legislative Document
No. 1959
S.P. 697
In Senate, February 7, 2022
An Act To Ensure Transmission and Distribution Utility 
Accountability
Received by the Secretary of the Senate on February 3, 2022.  Referred to the Committee 
on Energy, Utilities and Technology pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed.
DAREK M. GRANT
Secretary of the Senate
Presented by Senator BRENNER of Cumberland.  (GOVERNOR'S BILL)
Cosponsored by Senators: LAWRENCE of York, STEWART of Aroostook, VITELLI of 
Sagadahoc, Representatives: Speaker FECTEAU of Biddeford, WADSWORTH of Hiram.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  35-A MRSA §301, sub-§1-A is enacted to read:
1-A.  Performance report card for transmission and distribution utilities.  The 
commission shall adopt rules to establish minimum requirements for a transmission and 
distribution utility to ensure that the transmission and distribution utility meets the 
requirements of subsection 1. Rules adopted pursuant to this subsection are routine 
technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A.
A. The rules must include specific, quantitative planning and operational standards for 
a transmission and distribution utility that reflect standard industry practices, including, 
but not limited to, standards for the following operations and activities:
(1) Reliability of service;
(2) Timeliness and responsiveness to customer requests for information or service;
(3) Frequency of customer complaints;
(4) Timeliness and accuracy of bills;
(5) Responsiveness to requests for interconnection by generators; and
(6) Timeliness of restoring service after storms.
B. Each calendar quarter, a transmission and distribution utility shall file with the 
commission quantifiable data sufficient for the commission to calculate and publish a 
quantitative score for each standard established by the commission pursuant to 
paragraph A.
C.  The commission shall enforce this subsection and rules adopted pursuant to this 
subsection by initiating an adjudicatory proceeding to consider whether to impose an 
administrative penalty in accordance with section 1508-A, subsection 1, paragraph E.
Sec. 2.  35-A MRSA §301, sub-§5 is enacted to read:
5.  Transmission and distribution utility report required; audits.  If the commission 
has not made a rate determination for a transmission and distribution utility that serves 
more than 50,000 customers within the preceding 5 years, the utility shall submit a report 
to the commission that includes a comparison of the utility's actual costs with cost estimates 
used in the utility's most recent rate case to set rates.  Upon a finding of the commission 
that there was a difference of more than 10% between the transmission and distribution 
utility's actual costs and estimated costs, the commission may:
A.  Require an audit of the transmission and distribution utility in accordance with 
section 113; or
B.  Disallow cost recovery in the transmission and distribution utility's future rate cases.
This subsection takes effect January 15, 2024.
Sec. 3.  35-A MRSA §1316, as amended by PL 1999, c. 398, Pt. A, §21 and affected 
by §§104 and 105, is further amended to read:
§1316.  Testimony presented by employees of public utilities or, competitive service 
providers, affiliated interests or utility contractors to legislative committees 
and to, the Public Utilities Commission and the Public Advocate
1.  Definitions.  As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the 
following terms have the following meanings.
A.  "Employee" means a person who currently performs or formerly performed a 
service for wages or other remuneration under a contract of hire, expressed or implied, 
but does not include an independent contractor for a public utility, competitive service 
provider, affiliated interest or utility contractor.
A-1.  "Affiliated interest" has the same meaning as in section 707, subsection 1, 
paragraph A.
B.  "Employer" means a public utility or, competitive service provider or affiliated 
interest licensed to do business in this State with one or more employees.
C.  "Legislative committee" means a joint standing committee or a joint select 
committee of the Legislature, a task force, commission or council or any other 
committee established by the Legislature and composed wholly or partly of Legislators 
for the purpose of conducting legislative business.
D.  "Own time" means an employee's vacation or personal time, earned as a condition 
of employment.
E.  "Utility contractor" means a person that provides goods or services to a public utility 
or competitive service provider.
2.  Right of employees to provide testimony.  Employees of a public utility or 
competitive service provider have the right to represent themselves and to testify before or 
provide information to a legislative committee or, the commission or the Public Advocate 
on their own time.  An employee of a public utility or competitive service provider who 
complies with this section may not be denied the right to testify before or provide 
information to a legislative committee or, the commission or the Public Advocate.
2-A.  Right of utility contractors to provide testimony.  A utility contractor has the 
right to testify before or provide information to a legislative committee, the commission or 
the Public Advocate.
3.  Discharge of, threats to or discrimination against certain employees of utility 
service providers for testimony presented to legislative committees or, the commission 
or the Public Advocate.  Unless otherwise provided for, a A supervisor may not discharge, 
threaten or otherwise discriminate against an employee of a public utility or competitive 
service provider regarding the employee's compensation, terms, conditions, location or 
privileges of employment because the employee, in compliance with this section, in good 
faith testifies before or provides information to a legislative committee or to, the 
commission or the Public Advocate regarding the operation of the business of a public 
utility or competitive service provider or because the employee brings the subject matter 
of the testimony or information to the attention of a person having supervisory authority.
This subsection does not apply to an employee who has testified before or provided 
information to a legislative committee or to, the commission or the Public Advocate unless 
the employee has first brought the subject matter of the testimony or information in writing 
to the attention of a person having supervisory authority with the employer and has allowed 
the employer a reasonable time to address the subject matter of the testimony or 
information.  If appropriate, the employer shall respond in writing.
4.  Exceptions.  The protection protections created in subsection subsections 3 does 
and 9 do not apply to testimony or information that, upon reasonable inquiry by the 
employee or utility contractor, would be found to be false, slanderous, libelous or 
defamatory or to testimony that violates a term or condition of a collectively bargained 
agreement or to testimony that discloses trade secrets or corporate strategy, the disclosure 
of which would result in harm to the employer.
5.  Civil actions for injunctive relief or other remedies by employees.  An employee 
of a public utility or competitive service provider who alleges a violation of rights under 
this section and who has made reasonable efforts to exhaust all grievance procedures, as 
provided for in the contract of employment or which that otherwise may be available at the 
employee's place of employment, may bring a civil action, including an action for 
injunctive relief, within 90 days after the occurrence of that alleged violation or after the 
grievance procedure or similar process terminates.  The action may be brought in the 
Superior Court for the county where the alleged violation occurred, the county where the 
complainant resides or the county where the person against whom the civil complaint is 
filed resides.  An employee must establish each and every element of the employee's case 
by a preponderance of the evidence.
5-A.  Civil actions for injunctive relief or other remedies by utility contractors.  A 
utility contractor that alleges a violation of rights under this section may bring a civil action, 
including an action for injunctive relief, within 90 days after the occurrence of that alleged 
violation.  The action may be brought in the Superior Court for the county where the alleged 
violation occurred, the county where the complainant resides or the county where the 
person against whom the civil complaint is filed resides.  A utility contractor must establish 
each element of the utility contractor's case by a preponderance of the evidence.
6.  Remedies ordered by court.  A court, in rendering a judgment in an action brought 
pursuant to this section, may order reinstatement of the employee, the payment of back 
wages, full reinstatement of fringe benefits and seniority rights or any combination of these 
remedies.  A If an employee or utility contractor is the prevailing party, a court may also 
shall award the prevailing party employee or utility contractor all or a portion of the costs 
of litigation, including reasonable attorneys' attorney's fees and witness fees, if the court 
determines that the award is appropriate.
7.  Collective bargaining rights.  This section does not diminish or impair the rights 
of a person under any collective bargaining agreement. A public utility, competitive service 
provider or affiliated interest may not enter into a collective bargaining agreement for the 
sole purpose of preventing employees from exercising their rights to testify before or 
provide information to a legislative committee, the commission or the Public Advocate 
pursuant to this section.
8.  Jury trial; common-law rights.  Any action brought under this section may be 
heard by a jury.  Nothing in this section derogates any common-law rights of an employee 
or employer.
9.  Contracts with utility contractors.  If a utility contractor, in compliance with this 
section and in good faith, testifies before or provides information to a legislative committee, 
the commission or the Public Advocate, a public utility or competitive service provider 
may not respond by:
A.  Terminating or threatening to terminate a contract with the utility contractor; or
B.  Harming or threatening to harm the utility contractor financially.
10.  Notice of rights required.  A public utility and a competitive service provider 
shall notify the public utility's and the competitive service provider's employees, affiliated 
interests and utility contractors, respectively, of their rights under this section.
11.  Penalties.  The commission may impose penalties pursuant to violations of this 
section.  This subsection does not apply in the case of an employee of a utility contractor 
alleging a violation under subsection 3.
12.  Rulemaking.  The commission may adopt rules to implement this section.  Rules 
adopted pursuant to this section are routine technical rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 
375, subchapter 2-A.
Sec. 4.  35-A MRSA §1508-A, sub-§1, ¶E is enacted to read:
E.  The commission may impose an administrative penalty on a transmission and 
distribution utility in an amount that does not exceed $1,000,000 or 10% of its annual 
gross revenue received from ratepayers in the State, whichever amount is less, that fails 
for 2 consecutive calendar quarters or otherwise consistently fails to meet a standard 
established by the commission pursuant to section 301, subsection 1-A, paragraph A.  
Each calendar quarter that the transmission and distribution utility fails to meet the 
standard constitutes a separate offense.  The commission shall use the proceeds from 
the penalty assessed under this paragraph to reduce energy costs for low-income 
customers.
Sec. 5.  35-A MRSA §1513 is enacted to read:
§1513.  Divestiture of underperforming transmission and distribution utility
The commission shall initiate an adjudicatory proceeding in accordance with this 
section and section 708, subsection 2, paragraph A, subparagraph (8) to determine whether 
divestiture of a transmission and distribution utility is warranted if the utility consistently 
fails to meet the standards established in section 301, subsection 1-A, paragraph A, 
consistently fails to meet the requirements of section 301, subsection 1 or is unable to fulfill 
its statutory 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, then the following procedures apply.
1. Consideration of proposals to acquire the utility or its assets.  The commission 
shall request proposals from qualified buyers interested in acquiring the transmission and 
distribution utility or its assets and shall consider proposals to create a consumer-owned 
quasi-municipal corporation to acquire the utility or its assets.
2. Committee to develop proposal for consumer-owned quasi-municipal 
corporation.  Within 30 days from the date the commission requests proposals from 
qualified buyers to purchase the transmission and distribution utility or its assets, a 
committee of 5 members must be appointed in accordance with this subsection to develop 
a proposal on behalf of a potential consumer-owned quasi-municipal corporation.  The 
Governor shall appoint 3 members of the committee and the Public Advocate shall appoint 
members of the committee.  The commission shall provide the committee with sufficient 
financial support to retain lawyers, investment bankers or consultants, as needed, to prepare 
a proposal to purchase the utility or its assets.
3. Determination by the commission.  The commission shall order the owner of the 
transmission and distribution utility to divest the utility if a proposal from a qualified buyer 
or a proposal to create a consumer-owned quasi-municipal corporation:
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; and
C.  Demonstrates, if the divestiture includes a sale of the transmission and distribution 
utility's assets, that the qualified buyer or consumer-owned quasi-municipal 
corporation will have at completion of divestiture sufficient financial and technical 
capability, expertise and experience to own and operate the utility and the ability to 
comply with all of the legal requirements of a transmission and distribution utility.
If more than one proposal meets the criteria established in this subsection, the commission 
shall order divestiture to the proposal that results in the greatest net benefits to ratepayers.
Sec. 6.  35-A MRSA §3146 is enacted to read:
§3146.  Climate change protection plan
No later than July 1, 2023, and every 2 years thereafter, a transmission and distribution 
utility shall submit to the commission a 10-year plan for addressing the expected effect of 
climate change on the utility's assets needed to transmit and distribute electricity to its 
customers.  The commission shall request input from interested parties on the transmission 
and distribution utility's plan and shall order the transmission and distribution utility to take 
any action the commission determines is reasonable and necessary to ensure that the utility 
will be able to continue to meet the requirements of section 301, subsection 1 for the 
foreseeable future.
Sec. 7.  Adoption of rules by Public Utilities Commission establishing 
minimum requirements.  No later than June 30, 2023, the Public Utilities Commission 
shall adopt the rules required by the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 35-A, section 301, 
subsection 1-A.
SUMMARY
The purpose of this bill is to create greater accountability of transmission and 
distribution utilities to their ratepayers in order to ensure that the utilities are fulfilling their 
duties to provide safe, reasonable and adequate service at just and reasonable rates.  This 
bill accomplishes the following.
1. It establishes administrative penalties for poor service to consumers and 
interconnecting generators.
2. It authorizes the Public Utilities Commission to perform audits of transmission and 
distribution utilities or disallow cost recovery under certain circumstances.
3. It requires transmission and distribution utilities to prepare and file plans with the 
Public Utilities Commission for addressing the expected effect of climate change.
4. It provides a mechanism for a transmission and distribution utility to sell the utility 
to a qualified buyer as a consequence of consistently poor service.
5.  It clarifies and adds protections for utility contractors and certain employees of a 
public utility, competitive service provider, affiliated interest or utility contractor who 
testify before or provide information to a legislative committee, the Public Utilities 
Commission or the Public Advocate.