Code of Maine Rules › 65 - DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION › 407 - PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION › Chapter 308 - STANDARDS OF CONDUCT FOR TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION UTILITIES AND AFFILIATED GENERATORS › Section 407-308-4 - STANDARDS OF CONDUCT

Current through 2024-29, July 17, 2024
A.
No
				Preference
. A transmission and distribution utility may not engage in
				preferential, discriminatory or other anti competitive conduct, or in any way
				give an affiliated generator preference over other generators in matters
				relating to any product or service, including the generator interconnection
				process.
B.
Service Provided
				Without Discrimination
. All products and services provided by a
				transmission and distribution utility including the generation interconnection
				process, must be available to all generators on comparable terms and conditions
				and without undue or unreasonable discrimination.
C.
Posting
. A transmission and
				distribution utility may not sell or other wise provide products or services to
				an affiliated generator without either simultaneously posting the offering
				electronically on the transmission and distribution utility's internet web site
				or otherwise making a sufficient offering to the market for that product or
				service. Provision of the product or service under the terms of a filed term
				and condition or tariff constitutes a sufficient offering.
D.
Requests for Products
. A
				transmission and distribution utility shall process all similar requests for a
				product or service related to generation orgeneration-related assets in the
				same manner and within the same period oftime.
E.
No Tying
. A transmission and
				distribution utility may not condition or tie the provision of any product or
				service by the transmission and distribution utility to the provision of any
				other product or service in which an affiliated generator has an
				interest.
F.
Requests for
				Information
. A transmission and distribution utility shall process all
				similar requests for information from a generator in the same manner and within
				the same period of time. A transmission and distribution utility may not
				provide information to an affiliated generator without a request when
				information is made available to other generators only upon request. A
				transmission and distribution utility may not allow an affiliated generator
				preferential access to any nonpublic information regarding the transmission and
				distribution system, customers taking service from the transmission and
				distribution utility, or any other nonpublic information that the transmission
				and distribution utility has obtained that is not made available to all
				generators upon request. A transmission and distribution utility shall instruct
				all of its employees and contractors not to provide an affiliated generator
				preferential access to nonpublic information.
G.
Promotion of Affiliate; Joint
				Marketing
. Neither a transmission and distribution utility nor an
				affiliated generator may speak or give any appearance of speaking on behalf of
				the other. A transmission and distribution utility and an affiliated generator
				may not engage in joint advertising or marketing.
H.
Non-Public Information
				Sharing
. Employees or contractors of a transmission and distribution
				utility or an affiliated interest shall not share with employees or contractors
				of an affiliated generator any non-public information related to the
				development and operation of the transmission and distribution system or to the
				development or operation of generation or generation-related assets that was
				obtained through its operations unless the information is developed in
				connection with an on going generation interconnection request. Employees or
				contractors of an affiliated generator or an affiliated interest may not share
				any non-public information related to the development or operation of
				generation or generation-related assets with employees or contractors of the
				transmission and distribution utility. A transmission and distribution utility,
				an affiliated generator and an affiliated interest shall instruct their
				employees and contractors not to share such information prohibited by this
				subsection.
I.
Sharing of
				Employee; Contractors
. Employees of a transmission and distribution
				utility must be located in a separate building from the employees of an
				affiliated generator. Employees or contractors may not be shared between a
				transmission and distribution utility and an affiliated generator. An employee
				or contractor is considered to be shared if the employee or contractor performs
				work directly for both entities related to a particular transmission or
				distribution development or operation project or a generation development or
				operation project. The prohibition of sharing employees and contractors does
				not apply to general business support service such as billing, accounting, or
				other back-office functions. A transmission and distribution utility must
				provide, within 30 days, notice to the Commission of any employee transfers
				between the transmission and distribution utility and an affiliated generator.
				An employee who is transferred from an affiliated generator to the transmission
				and distribution utility cannot return to the affiliated generator for at least
				one year.
J.
Employee
				Compensation
. No component of a transmission and distribution utility
				employee compensation package (including bonuses) may be related to the
				financial performance of an affiliated generator. This provision does not
				prohibit employee compensation packages (including bonuses) that relate to the
				financial performance of the transmission and distribution utility's parent
				company.
K.
FERC Standards of
				Conduct
. The FERC standards of conduct shall apply to all employees of
				transmission and distribution utilities and affiliated generators with respect
				to (1) non-public transmission operation, planning and development information
				and (2) non-public generation operation, planning and development
				information..
L.
Information
				Disclosure
.Transmission and distribution employees and contractors,
				affiliated interest employees and contractors may not disclose or use any
				conduit for the disclosure of non-public transmission and distribution
				information to any employee of an affiliated generator, nor use any such
				information to the undue advantage of an affiliated generator, regardless of
				whether those employees are considered market function employees under FERC
				standards of conduct. This provision does not apply in the event an affiliated
				generator makes an interconnection request to the transmission and distribution
				utility and the disclosure of confidential information is reasonably necessary
				to process the interconnection request. Any such information disclosed
				inconnection with an interconnection request shall be used solely for the
				purpose of the interconnection request.
M.
Regional and Federal Forums
.
				The Commission may direct a transmission and distribution utility to provide
				information, including the rationale, for positions and votes taken in regional
				and federal forums including, but not limited to, the ISO-NE, NEPOOL, NMISA and
				FERC and associated committees.
N.
Transmission System Operation
. To the extent that a transmission
				and distribution utility, in its capacity as operator of the northern Maine
				transmission system, denies a transmission reservation request, orders a
				curtailment of a generator, or otherwise deviates from the NMISA balanced
				schedule, such activity must be reported to the Commission at the same time as
				reporting to NMISA. At the option of the Commission, after notice and
				opportunity for hearing, a transmission and distribution utility may be ordered
				to cease to serve as the operator of the Northern Maine transmission
				system.
O.
Books and
				Records
. A transmission and distribution utility, affiliated generators
				and affiliated interests shall keep separate books of account and records,
				which are subject to Commission review for the purpose of verifying compliance
				with this Chapter. Access to books and records pursuant to this provision
				includes books and records that predate the affiliated generator or affiliated
				interest becoming subject to this Chapter.
P.
No Subsidization
. A
				transmission and distribution utility may not subsidize the business of an
				affiliated generator.
Q.
Reorganization Approval
. Notwithstanding any prior Commission
				order to the contrary, a transmission and distribution utility must petition
				for reorganization approval pursuant to Title 35-A, section 708 for any
				reorganization that involves an affiliated generator.
R.
Complaint Log
. A transmission
				and distribution utility shall maintain a log of all resolved and pending
				complaints alleging violations of the standards of conduct contained in this
				Chapter, which are subject to Commission review.