Ohio Administrative Code › Title 4901:1 - Utilities › Chapter 4901:1-26 - Dispute Resolution › Section 4901:1-26-04 - Arbitration

Current through all regulations passed and filed through July 1,
			 2024
(A) If all parties to
			 the pending formal complaint agree that the dispute (or a portion thereof)
			 should be resolved through arbitration, the parties 
								may jointly
			 file a request with the commission to stay the proceeding pending the
			 arbitration, outlining
								 with sufficient
			 specificity the issues for which arbitration is being sought. In the joint
			 request, the parties may seek to have the commission assign its personnel to be
			 the arbitrator or the parties may request that the issues to be arbitrated be
			 assigned to a commission-approved, certified arbitration process approved
			 pursuant to paragraph (G) of this rule.
(B) If
			 commission personnel is not the arbitrator, the parties
			 
								will
			 notify the commission once they have engaged the arbitrator.
(C)
								 Any arbitration award will be made
			 in writing and served upon the parties by the arbitrator.
(D)
			 Arbitrations conducted under this rule are subject to Ohio confidentiality
			 statutes (e.g., Chapter 2710. of the Revised Code). By electing arbitration
			 under this rule, no appeals of any intermediary rulings made by the arbitrator
			 are permitted.
(E) If the parties
			 accept the arbitration award, a copy of the arbitration award need not be filed
			 with the commission.
								
								The parties' joint motion to dismiss
			 the complaint (or involved portion thereof) should be
			 filed within thirty calendar days of the issuance of the arbitration
			 award, in light of their acceptance of the award.
(F)
			 When commission personnel acts as the arbitrator, the
			 
								parties will be bound by
			 the arbitration award
								, except as described in this provision. Within thirty
			 calendar days of the issuance of an arbitration award, any party to the
			 arbitration may seek commission review of the arbitration award, but such
			  review 
								will be limited to
			 ascertaining
								 the existence of any grounds identified in
			 Chapter 2711. of the Revised Code, such as fraud, corruption, misconduct,
			 impropriety, or mistake by the arbitrator. The
			 commission may impose a briefing schedule or other procedure, where
			 appropriate.
								 Upon consideration of the
			 review request, the commission may confirm, vacate, modify or enforce the
			 arbitration award. If the commission vacates the arbitration award (in whole or
			 in part), the commission 
								will specify whether the matter should be
			 remanded to the same arbitrator. Any commission decision to confirm, vacate,
			 modify or enforce the arbitration award under this provision is subject to
			 rehearing pursuant to section
			 4903.10 of the Revised Code, and
			 any final commission decision is subject to appeal pursuant to section
			 4903.13 of the Revised
			 Code.
(G) Electric utilities,
			 electric service companies, electric cooperatives, and governmental aggregators
			 may file an application with the commission seeking certification to use a
			 proposed commercial arbitration process for any class of formal complaints or
			 for all potential formal complaints.  The commission staff 
								will review
			 such an application seeking certification to use a commercial arbitration
			 process and recommend to the commission whether the application should be
			 approved. The commission may approve such an application if the commission is
			 satisfied that the commercial arbitration process is fair, costeffective, and
			 does not result in prejudice against any potential future parties. By approving
			 an application pursuant to this provision, the commission retains the right to
			 evaluate, in each individual formal complaint proceeding, whether to grant a
			 request to stay the formal complaint proceeding pending arbitration.
Effective: 6/12/2023
Five Year
				Review (FYR) Dates: 7/10/2024
Promulgated Under:
				111.15
Statutory
				Authority: R.C. 4928.06
Rule
				Amplifies: R.C. 4928.16
Prior
				Effective Dates: 09/18/2000,
				12/11/2014