Opinion ID: 1219567
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Does the Order Exceed the Commission's Jurisdiction?

Text: The scope of the Commission's authority to regulate sales of capacity to PNM for resale is governed by Section 62-6-4(B), which states in pertinent part that such sales: shall be subject to regulation by the commission but only to the extent necessary to enable the commission to determine that the cost to the utility of such    electricity at the place where the major distribution to the public begins shall be reasonable and that the methods of delivery thereof shall be adequate   . NMIEC asserts that, by denying public access to the capacity, the Commission has attempted to regulate the purchase of electricity at the point of delivery to PNM rather than the cost at the point of distribution to the public. It contends that, because the capacity is not owned by PNM, the Commission's jurisdiction does not extend to its regulation and the Commission made no findings that would warrant an exercise of jurisdiction over the M-S-R contract. Examination of what the Commission actually has done with regard to the M-S-R contract illustrates the flaw in this argument and requires us to uphold the exercise of jurisdiction. The Commission, by excluding the contract, did not attempt to regulate PNM's purchase of electricity-PNM's contract with M-S-R remains undisturbed by the Commission's actions. PNM simply cannot include the capacity in rates. The Commission, in other words, regulated the utility by excluding the contract; it made no attempt to regulate or interfere with the contract to purchase. The general grant of jurisdiction to regulate a utility's rate and service contained in Section 62-6-4(A) provides the statutory authority for this action. The Commission's decision not to allow PNM to include the M-S-R contract in rates did not implicate Section 62-6-4(B)  there simply was no regulation of a sale of wholesale capacity  and we hold that the Commission acted within its jurisdiction.