Opinion ID: 1918402
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Correction of Errors

Text: The Company asserts that the Commission erred by failing to include corrected calculations in the Company's revenue requirement. According to the Company, it inadvertently overstated the Company's base rate revenues by $1.156 million on a Louisiana retail basis in its original filing, thereby understating the Company's revenue requirement by that amount. The Company also asserts that it inadvertently understated its base rate expenses by $1.052 million on Louisiana retail basis, thereby understating the Company's revenue requirement by that amount. The Company's assertions are based upon the testimony of Mr. Kenneth F. Gallagher, who stated that on a total Company basis, base rates should be increased by $2.153 million due to overstated base rate revenues and $1.196 million due to understated base rate expenses. Supp. Rebut. Test. Mr. Gallagher at 11, L.P.S.C. (11/13/95). The Commission contends, however, that it was not bound to use the calculations supplied only a few weeks before hearings by Mr. Gallagher. He quantified the errors on a total company rather than Louisiana jurisdictional basis, and he provided insufficient supporting documentation containing conclusory entries rather than calculations. [21] In filed surrebuttal testimony, Mr. Kollen, the Commission's expert, responded to Mr. Gallagher's filed testimony, but declined to prepare his own calculations for four reasons: First, this is a complex area which requires the involvement and interaction of all parties. Second, the Company would not provide a quantification as a starting point, despite some apparently unintentional realignments in its filing. Third, the Company has evidenced confusion in its realignments, now claiming errors in its filing that understate its base ratemaking revenue requirement. It is difficult to determine if there are errors or not. Fourth, not all relevant data is readily available in this proceeding. Surrebuttal Test. Mr. Kollen at 22-23, L.P.S.C. (12/11/95). The Commission further observes that at the hearing, Mr. Gallagher only briefly mentioned the corrections on a total company basis, and again provided virtually no explanation of how they were derived. [22] At the conclusion of the hearings, counsel for the Commission asked for leave to meet with GSU to attempt to reach an agreement about the costs that should be realigned and the effect of that on the revenue requirement. Tr. at 1177, L.P.S.C. (1/17/96). Because the parties could not agree on the scope of the meeting after the hearings, however, the meeting never occurred. After reviewing the record, we find that it contains insufficient evidence to overturn the Commission's decision. Neither Mr. Gallagher's filed testimony nor his hearing testimony suggests the appropriate Louisiana jurisdictional revenue requirement. Moreover, the Company's last-minute assertion that its original filing was inaccurate is not fully supported. At the hearing and in filed testimony, Mr. Gallagher simply testified to the extent of the Company's errors on a total company basis, but did not provide supporting calculations. Accordingly, we cannot find that the Commission's decision was not based on the record, or that the Commission acted arbitrarily or capriciously or abused its discretion.