TITLE 17 PUBLIC
UTILITIES AND UTILITY SERVICES
CHAPTER 5 UTILITY
INTERCONNECTIVITY AND COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS
PART
440 EXTENSIONS, SYSTEM IMPROVEMENTS,
REPAIRS OR REPLACEMENTS, ADDITIONS, AND COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS BETWEEN OR AMONG
UTILITIES
17.5.440.1 ISSUING AGENCY: New Mexico public regulation commission.
[17.5.440.1
NMAC - Rp, 17.5.440.1 NMAC, 12/27/2022]
17.5.440.2 SCOPE: This rule applies to investor-owned
electric, gas, water, and sewer utilities subject to the jurisdiction of the
New Mexico public regulation commission, however, Subparagraph (a) of Paragraph
(1) of Subsection A of 17.5.440.8 NMAC and Paragraph (3) of Subsection C of 17.5.440.8
NMAC shall apply to all electric utilities, and Subparagraph (a) of Paragraph
(1) of Subsection A of 17.5.440.9 NMAC and Paragraph (2) of Subsection D of 17.5.440.9
NMAC shall apply to all gas, water, and sewer utilities, subject to the
jurisdiction of the New Mexico public regulation commission.
[17.5.440.2
NMAC - Rp, 17.5.440.2 NMAC, 12/27/2022]
17.5.440.3 STATUTORY AUTHORITY: Paragraph (10) of Subsection B of Section 8-8-4
NMSA 1978 and Section 8-8-15 NMSA 1978.
[17.5.440.3
NMAC - Rp, 17.5.440.3 NMAC, 12/27/2022]
17.5.440.4 DURATION: Permanent.
[17.5.440.4
NMAC - Rp, 17.5.440.4 NMAC, 12/27/2022]
17.5.440.5 EFFECTIVE DATE: December 27, 2022, unless a later date is
cited at the end of a section.
[17.5.440.
NMAC - Rp, 17.5.440.5 NMAC, 12/27/2022]
17.5.440.6 OBJECTIVE: This rule is intended to provide reporting
and filing requirements and guidance for public utilities and utility division
staff.
[17.5.440.6
NMAC - Rp, 17.5.440.6 NMAC, 12/27/2022]
17.5.440.7 DEFINITIONS: As used in this rule:
A. “repairs or replacements” means any public utility
activity, that is also a capital expenditure, that repairs, or replaces with
the same or substantially similar, equipment or property that has either failed,
is in the process of failing, or deteriorated, or that is at the end of its
useful life, or that is otherwise necessary to repair or replace; and
B. “undertaking” means the extension, system improvement,
repair or replacement, or addition for which the public utility is required to
report to the Commission pursuant to 17.5.440.8 NMAC and 17.5.440.9 NMAC.
[17.5.440.7
NMAC - Rp, 17.5.440.7 NMAC, 12/27/2022]
17.5.440.8 ELECTRIC UTILITIES:
A. Report requirements for extensions, system improvements,
repairs or replacements, or additions:
(1) A public utility shall, prior to
making any of the following described extensions, system improvements, repairs
or replacements, or additions as set forth in Subparagraphs (a) through (e) of
17.5.440.8 NMAC below, file a report with the commission setting forth the
character of the undertaking, the purpose sought thereby to be accomplished,
the means by which that purpose is intended to be realized, the estimated costs
involved in the employment of those means, the data upon which the engineering
and economic feasibility of the undertaking is based, any reasonable
alternatives to the proposed undertaking that have been considered, any system
upgrades that may be needed due to the undertaking, and, if Subparagraph (a) of
17.5.440.8 NMAC below is applicable, the name or names of the utility or
utilities toward which the proposed extension is to be made.
(a) Any extension, of any electric
facility outside the limits of a municipality to a point within one-half mile
of the facilities of any other utility or utilities rendering electric service.
(b) Any extension, system improvement,
repairs or replacements, or addition to any transmission or distribution line,
plant, facility, or system, exclusive of generating facilities, which will have
an estimated cost to the utility under the uniform system of accounts of
$1,000,000 or more on a total company basis and for which the utility intends
to seek rate recovery from its New Mexico customers, regardless of the location
of the line, plant, facility, or system.
(i) In calculating the estimated cost,
the utility shall include the cost of any system upgrades that are directly
related to, or required as a result of, such addition,
repair or replacement, or system improvement.
(ii) The estimated cost shall be reasonable
and proposed in good faith.
(c) Any addition to, or repair or
replacement of, or improvement of, any electric generating facility which will
have an estimated cost to the utility under the uniform system of accounts of
$2,000,000 or more on a total company basis and for which the utility intends
to seek rate recovery from its New Mexico customers, regardless of the location
of the electric generating facility.
(i) In
calculating the estimated cost, the utility shall include the cost of any system
upgrades that are directly related to, or required as a
result of, such addition, repair or replacement, or system improvement.
(ii) The estimated cost shall be
reasonable and proposed in good faith.
(d) Substantial system characteristic
improvements involving a change in operating voltage of electric lines. Substantial system characteristic improvements
involving reconductoring, rephasing (addition or deletion of phases) of
electric lines resulting in a length of two miles or more. System improvements of an overall or system
wide nature shall be submitted to the commission as an overall plan.
(e) Any extensions, system improvements,
repairs or replacements, or additions for which the public utility claims or
intends to claim safe harbor under 17.9.592.15 NMAC that have an estimated cost
to the utility under the uniform system of accounts of $1,000,000 or more on a
total company basis and for which the utility intends to seek rate recovery
from its New Mexico customers, regardless of the location of the undertaking.
(i) In
calculating the estimated cost, the utility shall include the cost of any
system upgrades that are directly related to, or required as
a result of, such extension, system improvement, repair or replacement,
or addition.
(ii) The estimated cost shall be
reasonable and proposed in good faith.
(2) The report is for informational
purposes and shall not constitute nor be deemed to constitute an application by
the utility for authority to engage in the reported undertaking.
(3) Reports shall include sufficient
information to enable the commission to appropriately relate the proposed
extension, system improvement, repair or replacement, or addition to maps of
existing facilities.
(4) The utility shall file reports on
forms to be furnished by the commission and shall be numbered serially.
B. The commission shall not be precluded from requiring the
filing of further information by the reporting utility with respect to its
proposed undertaking.
C. Filing and service procedures:
(1) The utility shall file a report at
least 30 days prior to the commencement of construction of the extension,
system improvement, repair or replacement, or addition, except in the event of
unplanned emergency undertakings, in which case the report shall be filed not
more than 30 days after the onset of the emergency.
(2) Upon the utility’s filing of a
report, commission utility division staff shall review the report and notify by
email the utility, office of general counsel, and the individual commissioners
of statutory, regulatory, or feasibility issues, if any, within a reasonable
time prior to the commencement of construction, or within a reasonable time
following the filing of a report on an unplanned emergency undertaking.
(3) Where a utility is required to file a
report with the commission pursuant to Subparagraph (a) of Paragraph (1) of
Subsection A of 17.5.440.8 NMAC, the utility shall, at the time of filing its
report with the commission, serve a copy of the filed report on the utility or
utilities toward whose facilities the extension is proposed to be made.
(a) Proof of service of such copy shall be
made and filed with the commission under the certificate of the person making
the service.
(b) If the service is made by mail, it
shall be made by certified mail with return receipt requested, it shall include
the corresponding 440 filing number, and the return receipt shall be filed with
the commission with the proof of service.
(c) Thereafter, no complaint by a utility
in opposition to the proposed extension will be entertained by the commission
unless filed with the commission by the opposing utility within 20 days of its
receipt of the served copy of the report.
(d) The provisions of this section will
be waived whenever the commission is furnished proof in writing that the
utility toward whose facilities the extension is proposed to be made has no
complaints.
(4) A public utility shall notify each
individual commissioner by email when it files a report or amended report with
estimated or actual costs of $8,000,000 or more on a total company basis.
D. Duty to amend report:
(1) Prior to any request for rate
recovery for the undertaking, the utility shall amend a report to update the
undertaking’s estimated costs, if the estimates increased or decreased by
greater than twenty percent, and to reflect the utility’s actual costs incurred
for that undertaking.
(a) In its amended report, the utility
shall provide explanations for why its initial estimated costs were inaccurate
and why its actual costs fell below or exceeded its estimated costs.
(b) The amended report shall be included
with the utility’s request for rate recovery.
(2) The utility shall amend a report to
accurately reflect the undertaking’s materially altered character or purpose,
or if the utility pursues a reported alternative, pursuant to Paragraph (1) of
Subsection A of 17.5.440.8 NMAC, at least 30 days prior to the commencement of
construction of the extension, system improvement, repair or replacement, or
addition. If a utility files an amended report pursuant to this Paragraph, commission
utility division staff shall follow the procedures of Paragraph (2) of
Subsection C of 17.5.440.8 NMAC above.
[17.5.440.8
NMAC -Rp, 17.5.440.9 NMAC, 12/27/2022]
17.5.440.9 GAS, WATER, AND SEWER UTILITIES:
A. Report requirements for extensions, system improvements,
and additions:
(1) Each public utility shall, prior to
making any of the following described extensions, system improvements, or
additions as set forth in Subparagraphs (a) through (e) of 17.5.440.9 NMAC below,
file a report with the commission setting forth the character of the
undertaking, the purpose sought thereby to be accomplished, the means by which
that purpose is intended to be realized, the estimated costs involved in the
employment of those means, the data upon which the engineering and economic
feasibility of the undertaking is based, any reasonable alternatives to the
proposed undertaking, and, if Subparagraph (a) of 17.5.440.9 NMAC below is
applicable, the name or names of the utility or utilities toward which the
proposed extension is to be made.
(a) Any extension of or any change in the
routing of any distribution or transmission line which will extend to within
one-half mile of the facilities of any other utility or utilities rendering the
same kind of service.
(b) Any extension, system improvement, or
addition to any transmission or distribution line, plant, facility, or system
which will have an estimated cost under the uniform system of accounts of
$200,000 or more on a total company basis and for which the utility intends to
seek rate recovery from its New Mexico customers, regardless of the location of
the line, plant, facility, or system.
(c) Any extension or system improvement
one-half mile or more in length of any transmission or distribution line
outside of any municipality which involves any changes in routing, pipe size,
pipe material, or design pressure for gas or water lines.
(d) Any extension of one-half mile or
more in length within the limits of a municipality where the pressure is in excess of 400 p.s.i.
(2) The report is for informational
purposes and shall not constitute an application by the utility for authority
to engage in the reported undertaking.
(3) Reports shall include sufficient
information to enable the commission to appropriately relate the proposed
extension, system improvement, or addition to maps of existing facilities.
(4) The utility shall file reports on
forms to be furnished by the commission and shall be numbered serially.
B. The commission shall not be precluded from taking any
action which it deems appropriate with respect to reports filed pursuant to
this rule and the undertaking.
C. The commission shall not be precluded from requiring the
filing of further information by the reporting utility with respect to its
proposed undertaking.
D. Service procedure and policy:
(1) Upon the utility’s filing of a
report, commission utility division staff shall review the report and notify
the Commission of statutory, regulatory, or feasibility issues, if any, and
shall recommend appropriate actions to be taken, if any, pursuant to Subsections
B and C of 17.5.440.9 NMAC above, as determined by staff.
(2) Where a utility is required to file a
report with the commission pursuant to Subparagraph (a) of Paragraph (1) of
Subsection A of 17.5.440.9 NMAC, the utility shall at the time of filing its
report with the commission serve a copy of the filed report on the utility or
utilities toward whose facilities the extension is proposed to be made.
(a) Proof of service of such copy shall
be made and filed with the commission under the certificate of the person
making the service.
(b) If the service in made by mail, it
shall be made by certified mail with return receipt requested, it shall include
the corresponding 440 filing number, and the return receipt shall be filed with
the commission with the proof of service.
(c) Thereafter, no complaint by a utility
in opposition to the proposed extension will be entertained by the commission
unless filed with the commission by the opposing utility within 20 days of its
receipt of the served copy of the report.
(d) The provisions of this section will
be waived whenever the commission is furnished proof in writing that the
utility toward whose facilities the extension is proposed to be made has no
complaints.
[17.5.440.9
NMAC - Rp, 17.5.440.10 NMAC, 12/27/2022]
17.5.440.10 ANNUAL REPORT:
A. Each public utility shall, by March 31 of each calendar
year, file a report with the commission summarizing:
(1) each of the utility’s filings
pursuant to 17.5.440.8 NMAC or 17.5.440.9 NMAC for the prior calendar year, as
described in Subsection B of 17.5.440.10 NMAC below;
(2) each of the utility’s planned filings
pursuant to 17.5.440.8 NMAC or 17.5.440.9 NMAC for the following 365-day
period, as described in Subsection C of 17.5.440.10 NMAC below; and
(3) the utility’s projects from the prior
calendar year that were not deemed undertakings pursuant to Subparagraphs (b)
and (c) of Paragraph (1) of Subsection A of 17.5.440.8 NMAC, and Subparagraph
(b) of Paragraph (1) of Subsection A of 17.5.440.9 NMAC, as described in Subsection
D of 17.5.440.10 NMAC below.
B. Annual reports shall contain the following information
for each filing pursuant to 17.5.440.8 NMAC or 17.5.440.9 NMAC of the prior
calendar year:
(1) filing and construction commencement
dates;
(2) category of report pursuant to Paragraph
(1) of Subsection A of 17.5.440.8 NMAC or Paragraph (1) of Subsection A of 17.5.440.9
NMAC;
(3) estimated and actual costs, as may be
amended, associated with each of the reported extensions, system improvements,
repairs or replacements, or additions;
(4) general locations of the extensions,
system improvements, repairs or replacements, or additions; and
(5) a short description, including a
project status update, of the reported extensions, system improvements, repairs
or replacements, or additions.
C. Annual reports shall contain the following information
for every planned filing pursuant to 17.5.440.8 NMAC or 17.5.440.9 NMAC to be
made during the following 365-day period:
(1) planned filing and construction
commencement dates or timeframe;
(2) category of report pursuant to
Paragraph (1) of Subsection A of 17.5.440.8 NMAC or Paragraph (1) of Subsection
A of 17.5.440.9 NMAC;
(3) estimated costs associated with each
of the extensions, system improvements, repairs or replacements, or additions;
(4) planned location of the extensions,
system improvements, repairs or replacements, or additions;
(5) a short description of the
extensions, system improvements, repairs or replacements, or additions,
including the adjacent infrastructure to which the extensions, system
improvements, repairs or replacements, or additions are expected to interconnect,
and the third parties with whom the utility expects to engage with
contractually; and
(6) any reasonable alternatives to the
planned extensions, system improvements, repairs or replacements, or additions.
D. Annual reports shall include, for the prior calendar
year, the aggregated total actual costs (not individual project costs) of all
extensions, system improvements, repairs or replacements, and additions that
are not required to be reported pursuant to Subparagraphs (b) and (c) of
Paragraph (1) of Subsection A of 17.5.440.8 NMAC due to falling below the cost
thresholds. Annual reports shall include the same information as estimated for
the following 365-day period.
E. Annual reports shall include the aggregated total
estimated and actual costs for all reports, and for each individual category of
report pursuant to Paragraph (1) of Subsection A of 17.5.440.8 NMAC or Paragraph
(1) of Subsection A of 17.5.440.9 NMAC, for extensions, system improvements,
repairs or replacements, or additions made during the prior calendar year.
F. Annual reports shall include the aggregated total
estimated costs for all of the utility’s planned
filings pursuant to 17.5.440.8 NMAC or 17.5.440.9 NMAC for the following
365-day period. The estimated total cost shall be reasonable and proposed in
good faith.
G. Commission staff shall notify the commission of a public
utility’s noncompliance with 17.5.440.10 NMAC within 60 days of the filing of
the annual report.
[17.5.440.10
NMAC - N, 12/27/2022]
HISTORY: Codified by NMPSC Case No. 2086, order dated
June 30, 1988; Amended by NMPSC Case No. 2232, order dated December 19, 1988;
Amended by NMPSC Case No. 2277, order dated December 29, 1989. Formerly NMPSC
Second Revised General Order No. 10, superseded for purposes of rule
reorganization and codification.
Pre-NMAC History: The material in this part was derived from that previously
filed with the State Records Center and Archives.
PSC 68-1, Statutes, General Orders, filed 1/16/1968.
PSC 70-1, Statutes and General
Orders, filed 7/9/1970.
NMPSC Rule 440, Extensions, Improvements, Additions, and
Cooperative Agreements Between or Among Utilities, filed 6/30/1988.
History of Repealed Material:
NMPSC Rule 440, Extensions, Improvements, Additions, and Cooperative
Agreements Between or Among Utilities, filed 6/30/88 - Repealed effective
5/15/2013.
17.5.440 NMAC, Extensions, Improvements, Additions, and
Cooperative Agreements Between or Among Utilities filed 5/1/2013, Repealed
effective 12/27/2022.
Other: 17.5.440 NMAC, Extensions, Improvements,
Additions, and Cooperative Agreements Between or Among Utilities filed
5/1/2013, Replaced by Extensions,
System Improvements, Repairs or Replacements, Additions, And Cooperative
Agreements Between or Among Utilities effective 12/27/2022.