This rule was
filed as NMPSC Rule 910.
TITLE 17 PUBLIC UTILITIES AND UTILITY
SERVICES
CHAPTER 13 SEWER SERVICES
PART 1 GENERAL PROVISIONS FOR SEWER
UTILITIES
17.13.1.1 ISSUING AGENCY:
New Mexico Public Service Commission.
[Public Regulation Commission].
[Recompiled
12/30/01]
17.13.1.2 SCOPE:
[Recompiled
12/30/01]
17.13.1.3 STATUTORY AUTHORITY:
NMPSC Rules 910 through 980 [17.13.1 NMAC and 17.13.920 NMAC through 17.13.980 NMAC] governing the
application for Certificates of Public Convenience and Necessity, the
application for rate increases, and annual reporting by sewer utilities are
issued pursuant to NMPSC Rule 120 [17.1.120 NMAC] and NMSA 1978, Sections
62-3-1, 62-3-3(G)(5), 62-3-4, 62-6-1, 62-6-4, 62-6-16, 62-6-18, 62-6-19,
62-6-20, 62-6-21, 62-6-22, 62-8-3, 62-8-7.1, 62-8-10, 62-9-1, and 62-9-2.1.
[Recompiled
12/30/01]
17.13.1.4 DURATION:
[Recompiled
12/30/01]
17.13.1.5 EFFECTIVE DATE:
[Recompiled
12/30/01]
17.13.1.6 OBJECTIVE:
[Recompiled
12/30/01]
17.13.1.7 DEFINITIONS:
When used in NMPSC Rules 910 through 980 [17.13.1 NMAC and 17.13.920
through 17.13.980 NMAC] unless otherwise specified the following definitions
will apply.
A. "Accounting Method" means the uniform system of
accounting prescribed by the Commission.
(1) "Functional Accounting" means
the grouping of plant and expense accounts according to the specified function
or purpose which the plant or expense performs in rendering the utility
service, such as source of supply, pumping, sewer treatment, transmission,
distribution, etc.
(2) "Primary Account" means the
grouping of plant and expenses by balance sheet account number, such as
accounts 101, 102, 103, etc.
(3) "Detailed Account" means the
breakdown of plant and expenses into subaccounts, that is, utility plant
accounts, such as accounts 301, 302, 303, etc.
B. "Accounting Period":
(1) Calendar Year - a consecutive
twelve-month accounting period beginning with January 1 and ending with
December 31; and
(2) Fiscal Year a - consecutive twelve-month
accounting period.
C. "Adjustment" means a calculation made with
reasonable accuracy to the book balance of accounts to reflect a known and
measurable change or estimate based on projection for the full twelve-month
period of the Test Year. "Pro
Forma Adjustment" means a computation made to develop the effect of a
known and measurable change on the financial statements presented for Test Year
purposes in a rate case.
D. "Allocation" means the process by which the
total cost of service is classified into the types of services provided such as
demand, commodity, base, extra capacity, and customer, and assigned to the
various classes of customers served within a regulatory jurisdiction or among
regulatory jurisdictions.
E. "Annualization" means a computation made to
reflect a full twelve-month effect of an item of income or expense which is
recorded in the utility's financial statements for only a portion of a year.
F. "Base Period" means the applicant utility's
twelve (12) consecutive months of actual experience as reflected on the book
balance of accounts, the last day of which shall not be more than one hundred
fifty (150) days prior to the date of tender for filing with a Future Test Year
Period.
G. "Book Balance Accounts" means the amounts
actually recorded by the applicant utility on its books of account. Whenever
property and/or services are acquired for other than cash, the basis for
valuation for book purposes shall be explained.
H. "Classification" means the separation of plant
and expenses into the principal categories of the services rendered, such as
demand related, commodity related, customer related, etc.
I. "Classification of Sewer Utilities." For purposes of applying the uniform system
of accounts prescribed by NARUC, Sewer Utilities are divided into three classes
as follows:
(1) Class A-Utilities having annual sewer
operating revenues of $750,000 or more;
(2) Class B-Utilities having annual sewer operating revenues of
$150,000 or more but less than $750,000;
(3) Class C-Utilities having annual sewer
operating revenues of less than $150,000.
J. "Cost of Service" means the total annual cost
of rendering the utility service expressed in monetary value, including a rate
of return on invested capital.
K. "Department" or "Division" means a
responsibility center within the corporate structure of a public utility
enterprise where revenues and expenses are accumulated as a result of a
commodity or service rendered by such Department or Division.
L. "Depreciated Original Cost" (Book Value of
Property) means the cost of property on the books of the utility to the person
first devoting it to the public service less the accrued depreciation reserve.
Depreciated original cost shall not include the cost of reproduction as a going
concern nor any other consideration of other than book value.
M. "Filing" means notification to the Commission by
means of a tendered change in tariff sheets and payment of the required fees by
a public utility regarding such change pursuant to the provisions of the
Commission's Code of Rules and Regulations.
(1) The "Filing Date" shall occur
on the date on which the tendered change in tariff sheets is received at the
offices of the Commission.
(2) The "Effective Date" shall
occur on the date that such tendered change in tariff sheets is permitted to
become effective by the Commission-thirty (30) days after the filing date or on
such other date as may be ordered by the Commission.
N. "Functionalization" means the separation of
costs according to major function or purpose which the plant or expense
performs in rendering the utility service; for example, source of supply,
pumping, sewer treatment, transmission and distribution, etc.
O. "Lead-Lag Study" is a method sometimes employed
in developing the amount of cash working capital to be included in a Rate Base
determination for a utility company. The study seeks to measure and quantify
the lag (delay) in receipt of revenues from customers from the time service is
rendered offset by the lead, that is, the period the utility company has from
the time it incurs an expense until cash is actually disbursed in payment of
the expense.
P. "Litigation" means all contested matters
before regulatory commissions, administrative bodies, and state or federal
courts. Litigation also includes
arbitration proceedings and other similar dispute resolution proceedings. Uncontested regulatory filings, contract
drafting, negotiation and management, routine legal advice and other similar
legal matters which are not in dispute are not considered litigation for the
purposes of this rule.
Q. "Rate Base" means the net investment value upon
which the applicant utility shall be permitted to earn a specified return.
Generally the Rate Base represents the value of utility property used and
useful in rendering the public utility service and may contain elements of
value reflecting the cost of the utility property to the person first devoting
it to the public service and other items, such as cash working capital,
materials, supplies, and prepayments. In accordance with New Mexico statutes
the applicant's Rate Base may also reflect the cost of reproduction as a going
concern and other elements of value.
R. "Rate Class" means a group of customers which
exhibit similar use characteristics and which are grouped together for cost
allocation, rate design, and billing purposes.
S. "Reproduction Cost" means the estimated cost
to reproduce an item or property or other asset currently owned at current
prevailing prices.
T. "Test Year Period." Nothing herein shall preclude an applicant utility from adopting
either an Historical Test Year Period or a Future Test Year Period, each as
defined below, as the basis of the determination by the Commission of the
applicant utility's total revenue requirements.
(1) "Historical Test Year
Period." The applicant utility's
twelve (12) months of actual experience adjusted for known and measurable
changes, annualizations, or other changes for which period the applicant
utility's total revenue requirements shall be determined.
(2) "Future Test Year Period." The twelve (12) consecutive months
immediately following the last day of the applicant utility's twelve (12)
months of actual experience [otherwise the Base Period] adjusted for known and
measurable changes or estimates based on projections for which period the
applicant utility's total revenue requirements shall be determined.
(3) The Test Year Period prescribed in the
individual data request schedules shall incorporate the necessary adjustments
in conformance with the definition given above for the type of Test Year Period
selected by the applicant utility.
U. "Sewer Utility" means every corporation,
individual, partnership, company, builder, developer, or other person not
otherwise engaged solely in interstate commerce which owns, operates, leases,
or controls any plant, property, or facility for the supplying and furnishing
to or for the public of sanitary sewers for transmission and disposal of sewage
produced by manufacturing, municipal, domestic, or other uses. The definition
excludes water and sanitation districts, which are governed under the
provisions of NMSA 1978, Section ,73-2-1 et seq.
[Recompiled
12/30/01]
17.13.1.8 [TABLE OF CONTENTS]
A. Introduction
[17.13.1.9 NMAC]
B. Purpose
[17.13.1.10 NMAC]
C. Authority
[17.13.1.3 NMAC]
D. Definitions
[17.13.1.7 NMAC]
[Recompiled
12/30/01]
17.14.1.9 INTRODUCTION:
NMPSC Rules 910 through 980 [17.13.1 NMAC and 17.13.920 through
17.13.980 NMAC] govern annual reporting; Certificates of Public Convenience and
Necessity; system design, construction, and operation; customer services; rate
filings; and utility accounting for sewer utilities operating under the
Commission's jurisdiction.
A. Annual Report Forms are required to be filed for every
calendar year by April 30 of the following year. NMPSC Rule 920 [17.13.920
NMAC] provides that sewer utilities shall file Annual Reports in the form
provided by the Commission.
B. Under NMPSC Rule 920 [17.13.920 NMAC] regulated sewer
utilities are required to maintain financial accounts. Sewer utilities shall
keep their financial records according to the NARUC Uniform System of Accounts
for its NARUC Classification as prescribed in NMPSC Rule 340 [17.3.340
NMAC]. Upon written request by a sewer
utility, the Commission shall provide a copy of the NARUC Uniform System of
Accounts.
C. Provision for rate filings is divided into two levels of
operation. NMPSC Rules 930 and 980
[17.13.930 NMAC and 17.13.980 NMAC] provide that sewer utilities shall file for
rates in one of two formats. Utilities having annual operating revenues
averaging over $500,000 for any consecutive three-year period must file the
most comprehensive package. Utilities with average operating revenues below
$500,000 may file the most abbreviated package.
D. No sewer utility subject to the Commission's jurisdiction
shall commence construction or operation without first obtaining a Certificate
of Public Convenience and Necessity. NMPSC Rule 940 [17.13.940 NMAC] provides
that every filing for a certificate from the Commission shall be made pursuant
to NMPSC Rules 110.35 through 110.38 [17.1.2 NMAC] and must demonstrate
proposed system and service compliance when operational.
E. The Minimum Standards for Design, Construction, and
Operation set forth in NMPSC Rule 950 [17.13.950 NMAC] establish the
measurements the Commission will require in connection with questions which
pertain to expense, capital, Rate Base, prudence, adequacy, or convenience and
necessity. These system standards may reasonably be exceeded in any particular
application. The minimum standards apply to all new sewer utilities seeking
initial certification after the effective date of NMSA 1978, Section 62-9-2.1,
and to new expansion, construction, and repair of existing facilities of
already certified utilities.
F. The Customer Service Rules and Regulations, NMPSC Rule
960 [17.13.960 NMAC], establish the responsibilities and rights of
jurisdictional sewer utilities and their residential customers in their sewer
service relationship. Nothing herein shall prevent any utility from adopting
Service Rules and Regulations which do not conflict with but which are
additional to those set forth herein to cover special circumstances. Any
deviation from the selected customer rules and regulations must be requested
from, and granted by the Commission.
[Recompiled
12/30/01]
17.13.1.10 PURPOSE:
A. The adoption by the New Mexico Public Service Commission
[New Mexico Public Regulation Commission] of the minimum data requirements
specified in NMPSC Rules 910 through 980 [17.13.1 NMAC and 17.13.920 NMAC
through 17.13.980 NMAC] is for the purpose of defining and specifying the
annual filing requirements for sewer utilities and minimum data requirements to
be filed in support for a tendered new rate schedule or rate schedules which
will supersede, supplement, or otherwise change the provision of a rate
schedule required to be on file with the Commission and the minimum data
requirements for Certificates of Public Convenience and Necessity.
B. The failure of the applicant to fulfill the minimum data
requirements specified in NMPSC Rules 910 through 980 [17.13.1 NMAC and
17.13.920 NMAC through 17.13.980 NMAC] shall constitute sufficient cause for
the commission to seek sanctions against a sewer utility or to reject an applicant's
filing pursuant to NMPSC Rule 210 [17.1.210 NMAC].
(1) Pursuant to NMPSC Rules 110 and 210
[17.1.2 NMAC and 17.1.210 NMAC] an applicant utility unable to comply fully
with any data requests contained herein due to good and sufficient cause should
give notice in writing to the Commission of the applicant utility's inability
to comply with the provisions of such data request at least thirty (30) days
prior to the filing of any report or action governed by NMPSC Rules 910 through
980 [17.13.1 NMAC and 17.13.920 NMAC
through 17.13.980 NMAC].
(2) Upon receipt of such notification and
after consideration by the Commission of the applicant utility's stated reasons
for inability to comply fully with the provisions of NMPSC Rules 910 through
980 [17.13.1 NMAC and 17.13.920 NMAC through 17.13.980 NMAC], the Commission
shall within fifteen (15) days notify the applicant utility in writing of its
decision concerning the applicant utility's notice.
[Recompiled
12/30/01]
17.13.1.11 [HISTORY: NMPUC Case No. 2277, Order dated December
29, 1989, unless otherwise noted; Amended by NMPUC Case No. 2561, Order dated
April 4, 1994. NMSA 1978, Section
62-8-7.1 allows an abbreviated rate filing for sewer utilities with annual
revenues less than $500,000. NARUC
system of accounts do not classify utilities on this same division, thus
classifications for rate filing and for reporting requirements differ.]
[Recompiled
12/30/01]
HISTORY OF
17.13.1 NMAC:
Pre-NMAC
History: The material in this part was
derived from that previously filed with the Commission of Public Records-State
Records Center and Archives.
NMPSC Rule 910,
General Provisions For Sewer Utilities, 12/29/89.
History of
Repealed Material: [RESERVED]