3. Requirements for Awards of Compensation
The intervenor compensation program, set forth in Pub. Util. Code §§ 1801-1812, requires California-jurisdictional utilities to pay the reasonable costs of an intervenor's participation if that party makes a substantial contribution to the Commission's proceedings. The statute provides that the utility may adjust its rates to collect the amount awarded from its ratepayers.
All of the following procedures and criteria must be satisfied for an intervenor to obtain a compensation award:
1. The intervenor must satisfy certain procedural requirements including the filing of a sufficient notice of intent (NOI) to claim compensation within 30 days of the prehearing conference (PHC), pursuant to Rule 17.1 of the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure (Rules), or at another appropriate time that we specify. (§ 1804(a).)
2. The intervenor must be a customer or a participant representing consumers, customers, or subscribers of a utility subject to our jurisdiction. (§ 1802(b).)
3. The intervenor must file and serve a request for a compensation award within 60 days of our final order or decision in a hearing or proceeding. (§ 1804(c).)
4. The intervenor must demonstrate "significant financial hardship." (§§ 1802(g) and 1804(b)(1).)
5. The intervenor's presentation must have made a "substantial contribution" to the proceeding, through the adoption, in whole or in part, of the intervenor's contention or recommendations by a Commission order or decision or as otherwise found by the Commission. (§§ 1802(i) and 1803(a).)
6. The claimed fees and costs must be reasonable (§ 1801), necessary for and related to the substantial contribution (D.98-04-059), comparable to the market rates paid to others with comparable training and experience (§ 1806), and productive (D.98-04-059).
In the discussion below, the procedural issues in Items 1-4 above are combined and a separate discussion of Items 5-6 follows.
3.1. Procedural Issues
Sustainable Conservation requests compensation for its participation in Rulemaking (R.) 06-05-027 related to D.08-02-010 and also for its work related to the adoption of Resolution E-4137.4 Typically, NOIs are to be filed within 30 days of the PHC of a proceeding. Alternatively, in cases where the schedule would not otherwise reasonably allow parties to identify issues within the stated timeframe, or where new issues emerge subsequent to the time set for filing, the Commission or Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) may determine an appropriate procedure for accepting new or revised NOIs. (§ 1804(a)(1); Rule 17.1.)
In R.06-05-027, NOIs were due by July 21, 2006 (i.e., 30 days after the PHC). Sustainable Conservation states, however, that the August 21, 2006 Scoping Memo specifically identified biomass for the first time as an issue upon which the Commission sought comment. Sustainable Conservation filed its NOI on October 10, 2006, concurrently with a petition to intervene and before the filing of initial comments. In its NOI, Sustainable Conservation asserted it is a Category 3 customer under § 1802(b)(C), and claimed significant financial hardship. No party objected to the NOI or asserted it was untimely. An ALJ Ruling dated October 30, 2006 found the NOI to be timely filed.
The October 30, 2006 ruling, however, found that Sustainable Conservation had not established eligibility for intervenor compensation as a Category 3 customer, nor demonstrated significant financial hardship. The ruling concluded that Sustainable Conservation could further address its eligibility in a subsequent pleading or request for compensation. D.09-09-045 has since found that Sustainable Conservation meets the eligibility standards for Category 3 customer status. We apply the same finding here. (§ 1802(b)(1)(C); Category 3.)
Regarding significant financial hardship, a
... notice of intent may also include a showing by the customer that participation in the hearing or proceeding would pose a significant financial hardship. Alternatively, such a showing shall be included in the request submitted pursuant to subdivision (c). (§ 1804(a)(2)(B).)
As is permissible, Sustainable Conservation includes its showing of significant financial hardship in its October 15, 2008 claim.
In relevant part, "significant financial hardship" means that
... in the case of a group or organization, the economic interest of the individual member of the group or organization is small in comparison to the costs of effective participation in the proceeding. (§ 1802(g).)
We found in D.09-09-045 that Sustainable Conservation had shown its participation without an award of intervenor compensation would pose a significant financial hardship. No new or different information is presented here. We apply the same result, and find that Sustainable Conservation has successfully made its significant financial hardship showing.
On October 15, 2008, Sustainable Conservation filed its intervenor compensation claim. On February 22, 2009, Sustainable Conservation amended and refiled its timesheets to clarify the allocation of time between participants. We use the amended claim and timesheets filed on February 23, 2009 for consideration of this award. The claim was timely filed within 60 days of the closing date in R.06-05-027 (§ 1804(c).)
In view of the above, we find that Sustainable Conservation has satisfied all the procedural requirements necessary to make its request for compensation in this proceeding.
4 In D.09-09-045, the Commission stated this claim was to be handled in R.08-08-009 rather than R.06-05-027.
