VII. Assignment of Proceeding
Commissioner John A. Bohn is the assigned Commissioner and Hallie Yacknin is the assigned ALJ in this proceeding.
Findings of Fact
1. The amendments to Rules 17.1 and 17.4 (former Rules 76.74 and 76.75) of the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure, Title 20, Division 1, of the California Code of Regulations, shown in the appendix to today's decision, will codify Commission precedent regarding eligibility and compensable costs, provide intervenors with greater flexibility in filing notices of intent, and enact accounting, documentation and notice requirements to facilitate Commission review and determination of eligibility and compensable costs.
2. The proposed amendments were noticed in the Commission's Notice of Proposed Regulatory Action printed in the California Regulatory Registry of May 19, 2006.
3. The OIR proposing the amendments was served on those persons appearing on a service list commonly used for such procedural purposes.
4. The period for commenting on the proposed amendments set forth in the OIR remained open for more than 45 days following the publication of the Notice of Proposed Regulatory Action.
5. The period for commenting on the changes to the proposed amendments, set forth in the proposed decision in this proceeding, remained open for 25 days following the issuance of the proposed decision in this proceeding. The proposed decision was served on all persons appearing on the service list commonly used for such procedural purposes as modified to include other persons who requested to be placed on the service list, and includes all parties who filed comments on the OIR.
6. It is reasonable to adopt the amendments to the rules, as shown in the appendix attached to this decision.
Conclusions of Law
7. The Commission should adopt the amendments in the attached appendix to the Rules of Practice and Procedure.
8. This order should be effective immediately.
9. This rulemaking should be closed.
ORDER
IT IS ORDERED that:
1. The amendments to the Rules of Practice and Procedure, as shown in the attached appendix to today's decision, are adopted.
2. The Chief Administrative Law Judge shall take all appropriate steps to submit the newly adopted rules to the Office of Administrative Law for purposes of approval and printing them in the California Code of Regulations, thereby giving them effect.
3. Rulemaking 06-04-022 is closed.
This order is effective today.
Dated December 14, 2006, at San Francisco, California.
MICHAEL R. PEEVEY
President
GEOFFREY F. BROWN
DIAN M. GRUENEICH
JOHN A. BOHN
RACHELLE B. CHONG
Commissioners
APPENDIX A
Proposed Rules Amendments to Article 17 of the
Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure
17.1. (Rule 17.1) Notice of Intent to Claim Compensation
(a) A notice of intent to claim compensation may be filed:
(i) in a proceeding in which a prehearing conference is held, there has been a preliminary determination that hearing is needed, any time after the start of the proceeding until 30 days after the prehearing conference.
(ii) without limitation to the time for filing if a prehearing conference is later held, in a proceeding in which there has been a preliminary determination that hearing is not needed, any time after the start of the proceeding until 30 days after the time for filing responsive pleadings (e.g., protests, responses, answers, or comments).
(iii) without limitation to the time for filing if a prehearing conference is later held, in a petition for rulemaking, any time after the petition is filed until 30 days after the time for filing responses. If the petitioner intends to request compensation, the petition itself may include a notice of intent.
(iv) in a proceeding In cases where no prehearing conference is scheduled or where the Commission anticipates that the proceeding will take less than 30 days, the administrative law judge may establish a deadline for filing a notice of intent.
(b) In cases where parties cannot reasonably identify issues within the time for filing the notice of intent, or where new issues emerge after the time set for filing, the Administrative Law Judge may specify an appropriate procedure for accepting new or revised notices of intent.
(b) An amended notice of intent may be filed within 15 days after the issuance of the scoping memo in the proceeding.
(c) The notice of intent shall identify all issues on which the intervenor intends to participate and seek compensation, and shall separately state the expected budget for participating on each issue. The notice of intent may include a category of general costs not attributable to a particular issue.
(d) The notice of intent shall provide either (1) verification of the intervenor's customer status pursuant to Pub. Util. Code Section 1804(b)(1)(A) or (B), or (2) a copy of articles of incorporation or bylaws demonstrating the intervenor's customer status pursuant to Pub. Util. Code
Section 1804(b)(1)(C). If current articles or bylaws have already been filed with the Commission, the notice of intent need only make a specific reference to such filings.
(e) The notice of intent shall state the intervenor's economic interest in the proceeding, as that interest relates to the issues on which the intervenor intends to participate.
(f) An intervenor who intends to request compensation for costs of judicial review to subsection (a) shall file a supplemental notice of intent within 30 days after the commencement of any date that the intervenor first appears or files a pleading in the judicial review proceeding. The supplemental notice of intent shall identify the issues upon which the intervenor intends to participate in judicial review, and an itemized estimate of the compensation that the intervenor expects to request by reference to those identified issues. If the intervenor intends to support the Commission's decision on review, the supplemental notice of intent shall include a showing of why the intervenor expects that its participation in judicial review will supplement, complement or contribute to the Commission's defense of its decision.
(g) Responses to notices of intent to claim compensation shall be filed within 15 days of service of the notice.
Note: Authority cited: Sections 1701, Public Utilities Code. Reference: Section 1804, Public Utilities Code.
17.4. (Rule 17.4) Reply to Response to Request for Award of Compensation, Reply to Responses
(a) The request for compensation shall identify each issue resolved by the Commission for which the intervenor claims compensation, and shall specify the pages, findings, conclusions and/or ordering paragraphs in the Commission decision which resolve the issue.
(b) The request for compensation shall include time records of hours worked that identify:
(1) the name of the person performing the task;
(2) the specific task performed;
(3) the issue that the task addresses, as identified by the intervenor; and
(4) the issue that the task addresses, as identified by the scoping memo, if any.
(c) The request for compensation shall itemize each expense for which compensation is claimed.
(d) The request for compensation may include reasonable costs of participation in the proceeding that were incurred prior to the start of the proceeding.
(e) The request for compensation may include reasonable advocate's fees, reasonable expert witness fees, and other reasonable costs incurred as a result of an application for rehearing.
(f) If the proceeding involved multiple intervenors, the request for compensation shall include a showing that the participation materially supplemented, complemented, or contributed to the presentation of any other party with similar interests, or that the participation did not overlap the presentation of other intervenors.
(g) The party may file a reply to responses to its request for an award of compensation within 15 days after service of the response.
Note: Authority cited: Sections 1701, Public Utilities Code. Reference: Section 1804, Public Utilities Code.
(END OF APPENDIX A)
