Assignment of Proceeding
Carl W. Wood is the Assigned Commissioner and Maribeth A. Bushey is the assigned Administrative Law Judge in this proceeding.
1. PAWW's last general rate case was in 1991.
2. Since some time after 1991, PAWW's rates have failed to generate sufficient revenue to meet reasonable expenses.
3. PAWW received extraordinary revenue in the form of income tax refunds over a several-year period ending in 1995.
4. PAWW did not seek Commission direction as to the disposition of the income tax refunds.
5. The staff auditor concluded that the tax refunds had been obtained by PAWW at its own expense, and the money had been used to meet operation and maintenance expenses that utility revenue failed to cover.
6. The argument and offers of proof presented by the City do not justify litigating this issue.
7. The balance of the equities and the on-going needs by the utility support retaining the ratemaking and accounting treatment for the tax refunds.
1. The Commission's ratemaking authority is sufficient to order changes to the accounting and ratemaking treatment of the tax refunds.
2. The Commission should exercise its ratemaking discretion to retain the existing ratemaking and accounting treatment of the income tax refunds due to the losses incurred by PAWW and complexities caused by the passage of time.
3. No hearings are required.
4. PAWW should file an informal general rate case no less frequently than once every three calendar years.
INTERIM ORDER
IT IS ORDERED that the Commission shall not change the ratemaking and accounting treatment for income tax refunds received by Point Arena Water Works (PAWW) over a several year period ending in 1995 and that PAWW shall file an informal general rate cases no less frequently than once every three calendar years.
This order is effective today.
Dated , at San Francisco, California.
