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South Dakota Public Utilities Commission Meeting
July 22, 2014, at 9:30 A.M. CDT
Room 414, Capitol Building
Pierre, South Dakota
NOTE: If you wish to join this meeting by conference call, please contact the Commission at 605-773-3201 by 5:00 p.m. CDT on Monday, July 21, 2014. Lines are limited and are given out on a first come, first served basis, subject to possible reassignment to accommodate persons who must appear in a proceeding. Ultimately, if you wish to participate in the Commission Meeting and a line is not available, you may have to appear in person.
NOTE: To listen to the Commission Meeting live please go to the PUC's website www.puc.sd.gov and click on the LIVE link on the home page. The Commission requests persons who will only be listening to proceedings and not actively appearing in a case listen via the web cast to free phone lines for those who have to appear. The Commission meetings are archived on the PUC's website under the Commission Actions tab, Click on "Commission Meeting Archives," to access the recordings.
NOTE: Notice is further given to persons with disabilities that this Commission meeting is being held in a physically accessible place. If you have special needs, please notify the Commission and we will make all necessary arrangements.
AGENDA OF COMMISSION MEETING
Administration
1. Approval of the Minutes of the Commission Meetings Held on June 24 and July 8, 2014 (Staff: Joy Lashley)
Consumer Reports
1. Status Report on Consumer Utility Inquiries and Complaints Received by the Commission (Consumer Affairs: Deb Gregg)
Electric
On May 5, 2014, Prelude, L.L.C. (Prelude) filed a complaint against Basin Electric Power Cooperative, Butte Electric Cooperative, Inc., Grand Electric Cooperative, Inc., Moreau-Grand Electric Cooperative, Inc., Rosebud Electric Cooperative, Inc., and Rushmore Electric Power Cooperative, Inc. (Respondents). Prelude has projects located in Respondents' service territories. Prelude alleges that Respondents have failed to enter into good faith negotiations of long-term electric power purchase agreements, pursuant to the Public Utility Regulatory Policy Act of 1978. South Dakota Electric Utility Companies and South Dakota Rural Electric Association have been granted intervention. Respondents filed a Motion to Dismiss on May 29, 2014. Staff filed a Brief in Support of Respondent's Motion to Dismiss on June 2, 2014. A Notice of Hearing was sent out on June 13, 2014. On June 16, 2014, Prelude filed its response. On June 27, 2014, Basin filed a Reply Brief of Basin Electric Power Cooperative.
TODAY, Shall the Commission grant Respondent's Motion to Dismiss?
On May 30, 2014, Commission Staff filed an Electric Service Territory Boundary Agreement between Central Electric Cooperative, Inc. and Wessington Springs Municipal Electric. This filing is made pursuant to current efforts of the PUC to verify electric territory mapping data for conversion to electronic format and use in a Geographic Information System (GIS) database. With the assistance of the above-referenced utilities, Commission Staff has confirmed the service territory boundary shared by these utilities and has prepared updated mapping information. Commission Staff asks for approval of the agreement to update official mapping data to properly reflect the service territory boundaries shared by the utilities in this docket.
TODAY, shall the Commission approve the proposed electric service territory boundary agreement?
On June 9, 2014, Commission Staff filed an Electric Service Territory Boundary Agreement between Charles Mix Electric Cooperative, Inc. and Rosebud Electric Cooperative, Inc. This filing is made pursuant to current efforts of the PUC to verify electric territory mapping data for conversion to electronic format and use in a Geographic Information System (GIS) database. With the assistance of the above-referenced utilities, Commission Staff has confirmed the service territory boundary shared by these utilities and has prepared updated mapping information. Commission Staff asks for approval of the agreement to update official mapping data to properly reflect the service territory boundaries shared by the utilities in this docket.
TODAY, shall the Commission approve the proposed electric service territory boundary agreement?
On June 10, 2014, Commission Staff filed an Electric Service Territory Boundary Agreement between NorthWestern Corporation dba NorthWestern Energy and Tyndall Municipal Electric Association. This filing is made pursuant to current efforts of the PUC to verify electric territory mapping data for conversion to electronic format and use in a Geographic Information System (GIS) database. With the assistance of the above-referenced utilities, Commission Staff has confirmed the service territory boundary shared by these utilities and has prepared updated mapping information. Commission Staff asks for approval of the agreement to update official mapping data to properly reflect the service territory boundaries shared by the utilities in this docket.
TODAY, shall the Commission approve the proposed electric service territory boundary agreement?
On June 10, 2014, Commission Staff filed an Electric Service Territory Boundary Agreement between Bryant Municipal Electric and H-D Electric Cooperative, Inc. This filing is made pursuant to current efforts of the PUC to verify electric territory mapping data for conversion to electronic format and use in a Geographic Information System (GIS) database. With the assistance of the above-referenced utilities, Commission Staff has confirmed the service territory boundary shared by these utilities and has prepared updated mapping information. Commission Staff asks for approval of the agreement to update official mapping data to properly reflect the service territory boundaries shared by the utilities in this docket.
TODAY, shall the Commission approve the proposed electric service territory boundary agreement?
On June 23, 2014, the Commission received a filing from Montana-Dakota Utilities Co. (MDU) for approval to revise its Occasional Power Purchase Non-Time Differentiated Rate 95, Short-Term Power Purchase Time Differentiated Rate 96, and Long-Term Power Purchase Time Differentiated Rate 97 tariffs. The filing is made in compliance with the Commission's Order in F-3365 and in accordance with the Special Terms and Conditions of these tariffs, which state that the rate schedules will be reviewed annually and revised when necessary.
TODAY, shall the Commission approve the proposed tariff revisions?
Telecommunications
On June 10, 2014, the Commission received a filing from OrbitCom, Inc. (OrbitCom) requesting approval revisions to its Access Tariff No. 2 pages 68 and 70. The proposed tariff revision filing is done in compliance with the FCC's order in FCC 11-161. OrbitCom requests an effective date of July 1, 2014.
TODAY, shall the Commission approve OrbitCom, Inc.'s Revisions to its Access Services Tariff No. 2?
On June 17, 2014, the Commission received an application from Northeast Nebraska Telephone Company requesting the Commission grant a waiver of the Commission's ETC filing requirements pursuant to ARSD 20:10:32:56, on the grounds that the reporting requirements are unduly burdensome. On June 24, 2014, the Company responded to Staff's data requests.
TODAY, shall the Commission grant the waiver and certify Northeast Nebraska Telephone Company?
On June 23, 2014, the Commission received an application from Midcontinent Communications (Midco) requesting approval revisions to its Access Tariff pages 3 and 44.1. The proposed tariff revision filing is done in compliance with the FCC's order in FCC 11-161. Midco requests an effective date of July 1, 2014.
TODAY, shall the Commission approve Midcontinent Communication's Revisions to its Access Services Tariff?
On June 25, 2014, the Commission received an application from Kennebec Telephone Co., Inc. requesting the Commission to issue a certification to the FCC and USAC indicating it is in compliance with 47 U.S.C. Section 254(e) and should receive all federal universal service support determined for distribution to the Company.
TODAY, shall the Commission provide a certification to the Federal Communications Commission and to the Universal Service Administration Company regarding the use of Federal Universal Service Support?
On June 27, 2014, the Commission received a filing from MCImetro Access Transmission Services LLC d/b/a Verizon Access Transmission Services (Verizon Access) for changes to its Access Services Tariff. This filing complies with the July 1, 2014, interstate access rate benchmarking (step down) requirements set forth by the Federal Communication Commission's November 18, 2011, Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in WC Docket Nos. 10-90, etc. (FCC 11-161). Verizon Access tariff amendments make express reference to its interstate tariff for terminating switched access rates. An effective date of July 1, 2014, is requested by Verizon Access for the tariff revisions.
TODAY, shall the Commission approve the requested tariff amendments?
Items for Commission Discussion
Announcements
- The PUC will host and commissioners and staff will attend "EPA's 111(d) Carbon Regulation: A South Dakota Forum," an examination of the impacts, implications and other issues of the EPA's proposed plan to reduce carbon emissions from existing power plants, Thursday, July 31, 2014, beginning at 8 a.m. CDT in Amphitheater I at the Ramkota Conference Center, 3200 W. Maple St., Sioux Falls, S.D.
- The next regularly scheduled commission meeting will be Wednesday, August 6, 2014, at 2:00 p.m. CDT in Room 413 at the State Capitol Building, Pierre, S.D.
- Commissioners and staff will meet with consumers at the Brown County Fair, August 12-17, 2014, in Aberdeen, S.D.
- Commission meetings are scheduled for August 19 and September 2, 2014.
/s/Cindy Kemnitz
Cindy Kemnitz
Finance Manager
PUC Email
July 15, 2014
