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South Dakota Public Utilities Commission Meeting
November 12, 2014, at 1:30 P.M. CST
Room 413, 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. CST on Monday, November 10, 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 Meeting Held on October 28, 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 October 14, 2014, Commission Staff filed an Electric Service Territory Boundary Agreement between Groton Municipal Electric and Northern 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 October 16, 2014, the Commission received a joint request for service rights exception between NorthWestern Corporation dba NorthWestern Energy and Central Electric Cooperative, Inc. The purpose of the filing is for approval to allow Central Electric Cooperative to provide single phase electrical service to a grain bin in the assigned territory of NorthWestern Energy.
TODAY, shall the Commission approve the joint request for service rights exception between Northwestern Energy and Central Electric Cooperative Inc.?
On October 31, 2014, Otter Tail Power Company (OTP) filed a petition for approval of its 2015 Transmission Cost Recovery (TCR) Rider. OTP's TCR rate has been adjusted to reflect the TCR revenue requirements for the next recovery period (calendar year 2015). The update includes the tracker balance estimated for the end of the current recovery period so that no over or under-recovery of TCR costs occurs. The update also includes the costs of two new transmission projects that are not currently in base rates and have not previously been approved for inclusion in the TCR Rider.
TODAY, shall the Commission assess a filing fee in the amount of up to $50,000 to account for actual expenses incurred in review of this filing commencing from the filing date?
Natural Gas
On October 8, 2014, the Commission received a filing from NorthWestern Corporation dba Northwestern Energy for approval of its tariff revisions. The purpose of this filing is to provide clarity while providing for additional protection for retail customers during volatile daily gas markets. NorthWestern Energy proposes an effective date of December 1, 2014.
TODAY, shall the Commission approve the proposed tariff revisions?
Telecommunications
On February 20, 2014, the Commission received a filing from Intrado Communications Inc. (Intrado) requesting a Certificate of Authority to Provide Local Exchange Service within the State of South Dakota for the purposes of aggregating and routing 911 telephone calls. On March 13, 2014, South Dakota Telecommunications Association (SDTA) filed a Petition to Intervene, which was granted on April 4, 2014. On September 25, 2014, Intrado filed an amended application requesting a certificate of authority for local exchange service and interexchange service. Intrado requests that the commission waive ARSD 20:10:24:02(9), 20:10:24:02(17), 20:10:32:03(11), 20:10:32:03 (12), and 20:10:32:03 (24). On October 31, 2014, SDTA and Intrado filed a Joint Stipulation.
TODAY, shall the Commission grant the waivers requested by Intrado Communications Inc.? AND, shall the Commission grant a Certificate of Authority to Intrado Communications Inc.?
On September 25, 2014, the Commission received a filing from Talk America Services, LLC (TAS) requesting a Certificate of Authority to provide resold local exchange services and interexchange long distance services to residential customers in South Dakota. On October 14, and October 20, 2014, TAS responded to staff's data requests. On October 23, 2014, South Dakota Telecommunications Association (SDTA) filed a petition to intervene in the docket. On November 4, 2014, SDTA filed a letter withdrawing its Petition to Intervene.
TODAY, shall the Commission grant Talk America Services, LLC's request for a Certificate of Authority to Provide Local Exchange Services and Interexchange Long Distance Services in South Dakota?
Items for Commission Discussion
Announcements
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The PUC offices will be closed Tuesday, November 11, 2014, in observance of the Veterans Day holiday.
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Commissioners and Staff will attend the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners Annual Meeting, November 16-19, 2014, at the San Francisco Marriott, San Francisco, Calif.
- The next regularly scheduled commission meeting will be Tuesday, November 25, 2014, at 9:30 a.m. CST in Room 413 at the State Capitol, Pierre, S.D.
- The PUC offices will be closed Thursday, November 27 and Friday, November 28, 2014, in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday.
- Commission meetings are scheduled for December 9 and 23, 2014.
/s/Cindy Kemnitz
Cindy Kemnitz
Finance Manager
PUC Email
November 5, 2014
