Bill > H5525

This bill, titled the "South Carolina Electric Cooperative Consumer Protection & Wholesale Market Access Act," establishes new regulations for electric cooperatives in South Carolina to ensure fair pricing and consumer protection. It mandates that generation and transmission cooperatives (entities that generate and transmit electricity to distribution cooperatives) must obtain approval from the Public Service Commission (PSC), the state's regulatory body for utilities, for major capital expenditures (significant investments in generation facilities or equipment exceeding $50 million) and major power purchase agreements (contracts for 50 megawatts or more of electricity). The PSC will review these proposals to ensure they are prudent, cost-effective, and in the public interest, considering factors like alternative costs and the impact on wholesale rates. The bill also requires generation and transmission cooperatives to file proposed wholesale rates and terms of service with the PSC for approval, with the PSC reviewing these rates to ensure they are just and reasonable, disallowing any costs resulting from imprudent management. Furthermore, distribution cooperatives (entities that deliver electricity to homes and businesses) are granted the right to petition the PSC for an "exit settlement," which is a process to modify or terminate wholesale power contracts with generation and transmission cooperatives, allowing distribution cooperatives to leave these contracts under specific conditions. Importantly, these exit settlements will be based on actual or projected costs and will prohibit the inclusion of "lost revenues" (income a generation and transmission cooperative would have earned if the distribution cooperative remained a customer) or other punitive charges. The Office of Regulatory Staff will represent the interests of distribution cooperative ratepayers in PSC proceedings, and generation and transmission cooperatives must file annual financial reports with the PSC. The bill also prohibits generation and transmission cooperatives from unilaterally extending contract terms or accelerating capital cost recovery without PSC approval, and it requires Santee Cooper, the state's public service authority, to cooperate with the PSC in certain circumstances.