§2645 — Title 16 Conservation | U.S. Code

Summary

The Secretary can give grants to an institute set up by the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners so the institute can do research on electric and gas utility rules, build data tools for rate-making, and help State utility regulators carry out their duties. The grants may pay at most 80 percent of an activity’s cost in fiscal year 1979 and 60 percent in fiscal year 1980. The Secretary may add only needed rules to run the grants and must make sure the institute shares its information with the Secretary, the Commission, and the public. Grant money cannot be used to support or fight any bill, except when institute representatives testify after being invited to a Congressional or State legislative committee. Up to $2,000,000 is authorized for each of fiscal years 1979 and 1980. No money may be provided for these purposes after fiscal year 1980 without specific Congressional authorization.

Title 16, §2645

Conservation — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The Secretary may make grants under this section to an institute established by the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners to enable such institute to—

(1)conduct research on electric and gas utility regulatory policy issues,

(2)develop data processing and retrieval methods for electric and gas utility ratemaking, and

(3)perform other functions directly related to assisting State regulatory authorities in carrying out their functions under State law and this Act.

(b)Grants under this section shall not be used to provide more than the following percentages of the cost to the institute of carrying out the activities specified in subsection (a):

(1)80 percent for the fiscal year 1979; and

(2)60 percent for the fiscal year 1980.

(c)Grants under this section may not be made subject to terms and conditions other than those the Secretary deems necessary for purposes of administering this section and for purposes of assuring that—

(1)all information gathered by the institute is available to the Secretary, the Commission, and the public, and

(2)no portion of any such grant is used to support or oppose any legislative proposal except by means of testimony by representatives of the institute provided by invitation to a committee of Congress or of a State legislature.

(d)There is authorized to be appropriated not more than $2,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 1979 and 1980 for purposes of making grants under this section. No amounts may be appropriated for any fiscal year after the fiscal year 1980 to carry out the purposes of this section without a specific authorization of Congress.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

This Act, referred to in subsec. (a)(3), is Pub. L. 95–617, Nov. 9, 1978, 92 Stat. 3117, known as the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

Short Title

note set out under section 2601 of this title and Tables. Codification This section was not enacted as part of title I of Pub. L. 95–617 which comprises this chapter.

§2645 Utility regulatory institute