Title 69, Title 69

(1) A term is for a period of 4 years. A commissioner when elected shall qualify at the time and in the manner provided by law for other state officers and shall take office on the first Monday of January after the election. (2) A commissioner shall serve until a successor is ele…

(1) Any vacancy occurring in the commission must be filled by appointment by the governor as provided in this section. The appointee shall hold office until the next general election and until a successor is elected and qualified. At the biennial election following the occurrence…

A presiding officer must be selected by the commission from its membership at the first meeting of each year after a general election.

(1) The commission shall hold sessions at times and places in this state as may be expedient. A majority of the commission constitutes a quorum for the transaction of business. (2) The members of the commission may administer oaths and affirmations. (3) The commission may adopt r…

The commission and its staff are entitled to reimbursement for travel expenses, as provided for in 2-18-501 through 2-18-503. Expenditures must be sworn to by the person who incurred the expenses and be approved by the presiding officer of the commission or the presiding officer'…

(1) Public service commissioners or their staff may not, directly or indirectly, solicit or request from or recommend to any railroad corporation or any officer, attorney, or agent the appointment of any person to any place or position, and any railroad corporation or its attorne…

If a commissioner fails to perform the commissioner's duties as provided in this title, the commissioner may be removed from office as provided by 45-7-401. Upon complaint made and good cause shown, the governor may suspend any commissioner, and if, in the governor's judgment the…

(1) Each fee charged by the commission must be reasonable. (2) Except for a fee assessed pursuant to 69-3-204(2), 69-3-1204(6)(b), 69-3-1207(5)(a), 69-3-1612(4), or 69-12-423(2), a fee set by the commission may not exceed $500. (3) All fees collected by the commission under 69-3-…

(1) The commission shall keep a full and complete record of all its proceedings and preserve at the office of the commission all books, maps, documents, and papers entrusted to its care. (2) The commission may appoint secretaries, stenographers, inspectors, experts, and other per…

As used in this part and part 2 of chapter 2, the following definitions apply: (1) "Committee" means the legislative consumer committee provided for in Title 5, chapter 15, part 1. (2) "Consumer counsel" means the consumer counsel provided for in Title 5, chapter 15, part 2. (3) …

The committee shall meet at least once each quarter to advise and consult with the consumer counsel.

Committee members are entitled to receive compensation and expenses as provided in 5-2-302.

The consumer counsel may, with the approval of the committee, appoint employees and consultants necessary to carry out the provisions of this part and part 2 of chapter 2, within the limits of legislative appropriation.

(1) The consumer counsel shall prepare and submit a yearly report and other interim reports to the consumer committee that the consumer counsel determines advisable concerning the consumer counsel's activities during the year. The consumer counsel also may recommend appropriate r…

(1) There is an account in the state special revenue fund to which all fees collected under this section must be deposited and from which all appropriations to the office of the consumer counsel must be paid. An appropriation to the office of the consumer counsel may consist of a…

(1) On or before August 31 of each year, the department of revenue shall: (a) determine the total gross operating revenue generated by all regulated activities within this state for all regulated companies for the previous fiscal year; (b) compute the percentage, subject to revis…

(1) If a regulated company or an officer or employee of a regulated company fails, neglects, or refuses to file the statement required by 69-1-223(2), the department of revenue may after the time for filing has expired proceed to inform itself, as best it may, regarding the regul…

(1) If a regulated company or an officer or employee of a regulated company files the statement required by 69-1-223(2) but fails, neglects, or refuses to pay the fee due within the time required, the department of revenue may after the time for payment has expired add to the fee…

If the fee imposed by this part is not paid when due, the department may issue a warrant for distraint as provided in Title 15, chapter 1, part 7. The resulting lien has precedence over any claim, lien, or demand thereafter filed and recorded.

(1) If the department of revenue determines that the amount of fee, penalty, or interest paid for any year is more than the amount due, the amount of the overpayment must be credited against any tax, penalty, or interest then due from the taxpayer and the balance refunded to the …

(1) Except as provided in subsection (3), a deficiency may not be assessed or collected with respect to the year for which a return is filed unless the notice of the additional fee proposed to be assessed is mailed within 5 years from the date the return was filed. For purposes o…

As used in this part, the following definitions apply: (1) "Department" means the department of public service regulation provided for in Title 2, chapter 15, part 26. (2) "Regulated companies" means all organizations, corporations, associations, or other public or private entiti…

(1) All fees collected under this section and any other fees, except as provided in 69-1-114(3), must be deposited in an account in the state special revenue fund to the credit of the department. An appropriation to the department may consist of a base appropriation for regular o…

(1) The fee provided for in 69-1-402 to be paid by regulated companies must be determined in the manner set forth in 69-1-224 for determining the consumer counsel fee, except that gross revenues from sales to other regulated companies for resale, as calculated by the public servi…

The commission shall adopt such rules of practice and procedure for the filing, investigation, and hearing of petitions or applications to increase or decrease rates and charges of railroads, motor carriers, and public utilities as the commission finds necessary or appropriate to…

In any case involving an application by a regulated entity to the commission for authority to increase its rates that is actively contested by the consumer counsel, the commission shall leave representation of the interests of consumers to the consumer counsel when the consumer c…

(1) (a) Except as provided in subsections (1)(b) and (1)(c), if requested by the applicant, the commission shall appoint a hearings examiner for proceedings under this title. (b) If four public service commissioners determine that a hearings examiner is not required for a proceed…

The consumer counsel may appear at public hearings conducted by the commission, as the representative of the consuming public, on all matters which come before the commission which in any way affect the consuming public and shall have all the rights and powers of any party in int…

(1) The consumer counsel may institute proceedings before the commission against regulated companies. (2) The consumer counsel may institute, intervene in, or otherwise participate in appropriate proceedings in the state and federal courts and administrative agencies in the name …

(1) The consumer counsel has all the investigatory powers necessary to perform the counsel's duties as provided in this section and all discovery powers sanctioned by the Montana Rules of Civil Procedure and the Montana Administrative Procedure Act. It is the specific intent of t…

(1) The consumer counsel shall meet and confer with members or representatives of the consuming public at times and places that the consumer counsel determines appropriate. (2) The consumer counsel has other powers necessary to fully represent the interests of the consuming publi…

(1) Any regulated company or any officer or employee of any regulated company who, with intent to evade any fee or any requirement of this part or part 2 of chapter 1 or any lawful requirement of the commission thereunder, fails to pay the fee, to make, render, sign, or verify an…

In addition to all other forms of notice of hearings conducted by the commission provided for in this title, notices of all hearings shall be served upon the consumer counsel.

All forms of notice of public hearings conducted by the commission under this title, including all notices posted in public places or published in the legal advertising sections of newspapers, shall advise members of the consuming public of the existence of the office of the cons…

(1) Within 10 days of receiving an application pursuant to subsection (1)(a) or (1)(b), the department of environmental quality shall notify the office of consumer counsel that it is in receipt of: (a) a permit application pursuant to Title 75, chapter 2, 5, or 10, for a new elec…

(1) Projects proposed by utilities, as defined in 69-8-103, or their affiliates are exempt from the analysis required by 69-2-216 if the utility or affiliate files the necessary tariffs, rate schedules, and other requisite information with the commission or the federal energy reg…

As used in this part, the following definitions apply: (1) "Approval authority" means the commission for a regulated utility, the board of trustees for an electric cooperative, the city council or city commission for a municipal utility, or the appropriate body responsible for co…

(1) An electric facilities provider shall prepare a wildfire mitigation plan in accordance with this section and submit the plan to its approval authority and commence implementation of its wildfire mitigation plan no later than December 31, 2025. An electric facilities provider …

(1) The purpose of this section is to set statutory criteria governing the civil liability of an electric facilities provider for wildfire-related claims. An electric facilities provider has an obligation to serve the public, and a standard of strict liability may not be applied …

(1) There is a telephone low-income assistance program to provide an eligible subscriber with a discount in the monthly charge for local exchange service in the telephone network. (2) The commission shall set the discount in the charge for local exchange service that is at least …

(1) A residential subscriber with single telephone line service at the subscriber's principal residence is eligible for low-income telephone assistance if the subscriber is certified by the department of public health and human services as a recipient of medicaid benefits. (2) Th…

(1) The public service commission shall authorize an additional monthly charge for each residential access line to fully reimburse providers of local telecommunications services for discounts given eligible subscribers. (2) The additional monthly charge for local exchange service…

(1) The public service commission shall monitor the effectiveness of the low-income telephone assistance program and issue annual reports as provided in 69-3-1005. (2) The commission may adopt rules necessary to administer and implement the low-income telephone assistance program…

The commission shall, if necessary, provide the federal communications commission with annual reports containing the following information: (1) a description of qualification and verification procedures and other assistance measures; (2) the costs of the low-income telephone assi…

The public service commission, the department of public health and human services, and participating providers of local telecommunications services shall comply with federal requirements for the receipt of matching federal low-income telephone assistance.

(1) Sections 69-3-1001 through 69-3-1006 apply to providers of regulated local telecommunications services with more than 50,000 subscribers. (2) Regulated providers of local telecommunications services with fewer than 50,000 subscribers may petition the public service commission…