Procedural Rules

(a) All documents submitted to the commission or staff in an adjudicative or non-adjudicative proceeding shall become matters of public record, subject to RSA 91-A, as of the day and time of the submission with the following exceptions: (1) Accident reports under RSA 374:40; (2) …

(a) The commission shall waive the provisions of any of its rules, except where precluded by statute, upon request by an interested party, or on its own motion, if the commission finds that: (1) The waiver serves the public interest; and (2) The waiver will not disrupt the orderl…

(a) The following shall be the routine filings to which the procedure established by Puc 201.06 and Puc 201.07 applies: (1) Telephone customer proprietary network information; (2) Incumbent Local Exchange Carrier (ILEC) capital expense reports; (3) NHPUC Form T-2 Assessment Repor…

(a) Puc 201.07 shall apply to all routine filings subject to Puc 201.06. All references to written communications in this rule also refer to e-mail communications. (b) Puc 201.07 shall govern the commission's consideration of requests submitted pursuant to Puc 104.01 for public r…

"Adjudicative proceeding" means a proceeding that is conducted pursuant to the procedure followed in contested cases set forth in RSA 541-A:31 through RSA 541-A:36 and the Puc 200 rules of the commission. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.01 #2011, eff 5-4-82; ss by #2912, eff 11-…

"Business day" means any Monday through Friday, excluding state holidays. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.02 #2011, eff 5-4-82; ss by #2912, eff 11-26-84; ss by #4998, eff 11-26-90; ss by #6365, INTERIM, eff 11-18-96, EXPIRED: 3-18-97 New. #6559, eff 8-19-97, EXPIRED: 8-19-05 Ne…

"Commission information request" means questions from the commission to a party or multiple parties for specific information or documents as described in Puc 203.18. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.03 #2011, eff 5-4-82; ss by #2912, eff 11-26-84; ss by #4998, eff 11-26-90; ss by…

"Commission technical session" means a meeting of the parties at which information is shared on an informal basis and, with notice, the presiding officer, commissioners, or commission staff are present pursuant to RSA 541-A:31,V(b). Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.04 #2011, eff …

"Data request" means a discovery procedure in which the requesting party asks another party for specified information or requests the production of documents. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.05 #2011, eff 5-4-82; ss by #2912, eff 11-26-84; ss by #4998, eff 11-26-90; ss by #6365,…

"Declaratory ruling" means a commission ruling as to the applicability of any statutory provision or of any rule or order of the commission. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.06 #2011, eff 5-4-82; ss by #2912, eff 11-26-84; ss by #4998, eff 11-26-90; ss by #6365, INTERIM, eff 11-1…

"File", as a verb, means to send an electronic or deliver a paper copy of a document to the commission. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.07 #2011, eff 5-4-82; ss by #2912, eff 11-26-84; ss by #4998, eff 11-26-90; ss by #6365, INTERIM, eff 11-18-96, EXPIRED: 3-18-97 New. #6559, ef…

"File electronically" means to file a document, using the online commission portals, by: (a) Using the electronic filing system, if available, at https://www.puc.nh.gov; or (b) Sending an email to the commissions clerk's office at ClerksOffice@puc.nh.gov with documents attached i…

"Hearing" means a publicly noticed session held in a matter before the commission or its designee, which provides an opportunity for any participant, party, or intervenor to present evidence, conduct cross-examination, or otherwise participate. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.09…

"Motion" means a request for an order or ruling by the commission directing some act to be done in favor of the party making the motion, and shall include a statement of justification or reasons for the request. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.10 #2011, eff 5-4-82; ss by #2912, …

"Non-adjudicative proceeding" means any proceeding that is not included under Puc 202.01 and is not governed by RSA 541:31 through RSA 541:36. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.11 #2011, eff 5-4-82; ss by #2912, eff 11-26-84; ss by #4998, eff 11-26-90; ss by #6365, INTERIM, eff 11…

"Participant" means any person that chooses to engage in a non-adjudicative proceeding. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.12 #2011, eff 5-4-82; ss by #2912, eff 11-26-84; ss by #4998, eff 11-26-90; ss by #6365, INTERIM, eff 11-18-96, EXPIRED: 3-18-97 New. #6559, eff 8-19-97, EXPIR…

"Party" means "party" as defined by RSA 541-A:1, XII, namely, "each person or agency named or admitted as a party, or properly seeking and entitled as a right to be admitted as a party" in an adjudicative proceeding. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.13 #2011, eff 5-4-82; ss by #2…

"Person" means any individual, partnership, corporation, association, governmental subdivision, or public or private organization of any character which appears before the commission for any purpose. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.14 #2011, eff 5-4-82; ss by #2912, eff 11-26-84…

"Petition" means the initial pleading filed with the commission pursuant to Puc 203.07(a) to commence a proceeding for the purpose of seeking commission action. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.15 #2011, eff 5-4-82; ss by #2912, eff 11-26-84; ss by #4998, eff 11-26-90; ss by #636…

"Pleading" means a written request for commission action or a written response to a written request for commission action in the form of, including but not limited to, a petition, motion, objection, or reply. The term "pleading" does not include communications in the form of corr…

"Position statement" means a written response to a pleading outlining the responder's factual and legal arguments or viewpoints regarding "the same". Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.17 #6559, eff 8-19-97, EXPIRED: 8-19-05 New. #8420, INTERIM, eff 8-23-05, EXPIRED: 2-19-06 Amende…

"Prefiled testimony" means a written document in question-and-answer form, offered by a person who intends to make themselves available to adopt the written answers at hearing, under oath. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.18 #6559, eff 8-19-97, EXPIRED: 8-19-05 New. #8420, INTERI…

"Prehearing conference" means a convening by the presiding officer pursuant to RSA 541-A:31, V. The term includes a status conference or a commission technical session. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.19 Derived from Number 7, Filed February 13, 2025, Proposed by #14184, Effecti…

"Presiding officer" means the chairman of the public utilities commission, or the person designated to act on the chairman's behalf at a hearing pursuant to Puc 204.06, or an individual conducting a hearing pursuant to RSA 363:16. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.20 Derived from …

"Proceeding" means an adjudicatory or non-adjudicatory matter within the purview of the statutory authority of the commission assigned a docket number. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.21 Derived from Number 7, Filed February 13, 2025, Proposed by #14184, Effective 1/24/2025.

"Pro se" means an individual who is representing oneself in a proceeding. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.22 Derived from Number 7, Filed February 13, 2025, Proposed by #14184, Effective 1/24/2025.

"Remote participation" means participating in an in-person hearing via electronic means that enable participants to communicate with each other contemporaneously from a location other than that at which the hearing is being conducted. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.23 Derived f…

"Routine filings" means documents submitted, on a recurrent basis, by a utility to the commission, and as specified in Puc 203.10(a). Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.24 Derived from Number 7, Filed February 13, 2025, Proposed by #14184, Effective 1/24/2025.

"Technical session" means a meeting of the parties at which information is shared on an informal basis and at which neither the presiding officer, commissioners, or any commission staff are present. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 202.25 Derived from Number 7, Filed February 13, 202…

"Technical statement" means a substantive statement providing a party's position or conclusion on a particular matter and the underlying analysis that led the party to the position(s) or conclusion(s), provided in the form of a report or statement and distinct from the analysis p…

(a) The commission or the presiding officer shall waive the provisions of any of the commission's administrative rules, except when precluded by statute, in response to a motion filed by an interested party, or on the commission or presiding officer's own motion, if it is found t…

(a) Unless otherwise specified, all time periods referenced in this chapter shall be in calendar days. (b) Computation of any period of time established in these rules shall begin with the first day after the action that triggers the time period and shall include the last day of …

(a) All correspondence intended for the commission shall be addressed to the commission chairman. All written communications shall be sent to the commission's clerk's office at ClerksOffice@puc.nh.gov or NH Public Utilities Commission 21 South Fruit Street, Suite 10 Concord, N.H.…

No paper filings shall be required if filed electronically. If the filing is not made electronically, then a single original paper filing shall be submitted pursuant to Puc 203.03(a). Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 203.04 #2011, eff 5-4-82; ss by #2912, eff 11-26-84; ss by #4998, e…

All written communications submitted to the commission shall: (a) Be dated; (b) Be signed. An electronic signature or "/s/" mark, with the full name of the signing person provided with the electronic signature or "/s/" mark, shall be an acceptable means of signing the filing; (c)…

(a) All requests for commission action shall be made in the form of a pleading that complies with the commission's administrative rules. (b) All pleadings filed with the commission shall comply with the following requirements in addition to those contained in Puc 203.05: (1) Incl…

(a) The procedure for filing petitions shall be as follows: (1) All requests for relief shall be in the form of a petition, which may be accompanied by prefiled testimony; (2) Contain a certification that the filer has sent a copy of the filing to the department, and office of th…

Filings shall be deemed filed on the date that the commission receives them, if submitted during the commission's business hours listed in Puc 203.03. A filing submitted after hours shall be deemed to have been filed on the next business day. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 203.08 #…

(a) Subject to RSA 91-A, all documents submitted to the commission shall become matters of public record as of the day and time of the submission, with the following exceptions: (1) Accident reports under RSA 374:40; (2) Information about individual residential customers, the dis…

(a) The following shall be the routine filings to which the procedure established by Puc 203.10 and Puc 203.11 applies: (1) Preliminary and final "Wholesale Performance Plan Reports" for telecommunications companies containing carrier-specific performance and bill credit calculat…

(a) Puc 203.11 shall apply to all routine filings subject to Puc 203.10. All references to written communications in this rule also refer to documents filed via electronic means. (b) Puc 203.11 shall govern the commission's consideration of requests submitted pursuant to Puc 103.…

(a) The commission shall grant a motion for confidential treatment and issue a protective order providing for the confidential treatment of one or more documents upon a finding that the document or documents are entitled to such treatment pursuant to RSA 91-A:5, or other applicab…

(a) Except as provided in (b) below, the commission shall conduct all hearings in person at its office in Concord. (b) The commission shall conduct one or more hearings in the service territory of an affected utility or municipal district if: (1) Required by law to do so; or (2) …

The commission shall: (a) Maintain a docket of all proceedings pending before the commission; (b) Keep a complete record of all the proceedings of the commission, including all books, maps, documents, and papers filed with the commission, and orders issued by the commission; (c) …

(a) Any person may appear before the commission:(1) On one's own behalf; (2) By an attorney authorized to practice in any state or the District of Columbia and whose license is in good standing; (3) By an employee and authorized agent; or (4) By any person the commission authoriz…

The commission shall provide persons who are not a party or a participant in a proceeding, but having interest in the subject matter, with an opportunity to state their position. Notes N.H. Admin. Code § Puc 203.16 #2011, eff 5-4-82; ss by #2912, eff 11-26-84; ss by #4998, eff 11…

(a) In a docketed matter, the commission shall elect to issue a final order with a delayed effective date referred to as an order nisi. (b) If permitted under New Hampshire law. (c) The commission determines that the record is sufficient to support a commission decision without f…