Title 57, Utility Regulation

All rates, tariffs, classifications, regulations, practices and service fixed, approved or prescribed by the Public Utility Commission and any order made or entered upon any matter within the jurisdiction of the commission shall be in force and shall be prima facie lawful and rea…

The Public Utility Commission may at any time, upon notice to the public utility or telecommunications utility and after opportunity to be heard as provided in ORS 756.500 to 756.610, rescind, suspend or amend any order made by the commission. Copies of the same shall be served a…

(1) An order of the Public Utility Commission issued in accordance with the provisions of ORS chapters 756, 757, 758 and 759 is binding upon the successors in interest of each person affected thereby, until set aside, rescinded, suspended or modified as provided by law. (2) Any i…

The Public Utility Commission may provide by rule that any public utility or telecommunications utility affected by any order shall within a time to be fixed by the commission, notify the commission whether the terms of the order are accepted and will be obeyed. [1971 c.655 §55; …

(1)(a) Except as provided in subsections (2) and (3) of this section, final orders of the Public Utility Commission are subject to judicial review as orders under the provisions of ORS 183.480 to 183.497. (b) Binding rulings issued under ORS 756.450 are subject to review in the C…

(1) Any public utility or telecommunications utility that fails to comply with an order or subpoena issued pursuant to ORS 756.090 shall forfeit, for each day it so fails, a sum of not less than $50 nor more than $500. (2) Except where a penalty is otherwise provided by law, any …

(1)(a) As used in this chapter, except as provided in paragraph (b) of this subsection, “public utility” means: (A) Any corporation, company, individual, association of individuals, or its lessees, trustees or receivers, that owns, operates, manages or controls all or a part of a…

For purposes of ORS chapter 757, the term “public utility” does not include a people’s utility district organized under ORS chapter 261 or an electric cooperative organized under ORS chapter 62. [2016 c.28 §18c] Note: 757.006 was enacted into law by the Legislative Assembly but w…

(1) Every person exempt from regulation under ORS 757.005 (1)(b)(E) shall file with the Public Utility Commission, not later than 30 days prior to their effective date, all contracts and schedules establishing rates, terms and conditions for the provision of heating services. (2)…

(1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, the Public Utility Commission may, upon written complaint or upon the commission’s own motion, regulate, under ORS 757.205 to 757.240, or any part thereof, any person otherwise exempt from regulation under ORS 757.005 (1)(…

As used in ORS 757.105 (1) and 757.495, “affiliated interest” with a public utility means: (1) Every corporation and person owning or holding directly or indirectly five percent or more of the voting securities of such public utility. (2) Every corporation and person in any chain…

Every public utility is required to furnish adequate and safe service, equipment and facilities, and the charges made by any public utility for any service rendered or to be rendered in connection therewith shall be reasonable and just, and every unjust or unreasonable charge for…

(1) The Public Utility Commission has power, after a hearing had upon the motion of the commission or upon complaint, to require by general or special orders embodying reasonable rules or regulations, every person or municipality, their agents, lessees or acting trustees or recei…

(1) As used in this section, “hazardous substance or material” means: (a) Fuel gas, whether in a gaseous, liquid or semisolid state; (b) Petroleum or petroleum products; and (c) Any other substance or material which may pose an unreasonable risk to life or property when transport…

(1) As used in this section: (a) “Anthropogenic gases and atmospheric pollutants” includes carbon dioxide, methane, nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides, mercury, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons and sulfur hexafluoride. (b) “Distributed energy resource” means a small-scale energy …

The Public Utility Commission has power to require any public utility, after a public hearing of all parties interested, to extend its line, plant or system into, and to render service to, a locality not already served when the existing public convenience and necessity requires s…

Notwithstanding the specific requirements imposed on an electric company by ORS 469.631 to 469.645 and 469.860 to 469.900, an electric company meets the requirements of ORS 469.631 to 469.645 and 469.860 to 469.900 if the electric company: (1) Meets the public purpose expenditure…

(1) As used in this section: (a) “Electric company” has the meaning given that term in ORS 757.600. (b) “Retail electricity consumer” means a retail electricity consumer, as defined in ORS 757.600, that is located in Oregon. (2) The Legislative Assembly finds and declares that: (…

(1) As used in this section, “energy conservation services” means services provided by public utilities to educate and inform customers and the public about energy conservation. Such services include but are not limited to providing answers to questions concerning energy saving d…

(1) For the purposes of this section: (a) “Rate regulation” means regulation under this chapter, except for regulation under ORS 757.105 to 757.110. (b) “Service regulation” means regulation under this chapter, except for regulation under ORS 757.105 to 757.110, 757.140, 757.205 …

(1) Any association of individuals that furnishes water to members of the association is subject to regulation in the same manner as provided by this chapter for public utilities, and must pay the fee provided for in ORS 756.310, if 20 percent or more of the members of the associ…

(1) As used in this section: (a) “Incumbent water utility” means an existing water utility that may be sold to another water utility or other entity. (b) “Safe and adequate service” includes the ability of a water utility or other entity to provide to its customers potable water …

(1) In each biennium the Public Utility Commission may use not more than $100,000 of the fees collected under ORS 756.310 to make emergency repairs to the plants of public utilities providing water service. The commission may expend moneys under the provisions of this section onl…

(1) If a customer of a water utility fails to pay a water bill for more than 120 days after the bill becomes due, the water utility shall mail notice of the delinquency to the persons who are listed as the owners of the property in the real property tax records for the county onl…

(1) A public utility providing electricity or natural gas may enter into a written agreement with an organization that represents broad customer interests in regulatory proceedings conducted by the Public Utility Commission relating to public utilities that provide electricity or…

(1) If a public utility determines that a current or former customer of the public utility was previously billed an incorrect amount for a service provided by the public utility under rate schedules or tariffs in effect for the public utility on the date on which the service was …

The Public Utility Commission shall require each public utility to include at the bottom of every utility bill the following information: (1) The phone numbers for the commission’s consumer services. (2) The website address, in shortened form, for the commission’s online consumer…

(1) As used in this section and ORS 757.218, “electric or natural gas company” means any entity that is a public utility that is engaged in the business of distributing electricity or natural gas to retail customers in this state. (2) Each calendar year, an electric or natural ga…

(1) The Public Utility Commission has the right and power of regulation, restriction and control over the budgets of expenditures of public utilities, as to all items covering: (a) Proposed payment of salaries of executive officers; (b) Donations; (c) Political contributions and …

Adjustment and additions to such budget expenditures may be made from time to time during the year by filing supplementary budgets with the Public Utility Commission. The provisions of ORS 757.105 (3) apply to adjustments and additions to budgets. [Amended by 1971 c.655 §83]

(1) Any finding and order made and entered by the Public Utility Commission under ORS 757.105 or 757.107 shall have the effect of prohibiting any unapproved or rejected expenditure from being recognized as an operating expense or capital expenditure in any rate valuation proceedi…

(1) Every public utility shall keep and render to the Public Utility Commission, in the manner and form prescribed by the commission, uniform accounts of all business transacted. All forms of accounts which may be prescribed by the commission shall conform as nearly as practicabl…

(1) The Public Utility Commission shall prescribe the accounts and records required to be kept, and every public utility is required to keep and render its accounts and records accurately and faithfully in the manner prescribed by the commission and to comply with all directions …

(1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, the accounts required under ORS 757.120 and 757.125 shall be closed annually on December 31 and a balance sheet of that date promptly taken therefrom. On or before a date prescribed by the Public Utility Commission by rule…

(1) Every public utility shall carry a proper and adequate depreciation account. The Public Utility Commission shall ascertain and determine the proper and adequate rates of depreciation of the several classes of property of each public utility. The rates shall be such as will pr…

(1) Every public utility shall file with the Public Utility Commission, within a time to be fixed by the commission, schedules which shall be open to public inspection, showing all rates, tolls and charges which it has established and which are in force at the time for any servic…

(1)(a) Whenever any public utility files with the Public Utility Commission any rate or schedule of rates stating or establishing a new rate or schedule of rates or increasing an existing rate or schedule of rates, the commission may, either upon written complaint or upon the com…

(1) As used in this section, “electric or natural gas company” means any entity that is a public utility that is engaged in the business of distributing electricity or natural gas to retail customers in this state. (2) In determining whether an electric or natural gas company’s p…

(1) For purposes of this section: (a) “Resource rate plan” means a plan by a public utility to construct a generating plant or to enter into a wholesale power purchase or sales agreement with a term that is longer than one year. (b) “Site” means: (A) Buildings or other related st…

(1) The Public Utility Commission may, pending such investigation and determination, order the suspension of the rate or schedule of rates for a period of up to 10 months beyond the time when such rate or schedule would otherwise go into effect. (2) This section does not prevent …

(1) As used in this section, “electric or natural gas company” means any entity that is a public utility that is engaged in the business of distributing electricity or natural gas to retail customers in this state. (2)(a) The Public Utility Commission shall establish rules requir…

(1) The Public Utility Commission shall require each electric and natural gas company to, at least annually, file with the commission, and make publicly available, a report on any rate adjustments that the electric or natural gas company expects within the next 12 months. (2) A r…

No change shall be made in any schedule, including schedules of joint rates, except upon 30 days’ notice to the Public Utility Commission. All changes shall be plainly indicated upon existing schedules, or by filing new schedules in lieu thereof 30 days prior to the time they are…

No public utility shall charge, demand, collect or receive a greater or less compensation for any service performed by it within the state, or for any service in connection therewith, than is specified in printed rate schedules as may at the time be in force, or demand, collect o…

(1) As used in this section, “electric company” has the meaning given that term in ORS 757.600. (2) The Public Utility Commission shall require that an electric company mitigate a rate increase payable by a class of customers described in subsection (5) of this section if: (a) Th…

(1) The Public Utility Commission shall provide for a comprehensive classification of service for each public utility, and such classification may take into account the quantity used, the time when used, the purpose for which used, the existence of price competition or a service …

(1) A copy of so much of all schedules, including schedules of joint rates and charges, as the Public Utility Commission deems necessary for the use of the public shall be printed in plain type and kept on file in every business office of such public utility, open to the public, …

(1) A public utility may establish reasonable through service and joint rates and classifications with other public utilities. Public utilities establishing joint rates shall establish just and reasonable regulations and practices in connection therewith and just, reasonable and …

(1) The Public Utility Commission may authorize a public utility, upon application of the utility, to file and place into effect a tariff schedule establishing rates or charges for the cost of energy resource measures provided to an individual property owner or customer pursuant …

(1) The Public Utility Commission shall ascertain and prescribe for each kind of public utility suitable and convenient standard commercial units of service. These shall be lawful units for the purposes of this chapter. (2) The commission shall ascertain and fix adequate and serv…