Title 54, Title 54: Public Utilities

54-4-19. Right to enter upon public utility premises. The commissioners and officers and employees of the commission and the Department of Transportation, where public carriers are involved, shall have power to enter upon any premises occupied by any public utility for the purpos…

54-4-2. Investigations -- Hearings and notice -- Findings -- Applicability of chapter. (1) The commission may conduct an investigation if the commission determines an investigation: is necessary to secure compliance with this title or with an order of the commission; is in the pu…

54-4-20. Consumer may have meter tested upon paying fee. Any consumer or user of any product, commodity or service of a public utility may have any appliance used in the measurement thereof tested, upon paying the fees fixed by the commission. The commission shall establish and f…

54-4-21. Valuation of public utilities. The commission shall have power to ascertain the value of the property of every public utility in this state and every fact which in its judgment may or does have any bearing on such value. The commission shall have power to make revaluatio…

54-4-22. Statements of valuations -- Affidavits -- Records of valuation. The Public Service Commission must on or before the first day of December of each year furnish every public utility doing business in the state of Utah whose rates are based on the valuation of its propertie…

54-4-23. Accounts and records of utilities. The commission shall have power to establish a system of accounts to be kept by public utilities subject to its jurisdiction, to classify said public utilities and to establish a system of accounts for each class and to prescribe the ma…

54-4-24. Depreciation accounts and fund. The commission shall have power to require any or all public utilities to carry a proper and adequate depreciation account in accordance with such rules, regulations and forms of account as the commission may prescribe. The commission may …

54-4-25. Certificate of convenience and necessity prerequisite to construction and operation -- Electrical suppliers. (1) Except as provided in Section, a gas corporation, electric corporation, telephone corporation, telegraph corporation, heat corporation, water corporation, or …

54-4-26. Contracts calling for expenditures -- Commission to approve. Every public utility when ordered by the commission shall, before entering into any contract for construction work or for the purchase of new facilities or with respect to any other expenditures, submit such pr…

54-4-27. Payment of dividends -- Notice -- Restraint. (1) No gas or electric corporation doing business in this state shall pay any dividend upon its common stock prior to 30 days after the date of the declaration of such dividend by the board of directors of such utility corpora…

54-4-28. Merger, consolidation, or combination. No public utility shall combine, merge nor consolidate with another public utility engaged in the same general line of business in this state, without the consent and approval of the Public Service Commission, which shall be granted…

54-4-29. Acquiring voting stock or securities of like utility only on consent of commission. Hereafter no public utility shall purchase or acquire any of the voting securities or the secured obligations of any other public utility engaged in the same general line of business with…

54-4-30. Acquiring properties of like utility only on consent of commission. Hereafter no public utility shall acquire by lease, purchase or otherwise the plants, facilities, equipment or properties of any other public utility engaged in the same general line of business in this …

54-4-31. Electrical corporation to issue securities only on consent of commission -- Exceptions -- Validity of securities. (1) Except as provided by Subsectionor, without prior written approval of the commission, no electrical corporation may: (2) (4) issue any security; or assum…

54-4-37. Definitions -- Unauthorized charge to account -- Penalties -- Procedures for verification -- Authority of commission and Division of Public Utilities. (1) For purposes of this section: "Agents" includes any person representing a public utility for purposes of billing for…

54-4-39. Natural gas derived from new technologies -- Long-term contracts. (1) As used in this section: "Coal-to-liquid" means the process of converting coal into a liquid synthetic fuel. "Long-term contract" means a contract greater than five years in duration, but no greater th…

54-4-4. Classification and fixing of rates after hearing. (1) The commission shall take an action described in Subsection, if the commission finds after a hearing that: (1)(b) the rates, fares, tolls, rentals, charges, or classifications demanded, observed, charged, or collected …

54-4-4.1. Rules to govern rates. (1) The commission may, by rule or order, adopt any method of rate regulation that is: consistent with this title; in the public interest; and just and reasonable. (2) In accordance with Subsection, a method of rate regulation may include: (1) rat…

54-4-40. Approval of certain agreements between an electrical corporation and a municipality. (1) The commission shall review an agreement entered into between an electrical corporation and a municipality if the electrical corporation is required to obtain commission approval in …

54-4-41. Recovery of investment in utility-owned vehicle charging infrastructure. (1) As used in this section, "charging infrastructure program" means the program described in Subsection. (2) (2) The commission shall authorize a large-scale electric utility program that: allows f…

54-4-42. Utility Bill Assistance Program. (1) As used in this section: "Division" means the Division of Public Utilities established in Section. 54-4a-1 "Eligible customer" means the same as that term is defined in Section. 54-7-13.6 "Existing credit" refers to bill payment assis…

54-4-7. Rules, equipment, service -- Regulation after hearing. Whenever the commission shall find, after a hearing, that the rules, regulations, practices, equipment, appliances, facilities, or service of any public utility, or the methods of manufacture, distribution, transmissi…

54-4-8. Additions, improvements, extensions, repairs, or changes -- Apportioning costs. (1) Whenever the commission shall find that additions, extensions, repairs, or improvements to or changes in the existing plant, equipment, apparatus, facilities, or other physical property of…

54-4a-1. Establishment of division -- Functions. (1) There is established within the Department of Commerce a Division of Public Utilities that may: commence original proceedings, file complaints, appear as a party, present factual information and evidence, examine witnesses, adv…

54-4a-2. Director of division -- Appointment -- Authority and responsibility. The director of the Division of Public Utilities shall be appointed by the executive director of the Department of Commerce and shall serve at the pleasure of the executive director. The director of the…

54-4a-3. Budget of division -- Employment of personnel. (1) The annual budget of the Division of Public Utilities shall provide sufficient funds for the division to hire, develop, and organize a technical and professional staff to perform the duties, powers, and responsibilities …

54-4a-4. Legal counsel. The attorney general shall appoint sufficient full time legal counsel to assist, advise, and represent the division and its staff in the discharge of its duties and in all proceedings before the Public Service Commission, and in all other proceedings.

54-4a-5. Interests, relationships, and actions by employees prohibited. No employee of the Division of Public Utilities shall, while so employed: (1) have any pecuniary interest, whether as the holder of stock or other securities, or otherwise have any conflict of interest with a…

54-4a-6. Objectives. In the performance of the duties, powers, and responsibilities committed to it by law, the Division of Public Utilities shall act in the public interest in order to provide the Public Service Commission with objective and comprehensive information, evidence, …

54-5-1.5. Special regulation fee -- Supplemental Levy Committee -- Supplemental fee -- Fee for electrical cooperatives. (1) Legislative findings: A special fee to defray the cost of regulation is imposed upon all public utilities subject to the jurisdiction of the Public Service …

54-5-2. How gross operating revenue is determined. (1) Gross operating revenues of public utilities shall be determined by the executive director of the Department of Commerce from: the annual gross revenue reports filed with the Public Service Commission; and other sources of in…

54-5-3. Default in payment of fee -- Procedure to collect -- Penalties. (1) If the public utility fee is due and the payment is in default, the executive director of the Department of Commerce may: file a lien in the amount of the property of the utility; and bring an action to f…

54-5-4. Penalties. Any person or corporation which exercises or attempts to exercise any right or privilege as any such utility during the period for which the operating rights of any such utility are suspended as provided in Sectionis guilty of a class B misdemeanor. Each day's …

54-7-1. Settlement -- Limitation of issues. (1) Informal resolution, by agreement of the parties, of matters before the commission is encouraged as a means to: resolve disputes while minimizing the time and expense that is expended by: public utilities; the state; and consumers; …

54-7-1.5. Communications between commission personnel and parties restricted. No member of the Public Service Commission, administrative law judge, or commission employee who is or may reasonably be expected to be involved in the decision making process, shall make or knowingly c…

54-7-10. Orders on hearings -- Time effective. (1) Orders of the commission shall take effect and become operative on the date issued, except as otherwise provided in the order. (2) They shall continue in force for the period designated in the order, or until changed or abrogated…

54-7-11. Complaints by utilities -- Procedure. Any public utility may request agency action by the commission on any of the grounds upon which requests for agency action are allowed to be filed by other parties. The commission shall follow the same procedure as in other cases.

54-7-12. Rate increase or decrease -- Procedure -- Effective dates -- Electrical or telephone cooperative. (1) As used in this section: "Base rates" means those charges included in a public utility's generally applicable rate tariffs, including: a fare; a rate; a rental; a toll; …

54-7-12.1. Depreciation expense. In determining the depreciation expense of a telephone corporation in any proceeding under Section, the commission shall consider all relevant factors, including the alteration of asset lives to better reflect changes in the economic life of plant…

54-7-12.8. Electric energy efficiency, sustainable transportation and energy, and conservation tariff. (1) As used in this section: "Demand side management" means an activity or program that promotes electric energy efficiency or conservation, the use of heat pumps, or more effic…

54-7-12.9. Gross receipts tax decrease on electrical corporations -- Tariffs -- Procedure. (1) As used in this section: "electrical corporation" includes every corporation, cooperative association, and person, their lessees, trustees, and receivers, owning, controlling, operating…

54-7-13.4. Alternative cost recovery for major plant addition -- Procedure. (1) As used in this section: "Complete filing" means an application filed by a gas corporation or electrical corporation that substantially complies with minimum filing requirements established by the com…

54-7-13.5. Energy balancing accounts. (1) As used in this section: "Base rates" means the same as that term is defined in Subsection. 54-7-12(1) "Energy balancing account" means an electrical corporation account for some or all components of the electrical corporation's incurred …

54-7-13.6. Low-income assistance program. (1) As used in this section: "Eligible customer" means an electrical corporation or a gas corporation customer: that earns no more than: 125% of the federal poverty level for bill payment assistance or 200% of the federal poverty level fo…

54-7-13.7. Energy rebate program -- Requirement -- Reporting to Office of Energy Development. (1) As used in this section: "Energy rebate program" means a program operated by a large-scale public utility that provides financial rebates or incentives to customers for measures that…

54-7-14. Orders and decisions conclusive on collateral attack. In all collateral actions or proceedings the orders and decisions of the commission which have become final shall be conclusive.