[37] Bill 100 Original (PDF)
Bill 100
Bill 1002000
An Act to promote efficiency
in the municipal electricity sector
and to protect consumers
from unjustified rate increases
Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, enacts as follows:
1.The Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998 is amended by adding the following sections:
Rate increase for interest, etc.
78.1 (1)Subsections (2) and (3) apply to an order of the Board under section 78 approving or fixing just and reasonable rates that a distributor that is a corporation incorporated under the Business Corporations Act pursuant to section 142 of the Electricity Act, 1998 may charge for distributing electricity during any part of the period from June 1, 2000 to February 28, 2003 where,
(a)the order, but for this section, would allow an increase in the rates that the distributor charges for distributing electricity over the rates that, in the Board's determination, the distributor charged for distributing electricity pursuant to the applicable order of the Board in effect at the time of the application for the order; and
(b)any part of the increase is attributable, directly or indirectly, to an obligation of the distributor to make a payment as, on account of, or in lieu of, interest or dividends on any security or other financing instrument issued by the distributor, including any debt financing of any nature, in the course of,
(i)a transaction or a series of transactions in the initial financing or capitalization of the distributor as a corporation, or
(ii)a transaction or a series of transactions, other than those described in subclause (i).
When allowed
(2)Despite any licence issued by the Board before this section comes into force, the Board shall not make an order described in subsection (1) that permits an increase described in subclause (1) (b) (i) unless the Board is satisfied that the person who received the payments described in that subclause has used them solely to protect the interests of consumers with respect to prices and the reliability and quality of electricity service.
Same
(3)Despite any licence issued by the Board before this section comes into force, the Board shall not make an order described in subsection (1) that permits an increase described in subclause (1) (b) (ii) unless the Board is satisfied that the distributor has incurred the obligation described in that subclause solely to protect the interests of consumers with respect to prices and the reliability and quality of electricity service.
Previous orders
(4)If, before this section comes into force, the Board has made an order approving or fixing rates that a distributor may charge for distributing electricity during any part of the period mentioned in subsection (1), the Board shall commence a proceeding to determine whether the rates approved or fixed under the order are just and reasonable, and subsections (1), (2) and (3) apply to the proceeding.
Amended order
(5)An order that the Board makes under section 78 in a proceeding commenced under subsection (4) shall be deemed to be effective from the date of the order in respect of which the Board commenced the proceeding.
Rebate of excess
(6)If the distributor has collected charges in excess of the rates that the Board approves or fixes in an order made in a proceeding commenced under subsection (4), the Board shall require the distributor to provide a rebate of the excess charges to its consumers.
Non-application of section
(7)This section does not apply to an order that the Board made before June 1, 2000 approving or fixing rates that a distributor may charge for distributing electricity.
Initial rate application
78.2 (1)Upon the initial rate application of a distributor that is a corporation incorporated under the Business Corporations Act pursuant to section 142 of the Electricity Act, 1998, the Board shall, in making an order under section 78 approving or fixing just and reasonable rates that the distributor may charge for distributing electricity, consider,
(a)whether all of the electricity assets in relation to the incorporating municipality at the time the municipality made its most recent transfer by-law have been transferred under a transfer by-law; and
(b)if any of the electricity assets in relation to the incorporating municipality at the time the municipality made its most recent transfer by-law have not been transferred under a transfer by-law, whether the rates that the Board would otherwise approve or fix, if section 78.1 did not apply, would be lower if any of the untransferred electricity assets in relation to the incorporating municipality had been transferred to the distributor.
Amount of lower rates
(2)If the Board determines under clause (1) (b) that the rates that it would otherwise approve or fix would be lower if any of the untransferred electricity assets in relation to the incorporating municipality had been transferred to the distributor, it shall determine the amount by which the rates would be lower.
Reduction of rates
(3)In making an order under section 78 with respect to the initial application of a distributor described in subsection (1), the Board shall reduce the rates that it would otherwise approve or fix for the distributing of electricity, having applied section 78.1, by the amount determined in subsection (2).
Exception
(4)Despite subsection (3), the Board shall not reduce the rates by any amount that would result in rates that, in the Board's determination, are lower than the rates that the distributor charged for distributing electricity on December 31, 1999.
Previous orders
(5)If, before this section comes into force, a distributor described in subsection (1) makes an initial rate application and the Board makes an order under section 78 approving or fixing rates that the distributor may charge for distributing electricity, the Board shall commence a proceeding to determine whether the rates approved or fixed under the order are just and reasonable, and subsections (1) to (4) apply to the proceeding.
Amended order
(6)An order that the Board makes under section 78 in a proceeding commenced under subsection (5) shall be deemed to be effective from the date of the order in respect of which the Board commenced the proceeding.
Rebate of excess
(7)If the distributor has collected charges in excess of the rates that the Board approves or fixes in an order made in a proceeding commenced under subsection (5), the Board shall require the distributor to provide a rebate of the excess charges to its consumers.
Definitions
(8)In this section, "
electricity assets" means, in relation to a municipal corporation,
(a)all assets and rights, other than shares in a corporation incorporated under the Business Corporations Act pursuant to section 142 of the Electricity Act, 1998, that,
(i)are owned by the municipal corporation, or by a commission or other body through which the municipal corporation generates, transmits, distributes or retails electricity, other than by a corporation incorporated under the Business Corporations Act pursuant to section 142 of the Electricity Act, 1998, and
(ii)are related to, or derived from, the activities of generating, transmitting, distributing or retailing of electricity on behalf of the municipal corporation or were, on November 7, 1998, related to or derived from those activities, and
(b)all money, investments and other property, that,
(i)the municipal corporation, commission or other body through which the municipal corporation generates, transmits, distributes or retails electricity, other than a corporation incorporated under the Business Corporations Act pursuant to section 142 of the Electricity Act, 1998, acquired on or after November 7, 1998, and
(ii)are derived from the sale, lease or other disposition of assets and rights that were electricity assets in relation to the municipal corporation at the time of their sale, lease or other disposition, as the case may be, other than assets and rights transferred to a corporation incorporated under the Business Corporations Act pursuant to section 142 of the Electricity Act, 1998\; ("lments d'actif lis l'lectricit") "
incorporating municipality" means, in relation to a distributor, the municipal corporation or corporations that caused the distributor to be incorporated under the Business Corporations Act pursuant to section 142 of the Electricity Act, 1998\; ("municipalit concerne") "
initial rate application" means the first application that a distributor makes under section 78, or that a distributor or a predecessor of it is deemed to have made under subsection 129 (7), for an order approving or fixing rates that the distributor may charge for distributing electricity; ("requte initiale concernant les tarifs") "
transfer by-law" means a by-law made under section 145 of the Electricity Act, 1998. ("rglement municipal de transfert ou de mutation")
Commencement
2.This Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.
Short title
3.The short title of this Act is the Ontario Energy Board Amendment Act, 2000.
EXPLANATORY NOTE
The Bill amends the Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998.
The Bill imposes restrictions on an order that the Ontario Energy Board can make approving or fixing rates that a business corporation incorporated pursuant to section 142 of the Electricity Act, 1998 may charge for distributing electricity during any part of the period from June 1, 2000 to February 28, 2003 if the order results in an increase in rates that is attributable, in any part, to payments that the distributor has to make related to its financing. The Board must be satisfied that the person who received the payments has used them solely to protect the interests of consumers with respect to prices and the reliability and quality of electricity service or that the distributor has incurred the obligation to make the payments solely to protect those interests of consumers.
Upon the initial application that a distributor that is a business corporation incorporated by a municipality pursuant to section 142 of the Electricity Act, 1998 makes for a rate order, the Board shall determine the amount by which the rates of the distributor would be lower if the municipality had transferred to the distributor any of the electricity assets (as defined) in relation to the municipality that the municipality has not transferred to the distributor by a transfer by-law under the Electricity Act, 1998. The Board shall reduce the rates of the distributor by that amount, except that the resulting rates shall not be lower than those that the distributor charged on December 31, 1999.