(A) (1) The city’s Natural Gas Regulation Revolving Loan Fund shall be used to make loans to municipalities for rate regulation and to pay the costs of administration. The fund shall consist of money appropriated from the State Energy Resource Fund and money from repayment of loans. The fund shall be administered by the Policy Research Office which shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to carry out this section. The rules and regulations shall include:
(a) Loan application procedures and forms; and
(b) Fund-use monitoring and quarterly accounting of fund use.
(2) Applicants for a loan from the fund shall provide a budget statement which specifies the proposed use of the loan proceeds. Such proceeds may only be used for the costs and expenses incurred by the city to analyze rate filings and establish area-wide rates, and to finance litigation costs of any appeals. Such costs and expenses may include the cost of rate consultants, attorneys, hearing officers, preparation of transcripts, and hearing records provided for by this chapter, expert witnesses, and any other necessary costs related to the conduct and administration of the hearing provided for in § 53.35(D). One loan may be made under this section to each rate area, and such loan shall be made to the applicant representing the largest number of customers. All loans made under this section shall be paid by the utility to the Policy Research Office within 30 days of being billed by the office. The utility may recover the amount paid on a loan through a special surcharge on customers which may be billed on the monthly statements for up to a 12-month period, to be shown on the statements as a charge for rate regulation expense.
(B) The city’s Natural Gas Regulation Revolving Loan Fund shall be audited as part of the regular audit of the Policy Research Office budget and copies of the audit shall be available to all municipalities and any utility supplying natural gas in this state.
(C) Any money in the city’s Natural Gas Regulation Revolving Loan Fund available for investment shall be invested by the State Investment Officer pursuant to Neb. RS 72-1237 to 72-1269. If the fund balance exceeds $400,000, the income on the money in the fund shall be credited to the permanent school fund until the balance of the city’s Natural Gas Regulation Revolving Loan Fund falls below such amount.
(D) A municipality which receives a loan under this section shall be responsible to provide for the opportunity for all other municipalities to participate in all rate area activities. Such municipality shall not exclude any other municipality in the rate area from the information or benefits accruing from the use of the loan funds.
(Prior Code, § 3-1216)
Statutory reference:
Related provisions, see Neb. RS 19-4617