Capitol Report
By Rep. Robert Q. Williams
S.C. House District 62
The House amended and gave second reading approval to H.4260, the “S.C. Ratepayer Protection Act of 2019.”
The legislation draws upon the work of the special House Utility Ratepayer Protection Committee which was appointed by the speaker of the House following the announcement from Santee Cooper and SCANA’s South Carolina Electric & Gas Co. that construction on the V.C.
Summer nuclear reactors in Fairfield County was being abandoned after billions in fees had been collected from South Carolina’s ratepayers under the Base Load Review Act to support the failed nuclear power project.
The legislation includes reforms and enhanced authority for the Public Service Commission, the body that provides oversight and renders decisions in public utility matters. Provisions are included to prevent conflicts interests.
The legislation provides that a person may not serve as the state’s Consumer Advocate if the Public Service Commission regulates a business with which that person is associated.
The Consumer Advocate may not interview or seek employment with a public utility while serving as the Consumer Advocate and may not represent a public utility or appear on behalf of a public utility in a proceeding before the Public Service Commission in a matter within the commission’s jurisdiction for a period of one year after termination.
An employee of the Department of Consumer Affairs is prohibited from soliciting, receiving or accepting anything of value from those regulated by the Public Service Commission. Those regulated by the PSC are prohibited from offering, facilitating, or providing anything of value to a department employee.
Violations are misdemeanor criminal offenses punishable with fines of up to $5,000 and/or imprisonment for up to one year. The legislation strengthens provisions that preclude commission employees and employees of the PSC’s Office of Regulatory Staff from having financial ties with those regulated by the PSC.
The Public Service Commission and the Office of Regulatory Staff are afforded authority to employ third-party consultants and experts in carrying out their duties if the commission determines it is in the best interests of ratepayers and it is approved by the Public Utilities Review Committee. The legislation provides that, before making a determination, the commissioners shall question the parties during hearings of contested cases when appropriate.
The commission is empowered with the authority to require mediation or alternative dispute resolution. The PSC is afforded more expansive authority to conduct examinations, including physical inspection of facilities, of all those who are subject to its jurisdiction.
Public utilities that fail or refuse to permit the Office of Regulatory Staff or Public Service Commission to examine and inspect its books, records, accounts, and documents, or its plant, property, or facilities, as provided by law, must be punishable by a fine up to $10,000 for each day they are in violation.
Public utilities are subject to a fine up to $10,000 for each day they are in violation of any law or refuse to conform to or obey any rule, order, or regulation of the Office of Regulatory Staff or Public Service Commission.
An officer, agent or employee of a public utility, who willfully neglects or refuses to make and furnish any report required by the commission or who willfully or unlawfully hinders, delays or obstructs the commission in the discharge of its duties shall forfeit and pay five thousand dollars for each offense. Misdemeanor criminal offenses are established for those who knowingly or willfully provide false information or withhold information in required reports or responses to the Office of Regulatory Staff or the Public Service Commission.
Violators are subject to a fine of up to $1,000 and/or imprisonment for up to 30 days.
The legislation includes new requirements for the principal executive officer and principal financial officer of a public utility to sign and officially certify materials submitted to the Public Service Commission. Felony criminal penalties are established for violating these certification requirements, punishable with fines of up to $100,000 and/or imprisonment for up to five years.
The House approved and sent the Senate H.3046, a bill establishing criminal offenses furthering terrorism. The legislation establishes the felony offense of furthering terrorism that applies to someone who makes significant plans or takes actions toward the commission of an act of violence with the intent to commit an act of terrorism. A violator is subject to imprisonment for up to 30 years.
The legislation also establishes a felony offense that applies to someone who provides material or financial support of an act of terrorism or who conceals the actions or plans of another to carry out an act of terrorism. A violator is subject to imprisonment for up to 20 years.
The legislation authorizes the seizure and forfeiture of real and personal property used in connection with these offenses. The legislation revises the statutory definition of “terrorism” to make clear that it encompasses instances of domestic terror by including criminal acts dangerous to human life that appear to be intended to intimidate or coerce groups based on the group’s race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin or sexual orientation.