A BILL to amend and reenact § 56-581 of the Code of Virginia and to amend the Code of Virginia by adding a section numbered 56-596, relating to implementing competition for electric metering and billing services.
§56-581. Regulation of rates subject to Commission's jurisdiction.
A. Subject to the provisions of §56-582, the Commission shall regulate the rates for the transmission of electric energy, to the extent not prohibited by federal law, and for the distribution of electric energy to such retail customers on an unbundled basis, but, subject to the provisions of this chapter after the date of customer choice, the Commission no longer shall regulate rates and services for the generation component of retail electric energy sold to retail customers.
B. No later than September 1, C. Beginning July 1, 1999, and thereafter, no cooperative that was a member of a power supply cooperative on January 1, 1999, shall be obligated to file any rate rider as a consequence of an increase or decrease in the rates, other than fuel costs, of its wholesale supplier, nor must any adjustment be made to such cooperative's rates as a consequence thereof.
D. Except for the provision of default services under §56-585 or emergency services in §56-586, nothing in this chapter shall authorize the Commission to regulate the rates or charges for electric service to the Commonwealth and its municipalities.
§ 56-596. Implementation of competition for billing and metering services; Commission authority.
A. Retail electric energy customers shall have the opportunity to obtain billing services, metering services, or both, from competing billing or metering service providers as determined by the General Assembly.
B. Competition for billing services and metering services may be implemented pursuant to separate time schedules. Neither billing services nor metering services shall be made subject to competition, however, until it is technologically feasible to do so and reasonable steps have been taken to educate and prepare retail customers for the implementation of competition for such services.
C. For the purposes of this section: "billing services" means services related to billing customers for competitive electric services or billing customers on a consolidated basis for both competitive and regulated electric services; and
"metering services" means the ownership, installation, maintenance, or reading of electric meters and includes meter data management services. D. Following the effective date of this section, the Commission shall evaluate the timing of and procedures for separately implementing competition for billing and metering services.
1. The Commission shall examine (i) the technology available to enable customers to benefit from competition for billing and metering services; (ii) the degree to which customers have adapted to the transition to competition for other electric services so as to determine such customers’ preparedness for implementing competition for billing and metering services; (iii) the schedule that should be established for implementing such competition; (iv) the criteria and procedures that should be applied in implementing competition for billing and metering services; and (v) such other issues as may be directed by the General Assembly.
2. In connection with its evaluation, the Commission shall conduct public hearings, or otherwise provide the opportunity for members of the public to comment, on the schedule and procedures for implementing competition for billing and metering services.
3. The Commission shall present its findings in a report to the Legislative Transition Task Force, due December 1, 2000, and thereafter, at intervals no less frequent than annually until competition is implemented for both billing services and metering services.
4. The Commission’s initial report to the Legislative Transition Task Force pursuant this section, and any subsequent reports, shall include the Commission’s recommendations regarding (i) whether adequate and reliable billing systems and metering equipment are available to enable customers to benefit from implementing competition for billing or metering services, or both; (ii) whether customers are adequately prepared for the introduction of billing or metering services, or both, (iii) a recommended schedule for implementing any such competition for one or more classes of retail electric energy customers, and (iii) any recommended procedures or requirements that should be established in connection with implementing competition for billing or metering services, or both.1999 2000, and annually thereafter, the Commission shall submit a report to the General Assembly evaluating the advantages and disadvantages of competition for services, other than billing and metering, which have not been made subject to competition, and making recommendations as to when, and for whom, such other services should be made subject to competition. Competition shall be implemented for billing services, metering services, or both, pursuant to § 56-596.