Senators from Oregon and Washington State are questioning why a recent FERC order that extends the Commission’s power market mitigation program across the western states 24 hours a day, seven days a week does not allow Pacific Northwest electricity customers to seek refunds for past overcharges dating to last summer.

Washington Sens. Maria Cantwell (D) and Patty Murray (D), and Oregon Sens. Gordon Smith (R) and Ron Wyden (D) cited their concern in a June 20 letter to FERC Chairman Curt Hebert, which otherwise endorsed the Commission’s action this week in which it extended price mitigation to the entire western region and around-the-clock through September 2002 (see Daily GPI, June 19).

“…[W]e are very concerned about the absence of a mechanism allowing electricity customers in the Pacific Northwest to seek refunds for past overcharges, dating to last summer, that have been unjust and unreasonable,” the senators wrote. They asked FERC to reconsider an earlier decision in which it denied a complaint filed by Puget Sound Energy under Section 206 of the Federal Power Act, and to establish a refund effective date consistent with Puget Sound Energy’s October 2000 rate filing.

As part of its expanded mitigation order, FERC also announced that it will hold a settlement conference before one of its administrative law judges to discuss resolving refund issues for past periods. But the senators noted the settlement talks will only deal with power sales in California. In addition, the lawmakers said Commission members had testified before a Senate panel this week that customers in the Northwest will only be able to seek refunds for sales that occur after July 2, 2001. “We believe ratepayers in the Northwest need to be treated with the same fairness and standards as California ratepayers.”

Since last June, the letter continued, consumers, utilities and businesses across the Northwest have been feeling the negative effects of high West Coast energy prices. “Indeed, throughout the Northwest we have seen retail rate hikes reaching almost 50%, and more increases are on the way this fall when the Bonneville Power Administration is forced to raise its rates as much as 100 percent — in no small part the result of its exposure to severely dysfunctional Western power markets.” The Senators urged Hebert to act expeditiously on this matter. “Please act to remedy what we believe is a serious oversight in your most recent order,” they wrote.

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