Sec. 16-49. Expenses of Department of Public Utility Control and Office of Consumer Counsel. Assessment of regulated companies.
Sec. 16-49. Expenses of Department of Public Utility Control and Office of
Consumer Counsel. Assessment of regulated companies. (a) As used in this section:
(1) "Company" means (A) any public service company other than a telephone company, that had more than one hundred thousand dollars of gross revenues in the state in
the calendar year preceding the assessment year under this section, except any such
company not providing service to retail customers in the state, (B) any telephone company that had more than one hundred thousand dollars of gross revenues in the state
from telecommunications services in the calendar year preceding the assessment year
under this section, except any such company not providing service to retail customers in
the state, (C) any certified telecommunications provider that had more than one hundred
thousand dollars of gross revenues in the state from telecommunications services in the
calendar year preceding the assessment year under this section, except any such certified
telecommunications provider not providing service to retail customers in the state, or
(D) any electric supplier that had more than one hundred thousand dollars of gross
revenues in the state in the calendar year preceding the assessment year under this section, except any such supplier not providing electric generation services to retail customers in the state;
(2) "Telecommunications services" means (A) in the case of telecommunications
services provided by a telephone company, any service provided pursuant to a tariff
approved by the department other than wholesale services and resold access and interconnections services, and (B) in the case of telecommunications services provided by
a certified telecommunications provider other than a telephone company, any service
provided pursuant to a tariff approved by the department and pursuant to a certificate
of public convenience and necessity; and
(3) "Fiscal year" means the period beginning July first and ending June thirtieth.
(b) On or before July 15, 1999, and on or before May first, annually thereafter, each
company shall report its intrastate gross revenues of the preceding calendar year to the
department, which amount shall be subject to audit by the department. For each fiscal
year, each company shall pay the Department of Public Utility Control the company's
share of all expenses of the department and the Office of Consumer Counsel for such
fiscal year. On or before September first, annually, the department shall give to each
company a statement which shall include: (1) The amount appropriated to the department
and the Office of Consumer Counsel for the fiscal year beginning July first of the same
year; (2) the total gross revenues of all companies; and (3) the proposed assessment
against the company for the fiscal year beginning on July first of the same year, adjusted
to reflect the estimated payment required under subdivision (1) of subsection (c) of this
section. Such proposed assessment shall be calculated by multiplying the company's
percentage share of the total gross revenues as specified in subdivision (2) of this subsection by the total revenue appropriated to the department and the Office of Consumer
Counsel as specified in subdivision (1) of this subsection.
(c) Each company shall pay the department: (1) On or before June thirtieth, annually,
an estimated payment for the expenses of the following year equal to twenty-five per
cent of its assessment for the fiscal year ending on such June thirtieth, (2) on or before
September thirtieth, annually, twenty-five per cent of its proposed assessment, adjusted
to reflect any credit or amount due under the recalculated assessment for the preceding
fiscal year, as determined by the department under subsection (d) of this section, provided if the company files an objection in accordance with subsection (e) of this section,
it may withhold the amount stated in its objection, and (3) on or before the following
December thirty-first and March thirty-first, annually, the remaining fifty per cent of
its proposed assessment in two equal installments.
(d) Immediately following the close of each fiscal year, the department shall recalculate the proposed assessment of each company, based on the expenses, as determined
by the Comptroller, of the department and the Office of Consumer Counsel for such
fiscal year. On or before September first, annually, the department shall give to each
company a statement showing the difference between its recalculated assessment and
the amount previously paid by the company.
(e) Any company may object to a proposed or recalculated assessment by filing
with the department, not later than September fifteenth of the year of said assessment,
a petition stating the amount of the proposed or recalculated assessment to which it
objects and the grounds upon which it claims such assessment is excessive, erroneous,
unlawful or invalid. After a company has filed a petition, the department shall hold a
hearing. After reviewing the company's petition and testimony, if any, the department
shall issue an order in accordance with its findings. The company shall pay the department the amount indicated in the order not later than thirty days after the date of the
order.
(f) The department shall remit all payments received under this section to the State
Treasurer for deposit in the Consumer Counsel and Public Utility Control Fund established under section 16-48a. Such funds shall be accounted for as expenses recovered
from public service companies and certified telecommunications providers. All payments made under this section shall be in addition to any taxes payable to the state under
chapters 211, 212, 212a and 219.
(g) Any assessment unpaid on the due date or any portion of an assessment withheld
after the due date under subsection (c) of this section shall be subject to interest at the rate
of one and one-fourth per cent per month or fraction thereof, or fifty dollars, whichever is
greater.
(h) Any company that fails to report in accordance with this section shall be subject
to civil penalties in accordance with section 16-41.
(1953, S. 2610d; 1959, P.A. 48, S. 1; 354, S. 1; 1969, P.A. 611, S. 1; 1972, P.A. 138, S. 2; P.A. 74-179, S. 1, 2; P.A.
75-486, S. 4, 69; P.A. 76-335, S. 1; P.A. 77-614, S. 162, 164, 610; P.A. 80-482, S. 82, 348; Nov. Sp. Sess. P.A. 81-8, S.
1, 4; P.A. 83-55, S. 1, 3; 83-587, S. 31, 96; P.A. 84-296, S. 1, 2; P.A. 85-246, S. 10; 85-552, S. 1, 8; P.A. 88-17; 88-22, S.
4; P.A. 90-148, S. 24, 34; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 91-14, S. 16, 30; P.A. 94-74, S. 5, 11; P.A. 98-28, S. 36, 117; P.A. 99-105,
S. 2, 4.)
History: 1959 acts increased the assessment under Subsec. (a) from 45% to 50%, provided for certification of assessments
under Subsec. (b) to be on or before first day of September rather than first day of August and deleted provision that deposit
of assessments in general fund be accounted for as expenses recovered from public service companies; 1969 act increased
limit on amount of assessment from $250,000 to $450,000; 1972 act increased percentage of expenses assessed to 56%
and limit on assessment amount to $600,000; P.A. 74-179 deleted provision re limit on dollar amount of assessment and
exempted companies with gross earnings not exceeding $100,000 rather than $300,000; P.A. 75-486 replaced public
utilities commission with public utilities control authority, raised percentage of expenses assessed to 70% in Subsec. (a)
and added exception re Subsec. (c) and replaced 6% interest with rate established by authority in Subsec. (b); P.A. 76-335
included expenses of office of consumer counsel under Subsec. (a); P.A. 77-614 replaced authority with division of public
utility control within the department of business regulation and office of consumer counsel with division of consumer
counsel within the same department, effective January 1, 1979; P.A. 80-482 made division of public utility control an
independent department, placed division of consumer counsel within it and deleted references to abolished department of
business regulation; Nov. Sp. Sess. P.A. 81-8 redefined "public service company" to exempt any company not providing
service at retail directly to consumers in the state, deleted most of Subsec. (a) and all of Subsecs. (b) and (c), and added
new Subsecs. (b) to (h), providing for assessment on current basis of public service companies for all expenses of department
of public utility control and division of consumer counsel for fiscal years beginning July 1, 1981, to July 1, 1983, and for
70% of such expenses for following fiscal years; P.A. 83-55 extended assessment of public service companies for all
expenses of department and division through fiscal year beginning July 1, 1984; P.A. 83-587 made technical change in
Subsec. (c); P.A. 84-296 extended assessment of public service companies for all expenses of department and division
through fiscal year beginning July 1, 1986; P.A. 85-246 deleted reference to street railway companies in Subsec. (a); P.A.
85-552 repealed Subsec. (b) re assessments for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1981, and relettered the remaining Subsecs.
accordingly, repealed provision assessing public service companies for 70%, instead of for all, expenses of department
for fiscal years beginning on and after July 1, 1987, and added Subsec. (h) re report to general assembly; P.A. 88-17
defined the term "certified competitive telecommunications provider" and applied provisions to such providers; P.A. 88-22 substituted office of consumer counsel for the division of consumer counsel; P.A. 90-148 amended Subsec. (a) to
distinguish between telephone companies with less than $100,000 of gross revenue and those with more than said amount
for purposes of assessment under this section, amended Subsec. (b) to make the assessment thereunder for department
expenses applicable with respect to state fiscal years ending prior to July 1, 1990, and inserted a new Subsec. (c), with
appropriate changes in lettering for succeeding Subsecs., providing assessment procedures for department expenses virtually identical to those in Subsec. (b), except as described in Subdiv. (3), applicable in the case of state fiscal years ending
after July 1, 1990, with such changes in procedure occurring in the reference to gross revenues of telecommunications
providers because of the change in state taxes imposed on such providers commencing January 1, 1990, and in the provision
for an estimated payment of expenses for the following year, first payable on or before June 30, 1990; June Sp. Sess. P.A.
91-14 amended Subsec. (f) to provide that on and after July 1, 1991, moneys deposited with state treasurer shall be credited
to consumer counsel and public utility control fund, rather than general fund; P.A. 94-74 changed applicability from public
service companies and certified competitive telecommunications providers to public service companies and persons, firms
and corporations certified to provide intrastate telecommunications services, collectively referred to as "companies",
deleted references to chapter 210a and provisions re fiscal years ending prior to July 1, 1990, and calendar years ending
on or before December 31, 1989, divided Subsec. (c) into Subsecs. (b) and (c), corrected reference in Subsec. (b) to source
of estimated payment requirement and made technical corrections to Subsecs. (e), (f) and (g), effective July 1, 1994;
(Revisor's note: In 1997 in Subsecs. (a) and (b) references to "subdivision (24)" and "subsection (24)" of Sec. 12-407 were
changed editorially by the Revisors to "subdivision (26)" in all cases to conform section with Sec. 12-407 and customary
statutory usage); P.A. 98-28 added Subsec. (a)(3) concerning certain electric suppliers and making technical changes,
effective July 1, 1998; P.A. 99-105 amended Subsec. (a) by deleting former Subdivs. (1) and (2), adding new Subdiv. (1)
defining "company", incorporating therein former Subdiv. (3) as Subpara. (D), and by adding new Subdivs. (2) and (3)
defining "telecommunications services" and "fiscal year", amended Subsec. (b) by inserting provision subjecting companies to audits, by deleting references to personnel fringe benefits and expenses for central state services and by referring
to the defined term "company" in lieu of existing references to various entities, amended Subsec. (c) to require a hearing
after a company has filed a petition in lieu of upon the request of the company filing a petition, added reference in Subsec.
(g) to "fifty dollars, whichever is greater", deleted former Subsec. (h) and inserted new Subsec. (h) re penalties, and made
numerous technical changes, effective July 1, 1999.
See Sec. 28-31 for assessment of Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensees by the department for the nuclear safety
emergency preparedness program.
Subsec. (b):
Cited. 214 C. 609.