The Washington Attorney General’s Office wants Avista Corporation to refund $41 million to its Evergreen State customers.
Attorney General Bob Ferguson made the request to the state Utilities and Transportation Commission following a Washington Court of Appeals ruling that found the UTC in 2015 improperly approved rate changes for the Spokane-based utility.
The UTC approved rates for Avista’s electric and natural gas services that factored in the cost of the company’s projected growth. That included estimated property expansion, which added some $20 million total to Avista’s rates over the two-year period the rates were in effect.
The AG says the addition violated state law, which requires that utility property must be “used and useful” to be included in customer rates. Also, Ferguson argued the approved rate was calculated incorrectly and did not reflect updated, lower power costs, adding about $21 million to Avista’s rates during the two-year period they were in effect.
The appellate court agreed that the UTC’s decision violated state law and ordered the UTC to recalculate the rates. As part of that process, the AG’s Office is seeking the refunds for the nearly 254,000 electric and 167,000 natural gas customers in Eastern Washington affcted by the overcharges from January 11th, 2016 to April 30th, 2018.
The UTC will issue a final decision on the refunds sometime after a hearing on the case on October 30th. (Washington AG)
