NOTE: The governor signed this measure on 3/29/2013.
      
      
      HOUSE BILL 13-1027
      
      
      BY REPRESENTATIVE(S) Conti, Landgraf, McLachlan, Mitsch Bush,
      Pabon, Priola, Scott, Singer, Swalm;
      also SENATOR(S) Tochtrop, Schwartz.
      
      
      Concerning an increase in the transparency of proceedings before
           the public utilities commission by requiring the director of
           the commission to report annually to the general assembly
           regarding recent energy rate cases.
      
      
      Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado:
      
           SECTION 1.  In Colorado Revised Statutes, amend 40-2-103 as
      follows:
      
           40-2-103.  Director - duties - report. (1)  The executive director of
      the department of regulatory agencies, pursuant to section 13 of article XII
      of the state constitution, and with the approval of the commission, shall
      appoint a director of the commission. The director of the agency shall
      manage the operations of the agency in order to carry out the public utilities
      law, to carry out and implement policies, procedures, and decisions made
      by the commission, as defined in section 40-2-101 (1), and to meet the
      requirements of the commission concerning any matters within the authority
      of an agency transferred by a type 1 transfer, as defined in section
      24-1-105, C.R.S., and which requirements are under the jurisdiction of
      the commission. The director shall have has all the powers and
      responsibilities of the division director for this purpose, including the power
      to issue all necessary process, writs, warrants, and notices. The director
      shall have has the requisite power to serve warrants and other process in
      any county or city and county of this state and to delegate such actions to
      duly authorized employees or agents of the agency as appropriate.
      
           (2) (a)  Beginning with the second regular session of the
      sixty-ninth general assembly, the director of the commission or
      the director's designee shall present an annual report to the joint
      house and senate transportation committees and to the house
      business, labor, and economic and workforce development
      committee and the senate business, labor, and technology
      committee, or any successor committees, regarding energy rate
      cases that came before the commission during the immediately
      preceding two years. The report and any accompanying materials
      may be prepared and submitted to the committees in hard copy
      form or electronically and must include a synopsis, in plain
      language, of the issues and the outcome of each energy utility
      rate case; the amount of any increase or decrease in rates that
      resulted from each energy utility rate case, expressed as a
      percentage of the total amount billed to ratepayers per month
      and per year; and the dollar amount of the average increase or
      decrease in the monthly bill paid by each class of energy utility
      ratepayers. In addition, the director shall make the
      plain-language synopsis available to the public by posting the
      synopsis on the commission's web site.
      
           (b)  The director may report on matters outside the scope of
      the evidence and testimony presented at a rate case hearing.
      
           (c)  The report described in this subsection (2) may be
      presented at the same time as, and the director is encouraged to
      accompany it with, any other formal or informal report on the
      commission's operations, including a consumer savings report.
      
           SECTION 2.  Act subject to petition - effective date. This act
      takes effect at 12:01 a.m. on the day following the expiration of the
      ninety-day period after final adjournment of the general assembly (August
      7, 2013, if adjournment sine die is on May 8, 2013); except that, if a
      referendum petition is filed pursuant to section 1 (3) of article V of the state
      constitution against this act or an item, section, or part of this act within
      such period, then the act, item, section, or part will not take effect unless
      approved by the people at the general election to be held in November 2014
      and, in such case, will take effect on the date of the official declaration of
      the vote thereon by the governor.
      
      
      
      
      ________________________________________________________
      Mark Ferrandino                         John P. Morse
      SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE                     PRESIDENT OF
      OF REPRESENTATIVES                         THE SENATE
      
      
      
      
      
      
      ____________________________  ____________________________
      Marilyn Eddins                      Cindi L. Markwell
      CHIEF CLERK OF THE HOUSE                 SECRETARY OF
      OF REPRESENTATIVES                         THE SENATE
      
      
      
      
                  APPROVED________________________________________
      
      
      
      
      
                                    _________________________________________
                                    John W. Hickenlooper
                                    GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF COLORADO