Report Title:

PUC Special Fund Excess Moneys; Undergrounding; Study

THE SENATE

S.R. NO.

66

TWENTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2001

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 
   


SENATE RESOLUTION

 

requesting the public utilities commission to study the feasibility of using excess public utilities special fund MONEYS to ESTABLISH A utility lines undergrounding FUND.

 

WHEREAS, a 1999 Legislative Reference Bureau (LRB) study on undergrounding public utility lines identified benefits of undergrounding that included reduced risk of accidents due to fallen utility lines, reduced health risks related to known and unknown environmental hazards, and preservation of the State's natural beauty and view planes; and

WHEREAS, the study also identified the cost of undergrounding utility lines as a critical factor in the issue of utility lines placement; and

WHEREAS, as noted in the LRB's study, one method of financing undergrounding without affecting a utility's rate of return and, ultimately consumer rates, is to earmark funds already paid into state coffers, for undergrounding; and

WHEREAS, section 269-33, Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS), establishes the Public Utilities Commission Special Fund to provide funding for the expenses of the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) and the Division of Consumer Advocacy of the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs; and

WHEREAS, section 269-33(d), HRS, requires that all moneys in excess of $1,000,000 remaining on balance in the PUC Special Fund on June 30 of each year lapse to the credit of the state general fund; and

WHEREAS, almost $14,000,000 in excess PUC special fund moneys were transferred to the general fund in the last three fiscal years; and

WHEREAS, these excess special fund moneys may provide a source of funding for undergrounding utility lines; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-First Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2001, that the Public Utilities Commission is requested to study the feasibility and appropriateness of using excess PUC special fund moneys to establish a separate revolving fund to provide matching or supplemental funds to offset the costs of undergrounding utility lines; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the PUC is requested to submit its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty days before the convening of the 2002 Regular Session; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a certified copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the Chair of the Public Utilities Commission.

 

 

 

OFFERED BY:

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