Connecticut Light & Power Co. v. Public Utilities Regulatory Authority

── Connecticut Light & Power Co. v. Public Utilities Regulatory Authority ── Court: Supreme Court of Connecticut Date: May 12, 2026 Author: McDonald Category: General ************************************************ The “officially released” date that appears near the beginning of an opinion is the date the opinion will be published in the Connecticut Law Journal or the date it is released as a slip opinion. The operative date for the beginning of all time periods for the filing of postopinion motions and petitions for certification is the “officially released” date appearing in the opinion. All opinions are subject to modification and technical correction prior to official publication in the Connecti- cut Law Journal and subsequently in the Connecticut Reports or Connecticut Appellate Reports. In the event of discrepancies between the advance release version of an opinion and the version appearing in the Connecticut Law Journal and subsequently in the Connecticut Reports or Connecticut Appellate Reports, the latest version is to be considered authoritative. The syllabus and procedural history accompanying an opinion that appear in the Connecticut Law Journal and subsequently in the Connecticut Reports or Connecticut Appellate Reports are copyrighted by the Secretary of the State, State of Connecticut, and may not be reproduced or distributed without the express written permission of the Commission on Official Legal Publications, Judicial Branch, State of Connecticut. ************************************************  Connecticut Light & Power Co. v. Public Utilities Regulatory Authority THE CONNECTICUT LIGHT AND POWER COMPANY v. PUBLIC UTILITIES REGULATORY AUTHORITY (SC 21123) McDonald, D’Auria, Ecker, Alexander, Dannehy and Bright, Js. Syllabus In 2017, the plaintiff electric supplier filed an application with the defen- dant, the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA), seeking approval of amendments to the base rates it charges customers. In January, 2018, the plaintiff entered into a settlement agreement with various parties, includ- ing PURA’s prosecutorial division, that resolved the 2017 rate case and set new base rates for 2018 through 2020. The agreement also created a new mechanism, referred to as the new capital tracker, that allowed the plain- tiff to recover the costs of certain investments in infrastructure, including “core capital” spending, in its base rates. Under the new capital tracker, if the plaintiff spent more than a specified amount per year on core capital, it could recover its excess expenses during the term of the settlement agree- ment without having to wait for its next general rate case; procedurally, the plaintiff’s annual costs and collections under the tracker would be reconciled and added to its base rates each year at a rate adjustment mechanism (RAM) proceeding. PURA ultimately approved the settlement agreement in April, 2018. While the agreement was being negotiated and approved, five cata- strophic storms impacted Connecticut, damaging certain of the plaintiff’s equipment. The settlement agreement was then amended to provide that the plaintiff could seek review and recovery of all storm related costs incurred after December 31, 2016, either during its next general rate case or by initi- ating a separate, contested case. In November, 2018, the plaintiff initiated a contested case to recover the operation and maintenance costs incurred in connection with the five storms, but it did not seek to have PURA review or approve the nonincremental capital costs that it had incurred as a result of those storms. Instead, the plaintiff sought to recover the capital costs in its base distribution rates when it filed its annual RAM application in 2021. In its final decision in the 2021 RAM proceeding, PURA rejected the plaintiff’s argument that, under the terms of the settlement agreement, the plaintiff could recoup in its base rates the capital costs that it had incurred in connection with the five storms, subject only to a subsequent prudence review by PURA. Thus, PUR