Utilities seek to pass costs to customers
JEFFERSON CITY (AP) — A group of Missouri electric utilities urged state lawmakers yesterday to allow them to charge electric customers for some of the costs of developing a second nuclear power plant in the state.
A 1976 voter-approved law currently bars utilities from charging customers for the costs of a new power plant before it starts producing electricity. The House Utilities Committee considered legislation yesterday that would allow power companies to recoup from customers the cost of getting an early site permit from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon has endorsed the proposal, saying it would start the process toward building a power plant in Central Missouri that would create thousands of jobs. Callaway Nuclear Plant, the state’s only nuclear power plant, is located about 25 miles from Columbia.
A group of utilities that includes Ameren Missouri, Empire District Electric, Kansas City Power & Light, electric cooperatives and municipal utilities announced in November that they were considering seeking an early site permit for a second nuclear plant. The permit would not specify a plant design or authorize construction, and the group has said it has not decided whether to build a second plant.
Warner Baxter, president and CEO of Ameren Missouri, estimated residential customers would pay less than $2 per year for the cost of the permit under the proposed legislation. He said approving the legislation would signal to utilities that policymakers support moving forward with nuclear power.
“Customers will not see one penny on their bill until we have the site permit in hand and, secondly, until the Public Service Commission does a thorough review of the costs,” Baxter said.
Some local officials and several labor unions also support the legislation.
Sponsoring Rep. Jeanie Riddle, R-Mokane, said electric customers ultimately could pay less money by starting sooner to pay for some of the costs of developing a new plant. Similar legislation also has been filed by Sen. Mike Kehoe, R-Jefferson City.
The Fair Energy Rate Action Fund, which includes consumer groups and employers, called for more consumer protections. Among the desired protections was a change in funding for Office of the Public Counsel, which represents electric customers before the Missouri Public Service Commission.
Nixon’s proposed spending plan for the 2012 fiscal year starting in July would double the budget for the Office of the Public Counsel to $1.4 million. It also recommends cutting the budget for the Public Service Commission by $1.5 million.
