February
27, 2003
Limits
on the Utilities Commission
Who
will examine the contract between BC Hydro and Accenture
to determine whether it is in the best interests of Hydro's
ratepayers? Who will monitor the contract's performance
over the years and report on whether anticipated results
are being realized? It is not a question of whether Accenture
is "good" or "bad". It is a question
of monitoring contract performance in the same way we would
expect any monopoly or public sector entity to be scrutinized.
When
the Campbell government spoke about greater competition
for ICBC, it said that insurance rates would be reviewed
by an independent commission like the BC Utilities Commission.
When government announced the breakup of BC Ferries, it
said the new corporation would be regulated by a commission
like the Utilities Commission. So why has the same government
used legislation to prevent the BC Utilities Commission
from examining the BC Hydro-Accenture contract?
Bill
10 (2003) provides:
"11
(e) subject to subsection (12), the authority is not required
to obtain any approval, authorization, permit or order under
the Utilities Commission Act in connection with the agreement
or any actions taken in accordance with the terms of the
agreement, and the commission must not prohibit the authority
from taking any action that the authority is entitled or
required to take under the terms of the agreement."
"(12) Nothing in subsection (11) (e) precludes the
commission from considering the costs incurred, or to be
incurred, in relation to an agreement designated under subsection
(9) when establishing the revenue requirements and setting
the rates of the authority."
In other
words, the BC Utilities Commission can approve rate increases
to Hydro's customers based on the need to meet higher costs
under the agreement but it cannot issue any order with respect
to the agreement.
The
BC Liberal's "New Era Document" promised to "restore
an independent BC Utilities Commission, to re-regulate BC
Hydro's electricity rates." A cynic might say that
it looks like they neglected to say that they really meant
to pass through costs with no examination of the reason
for those costs. Was the Geoff Plant style of "you
didn't ask that question" already at work for the campaign
promises? In fact it is worse than anything a cynic might
expect because long after the election the Minister of Energy,
Mines and Petroleum Resources finally released the BC
Energy Plan. Policy Action #4 in that plan says the
"BC Utilities Commission will be reviewing the Corporation’s
costs to determine that they are in ratepayers’ interests."
With Bill 10 British Columbians have discovered that some
of Hydro's costs are off limits to the Utilities Commission.
The gap between spin and fact in the Campbell government
cannot be justified.
If promises
for the regulation of insurance rates and ferry routes work
out like the Hydro promise, no one should take comfort in
government's assurances.
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