00                            HOUSE BILL NO. 453                                                                          
01 "An Act exempting from regulation under the Alaska Public Utilities Regulatory Act                                      
02 wholesale agreements for the sale of power by joint action agencies and contracts related                               
03 to those agreements, and joint action agencies composed of public utilities of political                                
04 subdivisions and utilities organized under the Electric and Telephone Cooperative Act."                                 
05 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                                
06    * Section 1.  AS 42.05.431(c) is amended to read:                                                                  
07            (c)  Notwithstanding (b) of this section,                                                                    
08                 (1)  a wholesale agreement for the sale of power from a project licensed                                
09       by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on or before January 1, 1987, and                                     
10       related contracts for the wheeling, storage, regeneration, or wholesale repurchase of                             
11       power purchased under the agreement, entered into between the Alaska Energy                                       
12       Authority and one or more other public utilities or among the utilities after October 31,                         
13       1987, and before January 1, 1988, and amendments to the wholesale agreement or                                    
14       related contract, and the wholesale agreement or related contract assigned by the                                 

01       Alaska Energy Authority to a joint action agency formed under AS 42.45.310 that                                   
02       purchases the project from the Alaska Energy Authority, are not subject to review or                              
03       approval by the commission until all long-term debt incurred for the project is retired,                          
04       or, for a wholesale agreement or related contract assigned to a joint action agency                               
05       formed under AS 42.45.310, until all long-term debt incurred to pay the purchase price                            
06       to the Alaska Energy Authority is retired; [AND]                                                                  
07                 (2)  a wholesale agreement for the sale of power from a project                                     
08       owned by a joint action agency to one or more public utilities, and any contracts                             
09       related to the wholesale agreement, including those for the wheeling, storage,                                
10       regeneration, or wholesale repurchase of power purchased under the wholesale                                  
11       agreement, are not subject to review or approval by the commission; for                                       
12       purposes of this paragraph, "joint action agency" means a joint action agency                                 
13       established under AS 42.45.300 that is exempt from regulation under                                           
14       AS 42.05.711(o); and                                                                                          
15                 (3)  a wholesale agreement or related contract described in (1) or (2) of                       
16       this subsection may contain a covenant for the public utility to establish, charge, and                           
17       collect rates sufficient to meet its obligations under the contract; the rate covenant is                         
18       valid and enforceable.                                                                                            
19    * Sec. 2.  AS 42.05.711(o) is amended to read:                                                                     
20            (o)  A joint action agency established under AS 42.45.310 is exempt from                                     
21       regulation under this chapter, including the requirement to obtain a certificate of                               
22       public convenience and necessity under AS 42.05.221, for the operation of, sale of                                
23       power from, and other activities related to the power project the joint action agency                             
24       purchases from the Alaska Energy Authority until the wholesale agreement and any                                  
25       related contract assigned by the authority becomes subject to review or approval by                               
26       the commission under AS 42.05.431. The exemption provided by this subsection                                      
27       extends to repairs and improvements to the power project the joint action agency                                  
28       purchases from the authority but does not extend to any other power project or other                              
29       activity of the joint action agency.  A joint action agency established under                                 
30       AS 42.45.300 that is formed by public utilities owned by a political subdivision of                           
31       the state or cooperatives organized under AS 10.25 or a combination of the two is                             

01       exempt from regulation under this chapter, including the requirement to obtain a                              
02       certificate of public convenience and necessity under AS 42.05.221.