Arkansas 2025 Regular Session

Arkansas Senate Bill SB463 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
2		-	Act 580 of the Regular Session
3	2		ANS189 03/14/2025 10:34:03 AM ANS189
4	3		State of Arkansas 1
5	4		95th General Assembly A Bill 2
6	5		Regular Session, 2025 SENATE BILL 463 3
7	6		4
8	7		By: Senators M. McKee, C. Penzo, M. Johnson, R. Murdock, J. Petty, J. Boyd, J. Bryant, Caldwell, A. 5
9	8		Clark, Crowell, B. Davis, Dees, J. Dismang, J. English, Flippo, Gilmore, Hester, Hill, Irvin, B. Johnson, 6
10	9		Rice, J. Scott, Stone, G. Stubblefield, D. Wallace 7
11	10		By: Representatives M. Brown, McAlindon, Beaty Jr., Gramlich, Achor, J. Moore, R. Scott Richardson 8
12	11		9
13	12		For An Act To Be Entitled 10
14	13		AN ACT TO REQUIRE THE ARKANSAS PUBLIC SERVICE 11
15	14		COMMISSION TO APPROVE OR DENY SETTLEMENT AGREEMENTS 12
16	15		CONCERNING CLOSING OR ELIMINATING ELECTRIC GENERATION 13
17	16		UNITS OR TRANSMISSION ASSETS BETWEEN PUBLIC UTILITIES 14
18	17		AND CERTAIN ENTITIES; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES. 15
19	18		16
20	19		17
21	20		Subtitle 18
22	21		TO REQUIRE THE ARKANSAS PUBLIC SERVICE 19
23	22		COMMISSION TO APPROVE OR DENY SETTLEMENT 20
24	23		AGREEMENTS CONCERNING CLOSING OR 21
25	24		ELIMINATING ELECTRIC GENERATION UNITS OR 22
26	25		TRANSMISSION ASSETS. 23
27	26		24
28	27		BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 25
29	28		26
30	29		SECTION 1. Arkansas Code Title 23, Chapter 1, Subchapter 18, is 27
31	30		amended to add an additional section to read as follows: 28
32	31		23-18-111. Closure of electric generation unit or transmission asset 29
33	32		by settlement agreement — Notice and commission approval required. 30
34	33		(a)(1) A public utility shall file an application with the Arkansas 31
35	34		Public Service Commission seeking approval of a settlement agreement proposed 32
36	35		between the United States Government, an agency of the United States, or any 33
37	36		other third party if the purpose of all or part of the settlement agreement 34
38	37		is the closure, deactivation, or decommissioning of an electric generation 35
39	38		unit or a transmission asset located in this state. 36 SB463
40	39
41	40		2 03/14/2025 10:34:03 AM ANS189
42	41		(2) As used in this section, "settlement agreement" includes a 1
43	42		consent decree that is being proposed in a formal judicial proceeding. 2
44	43		(b) The application required under subsection (a) of this section 3
45	44		shall include: 4
46	45		(1) The terms and conditions of the proposed settlement 5
47	46		agreement; and 6
48	47		(2) An acknowledgement that the public utility shall not enter 7
49	48		into the settlement agreement until the commission approves the proposed 8
50	49		settlement agreement. 9
51	50		(c) The commission shall approve or deny a proposed settlement 10
52	51		agreement submitted under subdivision (a)(1) of this section using the 11
53	52		following standards and procedures: 12
54	53		(1) Upon receipt of a proposed settlement agreement and if 13
55	54		requested by the public utility, the commission shall implement reasonable 14
56	55		and appropriate procedures to protect confidential and proprietary 15
57	56		information, but the reasonable and appropriate procedures shall not prevent 16
58	57		the commission or the public from accessing information sufficient to 17
59	58		evaluate compliance with the standards under this section; 18
60	59		(2) The commission shall request testimony or other legal 19
61	60		pleadings from the Office of the Attorney General, including the staff 20
62	61		assigned to the Consumer Utilities Rate Advocacy Division, and other agencies 21
63	62		of the state with expertise in the legal issues giving rise to the proposed 22
64	63		settlement agreement to assist in the commission’s evaluation of: 23
65	64		(A) Compliance with the standards under this section; and 24
66	65		(B) Any underlying legal issues proposed for resolution in 25
67	66		the settlement agreement; and 26
68	67		(3)(A) After testimony and legal pleadings filed as described in 27
69	68		subdivision (c)(2) of this section, in order to approve the proposed 28
70	69		settlement agreement, the commission shall determine that there is clear and 29
71	70		convincing evidence that: 30
72	71		(i) The legal claims being resolved in the proposed 31
73	72		settlement agreement are based on a reasonable interpretation of existing 32
74	73		law; 33
75	74		(ii) The proposed settlement agreement does not 34
76	75		commit the public utility to an action that exceeds regulations at a cost to 35
77	76		consumers, including without limitation an action the commission finds to be 36 SB463
78	77
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80	79		driven by shareholder or a shareholder equivalent, environmental, or 1
81	80		sustainability goals rather than applicable state or federal law; and 2
82	81		(iii) The public utility’s decision to enter into 3
83	82		the proposed settlement agreement is reasonable and prudent. 4
84	83		(B)(i) Clear and convincing evidence shall include without 5
85	84		limitation the production of contemporaneous documentation and other evidence 6
86	85		by the public utility supporting the prudence of the public utility’s 7
87	86		decision making. 8
88	87		(ii) In the absence of the contemporaneous 9
89	88		documentation or other evidence required under subdivision (c)(3)(B)(i) of 10
90	89		this section, the public utility may obtain an independent, retrospective 11
91	90		analysis demonstrating that the public utility's actual decision to enter 12
92	91		into the settlement agreement is a reasonable and prudent course of action. 13
93	92		(d) This subchapter does not apply to any settlement, consent decree, 14
94	93		or other resolution of any litigation or legal proceeding executed or ordered 15
95	94		before the effective date of this act. 16
96	95		17
97	96		18
98		-	~~APPROVED: 4/14/25~~ 19
	97	+	19
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