Senator Massey proposes the following amendment (LC-3309.HA0080S):

Amend the bill, as and if amended, SECTION 2, by striking Section 58-3-140(B), (C), (D), (E), (F), (G), (H), and (I) and inserting:

 (B)(1) The commission, in conducting its analysis and making a decision in matters involving public utilities, must consider the economic impact to the State when fixing just and reasonable standards, classifications, regulations, practices, and measurements of service to be furnished, imposed, or observed, and followed by every electrical utility in this State.
  (2) The General Assembly declares the rates, services, and operations of public utilities are a matter of public interest and the availability of an adequate, reliable, and economical supply of electric power and natural gas to the people and economy of South Carolina is a matter of public policy. When exercising its powers under this section, the commission must balance the public interest in determining the rates, services, and operations of public utilities. It is the policy of this State for the commission, in matters involving public utilities, to:
   (a) ensure South Carolina customers have access to an adequate, reliable, and economical supply of energy resources;
   (b) sustain growth in industrial and economic development by ensuring an electric generation, transmission, and distribution system that can grow and modernize to meet the demands that a prosperous and developing economy places on it;
   (c) provide fair regulation of public utilities in the interest of the public in a manner that enables the utility, through sound management, to produce a fair and reasonable return for its shareholders that is necessary for the preservation of the financial health of the utility and for the ability to finance continued investment and maintenance of utility facilities while promoting adequate, affordable, reliable, and economical utility service to all of the citizens and residents of this State;
   (d) provide the State and the public with a well-regulated public utility environment;
   (e) for electrical utilities, assure that resources necessary to meet future growth through the provision of adequate, reliable electrical utility service include use of the entire spectrum of demand-side options, including but not limited to, conservation, load management, and energy efficiency programs as additional sources of energy supply and energy demand reduction;
   (f) provide just and reasonable rates and charges for public utility services without undue preferences or advantages, or unfair or destructive competitive practices and consistent with long-term management and conservation of resources; for electrical utilities, this includes avoiding wasteful, uneconomic generation and uses of energy;
   (g) assure that facilities necessary to meet future growth can be financed by the utilities operating in this State on terms which are reasonable and fair to both the customers and existing investors of such utilities, and to that end, to authorize fixing of rates in such a manner as to result in lower costs of new facilities and lower rates over the operating lives of such new facilities;
   (h) recognize the important role of public utilities in economic development and industry retention and the necessity for utilities to maintain the ability to finance continued investment in, and operation and maintenance of, the electric system, rapid restoration of power after major storms and outages, rate designs, and infrastructure necessary to attract and retain businesses and jobs to South Carolina, the ability to obtain financing at attractive rates, and to ensure a viable workforce for providing utility services and to attract such utility workers at market-competitive wages;
   (i) seek to encourage and promote harmony between public utilities, their users, and the environment;
   (j) foster the continued service of public utilities on a well-planned and coordinated basis that is consistent with the level of energy needed for the protection of public health and safety and for the promotion of the general welfare, economic development, and industry retention;
   (k) seek to adjust the rate of growth of regulated utility energy supply facilities serving the State to the policy requirements of statewide economic development and industry retention;
   (l) encourage the continued study and research on new and innovative rate designs which will protect the State, the public, the ratepayers and the utilities;
   (m) facilitate the construction of facilities in and the extension of natural gas service to unserved and underserved areas in order to promote the public welfare throughout the State;
   (n) further the development of cleaner energy technologies on a cost-effective basis to protect the natural resources of this State, promote the health and well-being of the people of this State, and attract investments, create employment opportunities, drive economic growth, and foster innovation in this State; and
   (o) accomplish regulatory processes and issue orders in a timely manner.
 (B)(C) The commission must develop and publish a policy manual which must set forth guidelines for the administration of the commission. All procedures must incorporate state requirements and good management practices to ensure the efficient and economical utilization of resources.
 (C)(D) The commission must facilitate access to its general rate request orders in contested matters involving more than one hundred thousand dollars by publishing an order guide which indexes and cross-references orders by subject matter and case name. The order guide must be made available for public inspection.
 (D)(E) The commission must promulgate regulations to require the direct testimony of witnesses appearing on behalf of utilities and of witnesses appearing on behalf of persons having formal intervenor status, such testimony to be reduced to writing and prefiled with the commission in advance of any hearing. In contested case proceedings, the applicant seeking relief from the commission shall have the right to prefile rebuttal testimony responsive to the direct prefiled testimony of other parties. The commission may allow supplemental testimony in cases where new matters arise after the filing of direct testimony, provided that parties shall have the right to respond to such supplemental testimony. The procedural schedule for each contested case proceeding shall include dates for completion of each phase of discovery, including discovery related to the application or other initial pleading as filed, direct testimony of the applicant, direct testimony of the Office of Regulatory Staff and other parties and intervenors, rebuttal testimony of the applicant, and surrebuttal testimony but only if allowed by the commission upon motion that there is material new information for which surrebuttal testimony is required. The commission must act on a motion to allow surrebuttal testimony within three business days. Except upon showing of exceptional circumstances or surprise, all discovery must be completed not less than ten days prior to the hearing. The party with the burden of proof must be permitted to open and close its case, including the presentation of responsive witness testimony.
 (F)(E) The commission may convene public hearings to allow public utility customers to address the commission as public witnesses without intervening in the proceedings and without subjecting themselves to discovery or prefiling testimony. Public witnesses may address the commission on issues related to customer service, utility operations, reliability, economic hardship, affordability, environmental concerns, or other matters that affect them. The public utility and the Office of Regulatory Staff shall work to investigate and resolve individual service issues raised by public witnesses.
 (G)(F) Any other provision of law notwithstanding, to the extent the commission is authorized by the General Assembly to employ an independent third-party consultant to assist the commission in its duties with respect to a matter before the commission, such consultant may only rely upon evidence introduced by a party to that proceeding into the record subject to the requirements of the South Carolina Administrative Procedures Act. Further, the commission may not give any consultant employed by the commission party status in a proceeding before the commission.
 (E)(H)(G) Nothing in this section may be interpreted to repeal or modify specific exclusions from the commission's jurisdiction pursuant to Title 58 or any other title.
 (F)(I)(H) When required to be filed, tariffs must be filed with the office of the chief clerk of the commission and, on that same day, provided to the Executive Director of the Office of Regulatory Staff.

Renumber sections to conform.

Amend title to conform.