Montana PSC asks NorthWestern about allegations it’s working contrary to Montana law

Montana Public Service Commission (via PSC Twitter account).

The Montana Public Service Commission voted unanimously this week to ask NorthWestern Energy to address allegations it selected members of an advisory committee contrary to state statute and has held meetings closed to the public — possibly illegally.

A spokesperson for NorthWestern Energy said Wednesday the official who can speak to the matter would not be available until likely Monday.

The request for information by the Public Service Commission comes after three renewable energy groups raised concerns about the formation of the Electric Technical Advisory Committee and how it’s operating.

A NorthWestern Energy webpage with a link to information about the committee goes to a “page not found” message.

The committee is charged with making recommendations to the public utility about its electricity system, according to state statute cited by the Public Service Commission in its letter.

Last week, the Montana Environmental Information Center’s Nick Fitzmaurice told the Public Service Commission that the committee was “an extreme outlier” among other utilities in the region in closing its meetings and may even be in violation of the state’s public meeting laws.

Fitzmaurice also said NorthWestern Energy gathered the advisory committee to guide its resource planning, but the committee isn’t “broad based” as statute requires.

He said NorthWestern wants to eliminate the committee from statute altogether, but the Montana Legislature hasn’t made any changes, so the utility still needs to follow the laws “in effect today.”

NorthWestern Energy is a monopoly in Montana. It has come under criticism for relying too heavily on fossil fuels and being out of step with the economic benefits of renewable resources.

“In the past, NorthWestern has convened a larger pool of unbiased, independent representatives from varying interested parties, but groups that have served on this committee for years, some even decades, are notably excluded from the committee,” said Fitzmaurice, energy transition engineer, in prepared remarks.

“Absent are large and small-scale energy developers, low and fixed-income customer advocates, independent economists, Montana-based NGOs, and qualified members of the public.

“Residential customers, NorthWestern’s only customer class showing substantial growth and arguably NorthWestern’s largest stakeholder, neglect representation.”

The Public Service Commission regulates monopoly utilities in Montana. Last fall, the PSC approved a settlement proposed by NorthWestern that increased residential customers’ electric bills by 28% compared to summer 2022.

MEIC is a conservation nonprofit focused on energy; the letter from the PSC to NorthWestern said the Montana Renewable Energy Association and Renewable Northwest expressed similar concerns in subsequent comments.

Instead of a “broad-based” group, NorthWestern selected government employees, a national environmental nonprofit, and a member from the University of Montana’s Bureau of Business and Economic Research, which the MEIC said represented a financial conflict of interest given the research group receives funding from the utility.

This week, commissioners who were present at a meeting Tuesday voted with no opposition to sign the letter asking NorthWestern to address concerns raised by the three conservation groups.

“I’m in full support of signing this letter. How long was this procedure not followed?” asked Commissioner Randy Pinocci.

PSC Executive Director David Sanders said Pinocci’s question was one of the reasons for the letter, and commissioners also wanted to understand the utility’s procedures and rationale.

“We’re trying to ascertain that,” Sanders said.

The letter from the PSC refers to the comments of Fitzmaurice and the two other groups and requests a response to questions by Aug. 9.

“Specifically, the Commission requests that NorthWestern explain how its ETAC membership complies with the requirements in (Montana code, MCA 69-3-1208) for a ‘broad-based’ committee,” said the letter from the PSC.  “The explanation should include a description of the ETAC membership and the decision-making process and criteria NorthWestern used to establish membership.”

The PSC also asked for details about the meetings the committee held.

Fitzmaurice had noted administrative rules in Montana state utilities shall open committee meetings “whenever possible,” and a utility will engage with the committee before closing a meeting.

“The public has been given no notice of ETAC activities, and there was no opportunity for a committee to be engaged before closing meetings to the public,” Fitzmaurice said in his remarks last week.

In its letter, the Public Service Commission requested NorthWestern relay the number of committee meetings it has held to develop its next “integrated resource plan,” how many of them were open and how many closed, “in whole or in part, to the public,” and the process used to decide to open or close them.

“This is clearly a matter of public interest, and the Commission appreciates your assistance in helping the public better understand the process,” said the letter from the PSC to NorthWestern Energy.