                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

RETAIL RATES OF AFFILIATED WATER UTILITIES (§ 56-235.11)

A. As used in this section, unless the context requires a different meaning:
			&#8220;Affiliate&#8221; of a specific water utility or a water utility
&#8220;affiliated&#8221; with a specific water utility means a water utility
that directly or indirectly through one or more intermediaries controls, is
controlled by, or is under common control with the water utility specified.
			&#8220;Control,&#8221; including the terms &#8220;controlling,&#8221;
&#8220;controlled by,&#8221; and &#8220;under common control with,&#8221; means
direct or indirect possession of the power to direct or cause the direction of
the management and policies of a water utility through the ownership of an
equity interest. Control shall be presumed to exist with respect to another
water utility if any water utility directly or indirectly owns, controls, or
holds with the power to vote 50 percent or more of the equity interest of the
other water utility.
			&#8220;Rates&#8221; includes rates, tolls, charges, or schedules.
			&#8220;Subsidiary&#8221; of a specified water utility means an affiliate
directly or indirectly controlled by that water utility through one or more
intermediaries.
			&#8220;Water utility&#8221; means an investor-owned public utility authorized
to furnish water or water and sewer service within a certificated service
territory in the Commonwealth except any such investor-owned public utility for
which the Commission has approved, after July 1, 2009, and prior to July 1,
2017, a consolidated rate structure consisting of three or more rate groups for
the same class of service and in one or more subsequent orders has approved
additional consolidation of such rate groups.
			&#8220;Water utility network&#8221; means a water utility and all other water
utilities that the water utility is an affiliate of, is affiliated with,
controls, is controlled by, is under common control with, or is a subsidiary of.
&#8220;Water utility network&#8221; also means, with respect to a water utility
that is authorized to furnish water or water and sewer service within multiple
certificated service territories in the Commonwealth, all of the certificated
service territories that the water utility is certificated to serve.

B. In any proceeding commenced on and after July 1, 2017, to establish or
approve the rates of a water utility that is in a water utility network, the
Commission shall ensure that the rates of each water utility in the water
utility network are not unjustly discriminatory by ensuring that equal fixed and
volumetric rates are charged for each customer class of each water utility that
is in the water utility network.

C. Upon the commencement of a proceeding described in subsection B, the
Commission shall make each water utility that is a member of the applicable
water utility network a party to the proceeding and may review each member water
utility&#8217;s rates. In such proceeding:

   1. The Commission shall review the rates of each member of the applicable
   water utility network and order gradual adjustments to such water
   utility&#8217;s rates over an appropriate period in order to implement the
   provisions of subsection B; and

   2. The Commission is authorized to aggregate the revenues and costs of the
   water utilities that are members of the applicable water utility network.

HISTORY: 2017, c. 822.