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HomeMy WebLinkAboutORD 21-012ORDINANCE NO. 21-012 ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF BEAUMONT, TEXAS SUSPENDING THE RATES PROPOSED BY TEXAS GAS SERVICE COMPANY'S ("TGS" OR "COMPANY") GAS RELIABILITY INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAM ("GRIP") FILING MADE WITH THE CITY ON FEBRUARY 11, 2021; FINDING THAT THE MEETING COMPLIES WITH THE OPEN MEETINGS ACT; MAKING OTHER FINDINGS AND PROVISIONS RELATED TO THE SUBJECT, AND DECLARING AN EFFECTIVE DATE WHEREAS, on or about February 11, 2021, Texas Gas Service Company ("TGS" or "Company") filed an Annual GRIP adjustment with the City of Beaumont ("City") to increase gas rates in the Central/Gulf Service Area pursuant to Gas Utility Regulatory Act, TEX. UTIL. CODE ("Gas Utility Regulatory Act") § 104.301, and, WHEREAS, the Company proposed an effective date for the proposed increase of April 12, 2021, unless the City suspends the date for a period no longer than forty-five (45) days; and, WHEREAS, City has exclusive original jurisdiction over the rates, operations and services of a gas utility in areas in the municipality pursuant to Gas Utility Regulatory Act § 103.001; and, WHEREAS, Gas Utility Regulatory Act § 104.301 requires a streamlined process for the recovery of the costs of incremental investment by a gas utility; and, WHEREAS, the City's review of TGS's GRIP filing is limited to a ministerial review of the filing for compliance with the statute; and, WHEREAS, the City finds the need to suspend the effective date of the Company's proposed rate increase for 45 days beyond the Company's proposed effective date until May 27, 2021 in order to review the Company's filing for compliance with Gas Utility Regulatory Act § 104.301; and, WHEREAS, the reasonableness of the Company's investment will be reviewed in a future base rate case where all costs included in the Company's GRIP filing will be subject to refund. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BEAUMONT: Section 1. That the statement and findings set out in the preamble to this ordinance are hereby in all things approved and adopted. Section 2. The effective date of the Company's proposed GRIP rate increase, and the proposed tariffs related thereto, is hereby suspended until May 27, 2021. Section 3. To the extent the City finds that the rates proposed by the Company's filing comply with Gas Utility Regulatory Act § 104.301, then the rates will become effective by operation of law on May 27, 2021. Section 4. The meeting at which the ordinance was approved was in all things conducted in strict compliance with the Texas Open Meetings Act, Texas Government Code, Chapter 551. Section 5. This Ordinance shall become effective from and after its passage. PASSED BY THE CITY COUNCIL of the City of Beaumont this the 23rd day of March, 2021. yor Becky Ames - I