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Rate Matters and Regulation | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2018
Regulated Operations [Abstract] |
Rate Matters and Regulation | Rate Matters and Regulation Regulation and Rates OG&E's retail electric tariffs are regulated by the OCC in Oklahoma and by the APSC in Arkansas. The issuance of certain securities by OG&E is also regulated by the OCC and the APSC. OG&E's transmission activities, short-term borrowing authorization and accounting practices are subject to the jurisdiction of the FERC. The Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy has jurisdiction over some of OG&E's facilities and operations. In 2018, 86 percent of OG&E's electric revenue was subject to the jurisdiction of the OCC, eight percent to the APSC and six percent to the FERC. The OCC issued an order in 1996 authorizing OG&E to reorganize into a subsidiary of the Company. The order required that, among other things, (i) the Company permit the OCC access to the books and records of the Company and its affiliates relating to transactions with OG&E; (ii) the Company employ accounting and other procedures and controls to protect against subsidization of non-utility activities by OG&E's customers; and (iii) the Company refrain from pledging OG&E assets or income for affiliate transactions. In addition, the Energy Policy Act of 2005 enacted the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 2005, which in turn granted to the FERC access to the books and records of the Company and its affiliates as the FERC deems relevant to costs incurred by OG&E or necessary or appropriate for the protection of utility customers with respect to the FERC jurisdictional rates. Completed Regulatory Matters Oklahoma Rate Review Filing - January 2018 On January 16, 2018, OG&E filed a general rate review in Oklahoma, requesting a rate increase of $1.9 million per year, assuming a 9.9 percent return on equity. The filing sought recovery of the seven combustion turbines that are part of the Mustang Modernization Plan, an increase in depreciation rates to levels similar with rates in existence prior to the March 2017 OCC rate order and credit to customers for the impacts of the 2017 Tax Act, which was enacted on December 22, 2017. On December 22, 2017, the Attorney General of Oklahoma requested that the OCC reduce the rates and charges for electric service and provide for an immediate refund due to the customers of OG&E resulting from the 2017 Tax Act. In response, on January 4, 2018, the OCC ordered OG&E to record a reserve, beginning on January 4, 2018, to reflect the reduced federal corporate tax rate of 21 percent and the amortization of excess accumulated deferred income tax and any other tax implications of the 2017 Tax Act on an interim basis, subject to refund until utility rates were adjusted to reflect the federal tax savings and a final order was issued in the rate review. Further, the OCC ordered the amounts of any refunds of such reserves owed to customers should accrue interest at a rate equivalent to OG&E's cost of capital as previously recognized in the March 2017 OCC rate order. OG&E reserved the excess income taxes collected in current rates and any amortization of excess accumulated deferred income taxes associated with the 2017 Tax Act, plus interest, from January 2018 through June 2018. On June 19, 2018, the OCC approved a Joint Stipulation and Settlement Agreement. Key terms of the settlement include the following:
• | an annual net decrease of $64.0 million in OG&E's rates to its Oklahoma retail customers, which reflects recovery of the Mustang Modernization Plan, offset by reductions for the impact of the lower corporate income taxes resulting from the 2017 Tax Act;
• | for purposes of calculating the Allowance for Funds Used During Construction and OG&E's various recovery riders that include a full return component, use of the most-recently approved return on equity of 9.5 percent and a capital structure of 47 percent debt/53 percent equity;
• | depreciation rates remain unchanged from the current depreciation rates approved in the March 2017 OCC rate order;
• | regulatory asset treatment for the Dry Scrubbers at Sooner Units 1 and 2 that will defer the non-fuel operation and maintenance expenses, depreciation, debt cost associated with the capital investment and related ad valorem taxes, subject to a prudence review in a future general rate review and a determination as to whether the project is used and useful;
• | production tax credits will be removed from base rates and placed into a separate rider;
• | a federal tax credit rider will be established to refund to customers the amount of excess taxes received from January to June 2018, as discussed above, and the ongoing annual true up of excess accumulated deferred income taxes resulting from the reduction in corporate income tax rates as part of the 2017 Tax Act (further discussed in Note 8); and
• | the demand program rider tariff will be revised to allow for concurrent recovery of lost revenues from foregone sales due to certain achieved energy efficiency and demand savings.
As a result of the settlement, new rates were implemented on July 1, 2018, reflecting the impacts of the order, and the tax reserve balance estimated for January 2018 through June 2018 of $18.9 million was returned to Oklahoma customers during the July billing cycle. As reserved amounts were estimated through June 2018, a true-up mechanism exists for the difference between the estimate and actuals to be calculated after the determination of year-end financial results. Demand Program Rider - Energy Efficiency Lost Net Revenues During the May 2017 implementation of new rates from the March 2017 OCC rate order, OG&E reserved $5.6 million, pending resolution of a dispute with the OCC's Public Utility Division staff regarding recovery of certain lost revenues associated with energy efficiency programs incurred prior to the March 2017 OCC rate order. These lost revenues are recovered through the Demand Program Rider as disclosed in Note 1. This dispute was resolved through the June 19, 2018 Oklahoma rate review settlement discussed above; as a result, the reserve was reversed at June 30, 2018, and an adjustment was recorded to the Demand Program Rider regulatory asset balance. Fuel Adjustment Clause Review for Calendar Year 2016 On August 3, 2017, the OCC's Public Utility Division staff filed an application to review OG&E's fuel adjustment clause for calendar year 2016, including the prudence of OG&E's electric generation, purchased power and fuel procurement costs. On February 7, 2018, an intervenor filed a recommendation to disallow the Oklahoma jurisdictional portion of $3.3 million related to wind sales in the SPP. On April 4, 2018, a Joint Stipulation and Settlement Agreement was filed with the OCC. As part of the agreement, the stipulating parties settled all claims regarding the issue of wind energy settlement costs for the period September 2016 through May 2017, and OG&E agreed to refund $2.4 million to customers related to wind sales in the SPP. On April 25, 2018, the OCC approved the Joint Stipulation and Settlement Agreement, and in May 2018, OG&E refunded this settlement amount to customers. FERC - Request for Waiver On May 22, 2018, OG&E submitted a request for waiver of applicable formula rate provisions in OG&E's Open Access Transmission Tariff and the SPP's Open Access Transmission Tariff. OG&E requested a waiver, effective January 1, 2018, to revise its 2018 projected net revenue requirement to reflect the federal corporate income tax rate reduction from 35 percent to 21 percent as a result of the 2017 Tax Act. On June 29, 2018, the FERC granted OG&E's request for waiver, effective January 1, 2018, which will allow OG&E to lower its current year projected net revenue requirement and provide benefits to customers through lower rates more promptly than if OG&E were to wait until the current year true-up adjustment to recognize the reduced federal corporate income tax rate. Based on the order received from the FERC, OG&E reserved the excess income taxes collected in current rates from January 2018 through June 2018, as the new tax rate was reflected in billings beginning with the July 2018 invoice. As the SPP adjusts the rates billed to OG&E's customers, OG&E reverses the reserve as the previous months in 2018 are resettled based on the lower tax rate. APSC Order - 2017 Tax Act On January 12, 2018, as a result of the 2017 Tax Act, the APSC ordered OG&E to prepare and file an analysis of the ratemaking effects of the 2017 Tax Act on OG&E's revenue requirement and begin, effective January 1, 2018, to book regulatory liabilities to record the current and deferred impacts of the 2017 Tax Act. On July 26, 2018, the APSC ordered OG&E to file a separate rider that includes the reduction in tax expense due to the 2017 Tax Act and amortization of the applicable excess accumulated deferred income taxes as a reduction in revenue requirement. On August 27, 2018, OG&E filed the request for a new Tax Adjustment Rider as well as filed updates to all riders with tax implications, which were then approved by the APSC on September 24, 2018. All rider changes were implemented on October 1, 2018. In October 2018, OG&E refunded the excess income taxes collected from January 1, 2018 through September 30, 2018 and also began refunding the amortization of excess accumulated deferred income taxes associated with the 2017 Tax Act, plus carrying charges, from January 2018 through September 2018, which was approximately $7.7 million. As reserved amounts were estimated through September 2018, a true-up mechanism exists for the difference between the estimate and actuals to be calculated after the determination of year-end financial results. Integrated Resource Plans In September 2018, OG&E submitted its final 2018 IRP to the OCC and the APSC. The 2018 IRP identified a need for capacity, and OG&E issued a request for proposals to identify options to fill that capacity need. See "Pre-Approval for Acquisition of Existing Power Plants" under "Pending Regulatory Matters" for further discussion regarding the outcome of the request for proposal process. Demand Program Portfolio Filing Pursuant to OCC rules, OG&E is required to propose, implement and administer a portfolio of demand programs once every three years. On July 1, 2018, OG&E filed its proposed Demand Program Three Year Portfolio for the 2019 through 2021 program cycle, and on December 27, 2018, the OCC approved OG&E's 2019 through 2021 demand portfolio programs. Pending Regulatory Matters Set forth below is a list of various proceedings pending before state or federal regulatory agencies. Unless stated otherwise, OG&E cannot predict when the regulatory agency will act or what action the regulatory agency will take. OG&E's financial results are dependent in part on timely and adequate decisions by the regulatory agencies that set OG&E's rates. Environmental Compliance Plan On August 6, 2014, OG&E filed an application under Oklahoma Statute Title 17, Section 286 (B) with the OCC for approval of its plan to comply with the EPA's MATS and Regional Haze Rule FIP while serving the best long-term interests of customers in light of future environmental uncertainties. The application sought approval of the ECP, which includes installing Dry Scrubbers at Sooner Units 1 and 2 and the conversion of Muskogee Units 4 and 5 to natural gas, as well as a recovery mechanism for the associated costs. The application also asked the OCC to predetermine the prudence of its Mustang Modernization Plan and approval for a recovery mechanism for the associated costs. On December 2, 2015, OG&E received an order from the OCC denying its plan to comply with the environmental mandates of the Federal Clean Air Act, Regional Haze Rule and MATS. The OCC also denied OG&E's request for pre-approval of its Mustang Modernization Plan, revised depreciation rates for both the retirement of the Mustang units and the replacement combustion turbines and pre-approval of early retirement and replacement of generating units at its Mustang site, including cost recovery through a rider. On December 11, 2015, OG&E filed a motion requesting modification of the OCC order for the purposes of approving only the ECP under Oklahoma Statute Title 17, Section 286 (B), and on December 23, 2015, the OCC rejected OG&E's motion. On February 12, 2016, OG&E filed an application under Oklahoma Statute Title 17, Section 151, et seq. requesting the OCC to issue an order approving its decision to install Dry Scrubbers at the Sooner facility. OG&E's application did not seek approval of the costs of the Dry Scrubber project. Instead, the reasonableness of the costs would be considered after the project is completed, and OG&E seeks recovery in a general rate review. On April 28, 2016, the OCC approved the Dry Scrubber project. Two parties appealed the OCC's decision to the Oklahoma Supreme Court. On April 24, 2018, the Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled that the OCC did not have the authority to grant pre-approval of OG&E's Dry Scrubber project outside the authority of Oklahoma Statute Title 17, Section 286 (B). OG&E anticipates the total cost of Dry Scrubbers will be $520.0 million, including allowance for funds used during construction and capitalized ad valorem taxes. The Dry Scrubber system on Sooner Unit 1 completed certain emission testing in October 2018 and was placed into service. The Dry Scrubber system on Sooner Unit 2 completed certain emission testing in January 2019 and was placed into service. As of December 31, 2018, OG&E has invested $504.3 million in the Dry Scrubbers. On December 31, 2018, OG&E filed a rate review with the OCC seeking recovery for the Dry Scrubber project, as further discussed below. FERC - Section 206 Filing In January 2018, the Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority filed a complaint at the FERC stating that the base return on common equity used by OG&E in calculating formula transmission rates under the SPP Open Access Transmission Tariff is unjust and unreasonable and should be reduced from 10.60 percent to 7.85 percent, effective upon the date of the complaint. The Company has reserved an amount within this range. The Company estimates that if the FERC ultimately orders a reduction, each 25 basis point reduction in the requested return on equity would reduce the Company's SPP Open Access Transmission Tariff transmission revenues by approximately $1.5 million annually. The Company contested the reduction of its base return on equity. While the Company is unable to predict what final action the FERC will take in response to the Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority's complaint or the timing of such action, if the FERC orders revenue reductions as a result of the complaint, including refunds from the date of the complaint filing, it could have a material adverse effect on the Company's financial position, results of operations and cash flows. In addition to the request to reduce the return on equity, the Oklahoma Municipal Power Authority's complaint also requests that modifications be made to OG&E's transmission formula rates to reflect the impacts of the 2017 Tax Act, including the 2017 Tax Act's impact on accumulated deferred income tax balances. Based on an order received from the FERC, OG&E reserved the excess income taxes collected in current rates from January 2018 through June 2018, as the new tax rate was reflected in billings beginning with the July 2018 invoice, as discussed under "FERC - Request for Waiver" above. Further, OG&E is also reserving any amortization of excess accumulated deferred income taxes associated with the 2017 Tax Act. Fuel Adjustment Clause Review for Calendar Year 2017 On July 9, 2018, the OCC staff filed an application to review OG&E's fuel adjustment clause for the calendar year 2017, including the prudence of OG&E's electric generation, purchased power and fuel procurement costs. A hearing on the merits was held in December 2018, and on February 1, 2019, the Administrative Law Judge recommended that OG&E's processes, costs, investments and decisions regarding fuel procurement for the 2017 calendar year be found prudent. This recommendation is subject to OCC approval. Arkansas Formula Rate Plan Filing Per OG&E's settlement in its last general rate review in Arkansas, OG&E filed an evaluation report under its Formula Rate Plan on October 1, 2018, requesting a $6.4 million revenue increase. On January 30, 2019, OG&E and settling parties reached a settlement agreement for a $3.3 million revenue increase. The settlement agreement is subject to APSC approval. A final order is expected from the APSC in March 2019, and new rates will become effective on April 1, 2019. Oklahoma Rate Review Filing - December 2018 On December 31, 2018, OG&E filed a general rate review with the OCC, requesting a rate increase of $77.6 million per year to recover its investment in the Dry Scrubbers project and in the conversion of Muskogee Units 4 and 5 to natural gas to comply with the Regional Haze Rule. The filing also seeks to align OG&E's return on equity more closely to the industry average and to align OG&E's depreciation rates to more realistically reflect its assets' lifespans. Pre-Approval for Acquisition of Existing Power Plants On December 28, 2018, OG&E filed an application for pre-approval from the OCC to acquire a 360 MW coal- and natural gas-fired plant from AES and a 146 MW natural gas-fired combined-cycle plant from Oklahoma Cogeneration LLC in 2019 for $53.5 million. The purchase of these assets is intended to replace capacity currently provided by power purchase contracts set to expire in 2019 and to help OG&E satisfy its customers' energy needs and load obligations to the SPP. In addition, the filing seeks approval of a rider mechanism to collect costs associated with the purchase of these generating facilities.

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