Regulatory Matters

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Regulatory Assets and Liabilities Disclosure [Abstract]

Regulatory Assets and Liabilities

The following presents our current and long-term regulatory assets and liabilities as of December 31, 2021 and 2020 and the period we expect to recover or refund such amounts:


	Period of	2021				2020
(in thousands)	Recovery/Refund	Current		Long-Term		Current		Long-Term

Regulatory Assets
Pension and Other Postretirement Benefit Plans1	See below	$	7,791	$	114,961	$	11,037	$	146,071
Alternative Revenue Program Riders2	Up to 2 years	11,889		5,564		8,871		9,373
Asset Retirement Obligations1	Asset lives	—		742		—		8,462

ISO Cost Recovery Trackers1	Up to 2 years	—		1,342		1,079		867
Unrecovered Project Costs1	Up to 5 years	2,136		1,455		361		2,989
Deferred Rate Case Expenses1	Various	607		1,131		360		230
Debt Reacquisition Premiums1	Up to 30 years	100		240		192		341
Fuel Clause Adjustments1	Up to 1 year	4,819		—		—		—
Other1	Various	—		73		—		62
Total Regulatory Assets		$	27,342	$	125,508	$	21,900	$	168,395
Regulatory Liabilities
Deferred Income Taxes	Asset lives	$	—	$	129,437	$	—	$	134,719
Plant Removal Obligations	Asset lives	8,306		101,595		—		98,707
Fuel Clause Adjustments	Up to 1 year	1,554		—		10,947		—
Alternative Revenue Program Riders	Various	5,772		3,336		3,581		470
Pension and Other Postretirement Benefit Plans	Up to 1 year	2,603		—		1,959		—

Derivative Instruments	Up to 1 year	6,214		—		—		—

Other	Various	395		62		176		77
Total Regulatory Liabilities		$	24,844	$	234,430	$	16,663	$	233,973

1Costs subject to recovery without a rate of return.
2Amount eligible for recovery includes an incentive or rate of return.

Pension and Other Postretirement Benefit Plans represent benefit costs and actuarial losses and gains subject to recovery or refund through rates as they are expensed or amortized. These unrecognized benefit costs and actuarial losses and gains are eligible for treatment as regulatory assets or liabilities based on their probable inclusion in future electric rates.

Alternative Revenue Program Riders regulatory assets and liabilities are revenues not yet collected from customers or amounts subject to

refund, respectively, primarily due to investments in qualifying transmission, conservation, renewable resource, environmental and other generation assets.

Asset Retirement Obligations represent the difference in timing of recognition of expense arising from these obligations and the amount recovered from customers.

Independent System Operator (ISO) Cost Recovery Trackers represent costs incurred to serve Minnesota customers or the under-collection of revenue based on expected versus actual construction costs on eligible projects.

Unrecovered Project Costs reflect costs incurred for abandoned generation and transmission assets and accelerated depreciation expense on a to-be-retired generation asset expected to be recovered from customers.

Deferred Rate Case Expenses relate to costs incurred in conjunction with recent rate cases that are currently or are expected to be recovered from customers.

Debt Reacquisition Premiums represent costs to retire debt which are being recovered from customers over the remaining original lives of the reacquired debt.

Fuel Clause Adjustments represent the under- or over-collection of fuel costs to be returned to or collected from customers.

Deferred Income Taxes represent income tax benefits, arising primarily from property-related timing differences, that will be refunded to customers as these timing differences reverse.

Plant Removal Obligations represent amounts collected from customers to be used to cover actual removal costs as incurred.

Derivative Instruments represent unrealized gains recognized on derivative instruments. On final settlement of such instruments, any realized gains or losses are recovered from or paid to customers.