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Amend the bill in section 1 in §3204-A in subsection 1 by striking out all of paragraphs A, B and C (page 1, lines 9 to 11 in L.D.) and inserting the following:
 
‘A.   Will lower the costs of electricity to consumers in the State; and
 
B.  Will not have a negative impact on the operation of the transmission system.’
Amend the bill in section 1 in §3204-A in subsection 3 in the first line (page 1, line 18 in L.D.) by striking out the following: " approval " and inserting the following: " approval. "
Amend the bill in section 1 in §3204-A in subsection 3 in the 3rd line (page 1, line 20 in L.D.) by inserting after the following: "federal authority" the following: 'without seeking approval for the transmission line from the commission pursuant to section 3132 or'
 
SUMMARY
This is the minority report of the committee. The amendment makes 2 changes to the bill. First, it removes a direct reference to the public interest under the specific criteria that would allow the Public Utilities Commission to order a divestiture, relying instead on the requirement in current law that the commission considers the public interest in all of its actions. Second, it authorizes the commission to investigate and subsequently order a divestiture if a utility began construction of a transmission line without first seeking approval from the commission, not only after the utility was denied a certificate of public convenience and necessity.
 
FISCAL NOTE REQUIRED
(See attached)