PROPOSED RULES
COMMISSION
Supplemental Notice to WSR 98-24-123.
Preproposal statement of inquiry was filed as WSR 98-05-056.
Title of Rule: Clarification of commission jurisdiction of landlord water charges to tenants, Commission Docket No. UW-991634.
Purpose: Clarify that the commission does not regulate entities or persons that provide water only to their tenants as part of the business of renting or leasing.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: RCW 80.01.040 and 80.04.160.
Summary: This rule would amend the existing rule to clarify that the commission may not regulate entities or persons that provide water only to their tenants as part of the business of renting or leasing. The rule thus provides clarification of a jurisdictional boundary.
Name of Agency Personnel Responsible for Drafting: Danny P. Kermode, 1300 South Evergreen Park Drive S.W., Olympia, WA 98504, (360) 664-1253; Implementation and Enforcement: Carole J. Washburn, Secretary, 1300 South Evergreen Park Drive S.W., Olympia, WA 98504, (360) 664-1174.
Name of Proponent: Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission, governmental.
Rule is not necessitated by federal law, federal or state court decision.
Explanation of Rule, its Purpose, and Anticipated Effects: Some landlords purchase water through a single meter, called a master meter and provide that water to their tenants. Sometimes the monthly rent for an apartment or space includes the cost of the water. Some landlords, however, charge individual tenants for their water separately either by billing the tenant directly or by using a billing and collection service. The charges are calculated using either submeters or an allocation method.
The commission does not have the legal authority to assert jurisdiction over landlords who rebill water usage past the master meter that services their tenants. The proposed rule clarifies that landlords that provide water to their tenants, as part of the business of renting or leasing, are not public utilities and therefore are not jurisdictional.
Proposal does not change existing rules.
No small business economic impact statement has been prepared under chapter 19.85 RCW. The rule merely clarifies a jurisdictional boundary. The rule does not impose any costs.
RCW 34.05.328 does not apply to this rule adoption. The commission is not an agency to which RCW 34.05.328 applies.
Hearing Location: Commission Hearing Room, Second Floor, Chandler Plaza Building, 1300 South Evergreen Park Drive S.W., Olympia, WA 98504, on August 9, 2000, at 9:30 a.m.
Assistance for Persons with Disabilities: Contact Pat Valentine by July 31, 2000, (360) 664-1133, or TTY (360) 586-8203.
Submit Written Comments to: Carole J. Washburn, Secretary, P.O. Box 47250, Olympia, WA 98504 or e-mail to <records@wutc.wa.gov>, fax (360) 586-1150, by June 14, 2000. Please include Docket No. UW-991634 in your communication.
Date of Intended Adoption: August 9, 2000.
May 11, 2000
Carole J. Washburn
Secretary
OTS-4026.1
AMENDATORY SECTION(Amending Order R-467, Docket No. UW-980082,
filed 11/30/99, effective 12/31/99)
WAC 480-110-255
Jurisdiction.
(1) The commission only regulates investor-owned water companies that:
(a) Own, operate, control, or manage one or more water systems; except that control or management does not include management by a satellite management agency as defined in chapter 70.116 RCW if the satellite management agency is not an owner of the water company.
(b) Meet jurisdictional thresholds of one hundred or more customers, or receive average revenue of four hundred twenty-nine dollars per customer per year.
| If a water company serves customers | and receives average annual revenue per customer | commission regulation |
| 99 or less | less than $429 | No |
| 99 or less | $429 or more | Yes |
| 100 or more | less than $429 | Yes |
| 100 or more | $429 or more | Yes |
(a) Cities, towns, or counties.
(b) Public utility districts.
(c) Water districts.
(d) Local improvement districts.
(e) Homeowner associations, cooperatives and mutual corporations, or similar entities that provide service only to their owners or members.
(f) Homeowner associations, cooperatives and mutual corporations, or similar entities that provide service to nonmembers unless they serve one hundred or more nonmembers, or charge nonmembers more than four hundred twenty-nine dollars average annual revenue per nonmember.
(g) Entities or persons that provide water only to their tenants as part of the business of renting or leasing.
This may include:
(i) Apartment buildings.
(ii) Mobile home parks.
(iii) Manufactured home rental communities.
(iv) Office complexes.
(v) Commercial or industrial parks.
(3) To determine jurisdiction, the commission considers only those customers receiving water. The commission does not consider customers who do not receive water, such as customers who have paid:
(a) Water-availability letter fees.
(b) Standby charges.
(c) System-readiness fees.
(d) Ready-to-serve charges.
(4) To calculate the average annual revenue per customer, the commission considers only the charges that water-receiving customers pay on a monthly basis, other than contributions in aid of construction. For example, this includes money paid for flat-rate service or the metered base-charge and all usage charges.
(a) The commission does not include charges paid by customers who do not receive water, such as:
(i) Water availability letter fees.
(ii) Standby charges.
(iii) System-readiness fees.
(iv) Ready-to-serve charges.
(b) The commission does not consider contributions in aid of construction in determining jurisdiction. These contributions can be money, services or property. Payments can be made in a lump sum or financed over time. Examples of contributions in aid of construction include payments for:
(i) Connection to system.
(ii) Meter installation.
(iii) System buy-in.
(iv) Facilities charges.
(v) Assessments for capital plant and equipment.
(5) The following example shows how to calculate the average annual revenue per customer for two hypothetical customers. The data for each customer are provided at the end of the example:
(a) Select the most recent twelve consecutive months.
| Example: | February 1999 through January 2000. |
| Example: | Customer A paid $340. |
| Customer B paid $283. |
| Example: | Customer A received water service for twelve months. |
| Customer B received water service for nine months. |
| Example: | ||||
| Paid to Water Company During the Twelve-Month Period | ||||
| Customer A | $340 | |||
| Customer B | + | $283 | ||
| Total Paid During Twelve- Month Period |
$623 | |||
| Example: | ||||
| Number of Months
Received Water Service During the Twelve-Month Period |
||||
| Customer A | 12 | |||
| Customer B | + | 9 | ||
| Total Months Received Water Service During the Twelve-Month Period | 21 | |||
| Example: | |||||
| Total Paid During the Twelve-Month Period | $623 | ||||
| Total Months Received Water Service During the Twelve-Month Period | ÷ | 21 | |||
| Average Monthly Revenue Per Customer | $29.67 | ||||
| (A) | Average Monthly Revenue Per Customer | $29.67 | |
| Months in a Year | x | 12 | |
| (B) | Average Annual Revenue Per Customer | $356.04 |
| DATA USED IN THE EXAMPLE TO CALCULATE AVERAGE ANNUAL REVENUE PER CUSTOMER |
|||||||||
| Example -- Customer A |
|||||||||
Standby Charge |
Ready-to- Serve Charge |
Connection Charge |
Facilities Charge |
Meter Base Charge |
Meter Usage Charge |
||||
| Receive Water Service | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||
| Contribution in Aid of Construction | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | |||
| Total | |||||||||
| Year | Month | Paid | |||||||
| 1997 | February | $20 | $4 | $24 | |||||
| 1997 | March | $20 | $5 | $25 | |||||
| 1997 | April | $20 | $2 | $22 | |||||
| 1997 | May | $25 | $5 | $30 | |||||
| 1997 | June | $25 | $6 | $31 | |||||
| 1997 | July | $25 | $12 | $37 | |||||
| 1997 | August | $25 | $6 | $31 | |||||
| 1997 | September | $25 | $4 | $29 | |||||
| 1997 | October | $25 | $4 | $29 | |||||
| 1997 | November | $25 | $3 | $28 | |||||
| 1997 | December | $25 | $2 | $27 | |||||
| 1998 | January | $25 | $2 | $27 | |||||
| $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $285 | $55 | $340 | |||
| Number of months service | 12 | ||||||||
| Not Receiving Water | $0 | ||||||||
| Receiving Water - Contribution in Aid of Construction | $0 | ||||||||
| Receiving Water - Other than Contribution in Aid of Construction | $340 | ||||||||
| Total customer paid during period | $340 | ||||||||
| DATA USED IN THE EXAMPLE TO CALCULATE AVERAGE ANNUAL REVENUE PER CUSTOMER |
|||||||||
| Example -- Customer B |
|||||||||
Standby Charge |
Ready-to- Serve Charge |
Connection Charge |
Facilities Charge |
Meter Base Charge |
Meter Usage Charge |
||||
| Receive Water Service | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | |||
| Contribution in Aid of Construction | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | |||
| Total | |||||||||
| Year | Month | Paid | |||||||
| 1997 | February | $7 | $7 | ||||||
| 1997 | March | $7 | $7 | ||||||
| 1997 | April | $12 | $12 | ||||||
| 1997 | May | $300 | $4,500 | $25 | $5 | $4,830 | |||
| 1997 | June | $25 | $4 | $29 | |||||
| 1997 | July | $25 | $3 | $28 | |||||
| 1997 | August | $25 | $12 | $37 | |||||
| 1997 | September | $25 | $10 | $35 | |||||
| 1997 | October | $25 | $15 | $40 | |||||
| 1997 | November | $25 | $5 | $30 | |||||
| 1997 | December | $25 | $2 | $27 | |||||
| 1998 | January | $25 | $2 | $27 | |||||
| $14 | $12 | $300 | $4,500 | $225 | $58 | $5,109 | |||
| Number of months service | 9 | ||||||||
| Not Receiving Water | $26 | ||||||||
| Receiving Water - Contributions in Aid of Construction | $4,800 | ||||||||
| Receiving Water - Other than Contribution in Aid of Construction | $283 | ||||||||
| Total customer paid during period | $5,109 | ||||||||
(h) To ensure that all customers are treated equitably, the
commission will impute the same rates to any customers receiving
free or reduced service that apply to other customers receiving
comparable service on the same system.
[Statutory Authority: RCW 80.01.040. 99-24-100 (Order R-467, Docket No. UW-980082), § 480-110-255, filed 11/30/99, effective 12/31/99.]