HB0378 Troupe, Charles Quincy

P R E F I L E D

HB 378 -- Utility Audits

This bill requires all state agencies, school districts, and higher educational institutions to contract with an independent Missouri-based technical auditing firm that meets qualifications established by the State Auditor to audit all utility bills paid during the previous five years. The audits will examine records to find errors in payments and billing and any practices that fail to conform to applicable rules of the Public Service Commission. The auditing firm is also directed to recommend methods for reducing utility costs that do not require additional expenditures.

The bill limits auditing firms' compensation to 50% of funds recovered as a result of the audit and an additional 50% of any reduction in utility costs realized during the year following implementation of a cost-savings recommendation made by the contractor.

The bill also requires the Office of the Public Counsel to hire a Missouri-based technical auditing firm to annually perform tariff conformance audits of 10 randomly selected investor-owned utilities regulated by the Public Service Commission. The audits will examine the accuracy of specified samples of residential customers' bills and the performance of residential utility meters.

Conformance audits will be funded from any excess Public Service Commission funds remaining from the previous year. Compensation for the auditing contractor is limited to $25 for each one-year of customer bills examined and $25 for each utility meter calibrated.

The Public Service Commission is required to remedy any instances of nonconformity discovered by an audit.