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THE NEBRASKA POWER REVIEW BOARD: REGULATING A PUBLICLY-OWNED ELECTRIC UTILITY INDUSTRY (HISTORY, LAW)
Abstract
A limited regulatory scheme evolved in response to the unique public power status during the 1933 to 1983 time-frame, emphasis is on the regulated era of the last twenty years. Economic and legal frames of reference assist in comparing the influences of each, as their symbiotic relationship helped structure the markets and regulatory techniques. Examination of the pre-regulated era is restricted to an exploration of rational economic arrangements and the legal environment within which the public power entities operated. This draws heavily upon the work of others. The principal economic influences are economies of size available from the technologies of the three electric utility functions: generation, transmission, and distribution. Legal constraints imposed by the legislature and courts are compared to the natural monopolies defined by the available economies of size. Two court cases forced reorganization of the industry by denying utilities the power to contractually disable themselves, and thereby structure markets via wholesale and retail agreements. The voided contracts were evidence of underlying economic evolutions and the legislature responded to both the economic and legal realities. The increasing size of individual utility operations and extent of market penetration replaced simplicity and independence with system-wide complexity and interaction. The Nebraska Power Review Board (PRB) was fashioned to allow the requisite state intervention, yet maintain the maximum local control. The PRB would approve allocation of retail markets and pass upon the construction of generation and transmission facilities; but, not review rates. Municipal growth, and the end of electrical isolation via the establishment of a transmission grid were the dominant forces intensifying intra-industry interactions. Reactive legislative proposals ranged from regulation repeal to imposition of traditional regulation. Consistently, the selected alternatives involves the least restrictions and expanded the PRB role the least. The PRB was authorized to approve voluntary, non-binding allocation of wholesale markets and to determine the total economic impact resulting from municipal annexation of neighboring facilities. Additionally, public power corporations were authorized to form jointly controlled power pooling corporations.
Subject Area
Business costs
Recommended Citation
O'HARA, MICHAEL JAMES, "THE NEBRASKA POWER REVIEW BOARD: REGULATING A PUBLICLY-OWNED ELECTRIC UTILITY INDUSTRY (HISTORY, LAW)" (1983). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI8412317.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI8412317