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PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
NOTICE OF PROPOSED RULEMAKING
FORMAL CASE NO. 977, IN THE MATTER OF THE INVESTIGATION INTO THE QUALITY OF SERVICE OF WASHINGTON GAS LIGHT COMPANY, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA DIVISION, IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
1. The Public Service Commission of the District of Columbia (Commission) hereby gives notice, pursuant to section 34-802 of the District of Columbia Official Code and in accordance with section 2-505 of the District of Columbia Official Code,[1] of its intent to amend Chapter 37, of Title 15 of the District of Columbia Municipal Regulations (DCMR), commonly referred to as the Natural Gas Quality of Service Standards (NGQSS). This chapter sets forth standards for ensuring that a natural gas utility and natural gas service providers operating in the District of Columbia meet an adequate level of quality, reliability, and safety in the natural gas service provided to District of Columbia residents. In an effort to clarify the reporting requirements, the Commission has proposed to amend the provisions which follow. The Commission gives notice of its intent to take final rulemaking action in not less than thirty (30) days after publication of this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) in the D.C. Register.
Chapter 37, NATURAL GAS QUALITY OF SERVICE STANDARDS, of title 15 of the DCMR is amended as follows:
Section 3700, PURPOSE AND APPLICABILITY, is amended as follows:
Subsection 3700.3 is amended to read as follows:
3700.3 All written Natural Gas Quality of Service Standards (NGQSS) monthly, quarterly and annual reports, studies, and surveys required to be submitted to the Commission shall be filed by the natural gas utility and natural gas service providers under Formal Case No. 977 (F.C. 977).
A new subsection 3700.4 is added to read as follows:
3700.4 All written reports for individual natural gas service outages, incidents, leaks, odor complaints, emergencies, and billing errors shall be filed with the Commission and placed in an appropriate docket as determined by the Office of the Commission Secretary (OCMS).
Section 3701, REPORTING REQUIREMENTS FOR SERVICE OUTAGES AND GAS INCIDENTS, is amended as follows:
Subsection 3701.11 is amended to read as follows:
3701.11 Written reports concerning all non-major service outages shall be filed by the natural gas utility with the Commission, with a copy provided to OPC, within ten (10) days from the date of repair/restoration completion or within three (3) weeks of the event occurrence, whichever comes first.
Section 3702, REPORTING AND REPAIRING REQUIREMENTS FOR GAS LEAK AND ODOR COMPLAINTS, is amended as follows:
Subsection 3702.1 is amended to read as follows:
3702.1 The natural gas utility’s reporting and repair requirements for gas leaks and odor complaints shall follow four steps:
(a) respond to all leaks and odor complaints;
(b) notify, by e-mail and telephone, OE and OPC;
(c) provide periodic updates to the initial notification; and
(d) file written reports with the Commission, with a copy provided to OPC, on the results of the leak detection and repair, and odor complaints.
A new subsection 8702.2 is added to read as follows:
3702.2 The leak detection, classification, and repair personnel should meet the federal training requirements for natural gas operations, maintenance, and emergencies (49 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 192).
Current subsections 3702.2 through 3702.16 are renumbered 3702.3 through 3702.17.
Subsection 3702.8, which will be renumbered 3702.9, is amended to read as follows:
3702.9 All Grade 1 leaks shall be promptly repaired. If not repaired immediately, upon detection, the utility shall file a weekly written report with the Commission, with a copy provided to OPC, regarding the status of and the utility’s progress in completing the leak repair. The natural gas utility shall inform OE and OPC prior to making any changes to the estimated leak repair time(s).
Section 3706, BILLING ERROR NOTIFICATION, is amended as follows:
Subsections 3706.5 and 3705.6 are amended to read as follows:
3706.5 The follow-up written report shall be filed with the Commission, with a copy provided to OPC, and shall contain the following information:
(a) Type(s) of billing error(s);
(b) Date and time of the billing error(s);
(c) Number of customers affected;
(d) Cause of the error and status of any and all corrective action(s) taken; and
(e) Timeline for completing any and all other required corrective action(s) which must include the provision of refunds and/or credits, no later than sixty (60) days after the billing error(s) was discovered, as necessary to correct the billing error(s).
3706.6 The final written report shall be filed with the Commission, with a copy provided to OPC, and shall contain the following information:
(a) Type(s) of billing error(s);
(b) Date and time of billing error(s);
(c) Number of customers affected and the dollar amount involved;
(d) Duration of the billing error(s);
(e) Corrective action(s) and preventative measure(s) taken; and
(f) Lessons learned, if any.
Section 3708, COMPLIANCE REPORTING, is amended as follows:
Subsection 3708.1(a) is amended to read as follows:
3708.1 The natural gas utility and all natural gas service providers shall collect and retain accurate data demonstrating compliance with the measures in this chapter. Data are to be collected on a monthly basis in a format established by Commission Order.
(a) The natural gas utility and all natural gas service providers shall file monthly compliance data, and aggregated data for the three (3) months in the quarter, with the Commission, with a copy provided to OPC, on a quarterly basis pursuant to the following schedule: the report for the months of January, February, and March shall be filed on April 30; the report for the months of April, May, and June, on July 30; the report for the months of July, August, and September, on October 30; and the report for the months of October, November, and December, on January 30 of the following year. A cumulative annual report for the current reporting year shall also be filed by January 30 of the following year.
