Hydropower Transmission Corridor

Heavy machinery is used to cut trees to widen an existing Central Maine Power power line corridor to make way for new utility poles on April 26, 2021, near Bingham. State regulators have approved new rules restricting utility spending on political activities, advertising and certain education initiatives, while also forbidding those expenses from being passed on to ratepayers. Robert F. Bukaty/Associated Press

Maine regulators on Tuesday approved a set of rules restricting utility spending on political activities, advertising and certain education initiatives.

The new rules also forbid those expenses from being passed on to ratepayers.

The Public Utilities Commission voted 3-0 to adopt a regulation requiring electric, gas and water utilities to file annual reports describing their political activities, charitable contributions, educational spending and other similar activities. Utilities also must detail expenses associated with these activities, and the regulation prohibits any electric utility from providing promotional allowances — discounts in exchange for promotions — without first getting PUC approval.

Utilities may not bill ratepayers for donations to political campaigns or parties, contributions to trade associations or business groups, or spending on lobbying or educational activities, except to inform customers about energy efficiency, conservation and other measures.

The regulation is based on a law enacted in 2023 by the Legislature and Gov. Janet Mills requiring greater transparency in utilities’ spending on advertising.

Backers of the legislation cited tens of millions of dollars spent in favor and against a 2021 ballot measure asking voters to reject the New England Clean Energy Connect hydropower transmission line. Supporters of that initiative spent about $24 million, while NextEra, owner of a New Hampshire nuclear plant that stood to lose millions of dollars from the competing transmission line, spent $20 million. It wasn’t clear how large of a donation NextEra had made until two years after the election.

Advertisement

Versant Power told regulators that the ban on including in rates a utility’s contributions to a trade association or chamber of commerce is new and that Versant has treated such expenses “in a way that would comply with this new requirement and will continue to do so.”

Otherwise, with few exceptions, the law “enshrines in statute certain longstanding rules” advanced by the PUC and Maine Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices, Versant officials said.

In addition, the Ethics Commission’s governing statutes require that political contributions and activities exceeding certain thresholds be reported, according to Versant.

The state Office of the Public Advocate told regulators in October that a proposed reporting threshold of $100,000 for major political activities is too high and is double the current $50,000 limit. Because one purpose of the law is to increase transparency in spending by utilities, “raising the threshold would be contrary” to the purpose of the law, the Public Advocate said.

It suggested a threshold of $5,000 as a trigger for reporting political activities, or $50,000 as a compromise.

Regulators disagreed. The PUC cited current rules pegged at a limit of $50,000 as a threshold for major political activities for nearly 40 years and said it’s reasonable to increase it to $100,000.

Related Headlines

Join the Conversation

Please sign into your Press Herald account to participate in conversations below. If you do not have an account, you can register or subscribe. Questions? Please see our FAQs.