Sec. 2. Standard installation cost. An electric utility shall submit to the Public Utilities Commission within 90 days after the effective date of this Act a proposed standard per-foot installation charge for single-phase overhead distribution line extensions that will be applied uniformly to every customer of the utility.

Sec. 3. Application. This Act applies to all single-phase overhead line extensions installed on or after January 1, 2000.

Emergency clause. In view of the emergency cited in the preamble, this Act takes effect when approved.

SUMMARY

This bill requires electric utilities to provide the first 300 feet of a single-phase overhead distribution line extension to a customer for free and allows for installment payments for up to 5 years for extensions of up to 2,000 feet, which was the policy of Central Maine Power Company until a recent order by the Public Utilities Commission that requires that only the first 75 feet of a single-phase overhead line extension be provided for free to a customer. This bill also requires electric utilities to submit a proposed standard per-foot installation charge for single-phase overhead distribution line extensions within 90 days after the effective date of this bill.