News Stories

On March 13, 2026 in its inquiry into Multi-Year Rate Plans for Investor-Owned Transmission and Distribution Utilities the Maine Public Utility Commission (PUC) issued guidance on multi-year rate plans (MYRPs) regarding performance-based regulation (PBR) for the utilities.

The Commission offers the following guidance concerning multi-year rate plans for Maine’s investor-owned electric transmission and distribution utilities.

• A revenue cap multi-year rate plan framework with a revenue decoupling mechanism is reasonable for Maine’s investor-owned transmission and distribution utilities.
• The Commission recognizes that an F factor is likely necessary and recommends that the F factor be restricted to special initiatives, e.g. those initiatives above a certain cost threshold, that are outside of the norm and are not contemplated by the pace of investment incorporated in the I-X formula.
• The Commission agrees that an S factor should be incorporated in the framework but does not recommend a specific value at this time.
• Inclusion of a Z factor requires further consideration.
• Performance incentive mechanisms (PIMs) should (1) encourage achievement of new policy objectives or (2) counter implicit negative incentives that the state’s ratemaking model provides.
• Current PIMs should be maintained.
• PIMs should be developed in a rate case, including potential PIMs (or metrics that would be reported) related to customer energy usage and affordability. The Commission strongly encourages the utilities and stakeholders to propose specific PIMs in rate cases.
• Robust reporting requirements should be developed in a rate case.
• Issues raised in this inquiry but not addressed in the Commission’s guidance, such as the term of rate plans, earnings sharing mechanisms, “off ramps,” and storm costs are best addressed in rate cases.