Public utility ratemaking; contracting with small, women-owned, or minority-owned businesses.

Public utility ratemaking; contracting withsmall, women-owned, or minority-owned businesses. Repeals certainprovisions of the Code relating to proceedings in which the StateCorporation Commission is required to determine whether costs incurredby a public utility in its delivery or provision of any goods orservices are reasonable or prudent. In such proceedings, the incrementalportion of costs incurred as a result of contracting with a small,women-owned, or minority-owned business to deliver or provide thegoods or services are currently not considered unreasonable or imprudentlyincurred if the costs do not exceed by more than three percent thecosts that would have been incurred had the utility used the lowest-costqualified business; the bill repeals this provision.