Citizens Utility Ratepayer Board presents budget, cites $159.6M in Evergy rate-case savings

Joseph Straub, newly appointed consumer counsel for the Citizens Utility Ratepayer Board (CURB), presented the board’s fee-funded budget and performance-based metrics to the committee and described CURB’s recent docket work, staffing and anticipated workload.

Straub told the committee he succeeded the prior consumer counsel and has been with CURB since 2019. He described CURB as the statutory agency that "represent[s] the interest of residential and small commercial rate payers" at the Kansas Corporation Commission. Straub said CURB intervenes in major rate cases and related dockets and frequently employs outside consultants for accounting and engineering expertise.

CURB’s budget presentation showed no State General Fund usage; the agency is funded through a utility regulatory fee fund. Luke Drury, senior fiscal analyst, noted a consultant-services reappropriation of about $88,000 carried into FY2025 because those fee dollars were unspent in FY2024 and allowed to roll forward. Projected FY2026 budget changes discussed included modest increases in employer group health insurance (about $9,000), communication fees to OITS (about $7,000), a roughly $3,000 timing-related salaries/wages adjustment, and small KPERS employer contribution increases (about $2,000). Straub described staff time allocation and performance metrics the board uses to measure value.

Straub and his presentation materials highlighted CURB’s recent work in major contested dockets. He described the Evergy rate proceedings and said CURB’s involvement contributed to an estimated $159,600,000 in savings compared with the utilities’ initial aggregate request; the presentation also cited a roughly $20,000,000 savings in a Kansas Gas Service rate case. Straub explained those figures as a comparison between what utilities requested in their applications and the final commission orders after interventions and settlement activity; those totals were presented as gross savings before subtracting CURB’s staff and consultant costs.

Straub told the committee CURB expects several large rate-case filings in the weeks ahead and that multiple simultaneous rate cases would increase workload and require continued consultant support. He told lawmakers that CURB staff costs are tracked by hours and role and that consultant engagements cover specialized accounting and engineering work.

No formal committee action was taken on the CURB budget at the hearing. Straub answered committee questions about how CURB calculates savings and the nature of consulting costs; he emphasized that CURB’s role is to represent residential and small commercial ratepaying interests in KCC dockets.

The committee indicated it will continue to consider the agency budgets and asked staff to include the CURB materials in its upcoming work on agency budgets.