The Public Utilities Regulatory Authority on Nov. 5 approved an annual revenue requirement of $802,243,643 for Yankee Gas Services Company, doing business as Eversource Energy, for the rate year Nov. 1, 2025, through Oct. 31, 2026, and ordered $40,218,430 in refunds to ratepayers over the next three years.

Authority staff attorney Keenan told the panel that Yankee Gas filed its application on Nov. 12, 2024 under Conn. Gen. Stat. § 16-19 to amend its rate schedules and that the company provides gas service to more than 252,300 residential, commercial and industrial customers in 85 Connecticut towns. Keenan said the company proposed a 26.8% increase over currently authorized revenues and asked for a 10.3% return on equity; the transcript provided an unclear dollar figure for the requested increase and that dollar amount is not specified in the record supplied here.

The authority said its decision follows a 350-day investigatory record that included three public comment hearings, multiple rounds of prefiled testimony, five days of audits, more than 1,300 interrogatories, eight days of in-person hearings, late-filed exhibits and written briefs. The final decision approved a revenue requirement lower than the company’s initial filing, allowed a return on equity of 9.48% that was reduced by an aggregate 16 basis points to 9.32% to address management and compliance concerns, and declined to adopt a multi-year performance-based rate plan, saying this docket was not the appropriate forum to develop such a framework for a gas company.

Keenan also reported the decision approves $3,140,460,668 of plant and service and a payroll expense of $45,239,279 allocated to Yankee.

Vice Chairman David Arconti said, “The revenue requirement we're approving today represents a balanced approach that ensures the company can continue to provide safe and reliable service while protecting ratepayers from excessive costs.” Commissioner Michael Caron thanked staff and intervenors for their work and said he planned to support the decision.

Chairman Tom Wheel announced he would abstain from the vote because he had provided notice on Oct. 21, 2025 that he would recuse himself from the proceeding due to prior involvement with the Office of Consumer Counsel. Interim Commissioners Jan Beecher and Holly Cheeseman said they had joined the authority too recently to have had adequate time to render a decision on the record and also abstained. The motion to adopt the decision was recorded as approved with yes votes from Vice Chairman David Arconti and Commissioner Michael Caron and abstentions by Chairman Tom Wheel, Interim Commissioner Jan Beecher and Interim Commissioner Holly Cheeseman.

The authority adopted the consent calendar (two items) at the start of the meeting by unanimous vote. The meeting adjourned and the panel said it will reconvene for its next regular meeting on Nov. 12, 2025, at 9 a.m. by remote teleconference.