Builders, union and homeowners urge Washington UTC to preserve line-extension allowance amid Northwest Natural rate case

The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission heard public comments on April 30 about Northwest Natural Gas Company's proposed three-year rate plan and a partial settlement that would reduce, but still raise, company revenues.

Chair Brian Rybaric opened the virtual hearing and summarized the filings: Northwest Natural initially proposed revenue increases of $25,600,000 in 2026, $8,600,000 in 2027 and $8,300,000 in 2028; settling parties later submitted a partial settlement proposing $20,100,000 in 2026, $7,700,000 in 2027 and $8,700,000 in 2028. Rybaric noted the settlement is not binding and said the public counsel unit of the Washington Attorney General's Office opposes the proposed partial settlement.

The bulk of public testimony focused on the company's line-extension allowance, a policy that offsets some upfront costs to connect new homes to gas service. Howard Bell, business manager for OPIU Local 11 and a retired Northwest Natural foreman, told the commission, “We need to be installing services, keeping our employees working,” and urged the commission to retain the allowance because it supports jobs across trades and allows work for equipment operators, pipefitters and laborers. Bell also advocated exploring renewable natural gas and methane capture to reduce carbon emissions.

Nelson Holmberg, representing the Building Industry Association of Clark County, said the allowance is critical for housing affordability and project feasibility. Holmberg warned that without the allowance, "those costs are passed directly to buyers at closing," and that increases of "thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars per home" can determine whether an entry-level buyer qualifies for a mortgage.

Andrea Smiley of the Building Industry Association of Washington urged regulators to avoid adding upfront costs amid a statewide housing affordability crisis. Smiley said members have seen that reductions in allowances have in some markets "increase[d] the cost of new housing from anywhere from $10,000 to $16,000 per home," and argued builders operating on slim margins cannot absorb those costs.

A home builder identified as John described a 16-lot project made cost-prohibitive when infrastructure wasn't stubbed into the area and said clients still prefer gas for heating and appliances. Tracy Doriot, owner of Dorio Construction in Vancouver, testified that in her 50 years of custom home building customers who had gas available generally chose to take it, and she urged the commission to retain the authority for line extensions in Clark County.

Not all comments focused only on line extensions. Carol Dillon, a Camas homeowner and longtime Northwest Natural customer, said she was concerned about the overall scale of increases and told the commission she found "it particularly a hardship for residential customers to have to withstand this 22% increase initially and then subsequent increases." The chair had earlier summarized that, under the settling parties' proposal, a residential customer using about 54 therms per month would see roughly a 19% increase in 2026 under the settlement figures presented.

Commission staff and public counsel outlined next steps and filing deadlines: the evidentiary hearing is set for Monday, May 4; the commission set a deadline for written comments of May 11, and public counsel will enter written comments into the record by May 18. Chair Rybaric adjourned the public comment hearing after the commissioners thanked participants for contributing to the record.

The commission will consider the full record, including written comments and the evidentiary hearing record, before deciding whether the proposed partial settlement or a different outcome is in the public interest.