PURA panel bars new evidence in remand of gas rate cases, sustains OC objection

A three‑member panel of the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority on May 4 sustained a standing objection from the Office of Consumer Counsel and ruled that parties may not introduce new evidence into the remand record for the Connecticut Natural Gas and Southern Connecticut Gas rate dockets.

Presiding Officer Commissioner Cheeseman told parties, “we will not be considering any new evidence as we proceed in the hearing,” after a short recess in which the commissioners consulted. The ruling follows a full day of argument in which company counsel asked PURA to allow limited updates to reflect plant and wage changes through March 2026; consumer advocates and interveners said the Superior Court’s remand was procedural and that admitting new, unvetted materials would amount to single‑issue ratemaking and unfairly shift risk to ratepayers.

Andrew Minikowski of the Office of Consumer Counsel lodged the standing objection at the start of oral argument, saying the company’s attachments “contain a substantial amount of evidence that is not currently in the record as adopted by PURA” and asking that objection be noted for the record and briefed. Brendan Vaughn, counsel for the companies, said the updates were “appropriate” because the remand requires PURA to set rates that reflect capital and operating costs; he argued much of the updated material concerns mathematical adjustments to plant in service, wages and debt costs.

After the panel sustained the objection, interveners urged PURA to make the administrative record clear by striking the new evidence explicitly from the company filing or directing a refile. The panel set a briefing schedule: written briefs on the matters in dispute are due by 4:00 p.m. on May 15, 2026. PURA also reminded parties that material filed in the earlier docket is not automatically part of the remand record and may be refiled in the instant dockets.