The bill establishes a new section, W.S. 37-2-135, which mandates the Wyoming Public Service Commission to engage in long-range planning for public utility regulatory policy. It requires affected electrical utilities to submit action plans as part of their integrated resource plans, allowing the commission to review and provide guidance. The commission is tasked with adopting rules for the review process, which will include determining whether to acknowledge the action plans and integrated resource plans, while clarifying that such acknowledgment does not imply a determination of prudence or guarantee of rate recovery. Additionally, the bill allows utilities some flexibility to modify their action plans between periodic filings.
The bill defines "affected electrical utility" as a public utility with a specified number of retail electric customers, and it outlines what constitutes an "integrated resource plan," including demand forecasts, options for meeting energy requirements, and assessments of environmental and economic impacts. The act is set to take effect on July 1, 2024.