(a) In the performance of their duties the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority and the Office of Consumer Counsel may retain consultants to assist their staffs in proceedings before the authority by providing expertise in areas in which staff expertise does not currently exist or when necessary to supplement existing staff expertise. In any case where the authority or Office of Consumer Counsel determines that the services of a consultant are necessary or desirable, the authority shall (1) allow opportunity for the parties and participants to the proceeding for which the services of a consultant are being considered to comment regarding the necessity or desirability of such services, (2) upon the request of a party or participant to the proceeding for which the services of a consultant are being considered, hold a hearing, and (3) limit the reasonable and proper expenses for such services to not more than two hundred thousand dollars for each agency per proceeding involving a public service company, telecommunications company, electric supplier or person seeking certification to provide telecommunications services pursuant to chapter 283, with more than fifteen thousand customers, and to not more than fifty thousand dollars for each agency per proceeding involving such a company, electric supplier or person with less than fifteen thousand customers, provided the authority or the Office of Consumer Counsel may exceed such limits for good cause. In the case of multiple proceedings conducted to implement the provisions of this section and sections 16-1, 16-19, 16-19e, 16-22, 16-247a to 16-247c, inclusive, 16-247e to 16-247h, inclusive, 16-247k and subsection (e) of 16-331, the authority or the Office of Consumer Counsel may exceed such limits, but the total amount for all such proceedings shall not exceed the aggregate amount which would be available pursuant to this section. All reasonable and proper expenses, as defined in subdivision (3) of this section, shall be borne by the affected company, electric supplier or person and shall be paid by such company, electric supplier or person at such times and in such manner as the authority or the Office of Consumer Counsel directs. All reasonable and proper costs and expenses, as defined in subdivision (3) of this section, shall be recognized by the authority for all purposes as proper business expenses of the affected company, electric supplier or person. The providers of consultant services shall be selected by the authority or the Office of Consumer Counsel and shall submit written findings and recommendations to the authority or the Office of Consumer Counsel, as the case may be, which shall be made part of the public record.

(b) Notwithstanding any provision of the general statutes, the authority and the Office of Consumer Counsel shall not retain any consultant under subsection (a) of this section in connection with any proceeding involving telecommunications if such consultant, at the time the consultant would be retained, is serving as a consultant to a certified telecommunications provider or a telephone company that would be affected by such proceeding, unless each party and intervenor to such proceeding agrees in writing to waive the provisions of this subsection.

(c) The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, in consultation with the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority and the Office of Consumer Counsel, may retain consultants to assist its staff by providing expertise in areas in which staff expertise does not currently exist or to supplement staff expertise for any proceeding before or in any negotiation with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the United States Department of Energy, the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Trade Commission or the United States Department of Justice. The Public Utilities Regulatory Authority, in consultation with the Office of Consumer Counsel, may retain consultants to assist its staff by providing expertise in areas in which staff expertise does not currently exist or to supplement staff expertise for any proceeding before or in any negotiation with the Federal Communications Commission. All reasonable and proper expenses of any such consultants shall be borne by the public service companies, certified telecommunications providers, holders of a certificate of video franchise authority, electric suppliers or gas registrants affected by the decisions of such proceeding and shall be paid at such times and in such manner as the authority directs, provided such expenses (1) shall be apportioned in proportion to the revenues of each affected entity as reported to the authority pursuant to section 16-49 for the most recent fiscal year, and (2) shall not exceed two and one-half million dollars per calendar year, including any appeals thereof, unless the authority finds good cause for exceeding the limit. The authority shall recognize all such expenses as proper business expenses of the affected entities for ratemaking purposes pursuant to section 16-19e, if applicable.

(P.A. 92-25, S. 1; P.A. 94-83, S. 11, 16; P.A. 98-28, S. 34, 117; P.A. 99-286, S. 7, 19; P.A. 00-53, S. 2; P.A. 00-107, S. 2, 3; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-9, S. 17, 131; P.A. 11-80, S. 25; P.A. 13-298, S. 8; P.A. 16-101, S. 2.)

History: P.A. 94-83 added “or when necessary to supplement existing staff expertise”, made technical changes, amended Subdiv. (1) by replacing hearing with opportunity for comment, added new Subdiv. (2) re hearing, renumbered Subdiv. (2) as (3) and changed references to Subdiv. (2) to Subdiv. (3), added provisions re telecommunications companies and persons, firms or corporations seeking certification, added provision re multiple proceedings and deleted “The provisions of this section shall terminate on January 1, 1997”, effective July 1, 1994; P.A. 98-28 designated existing provisions as Subsec. (a), making technical changes and adding references to electric suppliers, and added new Subsec. (b) authorizing the department to retain consultants for implementing the public education outreach program, effective July 1, 1998; P.A. 99-286 amended Subsec. (a) by making technical changes, effective July 19, 1999; P.A. 00-53 made a technical change in Subsec. (a); P.A. 00-107 added new Subsec. (c) prohibiting the use of certain consultants, effective May 26, 2000; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-9 extended the authority of the department to retain consultants for implementing the public education outreach program from December 31, 2000, to December 31, 2005, effective July 1, 2001; P.A. 11-80 replaced “Department of Public Utility Control” with “Public Utilities Regulatory Authority”, replaced “department” with “authority”, deleted former Subsec. (b) re retaining consultants to assist in developing and implementing public education outreach program, and redesignated existing Subsec. (c) as Subsec. (b), effective July 1, 2011; P.A. 13-298 added Subsec. (c) re retaining consultants to assist in federal proceedings, effective July 1, 2013; P.A. 16-101 amended Subsec. (a) by replacing “16-247i” with “16-247h”, effective June 2, 2016.