§ 46-15.6-6. Financing infrastructure replacement. The cost of infrastructure replacement programs and indemnification as required by this chapter shall be financed as follows:

(1) The cost of programs to implement infrastructure replacement shall be paid by the water users. The charges shall be limited to those necessary and reasonable to undertake the actions required by this chapter. These charges shall be based upon the annual funding requirements of the facility improvements necessitated over each successive twenty (20) year period. Interest earned on money in this infrastructure replacement fund shall be credited to this infrastructure replacement fund.

(2) Each water supplier designated in § 46-15.6-3 shall establish a special account designated as the infrastructure replacement fund to be held as a restricted receipt account and to be administered by the water supplier solely to implement and carry out the replacement of infrastructure as required by this chapter.

(3) Any money which may accumulate in the infrastructure replacement fund in excess of that needed to implement the annual infrastructure replacement program or in excess of that exclusively pledged to repayment of outstanding bonds or notes or loan repayments to implement the infrastructure replacement program shall revert to the rate payers of that particular system on a biannual basis.

(4) Each water supplier designated in § 46-15.6-3 may, as a complete or partial alternative to direct funding of its infrastructure replacement program, finance its infrastructure replacement program through bonding. The annual debt service of each bond or bonds shall be applied and credited towards the annual requirement of the infrastructure replacement program's annual funding requirements.

(5) The Rhode Island public utilities commission, as to water suppliers within its jurisdiction, shall permit an increase for just and reasonable infrastructure replacement in the portion of the water suppliers' rate structure to comply with this chapter and shall allow the water supplier to add this required funding to its rate base in accordance with this chapter.

History of Section. (P.L. 1993, ch. 312, § 1; P.L. 1993, ch. 438, § 1; P.L. 2009, ch. 288, § 9; P.L. 2009, ch. 341, § 9.)