General Provisions

PURPOSE: This rule sets forth the general provisions of and defines the terms used in 4 CSR 240-14—Utility Promotional Practices. (1) This rule and the other rules contained in chapter govern promotional practices of all gas and electric utilities under the jurisdiction of the Public Service Commission. (2) On written application by a utility the commission may grant variances from the rules contained in this chapter for good cause shown. The utility filing the application shall show proof of service of a copy of the application on each public utility providing the same or competing utility service in all or any portion of the service area of the filing utility. (3) Nothing contained in the rules of this chapter shall be construed to prohibit or restrict any industrial development or Missouri Community Betterment Program activities by any utility. (4) Nothing contained in this chapter shall be construed to prohibit market research studies, pilot programs, test marketing programs or other activities to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of potential demand-side resources. (5) Nothing contained in this chapter shall be construed to prohibit the provision of consideration that may be necessary to acquire costeffective demand-side resources. (6) The following terms, when used in this chapter, shall have the following meanings: (A) Affiliate shall include any person who, directly or indirectly, controls or is controlled by or is under common control with a public utility; (B) Appliance or equipment shall mean any device which consumes electric or gas energy and any ancillary device required for its operation; (C) Consideration shall be interpreted in its broadest sense and shall include any cash, donation, gift, allowance, rebate, discount, bonus, merchandise (new or used), property (real or personal), labor, service, conveyance, commitment, right or other thing of value; (D) Cost-effective means that the present value of life-cycle benefits is greater than the present value of life-cycle costs to the provider of an energy service; (E) Demand-side resource means any inefficient energy-related choice that can be influenced cost-effectively by a utility. The meaning of this term shall not be construed to include load-building programs; (F) Energy service means the need that is served or the benefit that is derived by the ultimate consumer’s use of energy; (G) Financing shall include acquisition of equity or debt interests, loans, guarantees of loans, advances, sale and repurchase agreements, sale and leaseback agreements, sales on open account, conditional or installment sales contracts or other investments or extensions of credit; (H) Inefficient energy-related choice means any decision that causes the life-cycle cost of providing an energy service to be higher than it would be for an available alternative choice; (I) Life-cycle means the expected useful lifetime of appliances, equipment or buildings; (J) Load-building program means an organized promotional effort by a utility to persuade energy-related decision makers to choose the form of energy supplied by that utility instead of other forms of energy for the provision of energy service or to persuade customers to increase their use of that utility’s form of energy, either by substituting it for other forms of energy or by increasing the level or variety of energy services used. This term is not intended to include the provision of technical or engineering assistance, information about filed rates and tariffs or other forms of routine customer service. (K) Person shall include any individual, group, firm, partnership, corporation, association or other organization; (L) Promotional practices shall mean any consideration offered or granted by a public utility or its affiliate to any person for the purpose, express or implied, of inducing the person to select and use the service or use additional service of the utility or to select or install any appliance or equipment designed to use the utility service, or for the purpose of influencing the person’s choice or specification of the efficiency characteristics of appliances, equipment, buildings, utilization patterns or operating procedures. The term promotional practices shall not include the following activities: 1. Making any emergency repairs to appliances or equipment of customers; 2. Providing appliances or equipment incidental to demonstrations of sixty (60) days or less in duration; 3. Providing light bulbs, street or outdoor lighting service, wiring, service pipe or other service equipment or appliances, in accordance with tariffs filed with and approved by the commission; 4. Providing appliances or equipment to an educational institution for the purpose of instructing students in the use of the appliances or equipment; 5. Merchandising appliances or equipment at retail and, in connection therewith, the holding of inventories, making and fulfillment of reasonable warranties against defects in material and workmanship existing at the time of delivery and financing; provided that the merchandising shall not violate any prohibition contained in 4 CSR 24014.020; 6. Inspecting and adjusting of appliances or equipment by a public utility; 7. Repairing and other maintenance to appliances or equipment by a public utility if charges are at cost or above; 8. Providing free or below-cost energy audits or other information or analysis regarding the feasibility and cost-effectiveness of improvements in the efficiency characteristics of appliances, equipment, buildings, utilization patterns or operating procedures; 9. Offering to present or prospective customers by a public utility technical or engineering assistance; and 10. Advertising or publicity by a public utility which is under its name and on its behalf and which does not in any manner, directly or indirectly, identify, describe, refer to, mention or relate to any architect, builder, engineer, subdivider, developer or other similar person, or which mentions no less than three (3) existing projects, developments or subdivisions. (M) Public utility or utility shall mean any electrical corporation or gas corporation as defined in section 386.020, RSMo; and AUTHORITY: sections 386.040, 386.610 and 393.140, RSMo 1986 and 386.250, RSMo Supp. 1991.* This rule originally filed as 4 CSR 240-14.010. Original rule filed June 28, 1971, effective July 8, 1971. Amended: Filed Sept. 15, 1972, effective Sept. 25, 1972. Amended: Filed April 1, 1988, effective June 6, 1988. Amended: Filed June 12, 1992, effective May 6, 1993. Moved to 20 CSR 4240-14.010, effective Aug. 28, 2019. *Original authority: 386.040, RSMo 1939; 386.250, RSMo 1939, amended 1963, 1967, 1977, 1980, 1987, 1988, 1991; 386.610, RSMo 1939; and 393.140, RSMo 1939, amended 1949, 1967.