Prohibited Promotional Practices

PURPOSE: This rule sets forth those promotional practices of gas and electric utilities which are prohibited by the Public Service Commission. (1) No public utility shall offer or grant any of the following promotional practices for the purpose of inducing any person to select and use the service or use additional service of the utility: (A) The financing of real property, including the construction of any building, when the property is not owned or otherwise possessed by the utility or its affiliate; (B) The furnishing of consideration to any architect, builder, engineer, subdivider, developer or other person for work done or to be done on property not owned or otherwise possessed by the utility or its affiliate, except for studies to determine comparative capital costs and expenses to show the desirability or feasibility of selecting one (1) form of energy over another; (C) The acquisition from any builder, subdivider, developer or other person of any easement, right-of-way, license, lease or other property for consideration in excess of the reasonable cost or value; (D) The furnishing of consideration to any dealer, architect, builder, engineer, subdivider, developer or other person for the sale, installation or use of appliances or equipment; (E) The provision of free, or less than cost or value, wiring, piping, appliances or equipment to any other person; provided, that a utility, engaged in an appliance merchandising sales program, shall not be precluded from conducting legitimate closeouts of appliances, clearance sales and sales of damaged or returned appliances; (F) The provision of free, or less than cost or value, installation, operation, repair, modification or maintenance of appliances, equipment, wiring or piping of any other person; (G) The granting of a trade-in allowance on the purchase of any appliance or equipment in excess of the market value of the trade-in as well as the granting of an allowance for the appliance or equipment when the allowance varies by the type of energy consumed in the appliance or equipment; (H) The financing of the acquisition of any appliance or equipment at a rate of interest or on terms more favorable than those generally applicable to sales by nonutility dealers in the appliances or equipment, except sales to company employees; (I) The furnishing of consideration to any person for any advertising or publicity purpose of that person, except for payments not exceeding one-half (1/2) of the reasonable cost or value for joint advertising or publicity with a dealer in appliances or equipment for the sale or other provision of same if the utility is prominently identified as a sponsor of the advertisement; and (J) The guaranteeing of the maximum cost of electric or gas utility service, except the guaranteeing of the cost of space heating or cooling for a single season, when the cost is at or above the cost of providing service and when the guarantee is for the purpose of improving the utility’s off-peak season load factor. (2) Nothing contained in this rule shall be construed to prohibit any activity, practice or business otherwise allowed by statute and particularly those businesses exempt from the jurisdiction of this commission as provided under section 393.140(12), RSMo or employee benefit programs approved by the commission and consistent with the provisions of 4 CSR 240-14.040. AUTHORITY: sections 386.040, 386.610 and 393.140, RSMo 1986 and 386.250, RSMo Supp. 1991.* This rule originally filed as 4 CSR 240-14.020. Original rule filed June 28, 1971, effective July 8, 1971. Amended: Filed Sept. 15, 1972, effective Sept. 25, 1972. Amended: Filed June 12, 1992, effective May 6, 1993. Moved to 20 CSR 4240-14.020, 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.