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Our Jurisdiction

Electricity - General

What we regulate:

  • Rates paid by consumers
  • Quality of service
  • Net-metering
  • Siting and construction of generation and transmission facilities
  • Line extensions
  • Service disconnection
  • Safety
  • Energy efficiency programs
  • Long-term out-of-state power purchase agreements
  • Some long-term contracts for in-state renewable energy resources
  • Long-term resource planning
  • Utility franchise territory boundaries
  • Rates paid to independent power producers
  • Intrastate interconnection of transmission or distribution facilities
  • Compliance with State statutes and Commission orders

What we do not regulate:

  • Transmission of electricity in interstate commerce (except facility siting)
  • Wholesale electricity sales in interstate commerce
  • Hydroelectric facilities subject to federal regulation
Electricity - Nuclear Power

What we regulate:

  • Siting, construction, and decommissioning of facilities, including waste storage facilities
  • Reliability of nuclear power generated in Vermont (though no plants currently generate nuclear power in Vermont)
  • Compliance with State statutes and Commission orders

What we do not regulate:

  • Nuclear power plant radiological safety
  • Health concerns due to radiation exposure
  • Nuclear waste transportation or permanent disposal
Electricity - Hydroelectric Power

What we regulate:

  • Hydroelectric dam ownership/operating issues arising under Vermont law

What we do not regulate:

  • Hydroelectric dam ownership/operating issues arising under federal law
  • Interconnection to the interstate transmission system
  • Wholesale electricity transmission in interstate commerce
  • Wholesale electricity sales in interstate commerce
Electricity - Wind Generation

What we regulate:

  • Siting and construction of facilities
  • Compliance with State statutes and Commission orders
Natural Gas

What we regulate:

  • Rates paid by consumers
  • Quality of service
  • Service disconnection
  • Line extensions
  • Siting and construction of intrastate transmission facilities
  • Long-term power purchase agreements
  • Long-term resource planning
  • Energy efficiency programs
  • Local distribution pipelines
  • Pipeline safety
  • Compliance with State statutes and Commission orders

What we do not regulate:

  • Interstate transmission pipelines
  • International transmission pipelines
Telecommunications

What we regulate:

  • Intrastate telephone service rates and service quality
  • Interstate telephone service quality
  • Service disconnection
  • Wholesale telephone service quality
  • Line extensions
  • Siting and construction of certain telecommunications towers
  • Interconnection agreements (arbitration per Federal Telecommunications Act)
  • Administration of the extended area service process
  • Franchise territory boundaries
  • E911 service
  • Lifeline program
  • Telecommunications relay service
  • Basic exchange telecommunications services

What we do not regulate:

  • Interstate telephone service rates
  • Cellular telephone service rates or availability
  • Most internet service providers
Cable Television

What we regulate:

  • Service quality
  • Service disconnection
  • Line extensions
  • Franchise territory boundaries
  • Public Education and Governmental ("PEG") system capacity
  • Adequacy of funding and facilities for meeting PEG obligations
  • Activities of PEG access management organizations

What we do not regulate:

  • Rates paid by consumers
  • Channel offerings to consumers
Water and Sewer

What we regulate:

  • Rates paid by consumers of certain water and sewer systems
  • Utility finances
  • Service quality
  • Service disconnection

What we do not regulate:

  • Water quality
  • Water systems owned by users, municipalities or fire districts
  • Privately-owned sewer systems with less than 750 source connections
  • Sewer systems owned by users, municipalities, or fire districts