Ratepayer Justice and Commercial Power Accountability Act

This Act may be cited as the Ratepayer Justice and Commercial Power Accountability Act.
Congress finds that—
the generation, transmission, and sale of electricity and natural gas occur in interstate commerce and are subject to Federal regulation;
corruption affecting rate setting, anticompetetive behavior, regulatory approvals, and related legislation distorts prices and harms consumers and interstate markets;
a Federal remedy is necessary to restore losses impacting affected ratepayers and communities;
commercial nuclear power criminality across several States and regions of the United States requires review and regulation, adjustment, and fair reimbursement to bilked ratepayers; and
severe attendant State criminality and negligence, including with respect to nuclear power production, requires that audited accounts of utilities and commercial enterprises be provided by appropriate forensic audit authorities and that affected ratepayers and regions receive reimbursement for any rates paid under such criminality.
This Act is remedial in nature and is intended to restore ratepayers and affected communities to the position they would have been in absent unlawful conduct.
There is established in the Treasury of the United States a fund to be known as the Ratepayer Justice Fund consisting of amounts collected under section 4.
Amounts in the Ratepayer Justice Fund shall be made available without further appropriation—
to the Secretary of the Treasury for direct relief payments to eligible ratepayers in accordance with section 5;
to the Secretary of Energy for reimbursements to State consumer advocate offices or comparable public counsel in accordance with section 6; and
in an amount not to exceed 5 percent of the total amounts in the Ratepayer Justice Fund, to the Secretary of Energy for Ratepayer Community Restoration Grants in accordance with section 7.
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Attorney General and Secretary of Energy, shall establish, and publish in the Federal Register, a list of misconduct events.
The Secretary of the Treasury shall regularly update the list published under subsection (a).
A citizen (including a consumer advocate described in section 6) may petition the Secretary of the Treasury to include a misconduct event on the list published under subsection (a).
Not later than 90 days after the date of receipt of a petition regarding a misconduct event under paragraph (2), the Secretary of the Treasury shall determine whether to include the misconduct event on the list published under subsection (a).
The Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, shall, following the issuance of a Final Determination establishing liability for a misconduct event, promptly and without delay, assess and collect from each covered utility, C-suite executive, and lobbyist an amount equal to—
the costs borne by ratepayers for criminal mismanagement of covered utilities, C-suite executives, and lobbyists; and
the unjust enrichment attributable to the misconduct event, minus any amounts disgorged to ratepayers, or civil or criminal forfeitures or fines paid.
In assessing the amount described in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, shall include in such assessment—
revenues and profits realized by the covered utility that are attributable to official acts taken by public officials, statutes enacted, regulations promulgated, rate schedules approved, or rate orders issued, under misconduct events;
revenues and profits realized by the C-suite executive (in the form of incentives, bonuses, equity, or other compensation) that are attributable to official acts taken by public officials, statutes enacted, regulations promulgated, rate schedules approved, or rate orders issued, under misconduct events;
prejudgment interest determined by a court of competent jurisdiction;
the amounts assessed to, collected from, and paid by ratepayers of a covered utility, as reflected in regulatory records and rate cases, that are in excess of what would otherwise be assessed to, collected from, and paid by ratepayers if not for the official acts taken by public officials, statutes enacted, regulations promulgated, rate schedules approved, or rate orders issued, under misconduct events;
any amounts borrowed or taken from any employee welfare benefit plan, employee benefit pension plan, or pension plan, as those terms are defined in section 3 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1002) or comparable State law, in connection with or to finance misconduct events;
civil or criminal forfeitures and fines paid by the covered utility and C-suite executive; and
any other gains by the covered utility and C-suite executive attributable to the official acts taken by public officials, statutes enacted, regulations promulgated, rate schedules approved, or rate orders issued, under misconduct events.
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury, acting through the Commissioner of Internal Revenue and in consultation with the Secretary of Energy, shall establish a system allowing an eligible ratepayer following the issuance of a Final Determination establishing liability for a misconduct event to claim a direct relief payment relating to such misconduct event—
in the form of a refundable credit on the annual Federal tax return of the eligible ratepayer; or
for an eligible ratepayer who is not required to file an annual Federal tax return, through a claims and direct payment process established by the Secretary of the Treasury by regulation.
An eligible ratepayer claiming a direct relief payment under the system established under subsection (a) shall attest under penalty of perjury—
to the address of the eligible ratepayer and having received service from a covered utility during the period in which such covered utility carried out a misconduct event;
to the name of the covered utility and approximate dates that the covered utility provided service to the eligible ratepayer; and
that the eligible ratepayer has not previously received a direct relief payment that fully compensates for the amount of financial harm assumed by said ratepayer relating to the misconduct event from any source.
The Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of Energy, shall, promptly and without delay following the filing of a claim for a direct relief payment in accordance with subsection (b), verify such claim under the system established under subsection (a).
The Secretary of the Treasury shall issue a direct relief payment to any eligible ratepayer who is not required to file an annual Federal tax return with respect to which the Secretary verifies the claim of such eligible ratepayer.
At the request of the Secretary of the Treasury, a covered utility shall provide to the Secretary the customer records of the covered utility.
The Secretary of the Treasury or the Attorney General may impose any penalty that the Secretary or Attorney General, respectively, determines to be appropriate, on a covered utility that violates subparagraph (A), provided that the Secretary or Attorney General provides appropriate, advance notice to such covered utility and a process for the covered utility to appeal such penalty before the application of the penalty.
The Secretary of the Treasury may verify claims under paragraph (1) through the customer records of the covered utility.
The Secretary of the Treasury shall, except where determined impracticable, begin issuing direct relief payments not later than 180 days after the issuance of a Final Determination, and shall provide, consistent with the reporting requirements in section 11, periodic public reports describing the status of claims processing and distribution until all reasonably identifiable eligible ratepayers have received restitution per misconduct event.
The Secretary of Energy, in consultation with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the relevant State commission, and the relevant State consumer advocate office or comparable public counsel, where applicable, shall quantify—
the total consumer injury, including economic harms faced by any affected community, for each misconduct event using objective and verifiable evidence based on overcharges to ratepayers of the covered utility, unlawfully authorized rates assessed to ratepayers of the covered utility, or other measurable impacts to ratepayers or the community identified in regulatory records; and
any escalation in the costs of maintenance and repairs to the infrastructure of a covered utility that is attributable to utility executive mismanagement.
In making the quantification required under paragraph (1), the Secretary of Energy shall—
consider and give substantial weight to final findings of fact, refund determinations, customer class information, and ratemaking records developed by the relevant State commission and relevant State consumer advocate office or comparable public counsel where applicable; and
estimate, to the maximum extent practicable, the difference between the rates or charges actually paid by ratepayers and the rates or charges that would have been lawfully authorized in the absence of the covered misconduct.
The Secretary of Energy shall—
allocate restitution among eligible ratepayers using objective and equitable standards that reflect the extent of consumer injury;
in making allocations, consider—
the customer class of each eligible ratepayer;
the duration of service during the period of covered misconduct;
the amount of charges paid during the misconduct period, to the extent such information is readily available;
differences in rates among customer classes;
refunds, credits, or restitution previously received relating to the same misconduct event; and
any other objective factor necessary to achieve equitable restitution;
ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, similarly situated ratepayers within the same customer class receive substantially equivalent proportional restitution; and
utilize customer billing records, State commission records, and other reliable regulatory records to verify allocations and minimize administrative burden.
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment, the Secretary of Energy, in consultation with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Secretary of the Treasury, State commissions, and State consumer advocate offices or comparable public counsel, shall publish guidance establishing uniform methodologies for—
calculating consumer injury;
allocating restitution among customer classes;
identifying eligible ratepayers, including former customers;
accounting for refunds, credits, settlements, or other prior recoveries; and
ensuring that restitution is administered under this Act consistently among jurisdictions while avoiding duplicate recovery.
For each misconduct event, each eligible ratepayer may receive only 1 direct relief payment under this section.
Direct relief payments issued to ratepayers pursuant to this section, and the calculation of assessment under section 4(b), shall include interest which shall be computed daily from the date of a Final Determination to date of issuance of payment or collection at a rate equal to the weekly average 1-year constant maturity Treasury yield, as published by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, for the calendar week preceding the date of a misconduct event.
An eligible ratepayer may only claim a direct relief payment under this section during the 4-year period beginning on the date on which the Final Determination relating to such misconduct event is issued.
A direct relief payment to an eligible ratepayer relating to a misconduct event under this section shall be reduced dollar-for-dollar by any direct refund, credit, or restitution already received by such eligible ratepayer for the same misconduct event.
In issuing direct relief payments to eligible ratepayers who are not required to file an annual Federal tax return, the Secretary of the Treasury shall prioritize the issuance of direct relief payments to such eligible ratepayers who are residential customers.
In issuing direct relief payments to eligible ratepayers who are not required to file an annual Federal tax return, the Secretary of the Treasury shall issue to such eligible ratepayers who are not residential customers pro rata restitution payments after the 4-year period described in subsection (e) has expired and all claims by eligible ratepayers who are residential customers are satisfied, or as otherwise provided in regulations promulgated by the Secretary.
The Inspector General of the Department of the Treasury shall annually carry out audits of claims by eligible ratepayers for direct relief payments under the system established under subsection (a).
The Secretary of Energy may reimburse a State consumer advocate office or comparable (as determined by such Secretary) public counsel from the Ratepayer Justice Fund, after the issuance of direct relief payments under section 5 relating to the misconduct event, for verified investigation and litigation expenses that materially contributed to establishing the covered misconduct.
For any reimbursement issued under paragraph (1), the Secretary of Energy shall publish a certification in the Federal Register that the verified investigation and litigation expenses materially contributed to establishing the covered misconduct.
The Secretary of Energy may not pass along the costs of any reimbursement described in subsection (a) to ratepayers.
The Secretary of Energy and the Secretary of the Treasury may request technical assistance from State commissions and State consumer advocate offices or comparable public counsel in identifying eligible ratepayers, verifying customer impacts, calculating consumer injury, and administering restitution under this Act. The reasonable costs of providing such technical assistance may be reimbursed by the Secretary of the Treasury from the Ratepayer Justice Fund established by section 3, subject to the limitations of this section.
The Secretary of Energy shall award grants, which shall be known as Ratepayer Community Restoration Grants and without any matching requirement, in designated communities to local governments, regional development organizations, organizations described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or community development financial institutions.
A Ratepayer Community Restoration Grant awarded to an entity described in subsection (a) in a designated community may only be used for—
improvements to infrastructure in the designated community, including projects for clean energy, energy efficiency, energy distribution, grid resilience, transportation, water resource management (including projects authorized under the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund and Clean Water State Revolving Fund), and rural development, and the enumerated activities authorized under section 105 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5305) for community development block grants;
the development of small business concerns in the designated community, including activities aligned with the purposes set forth in section 2 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631);
a clean energy project in the designated community;
the construction and deployment of infrastructure in the designated community for the provision of broadband service consistent with the purposes of the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program established under section 60102(b) of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (47 U.S.C. 1702(b));
environmental remediation relating to the operation of any utility in the designated community; and
other activities in the designated community that the Secretary of Energy determines to be appropriate and consistent with the purpose of this Act under section 2.
A Ratepayer Community Restoration Grant may not be used for lobbying, campaigning, or other influence-related expenses, or to finance spending by a unit of government or activities not otherwise authorized under subsection (b).
The Secretary of Energy may use no more than 5 percent of the amounts made available under section 3 for Ratepayer Community Restoration Grants for the administrative costs of awarding such Ratepayer Community Restoration Grants.
The Secretary of Energy shall prioritize designated communities and their regions harmed by misconduct events for technical assistance in relation to, and the award of any funds available to the Secretary for, grid infrastructure, resiliency, and modernization projects, activities, technologies, equipment, hardening measures, and other related services.
The Attorney General may bring civil actions to enforce compliance with this Act, including the collection of assessments under section 4 through—
the imposition of a lien;
the garnishment of an asset; or
any other action that the Attorney General determines to be appropriate that the Attorney General is authorized to take under any other provision of law.
A public official who is convicted of public corruption, honest services fraud, wire fraud, racketeering conspiracy, or taking a bribe from a person associated with, working on behalf of, or representing a covered utility, shall be imprisoned for any term of years.
A C-suite executive who is convicted of public corruption, honest services fraud, wire fraud, racketeering conspiracy, or bribery shall be imprisoned for any term of years.
A lobbyist who is convicted of public corruption, honest services fraud, wire fraud, racketeering conspiracy, or bribery shall be imprisoned for any term of years.
The Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of Energy, in consultation with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the applicable State commission and State consumer advocate office or comparable public counsel, where applicable, shall coordinate implementation of this Act to—
avoid duplication of direct relief payments under section 5;
efficiently identify eligible ratepayers using existing customer billing and regulatory records;
utilize, to the maximum extent practicable, existing findings of fact, State ratemaking records, refund determinations, customer class information, and bill records developed by State commissions and State consumer advocate offices;
ensure that restitution is calculated using consistent methodologies and objective standards;
minimize administrative burdens on consumers and maximize consumer recovery by coordinating verification procedures and claims processing; and
provide timely restitution to eligible ratepayers.
The Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of Energy, may deduct from the amount of a direct relief payment to an eligible ratepayer relating to a misconduct event under section 5 any amount previously paid to such eligible ratepayer relating to such misconduct event as a result of the actions of a State regulatory authority.
In any case in which a State agency reaches a different determination from a determination made under this Act by the Secretary of Energy or the Secretary of the Treasury, including with respect to the amount to be collected under section 4, direct relief payments owed to eligible ratepayers, or the duration of a misconduct event, the determination that results in the highest amount of a direct relief payment shall apply.
In carrying out this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of Energy shall—
recognize the expertise of State commissions and State consumer advocate offices or comparable public counsel regarding retail utility rates, customer billing records, ratepayer classes, refund calculations, and consumer impacts; and
to the maximum extent practicable, coordinate implementation of this Act with State commissions and State consumer advocate offices or comparable public counsel and rely upon their existing findings, records, technical expertise to avoid duplication, promote administrative efficiency, and ensure accurate consumer restitution.
Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of Energy, shall establish an Intergovernmental Ratepayer Restitution Working Group.
The Working Group shall include representatives of—
the Department of the Treasury;
the Department of Energy;
the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission;
State commissions;
State consumer advocate offices or comparable public counsel; and
such other Federal or State agencies as the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of Energy, determines appropriate.
The Working Group shall—
develop uniform guidance for calculating consumer injury and allocating restitution;
establish procedures for sharing billing records and regulatory information consistent with applicable privacy laws;
recommend best practices for identifying eligible ratepayers;
coordinate consumer outreach and public education concerning available restitution; and
recommend procedures to expedite the distribution of restitution payments.
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of Energy, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Attorney General, shall submit to Congress a report that describes—
amounts collected for, deposited in, and disbursed from the Ratepayer Justice Fund;
the number of eligible ratepayers who have claimed a direct relief payment pursuant to section 5 and the average amount (per misconduct event) of such direct relief payment;
information relating to Ratepayer Community Restoration Grants awarded pursuant to section 7, including identification of the recipient, amount, and purpose of each such Ratepayer Community Restoration Grant;
any unresolved claims by eligible ratepayers for direct relief payments pursuant to section 5, collection of amounts under section 4, and enforcement actions relating to such claims or collection; and
the status of interagency and intergovernmental consultations undertaken in the preceding year to implement this Act, including with respect to the Working Group.
The Secretary of Energy shall submit to the reports online portal established under the Access to Congressionally Mandated Reports Act, and make publicly available on the website of the Department of Energy, in connection with the information required by subsection (b), the report required under subsection (a).
The Secretary of Energy, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, shall create and maintain a fully searchable internet database that discloses at no charge to the public and contains information sufficient to allow the public to understand—
each assessment and collection carried out under section 4 and, if applicable, through enforcement actions taken pursuant to section 9; and
Ratepayer Community Restoration Grants awarded pursuant to section 7, including information on the amounts, recipients, and purposes or uses of such Ratepayer Community Restoration Grants.
In maintaining the database under paragraph (1), the Secretary of Energy shall ensure that such database is updated on the date on which an assessment or collection under section 4 is carried out, an enforcement action is taken pursuant to section 9, and a Ratepayer Community Restoration Grant is awarded pursuant to section 7.
Individual ratepayer information shall remain confidential and not be disclosed by the Secretary of Energy, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Attorney General, or any other Federal official involved in the implementation of this Act, except as is necessary for administration of the Ratepayer Justice Fund established by section 3 and consultations to verify or audit claims for direct relief payments under section 5, or to issue direct relief payments to eligible ratepayers who are not required to file an annual Federal tax return under section 5.
Within 2 years of the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Energy, acting through the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and in consultation with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, shall submit to Congress and publish on the website of the Department of Energy a report that—
describes the operational condition of each nuclear power plant owned or operated, either previously or current, by a covered utility that was responsible for a misconduct event occurring prior to publication of the report, including any deteriorating conditions at such nuclear power plants that result from underinvestment, negligence, malfeasance, or other decisions by such covered utilities relative to necessary operational and safety components and systems; and
the amount of costs to maintain and repair infrastructure at such nuclear power plants resulting from earlier underinvestment, negligence, malfeasance, or other decisions by such covered utilities, including amounts that were charged to and collected from ratepayers for such costs.
Within 1 year after the report required under subsection (a) has been submitted to Congress and published on the website of the Department of Energy, the Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a review of, and submit a resulting report to Congress describing, the Secretary of Energy’s compliance with subsection (a) and the resulting Executive Branch Assessment Report for thoroughness, accuracy, and soundness of methodology, and make any recommendations for operational, safety, and process improvements for the relevant nuclear power plants and with respect to the amount of costs identified pursuant to section (a)(2).
The Secretary of the Treasury may promulgate rules and issue guidance as the Secretary determines to be necessary to carry out this Act.
In this Act:
The term C-suite executive means any individual serving a covered utility, during a period in which such covered utility carried out a misconduct event, as—
the chief executive officer;
the chief financial officer;
the chief operating officer;
the president; or
any other executive officer that reports directly to the chief executive officer.
The term class means, with respect to any person, State agency, or Federal agency, to which electric energy or natural gas is sold other than for purposes of resale, any group of such persons, State agencies, or Federal agencies that have similar characteristics of electric energy use or natural gas use, respectively.
The term clean energy project has the meaning given such term in section 40342(a)(1) of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (42 U.S.C. 18761(a)(1)).
The term community development financial institution has the meaning given such term in section 103(5) of the Riegle Community Development and Regulatory Improvement Act of 1994 (12 U.S.C. 4702(5)).
The term covered misconduct means any conduct that affects the setting of rates, consumer charges, legislation, regulation, or other decision-making by public officials, including—
the bribery of public officials;
public corruption involving the operation of a utility or the setting of rates;
honest services fraud relating to the operation of a utility; or
fraud or deception that results in the distortion of regulated rates, charges, or approvals, including the systematic manipulation of costs or revenues presented to regulatory authorities.
Such covered misconduct must have occurred not earlier than 20 years before the date of enactment of this Act.
The term covered utility means—
any for-profit entity subject to the jurisdiction of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission under part II of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 824 et seq.) with respect to which a Final Determination is made; and
any holding company, parent, subsidiary, affiliate, or other entity under common control with such a for-profit entity to the extent that the holding company, parent, subsidiary, affiliate, or other entity directly or indirectly financed, directed, concealed, covered, or financially benefitted from a misconduct event.
The term designated community means any geographic area served by a covered utility where at least 60 percent of residents were customers of the covered utility during the period in which such covered utility carried out a misconduct event.
The term eligible ratepayer means any residential, commercial, industrial, or other retail customer class that—
received electric or gas service from a covered utility for a continuous period of at least 30 days during the period in which such covered utility carried out a misconduct event;
maintained an active account in good standing with a covered utility during any portion of the period in which such covered utility carried out a misconduct event; and
can be identified as a ratepayer through the billing records of the covered utility, tax records, or (as determined appropriate by the Secretary of the Treasury) other verifiable documentation.
The term final determination means the final judgment, settlement, plea agreement, deferred prosecution agreement, or regulatory order that establishes liability for covered misconduct, whether in a civil, criminal, or administrative proceeding, and regardless of the forum or jurisdiction in which it was issued, that is entered against—
a covered utility;
an employee, officer, or executive of a covered utility; or
a State actor to the extent the conduct of such State actor relates to the operation of a covered utility.
The term lobbyist means any individual who was or is employed or was or is retained by a covered utility or C-suite executive, either directly or indirectly, for financial or other compensation for services that include lobbying activities as that term is defined in section 3(7) of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1602(7)) or lobbying contact as that term is defined in section 3(8) of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1994 (2 U.S.C. 1602(8)) with respect to a public official.
The term misconduct event means—
an instance of covered misconduct with respect to which a Final Determination was issued;
covered misconduct for which liability has been established through a Final Determination, as defined in paragraph (9); or
any circumstance the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Attorney General, finds relevant to conspiracy, bribery, theft, extortion, fraud, or other criminal, illegal, or impermissible action or conduct, by a covered utility, C-suite executive, or lobbyist.
The term overcharge means the incremental amount paid by a ratepayer that is attributable to covered misconduct and represents the difference between—
the rates or charges actually paid by the ratepayers; and
the rates or charges that would have been approved by the applicable regulatory authority absent the covered misconduct.
The term public official includes any elected or appointed official serving the United States Government, any government of the several States of the United States (including the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands), or any unit of local government therein.
The term rate has the meaning given such term in section 3(10) of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2602(10)) or section 302(5) of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (15 U.S.C. 3202(5)), respectively.
The term rate order means a formal order issued by a regulatory authority, including by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission or a State utility regulator, that sets, approves, or modifies the rates charged by a utility or regulated entity to ratepayers for energy services rendered to such ratepayers.
The term regional development organization includes—
metropolitan planning organization (as such term is defined in section 5303(b)(2) of title 49, United States Code);
the Delta Regional Authority established by the Delta Regional Authority Act of 2000 (7 U.S.C. 1921 et seq.); and
the regional Commissions established by section 15301 of title 40, United States Code.
The term State actor means—
any employee, or former employee, of a State or local government, including a State or local official, legislator, or regulator;
any lobbyist registered under State law; or
any entity controlled by any such person.
The term State means the several States of the United States, the District of Columbia, American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the United States Virgin Islands.
The term State commission has the meaning given the term State regulatory authority in section 3(17) of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2602(17)) or section 302(8) of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (15 U.S.C. 3202(8)), respectively.
The term Working Group means the Intergovernmental Ratepayer Restitution Working Group established by section 10(e) of this Act.