Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission

Western Washington including King, Pierce, Snohomish, Kittitas, and surrounding counties; serves approximately 1.1 million electric and 800,000 gas customers

PSE filed a major combined electric and gas general rate case in 2024 seeking significant revenue increases tied to grid modernization and Clean Energy Transformation Act compliance investments. The UTC approved a settlement in mid-2025 with partial revenue recovery and conditions on capital expenditure tracking.

Eastern Washington and northern Idaho; serves approximately 400,000 electric and 350,000 natural gas customers in Spokane, Stevens, and Ferry counties

Avista has been actively pursuing multi-year rate plans to recover costs associated with wildfire mitigation, hydroelectric relicensing, and natural gas system upgrades. The commission has scrutinized Avista's request for wildfire cost recovery mechanisms similar to those adopted in Idaho.

Southwestern Washington including Clark, Skamania, and Klickitat counties; serves approximately 70,000 customers in Washington

Pacific Power faces ongoing UTC oversight regarding wildfire liability exposure from Oregon and California events and their potential ratepayer cost allocation. Washington regulators have pushed for ring-fencing protections to limit cross-subsidization from out-of-state wildfire litigation costs.

Cascade Natural Gas, a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Energy, serves central and eastern Washington including Yakima, Wenatchee, and Tri-Cities areas

Cascade has faced increased regulatory scrutiny over methane leak detection and repair compliance under Washington's greenhouse gas reduction mandates. Recent proceedings have addressed the long-term role of gas distribution infrastructure given the state's 2045 net-zero carbon commitment.

Snohomish County and Camano Island; serves approximately 370,000 electric customers as one of the largest publicly owned utilities in the Pacific Northwest

While largely exempt from UTC retail rate jurisdiction as a PUD, Snohomish PUD interfaces with the UTC on certain wholesale and telecommunications matters. The utility has been investing heavily in battery storage and demand response to meet CETA obligations.

Rural eastern Washington and northern Idaho including Spokane, Stevens, Lincoln, and Pend Oreille counties; serves approximately 45,000 members

Inland Power is subject to UTC jurisdiction and has recently navigated cost increases tied to BPA wholesale power rate adjustments and distribution infrastructure hardening. The cooperative has sought to pass through BPA rate escalations while managing member rate sensitivity.

Key Issues

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