From NewsOK (http://newsok.com/oklahoma-natural-gas-files-for-50-million-rate-increase/article/5432481):


Oklahoma Natural Gas filed for a $50 million rate increase Wednesday that could mean an extra $5 per month for residential customers.

The utility, which has 850,000 customers in Oklahoma, said it needed to recover investments it has made to upgrade and maintain the gas distribution network. Pierce Norton II, ONE Gas president and CEO, said the utility's top priority is safety, which requires continual reinvestment in its infrastructure and technology.




No long narrative from me - yet (only some). Just some raw figures. I will say that here again, what should be a "public utility" now in the hands of One Gas (a new 100% spin-off company from OneOK) is using the "Socialism for the Rich, Capitalism for Everyone Else" tactic. They need help recovering investments in infrastructure. That is their claim to the Corporation Commission.

Just some things to look at...

One Gas Has Easy Access To Money (for practically nothing)
ONE Gas Is A Safe Utility, But One That Leaves Too Much Money On The Table - ONE Gas, Inc (NYSE:OGS) | Seeking Alpha (http://seekingalpha.com/article/3289025-one-gas-is-a-safe-utility-but-one-that-leaves-too-much-money-on-the-table)

"Finally, the company had $699 million remaining on its $700 million rotating credit facility at the end of the quarter."
That's right - they have only used one million dollars of their credit limit of 700 million dollars.

NYSE Activity
Benzinga | Stock Market Quotes, Business News, Financial News, Trading Ideas, and Stock Research by Professionals (http://www.benzinga.com/stock/ogs/)

ONE Gas Inc: Google Finance (http://www.google.com/finance?cid=970403807684718)

The Oklahoma Corporation Commission has 180 days to consider the proposed rate changes.

If you need incentive to write the CC with your own views, consider this - look at the executive compensation - and the percentage increase!
OGS ONE Gas, Inc. Executive Compensation from Morningstar (http://insiders.morningstar.com/trading/executive-compensation.action?t=OGS&region=usa&culture=en-US)

So, ONG is definitely a "public utility" when it comes to financing their new infrastructure (playing the safety card too). They want all of us to pay for that. The increase may not seem like much, but most of you can probably think of a lot of things you could do with that $60 a year. I doubt if ONG's executive team worries about such things. ONG/One Gas has all kinds of cash, along with easy and next-to-nothing credit terms, to pay for this project. I will be sending my own brief to the OCC.

WOW, a 100% increase of pay from 2013 to 2014. 9 million a year and they want a rate increase? Robber Baron.

I'd like to give ONG and OG&E a "No" for sooo many reasons. But like I always complain, utilities seem to be the only entities that get to push off costs for required work on to their customers like this. Last time I checked, if a corporation wanted to build something, they took out a loan. But every time one of these two get out there and want to do something (like try to build an un-needed coal plant, or finally get forced into cleaning up their crap), they want to charge all of us more and more....and we NEVER see the rate go back down.

I'd like to give ONG and OG&E a "No" for sooo many reasons. But like I always complain, utilities seem to be the only entities that get to push off costs for required work on to their customers like this. Last time I checked, if a corporation wanted to build something, they took out a loan. But every time one of these two get out there and want to do something (like try to build an un-needed coal plant, or finally get forced into cleaning up their crap), they want to charge all of us more and more....and we NEVER see the rate go back down.

In exchange for their right to operate a monopolized system, they must sacrifice control over certain items and are forced into a certain rate of return. Utilities generally never earn higher than 11%, in my experience. Our rates rarely go down because of the sunk cost of the capital put into the systems and then the cost to maintain and then renew it. Additionally, the way we build our cities (sprawl) necessitates greater capital spending in order to deliver service in a more geographically spread area. If we built more compact cities, the costs for service would likely be lesser.

The role of the state in any rate increase request is to ensure that the proposed expenditure is necessary and not just an excuse to expand the rate base.

ONG came over on the West side and ran lines into neighborhoods with 5 acre lots and also into my addn on 1 acre lots with new homes already set up for propane equipment or totally electric like mine. Clearly they're finagaling their 'costs' this way and in all liklihood the payback for that infrastructure will be years and years from now.
IMO The Okc Street Dept needs to operate like OG&E and vice versa.

IMO The Okc Street Dept needs to operate like OG&E and vice versa.

Interesting thought.

Oklahoma Natural Gas filed for a $50 million rate increase Wednesday that could mean an extra $5 per month for residential customers. $5 bucks a month is just about what my bill went down last winter when I bought a high-efficiency furnace to replace the one that died. You just can't seem to win these days.

In exchange for their right to operate a monopolized system, they must sacrifice control over certain items and are forced into a certain rate of return. Utilities generally never earn higher than 11%, in my experience. Our rates rarely go down because of the sunk cost of the capital put into the systems and then the cost to maintain and then renew it. Additionally, the way we build our cities (sprawl) necessitates greater capital spending in order to deliver service in a more geographically spread area. If we built more compact cities, the costs for service would likely be lesser.

The role of the state in any rate increase request is to ensure that the proposed expenditure is necessary and not just an excuse to expand the rate base.

You're not exactly making me change my mind here.... LOL

$5 bucks a month is just about what my bill went down last winter when I bought a high-efficiency furnace to replace the one that died. You just can't seem to win these days.

Sounds like you've got insulation and air leakage issues then...?

You're not exactly making me change my mind here.... LOL

Now really trying to. :) Just saying that this is what the Corporation Commission is for. They need to work for all Oklahomans.

Sounds like you've got insulation and air leakage issues then...?No. I just had a decent system to begin with.

Now really trying to. :) Just saying that this is what the Corporation Commission is for. They need to work for all Oklahomans.

I did about fall out of my seat when the rightly said NO to the OG&E plans for the unnecessary coal plant. They're usually just a free-ride to a yes vote, and it was quite the change. I was amazed that they had the foresight to tell OG&E that they failed to do their homework, which was true. And had they approved that plant, we would all now be paying a LOT more because of the new EPA mandates.