{"id":257276,"date":"2025-11-20T18:04:39","date_gmt":"2025-11-21T01:04:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/?p=257276"},"modified":"2025-11-20T18:04:48","modified_gmt":"2025-11-21T01:04:48","slug":"montana-utility-board-reaches-tentative-decision-on-northwestern-rates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2025\/11\/20\/montana-utility-board-reaches-tentative-decision-on-northwestern-rates\/","title":{"rendered":"Montana utility board: NorthWestern can put $246 million of its new gas plant into customers\u2019 rates"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Montana\u2019s utility board is poised to incorporate approximately $246 million for<strong> <\/strong>NorthWestern Energy\u2019s recently constructed gas plant into its customers\u2019 rates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On Wednesday, the Montana Public Service Commission gave Montana\u2019s largest utility tentative authorization to begin recovering costs for the 175-megawatt plant near Laurel in the new year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In its <a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2024\/09\/24\/four-things-to-know-about-northwestern-energy-rate-hike-request\/\">original request<\/a>, NorthWestern Energy, which provides electricity service to about 413,000 Montanans, asked its regulators for approval to collect approximately $289 million for the Yellowstone County Generating Station from its customers. The commission balked at that figure, arguing that some of the costs associated with the plant could have been avoided.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Prior to the commissioners\u2019 discussion of key issues surrounding the plant, PSC rate analyst Haylee Gobert flagged \u201cdeficiencies\u201d in NorthWestern\u2019s decision-making evident at multiple points in the planning and construction process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cNorthWestern\u2019s planning and procurement process did not adequately evaluate the full range of cost-effective resources, was not fair and transparent, and did not cost-effectively manage and mitigate risks,\u201d Gobert said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Her colleague, Brooke Umsted, added that the project was $45 million over budget and came online nine months late.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWith a lack of transparency and documentation, staff is unable to determine if NorthWestern acted prudently and acted the same as a reasonable utility manager would under the same circumstances, and staff agrees with [other intervenors] that NorthWestern knew it was making a risky decision when selecting YCGS,\u201d Umsted added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite finding that NorthWestern did not meet the burden of proof in demonstrating that building the plant was in the public\u2019s interest, staff ultimately recommended that the commission allow NorthWestern to recover most of its costs from customers plus a 9.65% return on equity.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The following day, the commission voted 4-0 to<strong> <\/strong>reject<strong> <\/strong>$43 million of NorthWestern Energy\u2019s original ask, arguing cost overruns associated with construction snags were avoidable. Commissioner Annie Bukacek sided with NorthWestern in her discussion of the construction costs, maintaining that construction challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic put the utility in an unusual position. Bukacek abstained from voting on the issue, but did not say why.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The commission also voted 4-0 to deny approximately $900,000 in collections associated with plant deprecation at the recommendation of the Large Customer Group, a coalition of NorthWestern\u2019s largest customers. Bukacek abstained from that vote as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Commissioners disagreed with staff recommendations regarding the incorporation of $18-$19 million of litigation-related delays into customers\u2019 rates. In a 4-0 vote (with Bukacek abstaining), the commission determined that NorthWestern acted prudently based on its receipt of an air quality permit from state environmental regulators. The plant was the subject of an environmental lawsuit targeting its greenhouse gas, noise and lighting impacts, as well as a challenge related to <a href=\"http:\/\/bigskybusinessjournal.com\/2025\/10\/21\/again-meic-files-suit-against-laurel-generation-station\/\">zoning jurisdiction<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Commissioner Brad Molnar argued that litigation costs and <a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2023\/04\/07\/judge-revokes-northwestern-energys-gas-plant-permit\/\">a district court order<\/a> temporarily stopping work on the project should be incorporated in the product \u2013 electricity service \u2014 the company supplies to Montana the same way it would be if NorthWestern were another business like a grocery store facing similar circumstances.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\t<div\n\t\tclass=\"wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles  wpnbha show-image image-alignbehind ts-3 is-3 is-landscape \"\n\t\tstyle=\"\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t<div data-posts data-current-post-id=\"257276\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"article-section-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<span>related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t<article data-post-id=\"221729\"\n\t\tclass=\"tag-northwestern-energy tag-public-service-commission category-energy type-post post-has-image\"\n\t\t\t\tstyle=\"min-height: 0vh; padding-top: 0vh;\"\n\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"post-thumbnail\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2024\/09\/24\/four-things-to-know-about-northwestern-energy-rate-hike-request\/\" rel=\"bookmark\" tabindex=\"-1\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Northwestern-Energy-building.png\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-post-image\" alt=\"Four things to know about NorthWestern Energy\u2019s newest rate hike request\" data-hero-candidate=\"1\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw \/ 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw \/ 12)), 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure><!-- .featured-image -->\n\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"entry-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2024\/09\/24\/four-things-to-know-about-northwestern-energy-rate-hike-request\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">Four things to know about NorthWestern Energy\u2019s newest rate hike request<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Less than a year after levying a 28% increase on residential electricity customers, NorthWestern Energy is looking to recover an additional $193 million annually from its electricity and natural gas customers. Here\u2019s what customers should know about the rate hike request that\u2019s currently before Montana\u2019s Public Service Commission.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"byline\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"author-prefix\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author vcard\"><a class=\"url fn n\" href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/author\/aeggert\/\">Amanda Eggert<\/a><\/span>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span><!-- .author-name -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2024-09-24T15:25:05-06:00\">09.24.2024<\/time><time class=\"updated\" datetime=\"2024-09-25T12:04:41-06:00\">09.25.2024<\/time>\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-meta -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-wrapper -->\n\t<\/article>\n\n\t\t\n\t<article data-post-id=\"253377\"\n\t\tclass=\"tag-laurel-montana tag-northwestern-energy tag-reporter-residency tag-yellowstone-county-generating-station category-energy partner-the-laurel-outlook type-post post-has-image\"\n\t\t\t\tstyle=\"min-height: 0vh; padding-top: 0vh;\"\n\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"post-thumbnail\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2025\/09\/25\/in-laurel-montana-adjusting-to-life-with-the-power-plant-next-door\/\" rel=\"bookmark\" tabindex=\"-1\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"681\" src=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/20250912LM-Laurel-0004-1.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-post-image\" alt=\"A power plant next door\" data-hero-candidate=\"1\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw \/ 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw \/ 12)), 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure><!-- .featured-image -->\n\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"entry-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2025\/09\/25\/in-laurel-montana-adjusting-to-life-with-the-power-plant-next-door\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">A power plant next door<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>NorthWestern Energy\u2019s 175-megawatt gas plant in Laurel is a lightning rod in Montana\u2019s ongoing debate over the state\u2019s energy future. We asked some of its neighbors what they think about the industrial behemoth in their backyard.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"byline\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"author-prefix\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author vcard\"><a class=\"url fn n\" href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/author\/edietrich\/\">Eric Dietrich<\/a><\/span>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span><!-- .author-name -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2025-09-25T06:00:00-06:00\">09.25.2025<\/time><time class=\"updated\" datetime=\"2025-09-30T19:35:05-06:00\">09.30.2025<\/time>\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-meta -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-wrapper -->\n\t<\/article>\n\n\t\t\n\t<article data-post-id=\"247427\"\n\t\tclass=\"tag-brad-molnar tag-northwestern-energy tag-public-service-commission tag-utility-rates category-energy type-post post-has-image\"\n\t\t\t\tstyle=\"min-height: 0vh; padding-top: 0vh;\"\n\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure class=\"post-thumbnail\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2025\/05\/23\/northwestern-energy-implements-17-percent-electricity-rate-increase\/\" rel=\"bookmark\" tabindex=\"-1\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Northwestern-Energy-building.png\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-post-image\" alt=\"Without utility board approval, NorthWestern Energy implements 17% electricity rate increase\" data-hero-candidate=\"1\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 34.9rem) calc(100vw - 2rem), (max-width: 53rem) calc(8 * (100vw \/ 12)), (min-width: 53rem) calc(6 * (100vw \/ 12)), 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure><!-- .featured-image -->\n\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"entry-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2025\/05\/23\/northwestern-energy-implements-17-percent-electricity-rate-increase\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">Without utility board approval, NorthWestern Energy implements 17% electricity rate increase<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Without giving consumers a heads up, NorthWestern Energy said it will increase electricity rates by $204 a year. Documents filed with Montana\u2019s Public Service Commission indicate that rates are increasing $17.07 a month for NorthWestern\u2019s typical residential customers without prior approval from regulators.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"byline\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"author-prefix\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author vcard\"><a class=\"url fn n\" href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/author\/aeggert\/\">Amanda Eggert<\/a><\/span> and <span class=\"author vcard\"><a class=\"url fn n\" href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/author\/tom-lutey\/\">Tom Lutey<\/a><\/span>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span><!-- .author-name -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2025-05-23T18:08:02-06:00\">05.23.2025<\/time><time class=\"updated\" datetime=\"2025-05-23T18:08:09-06:00\">05.23.2025<\/time>\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-meta -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-wrapper -->\n\t<\/article>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\t\n\n\n<p>PSC Vice President Jennifer Fielder, who presided over both days\u2019 proceedings, directed the staff to incorporate the commission\u2019s votes in a new final order by Dec. 24, at which point the commission will make a final decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Tuesday\u2019s proceedings opened with public comment. More than a dozen people asked the PSC to reject NorthWestern\u2019s rate hike request, arguing that Montanans need reprieve from cost-of-living increases and NorthWestern\u2019s shareholders and executives can afford to ride out economic volatility in a way the company\u2019s customers cannot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Barbara Burkland, a retired Helena resident, asked the commission to oppose the rate increase, arguing that the company has \u201cmade some bad business decisions recently, and that is not the fault of residential customers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Burkland went on to say that she lives on a fixed income and the rising cost of living in Montana has recently driven her son, a paramedic, to move out of state.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe desperately need paramedics. He\u2019s a fifth-generation Montanan. He can\u2019t afford to live here. So I ask you again to consider people like him, who come and pick your constituents off the side of the road when they have an accident or respond to a heart attack, and realize we need this to be a place where they can live,\u201d she said. \u201cFor the sake of people you represent, please deny this rate increase.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Jack Hanson, a Billings resident who is both a NorthWestern Energy customer and a&nbsp; shareholder in the company, took a more academic approach in his opposition to the rate hike. Companies like NorthWestern with a set return on equity are incentivized to build expensive projects to increase their profits, which is why careful oversight is so important, he argued.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThis is exactly what\u2019s going on with NorthWestern\u2019s methane plant in Laurel. This commission is set up expressly to counter this sort of perverse incentive by policing the reward that a utility can get from manipulating its asset base in this way,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s nothing surprising or unusually complicated about the mechanics of NorthWestern\u2019s scheme here. The only thing that is surprising is how obvious the ploy is.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>PSC staff expressed frustration that NorthWestern had not outlined how their proposed changes would impact customer bills. PSC Executive Director Alana Lake told MTFP on Wednesday that she anticipates that filing would be available by the time the commission reviews the final order her staff is preparing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-light-gray-background-color has-background\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\t<div\n\t\tclass=\"wp-block-newspack-blocks-homepage-articles  wpnbha ts-3 \"\n\t\tstyle=\"\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t<div data-posts data-current-post-id=\"257276\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"article-section-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<span>latest stories<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t<article data-post-id=\"262736\"\n\t\tclass=\"tag-montana-insights category-montana-insights type-post post-has-image\"\n\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"entry-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2026\/03\/03\/75-of-voters-want-montana-to-have-at-least-as-much-federal-land-as-it-does-now\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">75% of voters want Montana to have at least as much federal land as it does now<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Federal land transfer has been a party of the GOP party platform at both the state and national level, but a recent MTFP-Eagleton poll indicates that a majority of Republican voters oppose reducing the amount of land in federal ownership.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"byline\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"author-prefix\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author vcard\"><a class=\"url fn n\" href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/author\/aeggert\/\">Amanda Eggert<\/a><\/span>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span><!-- .author-name -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2026-03-03T14:34:54-07:00\">03.03.2026<\/time><time class=\"updated\" datetime=\"2026-03-03T14:35:02-07:00\">03.03.2026<\/time>\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-meta -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-wrapper -->\n\t<\/article>\n\n\t\t\n\t<article data-post-id=\"262727\"\n\t\tclass=\"tag-westerndev category-politics type-post post-has-image\"\n\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"entry-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2026\/03\/03\/christi-jacobsen-zinke-western-house\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen joins contest for Zinke\u2019s western U.S. House District seat<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Jacobsen made her announcement on Facebook with a campaign video portraying her as both a political outsider and the favorite of Donald Trump.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"byline\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"author-prefix\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author vcard\"><a class=\"url fn n\" href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/author\/tom-lutey\/\">Tom Lutey<\/a><\/span>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span><!-- .author-name -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2026-03-03T12:29:26-07:00\">03.03.2026<\/time><time class=\"updated\" datetime=\"2026-03-03T22:45:03-07:00\">03.03.2026<\/time>\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-meta -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-wrapper -->\n\t<\/article>\n\n\t\t\n\t<article data-post-id=\"262679\"\n\t\tclass=\"tag-bob-morris tag-data-centers tag-energy tag-greg-gianforte tag-montana-insights tag-northwestern-energy tag-public-service-commission tag-ryan-zinke tag-steve-daines tag-troy-downing tag-u-s-congress tag-unleashing-energy-task-force category-energy category-montana-insights type-post post-has-image\"\n\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"entry-title\"><a href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/2026\/03\/03\/montanans-want-more-solar-natural-gas-development-are-less-interested-in-new-coal-plants\/\" rel=\"bookmark\">Montanans want more solar, natural gas development, are less interested in new coal plants<\/a><\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>The poll results on Montana\u2019s energy mix come as politicians and policymakers grapple with surging electricity demand spurred by investment in artificial intelligence and the data centers that support it.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"byline\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"author-prefix\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author vcard\"><a class=\"url fn n\" href=\"https:\/\/montanafreepress.org\/author\/aeggert\/\">Amanda Eggert<\/a><\/span>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span><!-- .author-name -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"entry-date published updated\" datetime=\"2026-03-03T08:00:00-07:00\">03.03.2026<\/time>\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-meta -->\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><!-- .entry-wrapper -->\n\t<\/article>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Montana Public Service Commission on Nov. 19, 2025, signalled its willingness to allow Montana\u2019s largest utility to put the Yellowstone County Generating Station into the electricity rates of the 400,000-plus Montanans it serves.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1926,"featured_media":252579,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"single-feature.php","format":"standard","meta":{"everlit_article_id":"","everlit_hide_embed":false,"everlit_embed_size":"","everlit_generation_settings":[],"_everlit_article_id":"","_everlit_hide_embed":false,"_everlit_embed_size":"","_everlit_generation_settings":[],"_everlit_content_hash":"","_everlit_metadata_hash":"","newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","apple_news_api_created_at":"2025-11-21T01:04:44Z","apple_news_api_id":"8467003b-e807-4d85-8d01-63a9307c03ad","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2025-11-21T01:04:54Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/AhGcAO-gHTYWNAWOpMHwDrQ","apple_news_cover_media_provider":"image","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_cover_video_id":0,"apple_news_cover_video_url":"","apple_news_cover_embedwebvideo_url":"","apple_news_is_hidden":"","apple_news_is_paid":"","apple_news_is_preview":"","apple_news_is_sponsored":"","apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"_primary_brand":0,"_newspack_byline_active":false,"_newspack_byline":"","newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_post_subtitle":"The decision was part of a larger rate case the PSC has been considering for over a 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