Section 3 AAC 48.390 - Special contract(a) Special contracts are treated as tariff filings. A utility service, commodity, or facility furnished to a customer under an unwritten contract or arrangement must be discontinued unless the parties to it execute a written contract and file it with the commission. This section does not apply to(1) the merchandising of equipment and appliances;(2) parts replacement and repair work on customer-owned equipment;(3) utility construction or materials purchase contracts;(5) applications for membership in cooperative associations; or(6) service agreements which merely recite the provisions of a utility's effective tariff.(b) Each special contract filed with the commission under AS 42.05.361(a) and 3 AAC 48.200 - 3 AAC 48.430 must contain a provision indicating the understanding of the parties that the contract (1) does not take effect without the prior approval of the commission; and(2) is, at all times, subject to revisions by the commission.(c) The parties to every special contract shall be given notice and an opportunity to be heard as a condition precedent to the commission revising a special contract.(d) A special contract may not be used as a device or method to give the vendee an unreasonable preference or advantage or subject the vendee to an unreasonable prejudice or disadvantage as determined by analyzing the provisions of the contract in relation to the terms and conditions under which the utility offers a comparable service under comparable conditions to the general public.(e) The commission may authorize a utility to offer untariffed services or equipment to customers by special contract under the following conditions:(1) the utility has filed a tariff filing for the service or equipment in the form and accompanied by the supporting information required under 3 AAC 48.200 - 3 AAC 48.430;(2) the commission has suspended the operation of the tariff filing pending final approval;(3) the commission has specified each rate to be charged the customer in f the special contract;(4) each rate specified is retroactively reviewable and revisable, upward or downward, from the effective date of the special contract, and the customer's liability is to pay each rate finally approved for the tariff filing plus or minus accrued interest if that rate is different from the rate initially approved for use in the special contract; and(5) the special contract expressly advises the customer of the potential retroactive liability for increased rates, plus accrued interest.(f) Upon the commission's final approval of the tariff filing submitted under (e)(1) of this section, including any adjustment of the rate authorized for use in the special contract, the special contract lapses and service must continue under the terms and conditions set out in the utility's effective tariff.(g) If the parties to a special contract that is filed with and approved by the commission cancel that contract, the utility or pipeline carrier shall notify the commission that the special contract has been cancelled. The notice to the commission must be by tariff advice letter and must include a copy of the instrument cancelling the special contract and the effective date of the cancellation.Eff. 11/16/73, Register 48; am 1/19/80, Register 73; am 6/29/84, Register 90; am 10/27/2017,Register 224, January 2018Authority:AS 42.05.141
AS 42.05.151
AS 42.05.291
AS 42.05.301
AS 42.05.361
AS 42.05.381
AS 42.05.391
AS 42.05.431