ALBANY — The New York State Public Service Commission (Commission) today announced it was seeking public comment on a request by Corning Natural Gas Corporation (Corning) to increase its annual revenues for gas delivery service by approximately $3.3 million, to take effect June 1, 2017. The Company also proposes to restructure delivery rates so that some current surcharges will be eliminated and the same costs will be included in base rates, on a revenue-neutral basis.   

In addition to the first year increase, the Company provided information supporting increases of approximately $1.2 million and $0.7 million in each of the two succeeding years. To mitigate the first year impact, Corning is proposing to spread the increases more evenly over each of the three years. The Company projects that, using this approach, the requested increase in delivery revenues would result in a total annual bill increase for an average residential heating customer of $98.60 the first year, $187.50 the second year and $186.50 the third year for a total increase over three years of approximately $473.

Public Statement Hearings

The public will have an opportunity to present comments at the hearings before an Administrative Law Judge assigned to hear this case.  A verbatim transcript of the hearings will be made for inclusion in the record of the proceeding. The public statement hearings will be held as follows:

  WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2016

Southeast Steuben County Library
300 Nasser Civic Center Plaza
Corning, NY 14830

Information Session                                3:00 PM

Public Statement Hearing                       4:00 PM

Information Session                                6:00 PM

Public Statement Hearing                       7:00 PM

In order to provide individuals with information in advance of the public statement hearings, information sessions will be conducted during the hour preceding the public statement hearings. During these sessions, Corning representatives will provide a brief overview of Corning’s rate proposal. In addition, the Administrative Law Judge will provide a brief overview of the rate case process. These presentations will be followed by a brief opportunity for questions and answers. Each information session will conclude at least five minutes before the public statement hearing is scheduled to commence.

Disabled persons requiring special accommodations should call the Department of Public Service's Human Resources Management Office at (518) 474-2520 as soon as possible. TDD users may request a sign language interpreter by placing a call through the New York Relay Service at 711. Individuals with difficulty understanding or reading English are encouraged to call the Commission at 1-800-342-3377 for free language assistance services regarding this notice.

 Other Ways to Comment

For those who cannot attend or prefer not to speak at a public statement hearing, there are several other ways to provide your comments to the Commission. Comments should refer to the following case: “Case 16-G-0369, Corning Gas Rates”.

Via the Internet or Mail: The public may enter comments directly into the case file from the Commission's website, www.dps.ny.gov, by clicking on "Search" at the top of the page and then entering the case number in the "Search by Case Number" field. In the open case, access the screen to enter comments by clicking on the "Post Comments" box at the top right of the page. Comments may also be submitted electronically to the Hon. Kathleen H. Burgess, Secretary, at secretary@dps.ny.gov, or by mail or delivery to Secretary Burgess at the New York State Public Service Commission, Three Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York 12223-1350. All written comments will become part of the record considered by the Commission and can be read on the website by searching by the case number, as described above, and clicking on the “Public Comments” tab.

Toll-Free Opinion Line: Individuals may choose to submit comments by calling the Commission's Opinion Line at 1-800-335-2120. This number is set up to take comments about pending cases from in-state callers, 24 hours a day. Press "1" to leave comments, mentioning “Case 16-G-0369, Corning Gas Rates.” These comments are not transcribed verbatim, but a summary is provided to the Commission.

Comments provided through these alternative methods are requested by January 31, 2017. All written comments will become part of the record and will be reported to the Commission for its consideration.

The Commission’s decision in this proceeding, when issued, may be obtained by going to the Commission Documents section of the Commission’s Web site at www.dps.ny.gov and entering Case Number 16-G-0369 in the input box labeled "Search for Case Number ". Many libraries offer free Internet access. Commission documents may also be obtained from the Commission’s Files Office, 14th floor, Three Empire State Plaza, Albany, NY 12223 (518-474-2500). If you have difficulty understanding English, please call us at 1-800-342-3377 for free language assistance services regarding this press release.