The New York State Public Service Commission seeks public comments or proposals to improve National Fuel Gas Distribution Corporation's (NFG) Conservation Incentive Program (CIP).  Public statement hearings will be held  in Buffalo, Cheektowaga, and Amherst before Administrative Law Judge Michelle Phillips.

It is not necessary to make an appointment in advance or present written material to speak at the hearings.  Disabled persons requiring special accommodations may place a collect call to the Department of Public Service's Human Resources Management Office at (518) 474-2520 as soon as possible.

The dates, times and locations of the Public Statement Hearings are as follows:

Public Statement Hearings
Date	Time	Location
Wednesday, July 6, 2011	Afternoon Session 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Evening Session 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.	Buffalo Central Libaray 1 Lafayette Square Auditorium (use entrance on Clinton St. at Northwest Corner of Clinton/Ellicott intersection) Buffalo, NY
Thursday, July 7, 2011	Afternoon Session 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.	Cheektowaga Town Hall 3301 Broadway Cheektowaga, NY
Thursday, July 7, 2011	Evening Session 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.	Amherst Municipal Building 5583 Main Street Amherst, NY

Background

In November 2010, the Commission approved National Fuel's CIP for a fourth year (December 1, 2010 - November 30, 2011) with an annual budget of $10.04 million.  The CIP is an energy efficiency program that offers assistance to low income customers and provides rebates to residential and non-residential customers (gas usage less than 12,000 Mcf/year) who install energy efficient equipment.  The program offers rebates for specific equipment (furnaces, boilers, programmable thermostats and water heaters), as well as custom installations.  Since the program began in 2007, 2,651 low-income customers have been served, and 38,919 residential customers and 1,034 non-residential customers, respectively, have received rebates.

Program components for 2010 and 2011 include programs such as the Low Income Usage Reduction Program, Residential Rebate Program, Small Non-Residential Rebate Program, Outreach and Education Plan, and Program Measurement and Verification Costs.

More information about these programs is available on the
case fact sheet, or the files for case 07-G-0141 & 07-M-0548.

The Commission seeks public comments or proposals as to how to improve NFG's Conservation Incentive Program.  Interested members of the public may comment as noted below.  Your comments should refer to "Case 07-G-0141 - Proceeding on Motion of the Commission as to the Rates, Charges, Rules and Regulations of National Fuel Gas Distribution Corporation for Gas Service - Conservation Incentive Program and Case 07-M-0548 - Proceeding on Motion of the Commission Regarding an Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standard."

• Submit comments electronically by accessing the Department's website -  Case 07-G-0141 Comment Form  Case 07-M-0548 Comment Form
  
  
• Write to:  Honorable Jaclyn A. Brilling, Secretary, NYS Public Service Commission, Three Empire State Plaza, Albany, NY 12223-1350.

• Call the Department's Toll-Free Opinion Line at
  1-800-335-2120. This number is designed to take comments about pending cases from in-state callers 24 hours a day.

All comments should be submitted, or mailed and postmarked, by no later than July 21, 2011.  All public comments received by the Commission will be placed in the public case file and may be accessed on the Comission's website http://www.dps.ny.gov.

Next Steps

A transcript of the hearings will be made for inclusion in the record of these proceedings.