Colo. Rev. Stat. » Title 40
Colorado Revised Statutes

Colo. Rev. Stat. § 40-3-102 (2026)

Regulation of rates - correction of abuses

✓ current as of July 2026
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The power and authority is hereby vested in the public utilities commission of the state of Colorado and it is hereby made its duty to adopt all necessary rates, charges, and regulations to govern and regulate all rates, charges, and tariffs of every public utility of this state to correct abuses; to prevent unjust discriminations and extortions in the rates, charges, and tariffs of such public utilities of this state; to generally supervise and regulate every public utility in this state; and to do all things, whether specifically designated in articles 1 to 7 of this title or in addition thereto, which are necessary or convenient in the exercise of such power, and to enforce the same by the penalties provided in said articles through proper courts having jurisdiction; except that nothing in this article shall apply to municipal natural gas or electric utilities for which an exemption is provided in the constitution of the state of Colorado, within the authorized service area of each such municipal utility except as specifically provided in section 40-3.5-102.

Source: L. 13: p. 469, § 14. C.L. § 2925. CSA: C. 137, § 15. CRS 53: § 115-3-2. C.R.S. 1963: § 115-3-2. L. 83: Entire section amended, p. 1552, § 1, effective June 17.

Cross references: For definition of a public utility, see § 40-1-103; for penalties for violation, see article 7 of this title.

40-3-102.5. Limiting rate case expenses for investor-owned utilities - information included in rate case filings - gas cost or electric commodity adjustment filings - rules - definitions. (1) Limiting recovery of rate case expenses. (a) The commission shall establish rules to limit the amount of rate case expenses that a utility may recover from ratepayers. In establishing the rules, the commission may consider:

(I) Implementing a symmetrical incentive to motivate the utility to limit expenses;

(II) Limiting the amount of expenses for outside experts, consultants, and legal resources that are recoverable;

(III) Setting an overall percentage of the utility's expenses in a rate case that are not recoverable;

(IV) Establishing discovery parameters and what information in a commission proceeding must be disclosed to interveners or to the commission to reduce time and costs associated with a lengthy discovery process, which information may include:

(A) A source model showing all rate adjustments;

(B) Executable spreadsheets, also referred to as work papers, with links and formulas intact;

(C) A test year based on a recently completed twelve-month period and for which actual costs and investments are analyzed; and

(D) Any other information or documentation, as determined by the commission; or

(V) Requiring a technical conference with intervening parties to address intervening parties' questions and to provide the ability for interveners to analyze the utility's assumptions and calculations supporting a rate case filing.

(b) Before the commission may determine that an investor-owned utility's application to modify base rates is complete, the commission shall certify that, for comparison of test years and other purposes, the filing includes sufficient information, including a comprehensive cost and revenue requirement analysis based on actual, auditable, historical data, which analysis must be accompanied by appropriate work papers and other supporting materials.

(c) Nothing in this section prohibits a utility from including multiple test years for analysis or consideration in a rate case filing, including inclusion of a future test year.

(d) As used in this subsection (1):

(I) "Base rate" means charges used to recover costs of utility infrastructure and operations, including a return on capital investment, not otherwise recovered through a utility rate rider or rate adjustment mechanism.

(II) "Test year" means a twelve-month period that is examined to determine a utility's costs of service in a rate case.

(III) "Utility" means an investor-owned electric or gas utility.

(2) Requirements for filings to increase a rate, charge, fee, fare, toll, rental, or classification. (a) At the time of filing a request to increase any rate, charge, fee, fare, toll, rental, or classification, the utility shall provide the commission a rate trend report for the previous ten years regarding any historical increases or decreases of the rate, charge, fee, fare, toll, rental, or classification, including:

(I) The amount of each approved increase or decrease;

(II) The incremental increase or decrease from the most recent approved change;

(III) The dates that each approved increase or decrease went into effect;

(IV) The proceeding number related to each approved increase or decrease;

(V) A chart, graph, or other visualization demonstrating the ten-year historical trend regarding each rate, charge, fee, fare, toll, rental, or classification, including all utility bill line items such as rates and rate riders; and

(VI) For each of the ten years, the annual total amount of the rate, charge, fee, fare, toll, rental, or classification.

(b) Each utility shall post and keep current on its website the rate trend report data, including the chart, graph, or other visualization demonstrating the ten-year historical trend submitted as part of the rate trend report. Any visualization must include all utility bill line items, including all rates and rate riders.

(3) Gas cost or electric commodity adjustment filing requirements. A utility that files a gas cost adjustment filing or an electric commodity adjustment filing shall provide copies of all confidential materials and all executable materials related to the filing to the commission's staff and the office of the utility consumer advocate created in section 40-6.5-102 (1).

Source: L. 2023: Entire section added, (SB 23-291), ch. 163, p. 710, § 2, effective August 7.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 52 cases (6 in the last 5 years), 1974–2026 · leading case: Auman v. People, 109 P.3d 647 (Colo. 2005).
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Auman v. People, 109 P.3d 647 (Colo. 2005). · cites it 10× “" § 40-3-102 cmt., 12 C.R.S. (1963) (1971 Perm.”
Mountain States Legal Found. v. Pub. Utils. Comm'n, 590 P.2d 495 (Colo. 1979). · cites it 30× “1973 [3] and section 40-3-102, C.R.S. 1973. [4] *498 Section 40-3-106(1), C.”
Colorado-Ute Elec. Ass'n v. Pub. Utils. Comm'n, 760 P.2d 627 (Colo. 1988). · cites it 22× “Considering solely the issue of managerial discretion, it is clear that the district court erred in concluding that the Commission, in prescribing the proper rate design for Colo-Ute, overstepped the bounds of its proper authority.”
Peoples Nat. Gas Div. of N. Nat. Gas Co. v. Pub. Utils. Comm'n, 698 P.2d 255 (Colo. 1985). · cites it 18× “Therefore, we hold that section 40-6-119, including its two year statute of limitations for filing complaints, is not applicable to complaints by the PUC on its own motion. This does not mean that the PUC lacks authority to investigate excessive charges and award reparations on…”
Hawes v. Colorado Div. of Ins., 65 P.3d 1008 (Colo. 2003). · cites it 8× “Authority also arose from a statutory mandate in section 40-3-102 to "do all things which .”
Pub. Serv. Co. of Colorado v. Pub. Utils. Comm'n, 644 P.2d 933 (Colo. 1982). · cites it 9× “Section 40-3-102, C.R.S. 1973. See also Colo.”
Colorado Off. of Consum. Couns. v. Mountain States Tel. & Tel. Co., 816 P.2d 278 (Colo. 1991). · cites it 10× “The Commission is also granted regulatory authority by section 40-3-102 of the Public Utilities Law, as follows: Regulation of rates—correction of abuses.”
Alvarez v. Dist. Ct. in & for City & Cty. of Denver, 525 P.2d 1131 (Colo. 1974). · cites it 12× “Section 40-3-102(2). This would permit a defendant to plead that he "was unarmed and had no reason to believe that any of his confederates was armed or intended to engage in any conduct dangerous to life.”
Integrated Network Servs., Inc. v. Pub. Utils. Comm'n, 875 P.2d 1373 (Colo. 1994). · cites it 6× “A Section 40-3-102, 17 C.R.S. (1993), provides in pertinent part: "The power and authority is hereby vested in the public utilities commission of the state of Colorado .”
Colorado Off. of Consum. Couns. v. Pub. Utils. Comm'n, 786 P.2d 1086 (Colo. 1990). · cites it 6× “Section 40-3-102 gives the Commission the general authority to "regulate all rates, charges, and tariffs of every public utility of this state to correct abuses; to prevent unjust discriminations and extortions in the rates, charges, and tariffs of such public utilities of this…”
U S West Commc'ns, Inc. v. City of Longmont, 948 P.2d 509 (Colo. 1997). · cites it 4× “To do so would violate section 40-3-106 which prohibits preferential rates as well as section 40-3-102 which generally forbids rate discrimination.”
City of Montrose v. Pub. Utils. Com'n, Etc., 629 P.2d 619 (Colo. 1981). · cites it 3× “The PUC’s order can be broken into two distinct parts: First, the decision to surcharge municipal franchise charges to all customers of Rocky Mountain instead of including this expense as an operating cost for purposes of rate-making; and, second, the decision to state those…”
Show all 52 citing cases →
— Colo. Rev. Stat. § 40-3-102(1)(b) — 2 cases
Auman v. People, 109 P.3d 647 (Colo. 2005). “" § 40-3-102 cmt., 12 C.R.S. (1963) (1971 Perm.”
People v. Auman, 67 P.3d 741 (Colo. Ct. App. 2003).
— Colo. Rev. Stat. § 40-3-102(2) — 1 case
Alvarez v. Dist. Ct. in & for City & Cty. of Denver, 525 P.2d 1131 (Colo. 1974). “Section 40-3-102(2). This would permit a defendant to plead that he "was unarmed and had no reason to believe that any of his confederates was armed or intended to engage in any conduct dangerous to life.”
— Colo. Rev. Stat. § 40-3-102(2)(b) — 1 case
Alvarez v. Dist. Ct. in & for City & Cty. of Denver, 525 P.2d 1131 (Colo. 1974). “Section 40-3-102(2). This would permit a defendant to plead that he "was unarmed and had no reason to believe that any of his confederates was armed or intended to engage in any conduct dangerous to life.”
— Colo. Rev. Stat. § 40-3-102(2)(c) — 1 case
Alvarez v. Dist. Ct. in & for City & Cty. of Denver, 525 P.2d 1131 (Colo. 1974). “Section 40-3-102(2). This would permit a defendant to plead that he "was unarmed and had no reason to believe that any of his confederates was armed or intended to engage in any conduct dangerous to life.”
— Colo. Rev. Stat. § 40-3-102(3) — 1 case
Duran v. Price, 868 P.2d 375 (Colo. 1994).
— Colo. Rev. Stat. § 40-3-102(l)(a) — 1 case
People v. Orona, 907 P.2d 659 (Colo. Ct. App. 1995).
— Colo. Rev. Stat. § 40-3-102(l)(b) — 1 case
Auman v. People, 109 P.3d 647 (Colo. 2005). “" § 40-3-102 cmt., 12 C.R.S. (1963) (1971 Perm.”
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