AR SB643

Public utilities with more than 3,000 ratepayers must submit annual reports to the Legislative Council beginning January 1, 2026, detailing expenses recovered through customer rates

Reports must itemize costs for political influence activities, advertising, charitable giving, trade association memberships, litigation on regulations, and contributions to political candidates or campaigns

Utilities must disclose compensation details for employees involved in lobbying or influencing government decisions, including job titles, descriptions, and percentage of pay recoverable from ratepayers

Executive and board travel expenses, aircraft use, investor relations costs, and any individual compensation exceeding the Governor's salary must be reported

Governmental utilities (those subject to Freedom of Information Act) are exempt from these requirements; the bill cites 23% natural gas rate increases for Summit Utilities in 2024 and four electric rate increases since 2021 as justification