Section 46-4-159. Standards of conduct for electing distribution companies; response to complaints

   (a) As used in this Code section and notwithstanding any other provision of this article, the term:

   (1) "Control" includes without limitation the possession, directly or indirectly and whether acting alone or in conjunction with others, of the authority to direct or cause the direction of the management or policies of a person. A voting interest of 10 percent or more creates a rebuttable presumption of control. The term control includes the terms controlling, controlled by, and under control with.

   (2) "Electing distribution company" includes any agent of or consultant to the electing distribution company.

   (3) "Marketer" means any person who engages in selling gas:

      (A) To retail customers connected to the facilities of an electing distribution company; or

      (B) To other marketers for resale to such customers; provided, however, that the term marketer shall not mean a person who only makes sales beyond the electing distribution company's system to other marketers for resale when the transportation capacity for the distribution of the gas to the electing distribution company's system is obtained from a person or entity which is not an affiliate of the electing distribution company.

(b) An electing distribution company must conduct its business to conform to the following standards, which are intended to prevent any advantage or disadvantage accruing to a marketer, including a marketer which is an affiliate of the electing distribution company, in relation to other marketers and their customers and which standards shall be applied to accomplish this intent:

   (1) An electing distribution company must apply the terms and conditions of its tariff and other tariff provisions related to the distribution of gas in the same manner to all marketers and to all customers without respect to their supplier;

   (2) An electing distribution company must process all similar requests for service in the same manner to all marketers in a reasonably similar time period;

   (3) An electing distribution company may not, through tariff or otherwise, give any marketer or its customers preference over any other marketer or similarly situated customers in matters relating to the movement or delivery of gas on its distribution facilities or the administration of contracts, including scheduling, nomination, balancing, metering, storage, standby service, curtailment policy, and billing and invoice questions and disputes;

   (4) An electing distribution company shall apply the same tariff provisions relating to discounts, rebates, fee waivers, or penalty waivers to all similarly situated customers without respect to their marketer. Any discretionary right under a tariff provision shall be applied by the electing distribution company impartially to all similarly situated customers without respect to their marketer. Where not subject to tariff provisions, an electing distribution company must contemporaneously offer the same discounts, rebates, fee waivers, or penalty waivers to all similarly situated customers without respect to their marketer and effectuate such contemporaneous offers by making an appropriate posting on the general alert screen of its electronic bulletin board;

   (5) An electing distribution company must not give preference to any marketer in the scheduling or allocation of capacity at a city gate station;

   (6) An electing distribution company must not directly or indirectly give any marketer any form of preference over any other marketer in matters relating to allocation, assignment, release, or other transfer of the electing distribution company's capacity rights on interstate pipeline systems or in the sale of gas;

   (7) Neither the electing distribution company nor any marketer which is an affiliate of the company nor any other marketer may represent that any advantage accrues to customers or others in the use of electing distribution company services as a result of that customer or others dealing with the marketer. Also, joint promotions between the electing distribution company and any marketer, such as inclusion of fliers for the marketer in utility bills, are prohibited unless such promotions are offered to all other marketers under the same terms and conditions;

   (8) The electing distribution company must not preferentially provide sales leads to any marketer and must refrain from giving any appearance that the electing distribution company speaks on behalf of a marketer that is an affiliate of the company. If a customer requests information about marketers, to the extent the electing distribution company responds to the request, the electing distribution company should provide a list of all marketers on its system but shall not express any preferential recommendation for a marketer that is an affiliate of the company or for any other marketer;

   (9) Joint solicitation calls on end users by personnel of the electing distribution company and any marketer are forbidden; however, joint meetings will be scheduled at a mutually agreeable time and location if specifically requested in writing by the customer;

   (10) An electing distribution company must contemporaneously disclose information provided to any marketer related to the marketing or sale of natural gas to customers or identified potential customers or related to the delivery of natural gas to or on its system to all marketers on the system. The electing distribution company's disclosure of such information must be effectuated by posting the information on the general alert screen of its electronic bulletin board. However, an electing distribution company may, when requested in writing to do so by a customer of a marketer, disclose confidential information relating to the customer only to said marketer. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this paragraph, an electing distribution company may respond to general inquiries from marketers, customers, identified potential customers, or other third parties regarding general information including the company's terms and conditions, tariff provisions, location and description of facilities, or other similar information as required in the normal course of business by responding only to the requesting party;

   (11) An electing distribution company may not knowingly disclose to any marketer any confidential information obtained in connection with providing distribution or related services to any other marketer or customer, a potential marketer or customer, any agent of such customer or potential marketer, or a marketer;

   (12) Employees of the electing distribution company having direct responsibility for the day-to-day operations of the electing distribution company's operations, including without limitation employees involved in:

      (A) Receiving distribution service requests or sales requests from retail customers;

      (B) Scheduling gas deliveries on the electing distribution company's system;

      (C) Making gas scheduling or allocation decisions;

      (D) Purchasing gas or capacity; or

      (E) Selling gas to retail customers
   shall not be shared with, shall be physically separated from, and must function independently of a marketer which is an affiliate of the company;

   (13) An electing distribution company must file with the commission procedures that will enable marketers and the commission to determine how the electing distribution company is complying with the standards set forth in this Code section; and

   (14) An electing distribution company must maintain its books of account and records separately from those of a marketer which is an affiliate of the company.

(c) An electing distribution company must respond in writing within ten days to any informal complaint which is submitted in writing to the company and which relates to compliance with the standards set forth in this Code section.

Code 1981, § 46-4-159, enacted by Ga. L. 1997, p. 798, § 4.