GASB 89 requires municipal electric utilities to expense construction period interest. This does a dis-service to current electric ratepayers but there is an exception that gives a more reasonable outcome. We'll discuss the options.

The FERC defined allowance for funds used during construction (AFUDC) should be part of the cost of every electric project. This cost of capital, represents the investment the utility or electric cooperative is making in providing service to customers. The impact of not including all costs will be felt in future years when it is time for asset replacement. A utility could find itself in the position of not having recovered the total cost of assets in customer rates, thus not generating sufficient funds to pay for the replacement of the related assets. This article discusses the rate impact of including AFUDC.

As the power supply base of the electric industry moves to more renewables, you might find some of your traditional supply assets are not economical. These uneconomical assets might be impaired for accounting purposes. How do you determine the amount of an impairment, and more importantly, determine how to recover an impairment loss in electric rates? We show you how.