Commission means Washington utilities and transportation commission.

Net utility plant in service means plant in service less accumulated depreciation and amortization.

Public service company means every gas company, electrical company, and water company subject to regulation under the provisions of Title 80 RCW as to rates and service by the commission.

(1) The commission may grant an exemption of any rule in this chapter, if consistent with the public interest, the purposes underlying regulation, and applicable statutes.

(2) To request a rule exemption, a person must file with the commission a written request identifying the rule for which an exemption is sought and giving a full explanation of the reason the exemption is requested.

(3) The commission will assign the request a docket number, if needed, and schedule the request for consideration at one of its regularly scheduled open meetings or, if appropriate under chapter 34.05 RCW, in an adjudication. The commission will notify the person requesting the exemption, and other interested persons, of the date the commission will consider the request.

(4) The commission will enter an order granting or denying the request or setting it for hearing, pursuant to chapter 480-07 WAC.

The following public service companies with annual gross operating revenues exceeding two hundred fifty thousand dollars must file budgets with the commission:

(1) Gas companies; and

(2) Electrical companies.

The budget for the ensuing fiscal year must be filed with the commission within ten days after it is approved by the company, but no later than sixty days after the beginning of the company's fiscal year.

Budgets, in a format selected by the reporting company, must show amounts needed for construction, operation and maintenance during the ensuing year. The reporting company must provide the information by industry (water, gas, and electrical) to the extent such information has been prepared. All major construction projects must be identified in the budget. Major construction projects will be determined for water, gas, and electrical companies, as all projects where the Washington-allocated share of the total project is greater than five-tenths of one percent of the company's latest year-end Washington-allocated net utility plant in service, but does not include any project of less than three million dollars on a total project basis. This determination for companies providing combined industry services will be done on an industry-specific basis.

The commission may, in its discretion, to the extent permitted by RCW 80.04.095 and chapter 42.17 RCW, upon the request of any public service company, withhold from publication, any portion of any budget designated as confidential pursuant to WAC 480-07-160.

The commission may, in its discretion, require any public service company to furnish information, data or detail as to any proposed expenditure.