Kit Pevoto

Independent Consultant/Electric Rate Expert

Ms. Pevoto has been working in Texas electric regulatory industry for more than 20 years.  She is a recognized cost allocation and rate design expert in the industry.  Ms. Pevoto has a strong knowledge of the cost allocation models and rate design issues for all IOUs under PUCT jurisdiction.  She previously worked at Public Utility Commission of Texas for twelve years.  During her employment at PUCT as the Manager of the Costing and Pricing Section, Ms. Pevoto was deeply involved and contributed greatly in developing the following groundbreaking activities, projects, and rulemakings that led to deregulation at both wholesale and retail levels:   

  • PUCT transmission access and pricing rules for the Texas wholesale electricity market, which provided for equal and open access of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (“ERCOT”) transmission system for all wholesale customers. The rules became the foundation for development of the deregulated electric wholesale market in Texas, as directed by the Texas Legislature in 1995.
  • Project to separate the costs of nine IOUs in Texas into generation, transmission, distribution, metering & billing, and customer services categories. The Commission used the unbundled cost information resulting from this project in assisting the Texas Legislature to develop the electric deregulation bill (Senate Bill 7) in the 1999 legislation.
  • During the 1999 Legislative Session, Ms. Pevoto was actively involved in developing information and data for the Legislature to review while it was developing Senate Bill 7. She was also involved in the negotiations among parties regarding allocation of stranded costs among customers.
  • Pevoto testified, in the spring of 2000, in Texas IOUs’ first cost unbundling cases, before the Commission as an expert witness on cost allocation and rate design regarding the determination of transmission and distribution charges to be applied in these unbundling cases. The Commission adopted her recommendations for a simplified and uniform rate design for the transmission and distribution rates for all IOUs with very minor modifications.
  • Pevoto also made significant contributions in other rulemaking projects involving the implementation of Senate Bill 7, such as the tariff Terms and Conditions for Transmission and Distribution Services and the Price to Beat.

After leaving PUCT, as an independent consultant, Ms. Pevoto has been testifying before the Commission in many major rate cases as well as other cases, on behalf of various clients.  Ms. Pevoto, early in the summer of 2008, Ms. Pevoto testified before the Commissioners in the Competitive Renewable Energy Zone (“CREZ”) docket on the determination of transmission expansion plan to accommodate more renewable power into the ERCOT grid.  The Commission eventually adopted the transmission expansion plan as recommended by Ms. Pevoto.

Ms. Pevoto currently resides in Austin, Texas.

Consulting Services Provided by Kit Pevoto

Cost Allocation and Rate Design

Ms. Pevoto offers consulting service regarding cost allocation and Rate Design issues, developing cost allocation models, assistance in cost allocation and rate design, performing anything from support services for other expert witnesses to the complete effort including expert witness testimony.

ERCOT TDU Rate Updates

Ms. Pevoto develops and maintains spreadsheet tables listing rates by customer type and rate category for each TDU. Some of these rates may change at odd times, but send out all the current rates at the beginning of each month to subscribers, with a look-ahead as to which rates are expected to go into effect or be approved in the near future.  Through this service, Ms. Pevoto sends out a mid-month update on any rate changes since the update sent out at the first of the month.