New Mexico utility to release documents in rate case

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico's largest electric utility has been told to publicly release documents that were sealed as it pursues approval from state regulators for a rate increase. Two hearing officers for the Public Regulation Commission ruled this week that the utility failed to show the information's secrecy was protected by state or federal law, and it didn't prove that any trade secrets would be revealed if the documents were made public. The Santa Fe New Mexican reports (http://bit.ly/2tUEoM9 ) that Public Service Co. of New Mexico is asking the hearing officers to reconsider the decision. The renewable energy advocacy group New Energy Economy, a long-standing critic of the utility, had asked earlier this year that a confidentiality designation be lifted from documents that relate to two coal-fired power plants and negotiations over future coal supplies. ___ Information from: The Santa Fe New Mexican, http://www.sfnewmexican.com