NARUC Professional Development
Track: Accounting & Rate Design
Nov. 3, 4, 5, 2026, 2-4 PM Eastern
Performance-Based Ratemaking (PBR) and other alternatives to traditional cost of service ratemaking — collectively called Altreg — are increasingly popular in North America. PBR encompasses approaches to ratemaking that strengthen utility performance incentives. Some also improve the efficiency of ratemaking. PBR approaches include targeted performance incentive mechanisms (“PIMs”), multiyear rate plans, and revenue decoupling. Multiyear rate plans are popular in jurisdictions as diverse as California, Massachusetts, Ontario, and North Carolina. This three-day seminar introduces this topic through lectures and examples highlighting key precedents and recent developments in the ways that commissions and companies are using this tool.
Fees
NARUC State, Associate, and Federal Members: $265
Other State, Federal Government, and International Agencies / NASUCA Members / Academia: $465
All Others: $665
Course Outline
Day 1: Rationale for and Taxonomy of Altreg and PBR Revenue Decoupling and LRAMs
Day 2: PIMs and Other Targeted Incentives
Day 3: Multiyear Rate Plans
Learning Objectives
Students will learn the economic rationale for PBR and gain insights on the design of PBR mechanisms and recent developments in the field from leading experts.
Instructors
Mark Newton Lowry, President, Pacific Economics Group Research LLC (PEG)
Dr. Lowry has been a thought leader and expert witness on PBR for more than 30 years. He has also supervised pathbreaking research on utility industry productivity trends and performance benchmarking. Dr. Lowry holds a PhD in applied economics from the University of Wisconsin and is a former energy economics professor at the Pennsylvania State University.
Matt Makos, Senior Consultant, Pacific Economics Group Research LLC (PEG)
Mr. Makos has worked in the utility ratemaking field for nineteen years and is an expert on new developments in PBR and other kinds of Altreg. Matt holds an undergraduate degree in business from the University of Wisconsin.