DOJ adds voice to lawsuit challenging state ROFR law, calling statute unconstitutional

摘要

Backing a competitive transmission developer's lawsuit againstrnMinnesota utility regulators, the Department of Justice filed a briefrnFriday in district court contending that a state law preserving localrnutilities' right of first refusal on transmission projects wasrnanticompetitive and unconstitutional.rnThe ROFR essentially gives incumbent utilities first dibs on anyrntransmission project in their service areas. A federal policy allowing thernpractice was nixed in 2011 as part of the Federal Energy RegulatoryrnCommission's landmark transmission planning and cost allocation rulernknown as Order 1000. That order, however, declined to preempt staternROFR laws.