Ferc
County of Butte v. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
Opinion
Opinion
MEMORANDUM
Butte County, California (the County) petitions this court for review of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) orders denying its complaint and petition for rehearing against the California Department of Water Resources (DWR), the licensee of a hydroelectric project located in Butte County. The County sought reimbursement from the DWR for public safety services, including law enforcement, fire, and rescue. The County contends that FERC acted arbitrarily and capriciously by failing to find that the DWR violated the Federal Power Act (FPA) and provisions of the license governing the hydroelectric project.
“Under the Administrative Procedure Act, this court reviews decisions by FERC to determine whether the agency action was arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or otherwise not in accordance with law.” Fall River Rural Elec. Co-op., Inc. v. F.E.R.C., 543 F.Sd 519, 525 (9th Cir.2008) (citation omitted).
“In accordance with Chevron, we must also give substantial deference to the Commission’s interpretation of its own regulations. In other words, we must defer to the Commission’s interpretation unless an alternative reading is compelled by the…