Regulatory Assets and Liabilities
 3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2015
Regulatory Assets and Liabilities  
Regulatory Assets and Liabilities

 

Note 9. Regulatory Assets and Liabilities

 

Regulatory assets and liabilities were comprised of the following as of March 31, 2015 and December 31, 2014:

 

 

 

March 31, 2015

 

December 31, 2014

 

Regulatory Assets

 

 

 

 

 

Pension and retiree group health

 

$
244,843 

 

$
245,008 

 

Property-related temporary differences (tax benefits flowed through to ratepayers)

 
72,350 

 
72,350 

 

Other accrued benefits

 
32,684 

 
32,959 

 

Net WRAM and MCBA long-term accounts receivable

 
19,413 

 
14,449 

 

Asset retirement obligations, net

 
14,169 

 
13,863 

 

Interim rates long-term accounts receivable

 
8,996 

 
10,627 

 

Tank coating

 
5,097 

 

—

 

Health care balancing account

 
1,875 

 
1,075 

 

Other regulatory assets

 
1,662 

 

—

 

Total Regulatory Assets

 

$
401,089 

 

$
390,331 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Regulatory Liabilities

 

 

 

 

 

Future tax benefits due ratepayers

 

$
26,114 

 

$
26,114 

 

Conservation program

 
3,406 

 
2,669 

 

Pension balancing account

 
3,170 

 
4,291 

 

Other regulatory liabilities

 
2,412 

 
3,373 

 

Total Regulatory Liabilities

 

$
35,102 

 

$
36,447 

 

 

Short-term regulatory assets and liabilities are excluded from the above table. The short-term regulatory assets were $50.0 million as of March 31, 2015 and $53.2 million as of December 31, 2014. The short-term regulatory assets were primarily interim rates and net WRAM and MCBA accounts receivable as of March 31, 2015 and December 31, 2014. The short-term portions of regulatory liabilities were $5.6 million as of March 31, 2015 and $6.1 million as of December 31, 2014. The short-term regulatory liabilities were primarily net WRAM and MCBA liability balances and net refund balances to rate payers for the water conservation program from the 2009 General Rate Case (GRC).