Federal Power Commission v. Memphis Light, Gas & Water Division

We granted certiorari in these cases to determine whether § 441 of the Tax Reform Act of 1969, 26 U. S. C. § 167 (l), circumscribes the authority of the Federal Power Commission under the Natural Gas Act, 52 Stat. 821, as amended, 15 U. S. C. § 717 et seg., to permit a regulated utility to change its method of computing depreciation for ratemaking purposes from “flow-through” to “normalization” with respect to property acquired prior to 1970 as well as “replacement” property.

Since the resolution of this issue depends largely on the background and history of § 441 and the Commission’s…