District Judge Neil Foth to sit with Kansas Supreme Court December 19

TOPEKA—District Judge Neil Foth of the 10th Judicial District has been appointed to sit with the Kansas Supreme Court to hear oral arguments in one case on the court's December 19 docket. After hearing oral arguments, Foth will join Supreme Court justices in their deliberations and decision drafting.

“I am pleased that District Judge Foth is taking time from his duties in the 10th Judicial District to sit with the Supreme Court,” said Chief Justice Lawton Nuss. “It's a great help to our court, and we look forward to his contributions in deliberating and eventually deciding this case.”

Foth has been a district judge since 2009 in the 10th Judicial District, which is Johnson County. He hears family court and child in need of care cases.

Foth graduated from the University of Kansas Law School in 1984. He previously worked three years for the Topeka Public Defender's Office and was in private practice for 22 years before being appointed a judge.

"I'm honored the chief justice has asked me to sit with the Supreme Court. I look forward to providing whatever assistance I can in the resolution of this interesting case," Foth said.

All Supreme Court oral arguments are webcast live through the Watch Supreme Court Live! link in the right-hand column of the Kansas Judicial Branch website at www.kscourts.org.

The case Foth will hear December 19:

Appeal No. 120,436: In the Matter of the Joint Application of Westar Energy Inc. and Kansas Gas and Electric Co.

Original Action in a Utility Rate Case: (Petition for Review) Sierra Club, Vote Solar, and Climate and Energy Project (collectively Sierra Club) appealed the Kansas Corporation Commission's decision to approve the nonunanimous stipulation and agreement resolving the rate application of Westar Energy Inc. and Kansas Gas and Electric Co. As part of the settlement agreement, Westar implemented a new three-part rate structure for a class of residential consumers who generate some of their own electricity needs—the residential distributed generation (RS-DG) class—consisting of a basic service fee, an energy charge, and a demand charge. Sierra Club argued the imposition of a different rate design for the RS-DG class is discriminatory and violates state and federal law. The Court of Appeals upheld the decision of the KCC and concluded Westar has not discriminated against the RS-DG class in violation of the law. Issues on review are whether: 1) the higher overall rates and charges for solar customers compared to rates for nonsolar customers violates K.S.A. 66-117D; 2) making an unknown and more complicated demand charge mandatory for solar customers and optional for other customers constitutes a prejudice or disadvantage in violation of K.S.A. 66-117D; and 3) the different rates for solar customers discriminate compared to rates for sales to other customers violates 18 C.F.R. Sec. 292.305 because they are not justified by statewide costing principles applied without regard to when a customer generates electricity.