The British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC) is an independent agency of the government of the
Province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outsi ...
of
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include ...
responsible for regulating rates and standards of service quality. The Commission's primary responsibility is the regulation of British Columbia's natural gas and electricity utilities.
They also regulate intra-provincial pipelines and the
Insurance Corporation of British Columbia
The Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) is a provincial Crown corporation in British Columbia providing insurance. ICBC was created in 1973 by the NDP government of Premier Dave Barrett.
By law, any vehicle registered and driven ...
(ICBC), a
crown corporation
A state-owned enterprise (SOE) is a government entity which is established or nationalised by the ''national government'' or ''provincial government'' by an executive order or an act of legislation in order to earn profit for the governmen ...
responsible for insuring vehicles and operators in the province.
Apart from rates and services, the BCUC is also responsible for ensuring that
shareholder
A shareholder (in the United States often referred to as stockholder) of a corporation is an individual or legal entity (such as another corporation, a body politic, a trust or partnership) that is registered by the corporation as the legal ...
s of utilities are afforded a reasonable opportunity to earn a fair return on their invested
capital
Capital may refer to:
Common uses
* Capital city, a municipality of primary status
** List of national capital cities
* Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences
* Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used fo ...
, that competitive interests are not frustrated, and that government