Other administrative costs

  
KansasOn March 24, 2022, the KCC issued an Order Approving Unanimous Settlement Agreement which stipulated that all of our gas and storage costs were prudently incurred. On May 25, 2022, we filed with the KCC an application to securitize $90.2 million in securitized utility tariff costs. Because we intend to recover these costs over several years, we have recorded the regulatory asset for Kansas as a long-term asset in deferred charges and other assets as of June 30, 2022. TexasWe filed our application with the RRC on July 30, 2021 to securitize $2.0 billion of extraordinary gas costs incurred during Winter Storm Uri. This amount also included an estimate of carrying costs and administrative costs that we expect to incur in connection with the resolution of this filing. On November 10, 2021, the RRC issued a Final Determination of the Regulatory Asset (the Final Determination). The Final Determination stipulates that all of our gas and storage costs were prudently incurred. Additionally, the Final Determination permits us to defer, through December 31, 2021 our actual carrying costs associated with the $2.2 billion of incremental financing issued in March 2021 and to recover approximately $0.6 million of our administrative costs. On February 8, 2022, the RRC issued a Financing Order that authorizes the Texas Public Financing Authority to issue customer rate relief bonds to securitize the costs that were approved in the Final Determination over a period not to exceed 30 years. As required by the Financing Order, the Texas Public Financing Authority has 180 days to issue the securitization bonds. Issuance may occur after 180 days if necessary based on bond market conditions, the receipt of necessary approvals and the timely receipt of necessary financial disclosure information from each participating gas utility. Upon receipt of the securitization funds we will repay the $2.2 billion in public notes issued to finance the incremental gas costs incurred during Winter Storm Uri.   
9.     Interim Pension and Other Postretirement Benefit Plan InformationThe components of our net periodic pension cost for our pension and other postretirement benefit plans for the three and nine months ended June 30, 2022 and 2021 are presented in the following tables. Most of these costs are recoverable through our tariff rates. A portion of these costs is capitalized into our rate base or deferred as a regulatory asset or liability. The remaining costs are recorded as a component of operation and maintenance expense or other non-operating expense.   


|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
|   | Three Months Ended June 30 |
|   | Pension Benefits |  | Other Benefits |
|   | 2022 |  | 2021 |  | 2022 |  | 2021 |
|   | (In thousands) |
| Components of net periodic pension cost: |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
| Service cost | $ | 4,323  |  |  | $ | 4,609  |  |  | $ | 2,559  |  |  | $ | 4,305  |  |
| Interest cost (1) | 5,063  |  |  | 5,016  |  |  | 2,683  |  |  | 2,661  |  |
| Expected return on assets (1) | (7,383) |  |  | (6,978) |  |  | (3,312) |  |  | (2,613) |  |
|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
| Amortization of prior service cost (credit) (1) | (58) |  |  | (58) |  |  | (3,308) |  |  | 44  |  |
| Amortization of actuarial (gain) loss (1) | 1,951  |  |  | 3,062  |  |  | —  |  |  | —  |  |
| Settlements(1) | —  |  |  | 8,999  |  |  | —  |  |  | —  |  |
| Net periodic pension cost | $ | 3,896  |  |  | $ | 14,650  |  |  | $ | (1,378) |  |  | $ | 4,397  |  |

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