Eversource 2014 Annual Report Download - page 75

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The components of regulatory assets are as follows:
NU As of December 31,
 2014 2013
Benefit Costs $2,016.0 $1,240.2
Derivative Liabilities 425.5 638.0
Income Taxes, Net 635.3 626.2
Storm Restoration Costs 502.8 589.6
Goodwill-related 505.4 525.9
Regulatory Tracker Mechanisms 350.5 323.4
Contractual Obligations -Yankee Companies 123.8 154.2
Buy Out Agreements for Power Contracts 42.6 70.2
Other Regulatory Assets 124.7 126.8
Total Regulatory Assets 4,726.6 4,294.5
Less: Current Portion 672.5 535.8
Total Long-Term Regulatory Assets $4,054.1 $3,758.7
As of December 31,
2014 2013
NSTAR NSTAR
 CL&P Electric PSNH WMECO CL&P Electric PSNH WMECO
Benefit Costs $445.4 $515.9 $174.3 $85.0 $297.7 $496.7 $100.6 $57.3
Derivative Liabilities 410.9 4.5 - - 630.4 7.7 - -
Income Taxes, Net 437.7 83.7 38.0 35.5 415.5 84.0 40.3 43.7
Storm Restoration Costs 319.6 103.7 47.7 31.8 397.8 109.3 43.7 38.8
Goodwill-related -433.9 - - - 451.5 - -
Regulatory Tracker Mechanisms 16.1 141.4 103.5 33.0 8.0 169.5 83.3 32.6
Buy Out Agreements for Power Contracts -38.6 4.0 - - 64.7 5.5 -
Other Regulatory Assets 66.1 56.1 37.3 12.9 64.6 55.9 38.1 16.7
Total Regulatory Assets 1,695.8 1,377.8 404.8 198.2 1,814.0 1,439.3 311.5 189.1
Less: Current Portion 220.3 198.7 111.7 51.9 150.9 204.1 92.2 43.0
Total Long-Term Regulatory Assets $1,475.5 $1,179.1 $293.1 $146.3 $1,663.1 $1,235.2 $219.3 $146.1
- The Regulated companies had $60.5 million ($1.3 million for CL&P, $33.2 million for NSTAR
Electric, $0.9 million for PSNH, and $11 million for WMECO) and $65.1 million ($7.3 million for CL&P, $33.4 million for NSTAR Electric, and
$10.1 million for WMECO) of additional regulatory costs as of December 31, 2014and 2013, respectively, that were included in Other Long-Term
Assets on the balance sheets. These amounts represent incurred costs for which recovery has not yet been specifically approved by the applicable
regulatory agency. However, based on regulatory policies or past precedent on similar costs, management believes it is probable that these costs will
ultimately be approved and recovered from customers in rates. The NSTAR Electric balance as of December 31, 2014 and 2013 primarily related to
costs deferred in connection with the basic service bad debt adder. See Note 11G, "Commitments and Contingencies –Basic Service Bad Debt
Adder," for further information.
 For rate-making purposes, the Regulated companies recover the carrying costs related to their regulatory assets.
For certain regulatory assets, the carrying cost recovered includes an equity return component. This equity return, which is not recorded on the
balance sheets, totaled $1.7 million and $1.9 million for CL&P and $43.3 million and $33.1 million for PSNH as of December 31, 2014and 2013,
respectively. These carrying costs will be recovered from customers in future rates.
Regulatory Assets -The following provides further information about regulatory assets:
 NU's Pension, SERP and PBOP Plans are accounted for in accordance with accounting guidance on defined benefit pension and other
PBOP plans. The liability recorded by the Regulated companies to recognize the funded status of their retiree benefit plans are offset by regulatory
assets in lieu of a charge to Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income/(Loss),reflecting ultimate recovery from customers through rates. All
amounts are remeasured annually. Regulatory accounting was also applied to the portions of NU's service company costs that support the Regulated
companies, as these amounts are also recoverable. As these regulatory assets do not represent a cash outlay for the Regulated companies, no carrying
charge is recovered from customers.
The increase in the funded status liability of the retiree benefit plans and the corresponding regulatory assets was primarily driven by a change in
mortality assumptions, which increased the estimate of benefits to be provided to plan participants, and a decrease in the discount rate assumption.
For further information on the funded status liability and related regulatory assetsof the Pension, SERP and PBOP plans, see Note 9A, "Employee
Benefits –Pension Benefits and Postretirement Benefits Other Than Pensions."
CL&P, NSTAR Electric, PSNH and WMECO recover benefit costs related to their distribution and transmission operations from customers in rates
as allowed by their applicable regulatory commissions. NSTAR Electric and WMECO each recover their qualified pension and PBOP expenses
related to distribution operations through rate reconciling mechanisms that fully track the change in net pension and PBOP expenses each year.
 Regulatory assets recorded as an offset to derivative liabilities relate to the fair value of contracts used to purchase energy and
energy-related products that will be recovered from customers in future rates. See Note 4, "Derivative Instruments," to the financial statements for
further information. These assets are excluded from rate base and are being recovered as the actual settlements occur over the duration of the
contracts.