The Committee of Consumer Services, which only a few years ago fought a successful legal battle to prevent Questar from collecting such charges, is trying to prevent its former director Roger Ball and citizen consumer advocate Claire Geddes from protesting its deal before the Utah Public Service Commission.

In papers filed with the PSC, the committee objects to the pair's request that they be allowed to participate in the case, arguing that Ball and Geddes don't represent the general public. In addition, it contends the case is too far along for anyone else to become involved beyond the committee, Questar and the state's Division of Public Utilities.

"It is clear from their filing that the committee is abandoning the state's consumers and is representing the interests of Questar Gas," Geddes said. "Now, it is more important than ever that someone step up and serve as a voice for gas customers."

At issue is a recent agreement between Questar, the consumer services committee and state's Division of Public Utilities that seeks to bring to an end a debate that began in the late 1980s when Questar Pipeline started to accept onto its system natural gas recovered from coal fields near Price.

The gas needed additional processing before it could burn safely in the appliances in Utah homes. Questar Gas wanted to pass on the processing costs to its customers but the Committee of Consumer Services worked for years to block those charges from appearing on Utahns' bills and eventually won a major victory at the Utah Supreme Court that gave natural gas customers a $29 million refund.

Despite that victory, the committee in October abruptly switched its position arguing that if it didn't settle Questar might eventually be able to pass additional millions on to its customers. The committee now wants gas company customers to pay Questar an additional $19 million over the next three years - or about 50 cents a month per household - to help reimburse the utility for its processing costs.

The gas company also argues that Geddes and Ball, who both know the regulatory process well, should have gotten involved in the case far earlier and should not be seeking to intervene now that the settlement agreement is before the PSC.

"They could have gotten involved anytime within the last 18 months," said Questar Gas spokesman Chad Jones. "They know how to get involved and stay involved in cases. All their intervention now will do is drag this case on and cost everyone more time and money."

Geddes argues that committee members debated in secret whether to support the settlement agreement. The public's first glimpse of the committee's reasoning in supporting the deal occurred when Dan Gimble, the committee's chief technical staff, testified at an Oct. 20 hearing where the PSC was asked to sign off on the pact.

"There was no concrete evidence presented in the hearing before the PSC to back up the committee's stand" that this is a good deal for consumers, Geddes said. "The hearing was shallow, at best. All that happened was the committee, the division and the company stood up together and said that they all agreed to settle."

In its filing with the PSC, the committee contends that all the pair is trying to do is get the PSC to conduct a full hearing with evidence. "They want to frustrate and prolong these proceedings and un-do the settlement which participating parties have so laboriously reached and submitted to the commission" for its approval, the committee's attorney Reed Warnick wrote.

Ball said rather than trying to block their participation the committee should be aiding their attempt to give the PSC additional information on which to base a decision.