Coming Fall 2026 — Self-Paced Webinar
Utility Finance & Accounting for Financial Professionals
Deeper expertise in utility-specific accounting, ratemaking, and reporting — taught by Joel Berk on video, with new modules on AI’s impact on financial workflows.
Who This Webinar Is For
Finance and accounting professionals at utilities who need to go deeper into the specifics of utility-only accounting, ratemaking, and tax issues.
Controllers & Accountants
Controllers, financial reporting managers, and accountants who deal with utility-specific GAAP, regulatory assets, and plant accounting.
Rate Analysts
Rate analysts and pricing professionals who build rate cases and need fluency in cost-of-service modeling and adjustment mechanisms.
Tax & Treasury
Tax accountants, treasury, and FP&A professionals working with deferred taxes, AFUDC, and capital recovery issues.
Prerequisite
This webinar assumes a working knowledge of accounting fundamentals. Recommended preparation is any one of the following:
- Completion of FAI’s Non-Financial Professional Webinar
- A position at the utility in finance, accounting, or rates
- An educational background including at least three accounting classes
Curriculum
Joel Berk’s deep-dive curriculum, refined over 40 years of teaching at utilities.
Rate of Return Regulation
- Basics of Ratemaking
- Determination of Rate Base
- Revenue Requirement Issues
Plant Issues
- Accounting for Plant Retirement
- Risks of Reserve Deficiency
- Asset Retirement Obligations
- Mass Property Accounting
Modifications to Rate of Return Regulation
- Adjustment Clauses, Trackers, Riders, Deferrals
- Rate Freezes, Decoupling
- Preapprovals
- Formula Ratemaking
Accounting for Income Taxes
- Permanent Differences
- Temporary Differences
Energy and Gas Adjustment Clauses
A Problem of Definition
- Statement of Cash Flows
- Different definitions for Net Income, Operating Income, and Cash Flow
GAAP for Utilities
- Why and how GAAP differs
- Plant Write-Offs
- Regulatory Assets and when to remove them
CWIP and AFUDC
- AFUDC vs. Interest Capitalization
Capitalization vs. Expense
- GAAP, Tax, Ratemaking, and Managerial Accounting
- Influences and Motivations
- Problems in Recovery of Plant Costs
- Retirement Units of Property
Conclusions
New for 2026: interactive quizzes after each module, plus a new section on AI’s impact on utility financial workflows.
Your Instructor
Dr. Joel Berk
For 40 years, Joel Berk has been the voice of FAI — teaching utility finance and accounting to over 40,000 attendees from more than 1,000 utilities. While Joel is stepping back from live teaching in 2026, his complete curriculum has been preserved on video so the next generation of utility professionals can still learn from him.
Joel’s signature is making technical material approachable — even when the topic is regulatory accounting.
Continuing Education Credits
22 CPE Credits for CPAs available in all states.
Get Notified as Registration Opens
Enrollment opens in fall 2026. Leave your email and you’ll be the first to know the moment it’s live.