HELENA -- A Democratic lawmaker wants to scrap Montana's 10-year-old deregulation laws without giving utility companies preapproval to build new energy plants and charge the rates they want.

Sen. Greg Lind, D-Missoula, presented a bill to the Senate Natural Resources and Energy Committee on Monday that would, in part, allow Northwestern Energy to build its own power-generating plants. NorthWestern Energy purchased the transmission and distribution assets of the former Montana Power Co., but cannot under deregulation own any power plants.

Allowing it to build new plants, Lind said, would help lower energy costs by promoting more competition. PPL Montana, the other big piece of MPC, has a "near monopoly" on generating power in Montana, according to Democratic Public Service Commission Chairman Greg Jergeson.

But unlike similar bills in the House, Lind's bill would not allow new plants to be preapproved by the Public Service Commission.

He and proponents of his bill said preapproving new plants and the rates they can charge would force energy consumers to assume all the risk in an often volatile energy market.

"It shifts risks from investors to consumers," Democratic Public Service Commissioner Ken Toole said.

Instead, Northwestern Energy should build plants and then seek approval from the PSC, which would endorse only those plants that were found to be "used and useful," proponents of Lind's bill said.

At roughly the same time testimony on Lind's bill was being heard, a competing bill in the House to "re-regulate" the utilities was being endorsed in committee, and will now go to the floor for debate.

Supporters of that bill, sponsored by Rep. Alan Olson, R-Roundup, said it is necessary to give NorthWestern preapproval of any projects it plans to build, so the company is assured its costs will be paid for by ratepayers.

"Without preapproval, I don't believe any project would occur," said Republican Public Service Commissioner Doug Mood. New power plants are extremely expensive, proponents of preapproval said, with some costing as much as $1 billion.

Others worried it is too soon to move forward with a preapproval bill.

Rep. Dave Gallik, D-Helena, suggested it might be better to wait to see if NorthWestern is bought by Babcock & Brown Infrastructure of Australia.

"There is absolutely no need to do this right now," he said. "If it's a good idea, it's a good idea in two years."

PPL Montana opposed both bills.

A similar deregulation bill, sponsored by Rep. Brady Wiseman, D-Bozeman, was scheduled to be heard Wednesday. Some lawmakers said all three bills may be considered together by a conference committee consisting of members from both chambers.

Associated Press Writer Matt Gouras contributed to this report.

Lind's bill is Senate Bill 195. Olson's bill is House bill 25. Wiseman's bill is 434.