The PUHCA, A Long Time Passing

Before initializations were clever, there was PUHCA, the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935.  The Securities and Exchange Commission administered the PUHCA mostly by reviewing applications by registered public holding companies for transactions and conducting periodic examinations that focused on improperly allocated costs and weak internal controls.  The SEC lost its regulatory oversight to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in 2005 when Congress repealed the Energy Policy Act of 2005, P.L. 109-58.  

The PUHCA lives on in at least two California statutes - Section 11924(a) of the Revenue and Taxation Code and Public Utilities Code Section 246.  The SEC has also refused to let go PUHCA disappear.  The Division of Investment Management continues to post provide links to no-action letters addressing the PUHCA (with the most recent dating to 2004).