TOPEKA, Kan.  -  Kansas regulators have approved a 7% rate increase for the state's largest natural gas company that will generate $28 million a year in new revenues for the utility.
     The Kansas Corporation Commission said a legal settlement it accepted Wednesday will raise bills for average residential customers of Kansas Gas Service by less than $2 a month.
     The settlement was reached in October by the company, the KCC's staff and other parties. They included the Citizens' Utility Ratepayers Board, a state agency representing residential customers and small businesses.  The agreement will allow Kansas Gas Service to earn a pretax profit of 10.6% on its operations.
     The company originally sought a rate increase of nearly $51 million. It has about 632,000 customers in Kansas.