Creation of renewable resource credits by electric providers and granting rule-making authority

What it would have done

Summary by the Legislative Reference Bureau, the Legislature's nonpartisan drafting office. It's their wording, not ours.

Under current law, an electric utility or retail electric cooperative (electric provider) is subject to certain requirements for ensuring that, in a given year, a specified percentage of the electricity that the electric provider sells to retail customers or members is derived from renewable resources. Such requirements are commonly referred to as renewable portfolio standards (RPSs). Current law also allows an electric provider to create a credit based on the amount of electricity derived from renewable resources that the electric provider provides to its customers or members in a year and that exceeds the RPS for that year. Subject to certain restrictions, an electric provider that creates a credit may use the credit in a subsequent year to help comply with an RPS, or sell the credit to another electric provider to help the buyer comply with an RPS.

This bill allows an electric provider to create an additional credit that the electric provider can use or sell like the credit allowed under current law. The bill requires the Public Service Commission (PSC) to promulgate rules that allow an electric provider to create a credit based on the electric provider's use in a year of the following resources: solar energy, including solar water heating and direct solar applications such as solar light pipe technology; geothermal energy; biomass or biogas. However, the electric provider's use of the foregoing resources is eligible for a credit only if both of the following are satisfied: 1) the use displaces the electric provider's use of electricity that is derived from coal, oil, nuclear power or natural gas, except for natural gas used in a fuel cell; and 2) the displacement is verifiable and measurable, as determined by the PSC. In addition, the PSC's rules must also allow an electric provider to create a credit based on a customer's or member's use of resources that satisfies the foregoing requirements.

Who's behind it

32 lawmakers are its authors⁠. 16 are Republicans, 14 are Democrats and 2 are independents.

16 more lawmakers signed on in support⁠.