Bill Text: HI SB2934 | 2014 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Community-based Renewable Energy Program; Public Utilities Commission; Tariff
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 6-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2014-04-25 - Conference committee meeting to reconvene on 04-25-14 3:35PM in conference room 225. [SB2934 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2014-SB2934-Introduced.html
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THE SENATE |
S.B. NO. |
2934 |
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TWENTY-SEVENTH LEGISLATURE, 2014 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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A BILL FOR AN ACT
relating to renewable energy.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION 1. The legislature finds that Hawaii residents should be able to participate in and enjoy the economic, environmental, and societal benefits of renewable energy. Spurred by the Hawaii clean energy initiative and increasingly affordable clean energy options, such as solar photovoltaic, localized renewable energy generation technology has become increasingly attainable for all types of consumers over the past several years.
While residential solar energy use statewide doubled in 2012, many individuals and households are currently unable to directly participate in renewable energy because of their location, building type, access to the electric utility grid, and other impediments.
The community-based renewable energy program seeks to rectify this inequity by dramatically expanding the market for eligible renewable energy resources to include residential and commercial renters, residential and commercial buildings with shaded or improperly oriented roofs, and other groups who are unable to access the benefits of onsite clean energy generation. The legislature finds that it is in the public interest to promote broader participation in self-generation by Hawaii residents, public agencies, and businesses through the development of community renewable energy facilities in which participants are entitled to generate electricity and receive credit for that electricity on their utility bills.
Community-based renewable energy creates new construction jobs, stimulates the economy, reduces emissions of greenhouse gases, promotes energy independence, and assists in meeting the State's clean energy goals. Further, community-based renewable energy enables schools, colleges, universities, local governments, businesses, and consumers to save money on their electricity bills, thereby helping to fund educational programs, social services, and new hiring.
It is the intent of the legislature that as the public utilities commission works to implement this Act, the commission carefully consider regulatory barriers to distributed generation projects, whether identified or not, and quickly address barriers in a manner that is conducive to the development of distributed generation projects consistent with appropriate ratepayer protections. This Act is not intended to delay or limit electric utilities, regulated by the public utilities commission, from establishing and implementing community-based renewable energy programs, and this Act shall not, absent the issuance of a rule or order by the public utilities commission, regulate the terms or operation of a community-based renewable energy program owned or operated by those electric utilities.
The purpose of this Act is to establish the Hawaii community-based renewable energy program to make the benefits of renewable energy more accessible to a greater number of Hawaii residents.
SECTION 2. Chapter 269, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new part to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:
"Part . community-based renewable energy
§269-A Definitions. As used in this part:
"Benefiting account" means one or more accounts designated to receive a bill credit under section 269-B.
"Bill credit" means an amount of money credited each month to one or more benefiting accounts based on the percentage share of the community renewable energy facility that is assigned to the account pursuant to the methodology described in section 269-D.
"Commission" means the public utilities commission.
"Community renewable energy facility" means a facility for the generation of electricity, not owned or operated by an electric utility regulated by the commission, that provides community-based renewable energy and meets the following requirements:
(1) Produces renewable energy as defined in section 269‑91;
(2) Measures the electrical output of the facility by a production meter capable of recording electrical generation in real time;
(3) Is located within the service territory of an electric utility;
(4) Operates in parallel with the electric utility's transmission and distribution facilities;
(5) Conforms with the electric utility's interconnection requirements;
(6) Is not subject to net metering under part VI of this chapter; and
(7) Achieves initial commercial operation on January 1, 2015, or thereafter.
"Interest" means a direct or indirect ownership, lease, subscription, or financing interest in a community renewable energy facility that enables the participant to receive a bill credit for a retail account with the electric utility.
"Maintenance expense" means a participant's share of the cost of maintaining and operating the community renewable energy facility to be deposited into a protected trust or escrow account for the sole purposes of maintaining and operating the community renewable energy facility.
"Participant" means a retail customer of an electric utility who owns, leases, or subscribes to an interest in a community renewable energy facility and who has designated a retail account as a benefiting account to which the subscription shall be attributed; provided that a retail customer with multiple retail accounts may comprise multiple participants.
"Participant organization" means any entity, other than an electric utility regulated by the commission, whose purpose is to own or operate a community renewable energy facility for the benefit of participants of that facility.
§269-B Community renewable energy facilities; benefiting accounts; participants. (a) A retail customer of an electric utility may acquire an interest in a community renewable energy facility for the purpose of becoming a participant and receiving a bill credit to offset all or a portion of the customer's bill for electrical service. Each participant shall designate a benefiting account to which the interest shall be attributed.
(b) A community renewable energy facility shall comply with all safety and performance standards under section 269-111.
(c) To be eligible to be designated as a benefiting account, the account shall be for service to premises located within the geographical boundaries of the service territory of the electric utility containing the community renewable energy facility.
(d) A participant organization may own or operate a community renewable energy facility for the benefit of participants of that facility. A community renewable energy facility may be built, owned, or operated by a third party under contract with a participant organization.
(e) The commission shall not regulate the prices paid for an interest in a community renewable energy facility but may enforce the required disclosures pursuant to section 269-H.
(f) Each electric utility shall maintain a publicly available database of existing and proposed community renewable energy facilities.
§269-C Standard contract or tariff; rate structure. (a) Every electric utility shall develop a standard community-based renewable energy metering contract or tariff, for approval by the commission, providing for community-based renewable energy and shall make this contract or tariff available to participants. The commission may amend the rate structure or standard contract or tariff by rule or order. This contract or tariff shall:
(1) Calculate the value of the bill credit or bill owed for the benefiting account's kilowatt-hour production and consumption based on a time-of-use rate structure that reflects, at a minimum:
(A) The time-dependent value of the participants' energy generated and time-dependent cost of the participants' energy consumed, as such value changes based on utility demand and on the availability of energy resources; and
(B) The value of ancillary services or demand response capability provided by the community renewable energy facility and participants; or
(2) Calculate the value of the bill credit or bill owed for the benefiting account's kilowatt-hour production and consumption:
(A) In a manner consistent with sections 269-102 (b) and 269-105;
(B) With an allowable fixed monthly charge that reflects the utility's fixed costs associated with participants' use of the utility's transmission, distribution, and other infrastructure; and
(C) With a monthly credit based on the value of any ancillary services or demand response capability provided by the community renewable energy facility and participants.
(b) For participants who acquire an interest in an operational or proposed community renewable energy facility prior to the date of commission approval of a contract or tariff developed by an electric utility in accordance with subsection (a):
(1) Each community-based renewable energy metering contract or tariff shall be consistent with sections 269-102 and 269-105;
(2) The charges for all retail rate components for participants shall be based exclusively on the participant's net kilowatt-hour consumption over a monthly billing period. Any new or additional demand charge, standby charge, customer charge, minimum monthly charge, interconnection charge, or other charge that would increase a participant's costs beyond those allowed by sections 269-102 and 269-105, are contrary to the intent of this section, and shall not form a part of community-based renewable energy contracts or tariffs, prior to commission approval of a standard community renewable energy metering contract or tariff pursuant to subsection (a); and
(3) The value of the compensation owed for the benefiting account's net monthly kilowatt-hour consumption shall be calculated at the retail rate consistent with sections 269-102 and 269-105.
§269-D Calculation. The bill credit calculation shall be made by measuring the difference between the value, calculated in accordance with the applicable rate structure under section 269-C, of electricity supplied to the benefiting account from the electric utility, and:
(1) The percentage share allocated to the benefiting account of the value, calculated in accordance with the applicable rate structure under section 269-C, of the electricity generated by the community renewable energy facility and fed back to the electric grid over a monthly billing period; and
(2) Any unused credits for the value, calculated in accordance with the applicable rate structure under section 269-C, of excess electricity from the percentage share allocated to the benefiting account, carried over from previous months since the last twelve-month reconciliation period, pursuant to section 269-E.
§269-E Billing periods; twelve-month reconciliation. (a) Billing of a participant's benefiting account shall be on a monthly basis; provided that the last monthly bill for each twelve-month period shall reconcile for that twelve-month period the applicable monthly bill credit or bill owed with:
(1) The percentage share allocated to the benefiting account of the value, calculated in accordance with the applicable rate structure under section 269-C, of the electricity generated by the community renewable energy facility and fed back to the electric grid over the monthly billing period; and
(2) Any unused bill credits for the value, calculated in accordance with the applicable rate structure under section 269-C, of excess electricity from the percentage share allocated to the benefiting account, carried over from prior months since the last twelve-month reconciliation period.
(b) Bill credits for the percentage share allocated to the benefiting account of the value, calculated in accordance with the applicable rate structure under section 269-C, of excess electricity generated by the community renewable energy facility that remain unused after each twelve-month reconciliation period shall not be carried over to the next twelve-month period.
§269-F Net electricity consumers. At the end of each monthly billing period, if the value, calculated in accordance with the applicable rate structure under section 269-C, of the electricity supplied to the benefiting account by the electric utility during the period exceeds:
(1) The percentage share allocated to the benefiting account of the value, calculated in accordance with the applicable rate structure under section 269-C, of the electricity generated by the community renewable energy facility during that same period; and
(2) Any unused bill credits for the value, calculated in accordance with the applicable rate structure under section 269-C, of excess electricity from the percentage share allocated to the benefiting account of the electricity, generated by the community renewable energy facility carried over from prior months since the last twelve-month reconciliation period,
the benefiting account shall be deemed a net electricity consumer who shall owe the electric utility compensation for the value of the benefiting account's kilowatt-hour consumption over that same period, based on a rate structure as described in section 269-C.
§269-G Net electricity producers; excess electricity credits and credit carry-over. (a) At the end of each monthly billing period, if the percentage share allocated to the benefiting account of the value, calculated in accordance with the applicable rate structure under section 269-C, of the electricity generated by the community renewable energy facility during the month exceeds the value, calculated in accordance with the applicable rate structure under section 269-C, of electricity supplied to the benefiting account by the electric utility during that same period, the benefiting account shall be deemed a net electricity producer and shall retain a credit for the value of such electricity production, provided that:
(1) The percentage share allocated to the benefiting account of the electricity generated by the community renewable energy facility in excess, if any, in each monthly billing period shall be carried over to the next month as a monetary value, calculated in accordance with the applicable rate structure under section 269-C, to the credit of the benefiting account, which bill credit may accumulate and be used to offset the compensation owed the electric utility for the benefiting account's electricity service for succeeding months within each twelve-month period; and
(2) The electric utility shall reconcile the value, calculated in accordance with the applicable rate structure under section 269-C, of the benefiting account's consumption and the percentage share allocated to the benefiting account of the value, calculated in accordance with the applicable rate structure under section 269-C, of the electricity generated by the community renewable energy facility for each twelve-month period as set forth in section 269-E.
(b) The benefiting account shall not be owed any compensation other than credits as provided in this section unless the electric utility enters into a purchase agreement with the benefiting account for those excess kilowatt-hours.
§269-H Participant organization obligations. (a) A participant organization shall provide to the electric utility information on the identity of the benefiting accounts that will receive a bill credit pursuant to this part not less than thirty days prior to the billing cycle for which the participant's account will receives a bill credit.
(b) Prior to the sale of any interest in a community renewable energy facility, the participant organization shall provide a disclosure to the potential participant that, at a minimum, includes all of the following:
(1) A good faith estimate of the annual kilowatt-hours to be delivered by the community renewable energy facility based on the size of the interest and the term of that interest;
(2) A plain language explanation of the form and term of participation and the disposition of the participant's portion after the term;
(3) A plain language explanation of the terms under which the bill credits will be calculated;
(4) A plain language explanation of the contract provisions regulating the disposition or transfer of the interest and the mechanism for a participant to change the designation of a benefiting account;
(5) A plain language explanation of the costs and benefits to the potential participant based on current usage and the applicable tariff, for the term of the proposed contract; and
(6) A good faith estimate of the maintenance expenses.
(c) Upon providing the electric utility with a minimum of thirty days' notice, the participant organization may change, add, or remove a benefiting account not more than once per month per benefiting account. If the owner of a benefiting account transfers service to a new address or benefiting account, the electric utility shall transfer any bill credits remaining from the previous account to the new account.
(d) A participant organization shall be responsible for providing to the electric utility company a monthly statement of the percentage shares to be used to determine the bill credit to each benefiting account and the associated maintenance expenses to be deducted. The maintenance expenses shall be monetized at the customer rate class. If there has been no change in the allocations from the previous submission or in the method of calculating the facility rate of participants, the participant organization shall not be required to submit a new statement.
(e) The participant organization shall provide real-time meter data to the electric utility and shall make the data available to a participant upon request. A participant organization shall be responsible for all costs of metering and shall retain production data for a period of thirty-six months.
(f) The participant organization shall provide no less than one hundred twenty days' notice to the electric utility and the commission prior to the date the community renewable energy facility becomes operational.
(g) The participant organization or its designee shall be responsible for maintaining and operating the facility and shall establish and maintain a protected trust or escrow account for the sole purpose of maintaining the facility. The participant organization shall collect maintenance expenses directly from its participants or through a power purchase agreement as approved by the commission to be deposited into the protected trust or escrow account for the maintenance and operations of the facility.
(i) The participant organization shall be responsible for providing an operations and maintenance plan to the electric utility and to the commission that details the renewable energy facility's sources and uses of operations and maintenance funds for the term of the facility."
SECTION 3. Section 269-1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending the definition of "public utility" to read as follows:
""Public utility":
(1) Includes every person who may own, control, operate, or manage as owner, lessee, trustee, receiver, or otherwise, whether under a franchise, charter, license, articles of association, or otherwise, any plant or equipment, or any part thereof, directly or indirectly for public use for the transportation of passengers or freight; for the conveyance or transmission of telecommunications messages; for the furnishing of facilities for the transmission of intelligence by electricity within the State or between points within the State by land, water, or air; for the production, conveyance, transmission, delivery, or furnishing of light, power, heat, cold, water, gas, or oil; for the storage or warehousing of goods; or for the disposal of sewage; provided that the term shall include:
(A) An owner or operator of a private sewer company or sewer facility; and
(B) A telecommunications carrier or telecommunications common carrier; and
(2) Shall not include:
(A) An owner or operator of an aerial transportation enterprise;
(B) An owner or operator of a taxicab as defined in this section;
(C) Common carriers that transport only freight on the public highways, unless operating within localities, along routes, or between points that the public utilities commission finds to be inadequately serviced without regulation under this chapter;
(D) Persons engaged in the business of warehousing or storage unless the commission finds that regulation is necessary in the public interest;
(E) A carrier by water to the extent that the carrier enters into private contracts for towage, salvage, hauling, or carriage between points within the State; provided that the towing, salvage, hauling, or carriage is not pursuant to either an established schedule or an undertaking to perform carriage services on behalf of the public generally;
(F) A carrier by water, substantially engaged in interstate or foreign commerce, that transports passengers on luxury cruises between points within the State or on luxury round-trip cruises returning to the point of departure;
(G) Any user, owner, or operator of the Hawaii electric system as defined under section 269-141;
(H) A telecommunications provider only to the extent determined by the public utilities commission pursuant to section 269-16.9;
(I) Any person who controls, operates, or manages plants or facilities developed pursuant to chapter 167 for conveying, distributing, and transmitting water for irrigation and other purposes for public use and purpose;
(J) Any person who owns, controls, operates, or manages plants or facilities for the reclamation of wastewater; provided that:
(i) The services of the facility are provided pursuant to a service contract between the person and a state or county agency and at least ten per cent of the wastewater processed is used directly by the state or county agency that entered into the service contract;
(ii) The primary function of the facility is the processing of secondary treated wastewater that has been produced by a municipal wastewater treatment facility owned by a state or county agency;
(iii) The facility does not make sales of water to residential customers;
(iv) The facility may distribute and sell recycled or reclaimed water to entities not covered by a state or county service contract; provided that, in the absence of regulatory oversight and direct competition, the distribution and sale of recycled or reclaimed water shall be voluntary and its pricing fair and reasonable. For purposes of this subparagraph, "recycled water" and "reclaimed water" means treated wastewater that by design is intended or used for a beneficial purpose; and
(v) The facility is not engaged, either directly or indirectly, in the processing of food wastes;
(K) Any person who owns, controls, operates, or manages any seawater air conditioning district cooling project; provided that at least fifty per cent of the energy required for the seawater air conditioning district cooling system is provided by a renewable energy resource, such as cold, deep seawater;
(L) Any person who owns, controls, operates, or manages plants or facilities primarily used to charge or discharge a vehicle battery that provides power for vehicle propulsion;
(M) Any person who:
(i) Owns, controls, operates, or manages a renewable energy system that is located on a customer's property; and
(ii) Provides, sells, or transmits the power
generated from that renewable energy system to an electric utility or to the
customer on whose property the renewable energy system is located; provided
that, for purposes of this subparagraph, a customer's property shall include
all contiguous property owned or leased by the customer without regard to
interruptions in contiguity caused by easements, public thoroughfares,
transportation rights-of-way, and utility rights-of-way; [and]
(N) Any person who owns, controls, operates, or manages a renewable energy system that is located on such person's property and provides, sells, or transmits the power generated from that renewable energy system to an electric utility or to lessees or tenants on the person's property where the renewable energy system is located; provided that:
(i) An interconnection, as defined in section 269-141, is maintained with an electric public utility to preserve the lessees' or tenants' ability to be served by an electric utility;
(ii) Such person does not use an electric public utility's transmission or distribution lines to provide, sell, or transmit electricity to lessees or tenants;
(iii) At the time that the lease agreement is signed, the rate charged to the lessee or tenant for the power generated by the renewable energy system shall be no greater than the effective rate charged per kilowatt hour from the applicable electric utility schedule filed with the public utilities commission;
(iv) The rate schedule or formula shall be established for the duration of the lease, and the lease agreement entered into by the lessee or tenant shall reflect such rate schedule or formula;
(v) The lease agreement shall not abrogate any terms or conditions of applicable tariffs for termination of services for nonpayment of electric utility services or rules regarding health, safety, and welfare;
(vi) The lease agreement shall disclose: (1) the rate schedule or formula for the duration of the lease agreement; (2) that, at the time that the lease agreement is signed, the rate charged to the lessee or tenant for the power generated by the renewable energy system shall be no greater than the effective rate charged per kilowatt hour from the applicable electric utility schedule filed with the public utilities commission; (3) that the lease agreement shall not abrogate any terms or conditions of applicable tariffs for termination of services for nonpayment of electric utility services or rules regarding health, safety, and welfare; and (4) whether the lease is contingent upon the purchase of electricity from the renewable energy system; provided further that any disputes concerning the requirements of this provision shall be resolved pursuant to the provisions of the lease agreement or chapter 521, if applicable; and
(vii) Nothing in this section shall be construed
to permit wheeling[.]; and
(O) A person engaged directly or indirectly in developing, producing, delivering, participating in, or selling interests in a community renewable energy facility pursuant to this chapter.
If the application of this chapter is ordered by the commission in any case provided in paragraph (2)(C), (D), (H), and (I), the business of any public utility that presents evidence of bona fide operation on the date of the commencement of the proceedings resulting in the order shall be presumed to be necessary to the public convenience and necessity, but any certificate issued under this proviso shall nevertheless be subject to terms and conditions as the public utilities commission may prescribe, as provided in sections 269-16.9 and 269-20."
SECTION 4. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.
SECTION 5. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
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INTRODUCED BY: |
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Report Title:
Community-based Renewable Energy Program
Description:
Establishes the Hawaii community-based renewable energy program to make the benefits of renewable energy more accessible to a greater number of Hawaii residents.
The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.
