Bill Text: OR HB2979 | 2011 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to public utilities.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Failed) 2011-06-30 - In committee upon adjournment. [HB2979 Detail]
Download: Oregon-2011-HB2979-Introduced.html
76th OREGON LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY--2011 Regular Session
NOTE: Matter within { + braces and plus signs + } in an
amended section is new. Matter within { - braces and minus
signs - } is existing law to be omitted. New sections are within
{ + braces and plus signs + } .
LC 1237
House Bill 2979
Sponsored by Representative WINGARD (Presession filed.)
SUMMARY
The following summary is not prepared by the sponsors of the
measure and is not a part of the body thereof subject to
consideration by the Legislative Assembly. It is an editor's
brief statement of the essential features of the measure as
introduced.
Provides public purpose charge funds to compensate electric
company for certain pilot program costs resulting from payment of
incentive rates greater than general schedule of rates approved
for electric company by Public Utility Commission.
A BILL FOR AN ACT
Relating to public utilities; amending ORS 757.365 and 757.612.
Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:
SECTION 1. ORS 757.365, as amended by section 2, chapter 78,
Oregon Laws 2010, is amended to read:
757.365. (1) The Public Utility Commission shall establish a
pilot program for each electric company to demonstrate the use
and effectiveness of volumetric incentive rates and payments for
electricity or for the nonenergy attributes of electricity, or
both, from solar photovoltaic energy systems that are permanently
installed in this state by retail electricity consumers and that
first become operational after the program begins. The cumulative
nameplate capacity of the qualifying systems enrolled in all of
the pilot programs may not exceed 25 megawatts of alternating
current. Qualifying systems enrolled in the pilot program may not
have nameplate generating capacity greater than 500 kilowatts.
(2) The commission by rule shall adopt requirements for the
pilot programs described in subsection (1) of this section. Each
electric company shall file for commission approval tariff
schedules for the pilot programs that conform to the
requirements.
(3) The commission may establish incentive rates for the pilot
programs to enable the development of the most efficient solar
photovoltaic energy systems.
(4) A retail electricity consumer participating in a pilot
program may receive payments based on electricity generated from
solar photovoltaic energy system output for 15 years from the
consumer's date of enrollment in the program, at rates or through
a rate formula in a tariff schedule established at the time of
enrollment, or at rates otherwise established at the time of
enrollment. The consumer thereafter may receive payments based
upon electricity generated from the qualifying system at a rate
equal to the resource value.
(5) The commission may adjust the tariff schedule as needed for
new pilot program participants for the purpose of meeting the
goal established in subsection (1) of this section. Once a retail
electricity consumer is enrolled in a program, the rates or rate
formula for determining payments to the consumer may not be
modified.
(6) The commission shall establish pilot programs designed to
attain a goal of 75 percent of the capacity under each program to
be deployed by residential qualifying systems and small
commercial qualifying systems. The commission by rule may adjust
the percentage goal for capacity deployed by residential and
small commercial qualifying systems based upon the costs of the
energy generated, the feasibility of attaining the goal and other
factors.
(7) The commission may establish total generator nameplate
capacity limits for an electric company so that the rate impact
of the pilot program for any customer class does not exceed 0.25
percent of the electric company's revenue requirement for the
class in any year.
(8) Ownership of renewable energy certificates established
under ORS 469A.130 that are associated with renewable energy
generation under the pilot programs must be transferred to the
electric company and may be used to comply with the renewable
portfolio standard described in ORS 469A.052 or 469A.055.
(9) To the extent that rates paid under a pilot program exceed
the resource value, qualifying systems participating in the pilot
programs are not eligible for expenditures under ORS 757.612
(3)(b)(B) or tax credits under ORS 469.160 to 469.180 or 469.185
to 469.225.
(10) { + (a) + } { - All prudently incurred costs associated
with compliance with this section are recoverable in the rates of
an electric company. - } { + An electric company shall recover
prudently incurred costs in complying with this section that
result from incentive rates greater than the general schedule of
rates approved by the commission for an electric company under
ORS 757.210 to 757.220 from moneys collected by the electric
company under the public purpose charge provisions of ORS
757.612. The electric company may recover an amount equal to the
difference between the incentive rates and the general schedule
of rates.
(b) If moneys from the public purpose charges are insufficient
during any calendar year to compensate the electric company for
costs eligible for recovery by the electric company under
paragraph (a) of this subsection, the electric company shall:
(A) Cease to enroll any new pilot programs and cease to allow
increased generation of qualifying electricity by any existing
pilot programs within the service area of the electric company
until public purpose charge collections fully compensate the
electric company for its costs under paragraph (a) of this
subsection during a calendar year; and
(B) Recover all prudently incurred costs under paragraph (a) of
this subsection that are greater than the amount of moneys
collected from public purpose charges in the rates paid by all
retail electricity customers. + }
(11) The commission shall advise and assist the owners and
operators of qualifying systems in identifying and using grants,
incentive moneys, federal funding and other sources of
noninvestment financial support for the construction and
operation of qualifying systems.
(12) The pilot programs described in subsection (1) of this
section close to new participants on the earlier of:
(a) March 31, 2015; or
(b) The date the cumulative nameplate capacity of solar
photovoltaic energy systems that have been permanently installed
by retail electricity consumers under the pilot programs equals
25 megawatts of alternating current.
(13) The commission shall submit a report to the Legislative
Assembly by January 1 of each odd-numbered year. The report must
evaluate the effectiveness of the pilot programs described in
subsection (1) of this section compared to the effectiveness of
expenditures under ORS 757.612 (3)(b)(B) or tax credits under ORS
469.160 to 469.180 or 469.185 to 469.225 for promoting the use of
solar photovoltaic energy systems and reducing system costs. The
report must also evaluate the estimated cost of the program to
retail electricity consumers.
SECTION 2. ORS 757.612 is amended to read:
757.612. (1) There is established an annual public purpose
expenditure standard for electric companies and Oregon Community
Power to fund new cost-effective local energy conservation, new
market transformation efforts, the above-market costs of new
renewable energy resources and new low-income weatherization. The
public purpose expenditure standard shall be funded by the public
purpose charge described in subsection (2) of this section.
(2)(a) Beginning on the date an electric company or Oregon
Community Power offers direct access to its retail electricity
consumers, except residential electricity consumers, the electric
company or Oregon Community Power shall collect a public purpose
charge from all of the retail electricity consumers located
within its service area until January 1, 2026. Except as provided
in paragraph (b) of this subsection, the public purpose charge
shall be equal to three percent of the total revenues collected
by the electric company, Oregon Community Power or the
electricity service supplier from its retail electricity
consumers for electricity services, distribution, ancillary
services, metering and billing, transition charges and other
types of costs included in electric rates on July 23, 1999.
(b) For an aluminum plant that averages more than 100 average
megawatts of electricity use per year, beginning on March 1,
2002, the electric company or Oregon Community Power whose
territory abuts the greatest percentage of the site of the
aluminum plant shall collect from the aluminum company a public
purpose charge equal to one percent of the total revenue from the
sale of electricity services to the aluminum plant from any
source.
(3)(a) The Public Utility Commission shall establish rules
implementing the provisions of this section relating to electric
companies and Oregon Community Power.
(b) Subject to { - paragraph - } { + paragraphs + }
(e) { + and (f) + } of this subsection, funds collected by an
electric company or Oregon Community Power through public purpose
charges shall be allocated as follows:
(A) Sixty-three percent for new cost-effective conservation and
new market transformation.
(B) Nineteen percent for the above-market costs of constructing
and operating new renewable energy resources with a nominal
electric generating capacity, as defined in ORS 469.300, of 20
megawatts or less.
(C) Thirteen percent for new low-income weatherization.
(D) Five percent shall be transferred to the Housing and
Community Services Department Electricity Public Purpose Charge
Fund established by ORS 456.587 (1) and used for the purpose of
providing grants as described in ORS 458.625 (2).
(c) The costs of administering subsections (1) to (6) of this
section for an electric company or Oregon Community Power shall
be paid out of the funds collected through public purpose
charges. The commission may require that an electric company or
Oregon Community Power direct funds collected through public
purpose charges to the state agencies responsible for
implementing subsections (1) to (6) of this section in order to
pay the costs of administering such responsibilities.
(d) The commission shall direct the manner in which public
purpose charges are collected and spent by an electric company or
Oregon Community Power and may require an electric company or
Oregon Community Power to expend funds through competitive bids
or other means designed to encourage competition, except that
funds dedicated for low-income weatherization shall be directed
to the Housing and Community Services Department as provided in
subsection (7) of this section. The commission may also direct
that funds collected by an electric company or Oregon Community
Power through public purpose charges be paid to a nongovernmental
entity for investment in public purposes described in subsection
(1) of this section. Notwithstanding any other provision of this
subsection:
(A) At least 80 percent of the funds allocated for conservation
shall be spent within the service area of the electric company
that collected the funds; or
(B) If Oregon Community Power collected the funds, at least 80
percent of the funds allocated for conservation shall be spent
within the service area of Oregon Community Power.
{ + (e) Prior to allocation of any public purpose charge
funds collected by an electric company under paragraph (b) or (f)
of this subsection, the electric company may deduct from the
public purpose charge funds collected any prudently incurred
costs referred to in ORS 757.365 greater than the costs of
electricity generation associated with a general schedule of
rates for the electric company approved by the commission under
ORS 757.210 to 757.220. + }
{ - (e)(A) - } { + (f)(A) Except as provided in paragraph
(e) of this subsection, + } the first 10 percent of the funds
collected annually by an electric company or Oregon Community
Power under subsection (2) of this section shall be distributed
to education service districts, as described in ORS 334.010, that
are located in the service territory of the electric company or
Oregon Community Power. The funds shall be distributed to
individual education service districts according to the weighted
average daily membership (ADMw) of the component school districts
of the education service district for the prior fiscal year as
calculated under ORS 327.013. The commission shall establish by
rule a methodology for distributing a proportionate share of
funds under this paragraph to education service districts that
are only partially located in the service territory of the
electric company or Oregon Community Power.
(B) An education service district that receives funds under
this paragraph shall use the funds first to pay for energy audits
for school districts located within the education service
district. An education service district may not expend additional
funds received under this paragraph on a school district facility
until an energy audit has been completed for that school
district. To the extent practicable, an education service
district shall coordinate with the State Department of Energy and
incorporate federal funding in complying with this paragraph.
Following completion of an energy audit for an individual school
district, the education service district may expend funds
received under this paragraph to implement the energy audit. Once
an energy audit has been conducted and completely implemented for
each school district within the education service district, the
education service district may expend funds received under this
paragraph for any of the following purposes:
(i) Conducting energy audits. A school district shall conduct
an energy audit prior to expending funds on any other purpose
authorized under this paragraph unless the school district has
performed an energy audit within the three years immediately
prior to receiving the funds.
(ii) Weatherization and upgrading the energy efficiency of
school district facilities.
(iii) Energy conservation education programs.
(iv) Purchasing electricity from environmentally focused
sources and investing in renewable energy resources.
{ - (f) - } { + (g) + } The commission may not establish a
different public purpose charge than the public purpose charge
described in subsection (2) of this section.
{ - (g) - } { + (h) + } If the commission directs funds
collected through public purpose charges to a nongovernmental
entity, the entity shall:
(A) Include on the entity's board of directors an ex officio
member designated by the commission, who shall also serve on the
entity's nominating committee for filling board vacancies.
(B) Require the entity's officers and directors to provide an
annual disclosure of economic interest to be filed with the
commission on or prior to April 15 of each calendar year for
public review in a form similar to the statement of economic
interest required for public officials under ORS 244.060.
(C) Require the entity's officers and directors to declare
actual and potential conflicts of interest at regular meetings of
the entity's governing body when such conflicts arise, and
require an officer or director to abstain from participating in
any discussion or vote on any item where that officer or director
has an actual conflict of interest. For the purposes of this
subparagraph, 'actual conflict of interest' and 'potential
conflict of interest' have the meanings given those terms in ORS
244.020.
(D) Arrange for an independent auditor to audit the entity's
financial statements annually, and direct the auditor to file an
audit opinion with the commission for public review.
(E) File with the commission annually the entity's budget,
action plan and quarterly and annual reports for public review.
(F) At least once every five years, contract for an independent
management evaluation to review the entity's operations,
efficiency and effectiveness, and direct the independent reviewer
to file a report with the commission for public review.
{ - (h) - } { + (i) + } The commission may remove from the
board of directors of a nongovernmental entity an officer or
director who fails to provide an annual disclosure of economic
interest or declare actual or potential conflict of interest, as
described in paragraph { - (g)(B) - } { + (h)(B) + } and (C)
of this subsection, in connection with the allocation or
expenditure of funds collected through public purpose charges and
directed to the entity.
(4)(a) An electric company that satisfies its obligations under
this section shall have no further obligation to invest in
conservation, new market transformation or new low-income
weatherization or to provide a commercial energy conservation
services program and is not subject to ORS 469.631 to 469.645 and
469.860 to 469.900.
(b) Oregon Community Power, for any period during which Oregon
Community Power collects a public purpose charge under subsection
(2) of this section:
(A) Shall have no other obligation to invest in conservation,
new market transformation or new low-income weatherization or to
provide a commercial energy conservation services program; and
(B) Is not subject to ORS 469.631 to 469.645 and 469.860 to
469.900.
(5)(a) A retail electricity consumer that uses more than one
average megawatt of electricity at any site in the prior year
shall receive a credit against public purpose charges billed by
an electric company or Oregon Community Power for that site. The
amount of the credit shall be equal to the total amount of
qualifying expenditures for new energy conservation, not to
exceed 68 percent of the annual public purpose charges, and the
above-market costs of purchases of new renewable energy resources
incurred by the retail electricity consumer, not to exceed 19
percent of the annual public purpose charges, less administration
costs incurred under this subsection. The credit may not exceed,
on an annual basis, the lesser of:
(A) The amount of the retail electricity consumer's qualifying
expenditures; or
(B) The portion of the public purpose charge billed to the
retail electricity consumer that is dedicated to new energy
conservation, new market transformation or the above-market costs
of new renewable energy resources.
(b) To obtain a credit under this subsection, a retail
electricity consumer shall file with the State Department of
Energy a description of the proposed conservation project or new
renewable energy resource and a declaration that the retail
electricity consumer plans to incur the qualifying expenditure.
The State Department of Energy shall issue a notice of
precertification within 30 days of receipt of the filing, if such
filing is consistent with this subsection. The credit may be
taken after a retail electricity consumer provides a letter from
a certified public accountant to the State Department of Energy
verifying that the precertified qualifying expenditure has been
made.
(c) Credits earned by a retail electricity consumer as a result
of qualifying expenditures that are not used in one year may be
carried forward for use in subsequent years.
(d)(A) A retail electricity consumer that uses more than one
average megawatt of electricity at any site in the prior year may
request that the State Department of Energy hire an independent
auditor to assess the potential for conservation investments at
the site. If the independent auditor determines there is no
available conservation measure at the site that would have a
simple payback of one to 10 years, the retail electricity
consumer shall be relieved of 54 percent of its payment
obligation for public purpose charges related to the site. If the
independent auditor determines that there are potential
conservation measures available at the site, the retail
electricity consumer shall be entitled to a credit against public
purpose charges related to the site equal to 54 percent of the
public purpose charges less the estimated cost of available
conservation measures.
(B) A retail electricity consumer shall be entitled each year
to the credit described in this subsection unless a subsequent
independent audit determines that new conservation investment
opportunities are available. The State Department of Energy may
require that a new independent audit be performed on the site to
determine whether new conservation measures are available,
provided that the independent audits shall occur no more than
once every two years.
(C) The retail electricity consumer shall pay the cost of the
independent audits described in this subsection.
(6) Electric utilities and retail electricity consumers shall
receive a fair and reasonable credit for the public purpose
expenditures of their energy suppliers. The State Department of
Energy shall adopt rules to determine eligible expenditures and
the methodology by which such credits are accounted for and used.
The rules also shall adopt methods to account for eligible public
purpose expenditures made through consortia or collaborative
projects.
(7)(a) In addition to the public purpose charge provided under
subsection (2) of this section, an electric company or Oregon
Community Power shall collect funds for low-income electric bill
payment assistance in an amount determined under paragraph (b) of
this subsection.
(b) The commission shall establish the amount to be collected
by each electric company in calendar year 2008 from retail
electricity consumers served by the company, and the rates to be
charged to retail electricity consumers served by the company, so
that the total anticipated collection for low-income electric
bill payment assistance by all electric companies in calendar
year 2008 is $15 million. In calendar year 2009 and subsequent
calendar years, the commission may not change the rates
established for retail electricity consumers, but the total
amount collected in a calendar year for low-income electric bill
payment assistance may vary based on electricity usage by retail
electricity consumers and changes in the number of retail
electricity consumers in this state. In no event shall a retail
electricity consumer be required to pay more than $500 per month
per site for low-income electric bill payment assistance.
(c) Funds collected by the low-income electric bill payment
assistance charge shall be paid into the Housing and Community
Services Department Low-Income Electric Bill Payment Assistance
Fund established by ORS 456.587 (2). Moneys deposited in the fund
under this paragraph shall be used by the Housing and Community
Services Department for the purpose of funding low-income
electric bill payment assistance. The department's cost of
administering this subsection shall be paid out of funds
collected by the low-income electric bill payment assistance
charge. Moneys deposited in the fund under this paragraph shall
be expended solely for low-income electric bill payment
assistance. Funds collected from an electric company or Oregon
Community Power shall be expended in the service area of the
electric company or Oregon Community Power from which the funds
are collected.
(d) The Housing and Community Services Department, in
consultation with the federal Advisory Committee on Energy, shall
determine the manner in which funds collected under this
subsection will be allocated by the department to energy
assistance program providers for the purpose of providing
low-income bill payment and crisis assistance, including programs
that effectively reduce service disconnections and related costs
to retail electricity consumers and electric utilities. Priority
assistance shall be directed to low-income electricity consumers
who are in danger of having their electricity service
disconnected.
(e) Interest on moneys deposited in the Housing and Community
Services Department Low-Income Electric Bill Payment Assistance
Fund established by ORS 456.587 (2) may be used to provide
heating bill payment and crisis assistance to electricity
consumers whose primary source of heat is not electricity.
(f) Notwithstanding ORS 757.310, the commission may allow an
electric company or Oregon Community Power to provide reduced
rates or other payment or crisis assistance or low-income program
assistance to a low-income household eligible for assistance
under the federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Act of 1981,
as amended and in effect on July 23, 1999.
(8) For purposes of this section, 'retail electricity
consumers' includes any direct service industrial consumer that
purchases electricity without purchasing distribution services
from the electric utility.
(9) For purposes of this section, amounts collected by Oregon
Community Power through public purpose charges are not considered
moneys received from electric utility operations.
----------
