Connecticut 2025 Regular Session

Connecticut House Bill HB06929 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
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3	3	LCO No. 4652 1 of 3
4	4
5	5	General Assembly Raised Bill No. 6929
6	6	January Session, 2025
7	7	LCO No. 4652
8	8
9	9
10	10	Referred to Committee on ENERGY AND TECHNOLOGY
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13	13	Introduced by:
14	14	(ET)
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19	19	AN ACT ESTABLISHING A THERMAL ENERGY NETWORK GRANT
20	20	AND LOAN PROGRAM.
21	21	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
22	22	Assembly convened:
23	23
24	24	Section 1. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2025) (a) As used in this section: 1
25	25	(1) "Electric distribution company" and "participating municipal 2
26	26	electric utility" have the same meanings as provided in section 16-1 of 3
27	27	the general statutes; 4
28	28	(2) "Regional council of governments" means a regional council of 5
29	29	governments organized under the provisions of sections 4-124i to 4-6
30	30	124p, inclusive, of the general statutes; 7
31	31	(3) "Thermal energy" means heating, or heating and cooling, derived 8
32	32	from (A) fuel sources that do not emit greenhouse gases when 9
33	33	combusted, or (B) geothermal energy; and 10
34	34	(4) "Thermal energy network" means all real estate, fixtures and 11
35	35	personal property operated, owned and used or to be used for, or in 12
36	36	connection with or to facilitate, a utility-scale distribution infrastructure 13
37	37	Raised Bill No. 6929
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39	39
40	40
41	41	LCO No. 4652 2 of 3
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43	43	project that supplies thermal energy in the form of piped 14
44	44	noncombustible fluids used for transferring heat into and out of 15
45	45	buildings for any type of heating and cooling process, including, but not 16
46	46	limited to, comfort heating and cooling, domestic hot water and 17
47	47	refrigeration. 18
48	48	(b) The Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection shall, 19
49	49	within available appropriations, establish a thermal energy network 20
50	50	grant and loan program to support the development of thermal energy 21
51	51	network projects. The commissioner shall develop and issue a request 22
52	52	for proposals from eligible recipients that shall include, but need not be 23
53	53	limited to, any local or regional governmental entity, municipal 24
54	54	corporation, regional council of governments, public authority, state 25
55	55	and federally recognized tribe, electric distribution company, 26
56	56	participating municipal electric utility, energy improvement district and 27
57	57	nonprofit, academic and private entity seeking to develop a thermal 28
58	58	energy network. Any such eligible recipient may collaborate with any 29
59	59	other such eligible recipient in submitting such proposal. 30
60	60	(c) The commissioner may award grants or loans under the thermal 31
61	61	energy network grant and loan program to any number of eligible 32
62	62	recipients. Such grants and loans may provide: (1) Assistance with 33
63	63	community planning that includes, but is not limited to, thermal energy 34
64	64	network project feasibility, including benefit-cost analyses, (2) 35
65	65	assistance to recipients for the cost of design, engineering services and 36
66	66	infrastructure for any such thermal energy network project, and (3) 37
67	67	nonfederal cost share for grant or loan applications for projects or 38
68	68	programs that include thermal energy networks. The commissioner 39
69	69	may establish any financing mechanism to provide or leverage 40
70	70	additional funding to support the development of thermal energy 41
71	71	network projects. 42
72	72	(d) Not later than January first, annually, for a period of three years 43
73	73	after receiving a grant or loan under the thermal energy network grant 44
74	74	and loan program, the recipient of such grant or loan shall submit a 45
75	75	Raised Bill No. 6929
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79	79	LCO No. 4652 3 of 3
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81	81	report to the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority, the Office of 46
82	82	Consumer Counsel and the Commissioner of Energy and 47
83	83	Environmental Protection and, in accordance with the provisions of 48
84	84	section 11-4a of the general statutes, to the joint standing committee of 49
85	85	the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to energy 50
86	86	and technology. Such report shall include information concerning the 51
87	87	status of such recipient's thermal energy network project. 52
88	88	This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
89	89	sections:
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91	91	Section 1 October 1, 2025 New section
92	92
93	93	Statement of Purpose:
94	94	To require the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection
95	95	to establish a thermal energy network grant and loan program to
96	96	provide funding for the development of thermal energy networks.
97	97
98	98	[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
99	99	that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
100	100	underlined.]
101	101