New Hampshire 2025 Regular Session

New Hampshire Senate Bill SB236 Compare Versions

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Old	New	Differences
1	1	SB 236 - AS AMENDED BY THE SENATE
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5	5	03/13/2025 0826s
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7	7	2025 SESSION
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9	9	25-0444
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11	11	06/08
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15	15	SENATE BILL236
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19	19	AN ACTrelative to transferring control of the Electric Assistance Program to the department of energy.
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23	23	SPONSORS:Sen. Avard, Dist 12; Sen. Ward, Dist 8; Sen. Murphy, Dist 16; Sen. Lang, Dist 2; Sen. Gannon, Dist 23; Sen. Innis, Dist 7; Sen. Reardon, Dist 15; Sen. Long, Dist 20; Sen. Rochefort, Dist 1; Sen. Pearl, Dist 17; Sen. Rosenwald, Dist 13; Sen. Watters, Dist 4; Sen. Perkins Kwoka, Dist 21
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27	27	COMMITTEE:Energy and Natural Resources
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35	35	ANALYSIS
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39	39	This bill transfers the electric assistance program from the public utilities commission to the department of energy.
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43	43	This bill is a request of the department of energy.
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51	51	Explanation:Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
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53	53	Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
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55	55	Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
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57	57	03/13/2025 0826s25-0444
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59	59	06/08
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63	63	STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
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67	67	In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Five
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71	71	AN ACTrelative to transferring control of the Electric Assistance Program to the department of energy.
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75	75	Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
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79	79	1 Electric Rate Reduction Financing and Commission Action; Declaration of Purpose and Findings. Amend RSA 369-B:1, XIII to read as follows:
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81	81	XIII. The commission and the department shall [should] design [low income] low-income programs in a manner that targets assistance and has high operating efficiency, so as to maximize the benefits that go to the intended beneficiaries of the [low income program] low-income programs.
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83	83	2 New Paragraph; Electric Rate Reduction Financing and Commission Action; Definitions. Amend RSA 369-B:2 by inserting after paragraph III the following new paragraph:
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85	85	III-a. "Department" means the department of energy.
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87	87	3 Electric Utility Restructuring; Implementation. Amend RSA 374-F:4, VIII(c) to read as follows:
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89	89	(c) [The portion of the system benefits charge due to programs for low-income customers shall not exceed 1.5 mills per kilowatt hour.] Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the system benefits charge shall include 1.5 mills per kilowatt-hour to fund an electricity assistance program for low-income customers. The department of energy shall be the agency with authority over any such program. The department of energy shall be the agency with authority over any such program. The department of energy may, using a non-adjudicative hearing process, order among other things, eligibility tiers, benefit levels, administrative budgets, expenditures, and modification of any such program. Authority over the low-income assistance program funded through the system benefits charge and implemented by the public utilities commission prior to July 1, 2025, along with the commission orders creating and implementing that program, are transferred to the department of energy to be administered in conformity with this paragraph. If the [commission] department of energy determines that the low-income program fund has accumulated an excess of $1,000,000 and that the excess is not likely to be substantially reduced over the next 12 months, it [shall] may, using a non-adjudicative procedures, suspend by order the collection of some or all of this portion of the system benefits charge for a period of time it deems reasonable to reduce the program fund to the level necessary to achieve the programs’ purposes. Actions taken using a non-adjudicative hearing process shall be by written decision of the department, in which the department shall state its reasons for the actions taken. [The commission shall take no action to determine the accumulation of any excess in the low-income program fund or otherwise suspend the collection of some or all of the system benefits charge related to the low-income program fund before June 30, 2024.]
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91	91	4 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.