Rhode Island 2023 Regular Session

Rhode Island House Bill H6293 Compare Versions

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

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5	5	2023 -- H 6293
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7	7	LC002706
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9	9	S T A T E O F R H O D E I S L A N D
10	10	IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
11	11	JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2023
12	12	____________
13	13
14	14	A N A C T
15	15	RELATING TO PUBLIC UTILITIES AND CARRIERS -- DUTIES OF UTILITIES AND
16	16	CARRIERS
17	17	Introduced By: Representatives Cortvriend, Carson, Speakman, Donovan, Ajello, Handy,
18	18	Tanzi, Knight, Bennett, and McEntee
19	19	Date Introduced: April 19, 2023
20	20	Referred To: House Finance
21	21	(RI Infrastructure Bank)
22	22
23	23	It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
24	24	SECTION 1. Section 39-2-1.2 of the General Laws in Chapter 39-2 entitled "Duties of 1
25	25	Utilities and Carriers" is hereby amended to read as follows: 2
26	26	39-2-1.2. Utility base rate — Advertising, demand-side management, and renewables. 3
27	27	(a) In addition to costs prohibited in § 39-1-27.4(b), no public utility distributing or 4
28	28	providing heat, electricity, or water to or for the public shall include as part of its base rate any 5
29	29	expenses for advertising, either direct or indirect, that promotes the use of its product or service, or 6
30	30	is designed to promote the public image of the industry. No public utility may furnish support of 7
31	31	any kind, direct or indirect, to any subsidiary, group, association, or individual for advertising and 8
32	32	include the expense as part of its base rate. Nothing contained in this section shall be deemed as 9
33	33	prohibiting the inclusion in the base rate of expenses incurred for advertising, informational or 10
34	34	educational in nature, that is designed to promote public safety conservation of the public utility’s 11
35	35	product or service. The public utilities commission shall promulgate such rules and regulations as 12
36	36	are necessary to require public disclosure of all advertising expenses of any kind, direct or indirect, 13
37	37	and to otherwise effectuate the provisions of this section. 14
38	38	(b) Effective as of January 1, 2008, and for a period of twenty (20) years thereafter, each 15
39	39	electric distribution company shall include a charge per kilowatt-hour delivered to fund demand-16
40	40	side management programs. The 0.3 mills per kilowatt-hour delivered to fund renewable energy 17
41	41	programs shall remain in effect until December 31, 2028. The electric distribution company shall 18
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45	45	establish and, after July 1, 2007, maintain, two (2) separate accounts, one for demand-side 1
46	46	management programs (the “demand-side account”), which shall be funded by the electric demand-2
47	47	side charge and administered and implemented by the distribution company, subject to the 3
48	48	regulatory reviewing authority of the commission, and one for renewable energy programs, which 4
49	49	shall be administered by the Rhode Island commerce corporation pursuant to § 42-64-13.2 and shall 5
50	50	be held and disbursed by the distribution company as directed by the Rhode Island commerce 6
51	51	corporation for the purposes of developing, promoting, and supporting renewable energy programs. 7
52	52	During the time periods established in this subsection, the commission may, in its 8
53	53	discretion, after notice and public hearing, increase the sums for demand-side management and 9
54	54	renewable resources. In addition, the commission shall, after notice and public hearing, determine 10
55	55	the appropriate charge for these programs. The office of energy resources, and/or the administrator 11
56	56	of the renewable energy programs, may seek to secure for the state an equitable and reasonable 12
57	57	portion of renewable energy credits or certificates created by private projects funded through those 13
58	58	programs. As used in this section, “renewable energy resources” shall mean: (1) Power generation 14
59	59	technologies, as defined in § 39-26-5, “eligible renewable energy resources,” including off-grid 15
60	60	and on-grid generating technologies located in Rhode Island, as a priority; (2) Research and 16
61	61	development activities in Rhode Island pertaining to eligible renewable energy resources and to 17
62	62	other renewable energy technologies for electrical generation; or (3) Projects and activities directly 18
63	63	related to implementing eligible renewable energy resources projects in Rhode Island. 19
64	64	Technologies for converting solar energy for space heating or generating domestic hot water may 20
65	65	also be funded through the renewable energy programs. Fuel cells may be considered an energy 21
66	66	efficiency technology to be included in demand-side management programs. Special rates for low-22
67	67	income customers in effect as of August 7, 1996, shall be continued, and the costs of all of these 23
68	68	discounts shall be included in the distribution rates charged to all other customers. Nothing in this 24
69	69	section shall be construed as prohibiting an electric distribution company from offering any special 25
70	70	rates or programs for low-income customers which are not in effect as of August 7, 1996, subject 26
71	71	to the approval by the commission. 27
72	72	(1) The renewable energy investment programs shall be administered pursuant to rules 28
73	73	established by the Rhode Island commerce corporation. Said rules shall provide transparent criteria 29
74	74	to rank qualified renewable energy projects, giving consideration to: 30
75	75	(i) The feasibility of project completion; 31
76	76	(ii) The anticipated amount of renewable energy the project will produce; 32
77	77	(iii) The potential of the project to mitigate energy costs over the life of the project; and 33
78	78	(iv) The estimated cost per kilowatt-hour (KWh) of the energy produced from the project. 34
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82	82	(c) [Deleted by P.L. 2012, ch. 241, art. 4, § 14.] 1
83	83	(d) The chief executive officer of the commerce corporation is authorized and may enter 2
84	84	into a contract with a contractor for the cost-effective administration of the renewable energy 3
85	85	programs funded by this section. A competitive bid and contract award for administration of the 4
86	86	renewable energy programs may occur every three (3) years and shall include, as a condition, that 5
87	87	after July 1, 2008, the account for the renewable energy programs shall be maintained and 6
88	88	administered by the commerce corporation as provided for in subsection (b) of this section. 7
89	89	(e) Effective January 1, 2007, and for a period of twenty-one (21) years thereafter, each 8
90	90	gas distribution company shall include, with the approval of the commission, a charge per deca 9
91	91	therm delivered to fund demand-side management programs (the “gas demand-side charge”), 10
92	92	including, but not limited to, programs for cost-effective energy efficiency, energy conservation, 11
93	93	combined heat and power systems, and weatherization services for low-income households. 12
94	94	(f) Each gas company shall establish a separate account for demand-side management 13
95	95	programs (the “gas demand-side account”) that shall be funded by the gas demand-side charge and 14
96	96	administered and implemented by the distribution company, subject to the regulatory reviewing 15
97	97	authority of the commission. The commission may establish administrative mechanisms and 16
98	98	procedures that are similar to those for electric demand-side management programs administered 17
99	99	under the jurisdiction of the commission and that are designed to achieve cost-effectiveness and 18
100	100	high, life-time savings of efficiency measures supported by the program. 19
101	101	(g) The commission may, if reasonable and feasible, except from this demand-side 20
102	102	management charge: 21
103	103	(1) Gas used for distribution generation; and 22
104	104	(2) Gas used for the manufacturing processes, where the customer has established a self-23
105	105	directed program to invest in and achieve best-effective energy efficiency in accordance with a plan 24
106	106	approved by the commission and subject to periodic review and approval by the commission, which 25
107	107	plan shall require annual reporting of the amount invested and the return on investments in terms 26
108	108	of gas savings. 27
109	109	(h) The commission may provide for the coordinated and/or integrated administration of 28
110	110	electric and gas demand-side management programs in order to enhance the effectiveness of the 29
111	111	programs. Such coordinated and/or integrated administration may after March 1, 2009, upon the 30
112	112	recommendation of the office of energy resources, be through one or more third-party entities 31
113	113	designated by the commission pursuant to a competitive selection process. 32
114	114	(i) Effective January 1, 2007, the commission shall allocate, from demand-side 33
115	115	management gas and electric funds authorized pursuant to this section, an amount not to exceed 34
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119	119	three percent (3%) of such funds on an annual basis for the retention of expert consultants, and 1
120	120	reasonable administration costs of the energy efficiency and resources management council 2
121	121	associated with planning, management, and evaluation of energy-efficiency programs, renewable 3
122	122	energy programs, system reliability least-cost procurement, and with regulatory proceedings, 4
123	123	contested cases, and other actions pertaining to the purposes, powers, and duties of the council, 5
124	124	which allocation may by mutual agreement, be used in coordination with the office of energy 6
125	125	resources to support such activities. 7
126	126	(j) Effective January 1, 2016, the commission shall annually allocate from the 8
127	127	administrative funding amount allocated in subsection (i) from the demand-side management 9
128	128	program as described in subsection (i) as follows: forty percent (40%) for the purposes identified 10
129	129	in subsection (i) and sixty percent (60%) annually to the office of energy resources for activities 11
130	130	associated with planning, management, and evaluation of energy-efficiency programs, renewable 12
131	131	energy programs, system reliability, least-cost procurement, and with regulatory proceedings, 13
132	132	contested cases, and other actions pertaining to the purposes, powers, and duties of the office of 14
133	133	energy resources. 15
134	134	(k) On April 15, of each year, the office and the council shall submit to the governor, the 16
135	135	president of the senate, and the speaker of the house of representatives, separate financial and 17
136	136	performance reports regarding the demand-side management programs, including the specific level 18
137	137	of funds that were contributed by the residential, municipal, and commercial and industrial sectors 19
138	138	to the overall programs; the businesses, vendors, and institutions that received funding from 20
139	139	demand-side management gas and electric funds used for the purposes in this section; and the 21
140	140	businesses, vendors, and institutions that received the administrative funds for the purposes in 22
141	141	subsections (i) and (j). These reports shall be posted electronically on the websites of the office of 23
142	142	energy resources and the energy efficiency and resources management council. 24
143	143	(l) On or after August 1, 2015, at the request of the Rhode Island infrastructure bank, each 25
144	144	electric distribution company, except for the Pascoag Utility District and Block Island Power 26
145	145	Company, shall remit two percent (2%) of the amount of the 2014 electric demand-side charge 27
146	146	collections to the Rhode Island infrastructure bank. 28
147	147	(m) On or after August 1, 2015, at the request of the Rhode Island infrastructure bank, each 29
148	148	gas distribution company shall remit two percent (2%) of the amount of the 2014 gas demand-side 30
149	149	charge collections to the Rhode Island infrastructure bank. 31
150	150	(n) Effective January 1, 2022, the commission shall allocate, from demand-side 32
151	151	management gas and electric funds authorized pursuant to this section, five million dollars 33
152	152	($5,000,000) of such funds on an annual basis to the Rhode Island infrastructure bank. Gas and 34
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156	156	electric demand-side funds transferred to the Rhode Island infrastructure bank pursuant to this 1
157	157	section shall be eligible to be used in any energy efficiency, renewable energy, clean transportation, 2
158	158	clean heating, energy storage, or demand-side management project financing program administered 3
159	159	by the Rhode Island infrastructure bank notwithstanding any other restrictions on the use of such 4
160	160	collections set forth in this chapter. The infrastructure bank shall report annually to the commission 5
161	161	within ninety (90) days of the end of each calendar year how collections transferred under this 6
162	162	section were utilized. 7
163	163	SECTION 2. Section 46-12.2-4.3 of the General Laws in Chapter 46-12.2 entitled "Rhode 8
164	164	Island Infrastructure Bank" is hereby amended to read as follows: 9
165	165	46-12.2-4.3. Establishment of the clean energy fund. 10
166	166	(a)(1) There is hereby authorized and created within the Rhode Island infrastructure bank 11
167	167	a clean energy fund for the purpose of providing technical, administrative, and financial assistance 12
168	168	to a local governmental unit, corporation, or person for projects that include, but are not limited to, 13
169	169	those related to greenhouse gas reduction or elimination, zero-emission technology, clean 14
170	170	transportation, clean heating, energy storage, energy efficient efficiency, renewable energy, and 15
171	171	demand-side management projects. The Rhode Island infrastructure bank shall review and approve 16
172	172	all applications for projects to be financed through the clean energy fund. 17
173	173	(2) The Rhode Island infrastructure bank shall promulgate rules and regulations to 18
174	174	effectuate the provisions of this section, which may include, without limitation, forms for financial 19
175	175	assistance applications, loan agreements, and other instruments and establishing the process 20
176	176	through which a local governmental unit, corporation, or person may submit an application for 21
177	177	financial assistance from the clean energy fund. All rules and regulations promulgated pursuant to 22
178	178	this chapter shall be promulgated in accordance with the provisions of chapter 35 of title 42. 23
179	179	(b) The Rhode Island infrastructure bank shall have all the powers necessary and 24
180	180	convenient to carry out and effectuate the purposes and provisions of this section including, without 25
181	181	limiting the generality of the preceding statement, the authority: 26
182	182	(1) To receive and disburse funds as may be available for the purpose of the fund subject 27
183	183	to the provisions of this section; 28
184	184	(2) To make and enter into binding commitments to provide financial assistance to eligible 29
185	185	borrowers from amounts on deposit in the fund; 30
186	186	(3) To levy administrative fees on eligible borrowers as necessary to effectuate the 31
187	187	provisions of this section, provided the fees have been previously authorized by an agreement 32
188	188	between the Rhode Island infrastructure bank and the eligible borrower; 33
189	189	(4) To engage the services of third-party vendors to provide professional services; 34
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193	193	(5) To establish one or more accounts within the fund; and 1
194	194	(6) Such other authority as granted to the Rhode Island infrastructure bank under this 2
195	195	chapter. 3
196	196	(c) Subject to the provisions of this section and to any agreements with the holders of any 4
197	197	bonds of the Rhode Island infrastructure bank or any trustee therefor, amounts held by the Rhode 5
198	198	Island infrastructure bank for the account of the fund shall be applied by the Rhode Island 6
199	199	infrastructure bank, either by direct expenditure, disbursement, or transfer to one or more other 7
200	200	funds and accounts held by the Rhode Island infrastructure bank or maintained under any trust 8
201	201	agreement pertaining to bonds, either alone or with other funds of the Rhode Island infrastructure 9
202	202	bank, to the following purposes: 10
203	203	(1) To provide financial assistance to local governmental units, corporations, or persons to 11
204	204	finance costs of approved projects, as set forth in subsection (a) of this section, and to refinance the 12
205	205	costs of the projects, subject to terms and conditions, if any, as are determined by the Rhode Island 13
206	206	infrastructure bank; 14
207	207	(2) To fund reserves for bonds of the Rhode Island infrastructure bank and to purchase 15
208	208	insurance and pay the premiums therefor, and pay fees and expenses of letters or lines of credit and 16
209	209	costs of reimbursement to the issuers thereof for any payments made thereon or on any insurance, 17
210	210	and to otherwise provide security for, and a source of payment for, obligations of the Rhode Island 18
211	211	infrastructure bank, by pledge, lien, assignment, or otherwise as provided in this chapter; 19
212	212	(3) To pay expenses of the Rhode Island infrastructure bank in administering the clean 20
213	213	energy fund; 21
214	214	(4) To provide a reserve for, or to otherwise secure, amounts payable by borrowers on loans 22
215	215	and obligations outstanding in the event of default thereof; amounts in any account in the fund may 23
216	216	be applied to defaults on loans outstanding to the borrower for which the account was established 24
217	217	and, on a parity basis with all other accounts, to defaults on any loans or obligations outstanding; 25
218	218	and 26
219	219	(5) To provide a reserve for, or to otherwise secure, by pledge, lien, assignment, or 27
220	220	otherwise as provided in this chapter, any bonds of the Rhode Island infrastructure bank. 28
221	221	(d) In addition to other remedies of the Rhode Island infrastructure bank under any loan 29
222	222	agreement or otherwise provided by law, the Rhode Island infrastructure bank may also recover 30
223	223	from a borrower, in an action in superior court, any amount due the Rhode Island infrastructure 31
224	224	bank together with any other actual damages the Rhode Island infrastructure bank shall have 32
225	225	sustained from the failure or refusal of the borrower to make the payments or abide by the terms of 33
226	226	the loan agreement. 34
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230	230	(e) The Rhode Island infrastructure bank may create one or more loan loss reserve funds 1
231	231	to serve as further security for any loans made by the Rhode Island infrastructure bank or any bonds 2
232	232	of the Rhode Island infrastructure bank issued to fund projects in accordance with this section. 3
233	233	(f) To the extent possible, and in accordance with law, the Rhode Island infrastructure bank 4
234	234	shall encourage the use of project labor agreements for projects by local governmental units over 5
235	235	ten million dollars ($10,000,000) and local hiring on projects funded under this section. 6
236	236	SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage. 7
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243	243	EXPLANATION
244	244	BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
245	245	OF
246	246	A N A C T
247	247	RELATING TO PUBLIC UTILITIES AND CARRIERS -- DUTIES OF UTILITIES AND
248	248	CARRIERS
249	249	***
250	250	This act would amend the utility base rate statute to make clean transportation, clean 1
251	251	heating, and energy storage eligible for grants from the Rhode Island infrastructure bank for 2
252	252	projects that are related to greenhouse gas reduction, zero-emission technology, clean 3
253	253	transportation, clean heating, energy storage and energy efficiency. 4
254	254	This act would take effect upon passage. 5
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