81R4398 JJT-D
By: Deshotel H.B. No. 3375
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to energy efficiency measures and technologies.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 447, Government Code, is amended by
adding Section 447.015 to read as follows:
Sec. 447.015. GOAL FOR ENERGY EFFICIENCY RESOURCES. (a) It
is the goal of the legislature that by January 1, 2025, through
investments in energy efficiency resources the per capita electric
energy consumption and natural gas consumption in this state will
each be reduced by 25 percent as compared to per capita consumption
in 2006.
(b) To achieve the goal established by Subsection (a), the
state energy conservation office shall establish an energy
efficiency resources credit program. The program must be designed
to provide an incentive for the implementation or installation of
energy efficiency measures and technologies by electric and natural
gas utility customers to reduce the consumption of electric and
natural gas energy resources. The office may establish interim per
capita reduction goals to monitor the progress of the program in
meeting the goal established by Subsection (a).
(c) Each retail electric provider, investor-owned electric
utility, municipally owned utility, electric cooperative, or gas
utility shall earn or purchase energy efficiency resources credits
under the program. The program must provide that:
(1) an implemented or installed eligible energy
efficiency measure or technology earns one credit for:
(A) each megawatt-hour of electricity saved; and
(B) each unit of natural gas saved that is the
equivalent of one megawatt-hour of electricity;
(2) the earned credits are tradable in a market
established and monitored by the office;
(3) the earned credits expire annually; and
(4) the credits may be earned by:
(A) residential and commercial customers who
implement or install energy efficiency measures or technologies;
and
(B) electric or natural gas utilities for
implementing or installing energy efficiency measures or
technologies in the utility systems or for utility customers.
(d) The state energy conservation office by rule shall
identify energy efficiency measures and technologies eligible for
earning credits under the program for energy savings that result
from their implementation or installation. The office shall ensure
that measures implemented and technologies installed that are also
eligible for credits in other energy efficiency credit programs are
not eligible for credits in both programs simultaneously. The
office shall make publicly available a list of eligible measures
and technologies that includes an indication of the expected useful
life for each. The office must include as eligible measures and
technologies:
(1) conventional passive energy efficiency
technologies;
(2) customer-sited distributed renewable generation
technologies;
(3) thermal solar heating technologies;
(4) solar hot water heating technologies;
(5) combined heat and power technologies;
(6) use of water system energy;
(7) efficient operations of natural gas pipelines and
distribution systems;
(8) efficient operations of electric utility systems;
and
(9) insulation, weather sealants, or similar
measures.
(e) To promote the implementation and installation of
energy efficiency measures and technologies, the state energy
conservation office shall initiate and supervise an outreach
program to inform consumers, industry, and the public regarding
energy efficiency measures and technologies and their economic and
environmental benefits. The program must be designed to facilitate
market development by focusing on the needs of those who may adopt
energy efficiency measures or technologies. The office shall
consult with or contract with the Clean Energy Applications Center
at the Houston Advanced Research Center or an entity engaged in
similar research and outreach projects.
(f) The state energy conservation office shall establish a
continuing study of the effectiveness of measures and technologies
for which credits may be earned under the program. The office shall
estimate, measure, and verify energy savings resulting from the
program.
(g) The state energy conservation office by rule shall
establish an administrative penalty and procedure for collecting
administrative penalties for a violation of the program established
under this section. The rules must provide for graduated penalties
according to the severity of the violation and the economic benefit
to the violator as a result of the violation. A penalty for a single
violation may not exceed $10,000. A penalty collected for a
violation of this section shall be deposited in the general revenue
fund and may be appropriated only to the state energy conservation
office for purposes of implementing or enforcing this section.
SECTION 2. Sections 39.905(a) and (b), Utilities Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) It is the goal of the legislature that by January 1,
2025, statewide per capita electric energy consumption in this
state will be reduced by 25 percent, as compared to per capita
consumption in 2006, by the implementation of programs to ensure
that:
(1) electric utilities will administer energy
efficiency incentive programs in a market-neutral,
nondiscriminatory manner but will not offer underlying competitive
services;
(2) all customers, in all customer classes, will have
a choice of and access to energy efficiency alternatives and other
choices from the market that allow each customer to reduce energy
consumption, peak demand, or energy costs;
(3) each electric utility will provide, through
market-based standard offer programs or limited, targeted,
market-transformation programs, incentives sufficient for retail
electric providers and competitive energy service providers to
acquire additional cost-effective energy efficiency for
residential and commercial customers [equivalent to at least:
[(A) 10 percent of the electric utility's annual
growth in demand of residential and commercial customers by
December 31, 2007;
[(B) 15 percent of the electric utility's annual
growth in demand of residential and commercial customers by
December 31, 2008, provided that the electric utility's program
expenditures for 2008 funding may not be greater than 75 percent
above the utility's program budget for 2007 for residential and
commercial customers, as included in the April 1, 2006, filing; and
[(C) 20 percent of the electric utility's annual
growth in demand of residential and commercial customers by
December 31, 2009, provided that the electric utility's program
expenditures for 2009 funding may not be greater than 150 percent
above the utility's program budget for 2007 for residential and
commercial customers, as included in the April 1, 2006, filing];
(4) each electric utility in the ERCOT region shall
use its best efforts to encourage and facilitate the involvement of
the region's retail electric providers in the delivery of
efficiency programs and demand response programs under this
section;
(5) retail electric providers in the ERCOT region, and
electric utilities outside of the ERCOT region, shall provide
customers with energy efficiency educational materials; and
(6) notwithstanding Subsection (a)(3), electric
utilities shall continue to make available, at 2007 funding and
participation levels, any load management standard offer programs
developed for industrial customers and implemented prior to May 1,
2007.
(b) The commission shall provide oversight and adopt rules
and procedures to ensure that the utilities can achieve the goal of
this section, including:
(1) establishing a program that requires each electric
utility to provide, through market-based standard offer programs or
limited, targeted, market-transformation programs, incentives
sufficient for retail electric providers and competitive energy
service providers to acquire additional cost-effective energy
efficiency for residential and commercial customers equivalent to a
fixed percentage of statewide electric energy sales as the
commission determines will result in a per capita reduction
sufficient to meet the goal of this section;
(1-a) establishing an energy efficiency cost recovery
factor for ensuring timely and reasonable cost recovery for utility
expenditures made to satisfy the goal of this section;
(2) establishing an incentive under Section 36.204 to
reward utilities administering programs under this section that
exceed the minimum goals established by this section;
(3) providing a utility that is unable to establish an
energy efficiency cost recovery factor in a timely manner due to a
rate freeze with a mechanism to enable the utility to:
(A) defer the costs of complying with this
section; and
(B) recover the deferred costs through an energy
efficiency cost recovery factor on the expiration of the rate
freeze period;
(4) ensuring that the costs associated with programs
provided under this section are borne by the customer classes that
receive the services under the programs; and
(5) ensuring the program rules encourage the value of
the incentives to be passed on to the end-use customer.
SECTION 3. Section 31.005, Utilities Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
(c) The commission by rule shall provide for a distributed
energy generation technology program described by Subsection (b) to
allow interconnection at a point of common coupling of an electric
generating facility with a capacity of 25 megawatts that consists
of distributed renewable generation as defined by Section 39.916 or
a combined heating and power unit.
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.