The Office of Energy Development (OED) advances the responsible development of Utah's abundant and diverse energy resources through planning, policy, and direct engagement with industry. The Office facilitates energy development, delivery, and conservation activities. OED's goal is to advance the recommendations of the Governor's "10-year Strategic Energy Plan", which was created in 2011, and to implement the State's Energy Policy, which was enacted in 2008 (63M-4-301).
OED is responsible for staffing or administering several incentives and programs, which include both economic development tools created by the Utah State Legislature, and other programs that, while funded by the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) State Energy Program formula grant, were crafted by OED to align with Utah's all-of-the-above energy policy. State incentives include the Alternative Energy Development Incentive, the Renewable Energy Systems Tax Credit, and the Utah Energy Infrastructure Authority. DOE funded program activities are aimed at building, agricultural, and industrial efficiency, advanced transportation, renewable energy support, and public outreach, all as a means of strengthening Utah's existing portfolio through responsible energy use and a more diverse and resilient portfolio.
During the 2015 General Session, the Legislature appropriated for Fiscal Year 2016, $2,592,700 from all sources for Office of Energy Development. This is a 0.4 percent reduction from Fiscal Year 2015 revised estimated amounts from all sources. The total includes $1,510,500 from the General/Education Funds, an increase of 16.3 percent from revised Fiscal Year 2015 estimates.
In addition to statewide compensation and internal service fund cost increases, the following appropriation adjustments were made during the 2015 General Session:
The Office of Energy Development became an office in 2011; therefore, performance measures only exist for three years.
Private Investment Leveraged
Private investment leveraged: This measure captures private investments on energy development projects in the State that were leveraged in conjunction with OED's incentives, whether through tax incentives, rebates, loans, or other funding programs. Starting in FY 2014 with the introduction of new types of incentives, OED will target a leverage goal of at least 25:1; however, that target may rise in a given year depending on the various incentives available in that year.
Constituents Directly Educated
Constituents Directly Educated: This measure calculates the documented participation at all public energy education events programmed and/or sponsored by OED, including functions such as building codes training aimed at energy efficiency education, the annual Governor's Energy Development Summit, and regular site or rural energy tours hosted by OED. This measure is valuable given that a key part of OED's mission is to educate Utahans about the value of energy development in the state, and to promote the responsible expansion of that development.
Note: This measure captures only those events for which OED has a key leadership role in the creation of the content and messaging.
Growth in Energy Production
Growth in Energy Production: The measure tracks the growth of the state's BOE (barrel of oil equivalents) production from year to year, measured against a target that is the nation's BOE growth in the same year. This measure is valuable because OED's role is to create - whether through planning, policy, or direct engagement - an environment in which responsible energy development activities are able to expand and thrive. Therefore the incremental growth of the sector, while certainly not wholly attributable to the actions of OED or any government actor, is one indicator of the Office's growing importance and continued success.
Note: A barrel of oil equivalent (BOE) is a unit of energy based on the BTU value of single 42 gallon barrel of oil, e.g. 1 BOE equals 1.7 MWh of electricity or 0.18 MCFs of natural gas.
Involvement with Legislative Bills
In addition to the performance measures listed above, the Office was directly involved in the creation and passage of three bills aimed at advancing energy production and infrastructure in Utah. The Office also tracked and/or advocated for 19 successful energy development-related bills, providing regular updates to the Governor and other key partners (during the 2014 General Session).
Coordination between Parties
Additionally, OED meets regularly with federal land management agencies and others to ensure that project timelines are reduced or impediments are removed, and regularly pairs project proponents with prospective investors and other parties essential to their project's success. OED staff commits time on this type of direct coordination with industry and on industry's behalf and time on policy measures critical to energy development.
H.B. 475 (2011 GS), State Energy Amendments: On the final day of the 2011 General Session, the Legislature passed H.B. 475 which created a new Office of Energy Development (OED). The bill combined energy-related functions and budgets from other areas of state government, creating a central state resource for energy development and policy in the energy sector.
OED's vision is to be the primary resource for advancing energy development in Utah. OED does this through five strategic objectives: 1) working to maintain the affordable and reliable power supply that is essential to Utah's economic prosperity, 2) setting the standard for economically and environmentally sustainable energy policy and planning, 3) promoting those technological advances and innovations that will be essential to meeting the 21st Century's energy needs, 4) advancing responsible development through research, incentives, education and outreach, and 5) convening diverse industry and community stakeholders to ensure that process and consensus may bolster and enhance Utah's energy future.
OED focuses on the following resource areas:
- Conventional Energy: areas include the fossil fuels of coal, natural gas, crude oil, heavy oil, and derivatives.
- Unconventional Energy: areas include oil shale, oil sands, and nuclear energy.
- Energy Efficiency: areas include residential, commercial, industrial, and agricultural sectors, as well as alternative transportation.
- Renewable Energy: areas include solar, wind, geothermal, biomass, and hydroelectric resources.
- Energy Infrastructure: areas include electricity transmission, pipelines, and other facilities associated with the delivery of energy resources.
COBI contains unaudited data as presented to the Legislature by state agencies at the time of publication. For audited financial data see the State of Utah's Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports.