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7 LONG TITLE
8 General Description:
9 This bill amends provisions related to net metering.
10 Highlighted Provisions:
11 This bill:
12 ▸ defines terms;
13 ▸ establishes the benefits the distribution electrical cooperative's board of directors or
14 the Public Service Commission (the governing authority) shall consider when
15 establishing rates for net metering programs;
16 ▸ establishes a qualifying net metering program for solar customers;
17 ▸ establishes ratemaking parameters for the export credit rate of the qualifying net
18 metering program; and
19 ▸ sets limits on the ratemaking parameters for the qualifying net metering program.
20 Money Appropriated in this Bill:
21 None
22 Other Special Clauses:
23 None
24 Utah Code Sections Affected:
25 AMENDS:
26 54-15-102, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2014, Chapter 53
27 54-15-104, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2015, Chapter 324
28 54-15-105.1, as enacted by Laws of Utah 2014, Chapter 53
29 ENACTS:
30 54-15-105.2, Utah Code Annotated 1953
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32 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
33 Section 1. Section 54-15-102 is amended to read:
34 54-15-102. Definitions.
35 As used in this chapter:
36 (1) "Annualized billing period" means:
37 (a) a 12-month billing cycle beginning on April 1 of one year and ending on March 31
38 of the following year; or
39 (b) an additional 12-month billing cycle as defined by an electrical corporation's net
40 metering tariff or rate schedule.
41 (2) "Customer-generated electricity" means electricity that:
42 (a) is generated by a customer generation system for a customer participating in a net
43 metering program;
44 (b) exceeds the electricity the customer needs for the customer's own use; and
45 (c) is supplied to the electrical corporation administering the net metering program.
46 (3) "Customer generation system":
47 (a) means an eligible facility that is used to supply energy to or for a specific customer
48 that:
49 (i) has a generating capacity of:
50 (A) not more than 25 kilowatts for a residential facility; or
51 (B) not more than two megawatts for a non-residential facility, unless the governing
52 authority approves a greater generation capacity;
53 (ii) is located on, or adjacent to, the premises of the electrical corporation's customer,
54 subject to the electrical corporation's service requirements;
55 (iii) operates in parallel and is interconnected with the electrical corporation's
56 distribution facilities;
57 (iv) is intended primarily to offset part or all of the customer's requirements for
58 electricity; and
59 (v) is controlled by an inverter; and
60 (b) includes an electric generator and its accompanying equipment package.
61 (4) "Eligible facility" means a facility that uses energy derived from one of the
62 following to generate electricity:
63 (a) solar photovoltaic and solar thermal energy;
64 (b) wind energy;
65 (c) hydrogen;
66 (d) organic waste;
67 (e) hydroelectric energy;
68 (f) waste gas and waste heat capture or recovery;
69 (g) biomass and biomass byproducts, except for the combustion of:
70 (i) wood that has been treated with chemical preservatives such as creosote,
71 pentachlorophenol, or chromated copper arsenate; or
72 (ii) municipal waste in a solid form;
73 (h) forest or rangeland woody debris from harvesting or thinning conducted to improve
74 forest or rangeland ecological health and to reduce wildfire risk;
75 (i) agricultural residues;
76 (j) dedicated energy crops;
77 (k) landfill gas or biogas produced from organic matter, wastewater, anaerobic
78 digesters, or municipal solid waste; or
79 (l) geothermal energy.
80 (5) "Equipment package" means a group of components connecting an electric
81 generator to an electric distribution system, including all interface equipment and the interface
82 equipment's controls, switchgear, inverter, and other interface devices.
83 (6) "Excess customer-generated electricity" means the amount of customer-generated
84 electricity in excess of the customer's consumption from the customer generation system during
85 a monthly billing period, as measured at the electrical corporation's meter.
86 (7) "Export credit rate" means the amount per kilowatt hour a solar customer gets paid
87 for customer-generated electricity.
88 [
89 and an oxidant is converted directly and continuously into electrical energy.
90 [
91 (a) for a distribution electrical cooperative, [
92 board of directors; and
93 (b) for each other electrical corporation, the Public Service Commission.
94 [
95 (a) converts direct current power into alternating current power that is compatible with
96 power generated by an electrical corporation; and
97 (b) has been designed, tested, and certified to UL1741 and installed and operated in
98 accordance with the latest revision of IEEE1547, as amended.
99 [
100 the electrical corporation between:
101 (a) the amount of electricity that an electrical corporation supplies to a customer
102 participating in a net metering program; and
103 (b) the amount of customer-generated electricity delivered to the electrical corporation.
104 [
105 applicable billing period.
106 [
107 corporation whereby a customer with a customer generation system may:
108 (a) generate electricity primarily for the customer's own use;
109 (b) supply customer-generated electricity to the electrical corporation; and
110 (c) if net metering results in excess customer-generated electricity during a billing
111 period, receive a credit as provided in Section 54-15-104.
112 (14) "Program utility" means an electrical corporation that is a large-scale electric
113 utility.
114 (15) (a) "Qualifying net metering program" means a net metering program that:
115 (i) a program utility administers; and
116 (ii) allows a solar customer to:
117 (A) generate electricity primarily for the solar customer's own use;
118 (B) supply customer-generated electricity to the program utility; and
119 (C) receive credit at the export credit rate in accordance with Section 54-15-105.2.
120 (b) "Qualifying net metering program" does not include a customer generation system
121 with a generating capacity that exceeds 100 megawatts.
122 (16) "Solar customer" means a customer of a program utility that enters into a
123 qualifying net metering program on or after October 30, 2020.
124 [
125 circuit breakers:
126 (a) used to:
127 (i) isolate electrical equipment; and
128 (ii) de-energize equipment to allow work to be performed or faults downstream to be
129 cleared; and
130 (b) that is:
131 (i) designed, tested, and certified to UL1741; and
132 (ii) installed and operated in accordance with the latest revision of IEEE1547, as
133 amended.
134 Section 2. Section 54-15-104 is amended to read:
135 54-15-104. Charges or credits for net electricity.
136 (1) Each electrical corporation with a customer participating in a net metering program
137 shall measure net electricity during each monthly billing period, in accordance with normal
138 metering practices.
139 (2) If net metering does not result in excess customer-generated electricity during the
140 monthly billing period, the electrical corporation shall bill the customer for the net electricity,
141 in accordance with normal billing practices.
142 (3) Subject to Subsection (4), and except as provided in Section 54-15-105.2, if net
143 metering results in excess customer-generated electricity during the monthly billing period:
144 (a) (i) the electrical corporation shall credit the customer for the excess
145 customer-generated electricity based on the meter reading for the billing period at a value that
146 is at least avoided cost, or as determined by the governing authority; and
147 (ii) all credits that the customer does not use during the annualized billing period
148 expire at the end of the annualized billing period; and
149 (b) as authorized by the governing authority, the electrical corporation may bill the
150 customer for customer charges that otherwise would have accrued during that billing period in
151 the absence of excess customer-generated electricity.
152 (4) At the end of an annualized billing period, an electrical corporation's avoided cost
153 value of remaining unused credits described in Subsection (3)(a) shall be granted:
154 (a) to the electrical corporation's low-income assistance programs as determined by the
155 governing authority; or
156 (b) for another use as determined by the governing authority.
157 Section 3. Section 54-15-105.1 is amended to read:
158 54-15-105.1. Determination of costs and benefits -- Determination of just and
159 reasonable charge, credit, or ratemaking structure.
160 The governing authority shall:
161 (1) determine, after appropriate notice and opportunity for public comment, whether
162 costs that the electrical corporation or other customers will incur from a net metering program
163 will exceed the benefits of the net metering program, or whether the benefits of the net
164 metering program will exceed the costs; [
165 (2) when determining the benefits of the net metering program, consider benefits to:
166 (a) public health;
167 (b) air quality;
168 (c) voluntary and mandatory state and local renewable energy targets;
169 (d) local economic development;
170 (e) local health;
171 (f) job availability; and
172 (g) grid resilience; and
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174 charge, credit, or ratemaking structure, including new or existing tariffs, in light of the costs
175 and benefits.
176 Section 4. Section 54-15-105.2 is enacted to read:
177 54-15-105.2. Qualifying net metering program -- Export credit rate.
178 (1) A program utility shall make a qualifying net metering program available to
179 existing and new solar customers.
180 (2) (a) When a solar customer joins a net metering program, the solar customer shall be
181 subject to the export credit rate in effect when the solar customer joined the net metering
182 program for 15 years from the day on which the solar customer joined the net metering
183 program.
184 (b) At the end of the 15-year period described in Subsection (2)(a), a solar customer
185 shall be subject to the export credit rate in effect on the day on which the 15-year period
186 expires.
187 (3) Subject to Subsection (4), the governing authority shall determine a new export
188 credit rate when a program utility brings a general rate case.
189 (4) (a) Except as provided in Subsection (4)(b), the governing authority shall, after
190 appropriate notice and opportunity for public comment, determine the export credit rate
191 considering the costs and benefits described in Subsection 54-15-105.1.
192 (b) When determining an export credit rate under Subsection (4)(a), the governing
193 authority may not set the export credit rate more than 2% lower than the export credit rate that
194 is in place at the time the program utility brings a general rate case.