Signed by Governor Jennifer Granholm

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to adopt a conference report that establishes renewable energy standards for electric utilities with a goal of obtaining 10 percent of state electric power from renewable sources by 2015.

Highlights:

- Requires electric providers with 1 to 2 million customers in the state as of January 1, 2008 to achieve a 200 megawatt renewable energy capacity by December 31, 2013 and 500 megawatts by December 31, 2015 [sec. 27 (a)]. - Requires electric providers with more than 2 million customers in the state as of January 1, 2008 to achieve a 300 megawatt renewable energy capacity by December 31, 2013 and 600 megawatts by December 31, 2015 [sec. 27 (b)]. - Allows the Public Services Commission (PSC) to grant electric providers up to two one-year extensions of the 2015 deadline if the provider submits a petition at least three months before the expiration and demonstrates a good faith effort to spend the full amount of incremental costs of compliance, but was unable to meet the renewable energy standard because a feasibility limitation, including, but not limited to, costs associated with zoning requirements, permits, equipment, time requirements for electric transmission and interconnection, system reliability, and labor shortages (Sec. 31). - Requires electric providers whose rates are regulated by the PSC to recover the costs of compliance with the renewable energy standards by administering an itemized charge on the customer's bill as long as the rate is not more than [sec. 45 (4)]:

- $3 per month per residential customer meter; - $5 per month per commercial secondary customer meter; and - $187.50 per month per commercial primary or industrial customer.

- Requires electric providers whose rates are regulated by the PSC and who fail to meet the renewable energy credit standard by the deadline, to purchase sufficient renewable energy credits necessary to meet the standard, and is prohibited from recovering the costs from their ratepayers if the commission finds that the provider failed to make a good faith effort to meet the standard. If they violate this order, the PSC is authorized to revoke the license of an electricity supplier, issue a cease and desist order, or administer a fine of $5 million to $50 million [sec. 53 (1-5)]. - Requires electric providers to achieve a 10 percent renewable energy credit standard using energy optimization credits and advanced cleaner energy credit [sec. 27 (6)]. - Requires electricity providers to propose energy optimization plans to reduce future costs to customers, subject to the approval of the PSC (Sec. 71). - Requires electricity providers to file a proposed energy optimization plan, subject to approval by the PSC, with the following requirements (Secs 71):

- Offerings for each customer class, including for low income residents; - Necessary funding levels; - Program cost recovery; - Ensure that charges per class customer rate are feasible; - Specify whether the megawatt hours of electricity or MCFs of natural gas will be weather-normalized; - Demonstrating cost-effectiveness; - Effective administration of the program; and - Process to obtain independent expert evaluation of the program.

- Requires energy optimization programs to achieve the following minimum energy savings [sec. 77 (1)]:

- For biennial savings in 2008-2009,0.3 percent of the total annual electricity sales in megawatt hours in 2007; - For annual savings in 2010, 0.5 percent of the total annual electricity sales in megawatt hours in 2009; - For annual savings in 2011, 0.75 percent of the total annual electricity sales in megawatt hours in 2010; and - For annual savings in in the years 2012 through 2015, 1 percent of the total annual electricity sales in megawatt hours in preceding years.

- Requires natural gas providers to meet the following energy optimization standards [sec. 77 (3)]:

- For biennial savings in 2008-2009, 0.1 percent of the total annual natural gas sales in 2007; - For annual savings in 2010, 0.25 percent of the total annual natural gas sales in 2009; - For annual savings in 2001, 0.5 percent of the total annual natural gas sales in 2010; and - For annual savings in in the years 2012 through 2015, 0.75 percent of the total annual natural gas sales in preceding years.

- Requires natural gas providers or electric providers to not spend more than the following to achieve the energy optimization standard without permission from the PSC [sec. 89 (7)]:

- In 2009, 0.75 percent of total sales revenues for 2007; - In 2010, 1 percent of total sales revenues for 2008; - In 2011, 1.5 percent of total sales revenues for 2009; and - In 2012, 2 percent of total sales revenues for 2010 through 2011.

- Establishes a goal for state government to reduce its grid-based energy purchases by 25 percent by 2015, when compared to energy use and energy purchases for fiscal year 2001-2002 (Sec. 131). - Establishes a wind energy resource zone board to issue a report within 240 days that identifies (Secs. 143 & 145):

- Regions of highest level wind energy harvest potential; - Wind generating capacity in megawatts that can be installed; - Energy production potential for each identifiable region; and - Wind generation capacity already in service in each identifiable region.

- Authorizes the PSC to, based on the boards findings, designate areas of the state to be primary wind energy resource zones and to issue siting certificates for transmission lines to an electricity provider to facilitate the transmission of electricity generated by the wind conversion systems within wind energy resource zones (Secs. 147 & 149).

Full Bill Text

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to adopt a conference report that establishes renewable energy standards for electric utilities with a goal of obtaining 10 percent of state electric power from renewable sources by 2015.

Highlights:

- Requires electric providers with 1 to 2 million customers in the state as of January 1, 2008 to achieve a 200 megawatt renewable energy capacity by December 31, 2013 and 500 megawatts by December 31, 2015 [sec. 27 (a)]. - Requires electric providers with more than 2 million customers in the state as of January 1, 2008 to achieve a 300 megawatt renewable energy capacity by December 31, 2013 and 600 megawatts by December 31, 2015 [sec. 27 (b)]. - Allows the Public Services Commission (PSC) to grant electric providers up to two one-year extensions of the 2015 deadline if the provider submits a petition at least three months before the expiration and demonstrates a good faith effort to spend the full amount of incremental costs of compliance, but was unable to meet the renewable energy standard because a feasibility limitation, including, but not limited to, costs associated with zoning requirements, permits, equipment, time requirements for electric transmission and interconnection, system reliability, and labor shortages (Sec. 31). - Requires electric providers whose rates are regulated by the PSC to recover the costs of compliance with the renewable energy standards by administering an itemized charge on the customer's bill as long as the rate is not more than [sec. 45 (4)]:

- $3 per month per residential customer meter; - $5 per month per commercial secondary customer meter; and - $187.50 per month per commercial primary or industrial customer.

- Requires electric providers whose rates are regulated by the PSC and who fail to meet the renewable energy credit standard by the deadline, to purchase sufficient renewable energy credits necessary to meet the standard, and is prohibited from recovering the costs from their ratepayers if the commission finds that the provider failed to make a good faith effort to meet the standard. If they violate this order, the PSC is authorized to revoke the license of an electricity supplier, issue a cease and desist order, or administer a fine of $5 million to $50 million [sec. 53 (1-5)]. - Requires electric providers to achieve a 10 percent renewable energy credit standard using energy optimization credits and advanced cleaner energy credit [sec. 27 (6)]. - Requires electricity providers to propose energy optimization plans to reduce future costs to customers, subject to the approval of the PSC (Sec. 71). - Requires electricity providers to file a proposed energy optimization plan, subject to approval by the PSC, with the following requirements (Secs 71):

- Offerings for each customer class, including for low income residents; - Necessary funding levels; - Program cost recovery; - Ensure that charges per class customer rate are feasible; - Specify whether the megawatt hours of electricity or MCFs of natural gas will be weather-normalized; - Demonstrating cost-effectiveness; - Effective administration of the program; and - Process to obtain independent expert evaluation of the program.

- Requires energy optimization programs to achieve the following minimum energy savings [sec. 77 (1)]:

- For biennial savings in 2008-2009,0.3 percent of the total annual electricity sales in megawatt hours in 2007; - For annual savings in 2010, 0.5 percent of the total annual electricity sales in megawatt hours in 2009; - For annual savings in 2011, 0.75 percent of the total annual electricity sales in megawatt hours in 2010; and - For annual savings in in the years 2012 through 2015, 1 percent of the total annual electricity sales in megawatt hours in preceding years.

- Requires natural gas providers to meet the following energy optimization standards [sec. 77 (3)]:

- For biennial savings in 2008-2009, 0.1 percent of the total annual natural gas sales in 2007; - For annual savings in 2010, 0.25 percent of the total annual natural gas sales in 2009; - For annual savings in 2001, 0.5 percent of the total annual natural gas sales in 2010; and - For annual savings in in the years 2012 through 2015, 0.75 percent of the total annual natural gas sales in preceding years.

- Requires natural gas providers or electric providers to not spend more than the following to achieve the energy optimization standard without permission from the PSC [sec. 89 (7)]:

- In 2009, 0.75 percent of total sales revenues for 2007; - In 2010, 1 percent of total sales revenues for 2008; - In 2011, 1.5 percent of total sales revenues for 2009; and - In 2012, 2 percent of total sales revenues for 2010 through 2011.

- Establishes a goal for state government to reduce its grid-based energy purchases by 25 percent by 2015, when compared to energy use and energy purchases for fiscal year 2001-2002 (Sec. 131). - Establishes a wind energy resource zone board to issue a report within 240 days that identifies (Secs. 143 & 145):

- Regions of highest level wind energy harvest potential; - Wind generating capacity in megawatts that can be installed; - Energy production potential for each identifiable region; and - Wind generation capacity already in service in each identifiable region.

- Authorizes the PSC to, based on the boards findings, designate areas of the state to be primary wind energy resource zones and to issue siting certificates for transmission lines to an electricity provider to facilitate the transmission of electricity generated by the wind conversion systems within wind energy resource zones (Secs. 147 & 149).

Full Bill Text