Idaho Battle Over RECs Heats Up
Posted on Apr 12, 2012 in Legislative & Politics, Project Development, Renewable Energy | Comments Off on Idaho Battle Over RECs Heats Up
The renewable energy credits (RECs) associated with renewable energy generation projects in Idaho are in high demand by the utilities that purchase power from the projects and the small power producers that generate it. Kootenai Electric Cooperative is one of many small generators trying to retain the marketable RECs, claiming the RECs are a separate product from the actual power...
Senate Bill Aims to Increase Energy Efficiency in Rural Areas
Posted on Mar 22, 2012 in Energy Savings Programs, Innovation/Efficiency, Legislative & Politics | Comments Off on Senate Bill Aims to Increase Energy Efficiency in Rural Areas
Sponsors of the Merkley-Lugar Rural Energy Savings Program Act (RESPA) hope the proposed bill will improve energy efficiency efforts in rural America. RESPA would authorize the Rural Utilities Service (RUS) to offer loans to rural electric coops, which, in turn, would use the added RUS funding to provide low-interest loans to customers for energy efficiency investments. You can read...
Georgia Legislature Considers Two Bills Impacting Cooperatives
Posted on Mar 9, 2012 in Financing, Innovation/Efficiency, Legislative & Politics | Comments Off on Georgia Legislature Considers Two Bills Impacting Cooperatives
The Georgia Senate this week passed a bill providing that consumers may elect not to use “smart meters.” Senate Bill 459 further permits the Georgia Public Service Commission to create and regulate a surcharge for consumers who elect not to use smart meters. The bill has been sent to the House for consideration. The full text of SB 459 can be viewed here. A second bill impacting...
EPA and North Dakota Closer to Agreement on Haze Reduction Plan
Posted on Mar 5, 2012 in Environmental, Grid & Infrastructure, Legislative & Politics, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on EPA and North Dakota Closer to Agreement on Haze Reduction Plan
Officials for the state of North Dakota announced last Friday that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency agreed to approve the majority of the state’s regional haze air quality plan. The EPA had previously called North Dakota’s plan inadequate and had threatened to assume regulatory authority in the state, which relied heavily on coal power. The announcement comes as good news for...
Proposed Missouri Bill to Expand Coops’ Rights to Use Existing Utility Poles
Posted on Mar 2, 2012 in Land Use, Legislative & Politics | Comments Off on Proposed Missouri Bill to Expand Coops’ Rights to Use Existing Utility Poles
Missouri State Senator Brad Lager recently introduced a bill (S. B. 891) that will allow rural electric coops to use existing utility poles and rights-of-way for smart grid and broadband applications. News-Press Now has the full story.
South Dakota Legislature Passes Law Changing How Coops Are Taxed
Posted on Mar 2, 2012 in Legislative & Politics, Tax | Comments Off on South Dakota Legislature Passes Law Changing How Coops Are Taxed
Following a 31-2 vote in the South Dakota Senate, S.B. 123 is headed to the governor’s desk for signature. If the bill is signed into law, rural electric coops will be taxed based exclusively on the total number of kilowatt-hours delivered to customers. Coops support this bill because it is designed to limit future tax increases. The Daily Republic has been following this...
Revived Nuclear Site Bill Introduced in Missouri
Posted on Mar 1, 2012 in Legislative & Politics, Permitting, Rates | Comments Off on Revived Nuclear Site Bill Introduced in Missouri
A recently proposed bill in the Missouri Senate would permit Ameren-Missouri and its group of for-profit utilities and coops to charge ratepayers up to $45 million for the costs of pursuing an early nuclear site permit. Supporters of the bill hope to expedite the development of a second nuclear reactor in Callaway County by seeking an early site permit from the Nuclear Regulatory...
Kentucky Rural Investment Bill Making Progress
Posted on Mar 1, 2012 in Economic Downturn, Financing, Legislative & Politics, Project Development | Comments Off on Kentucky Rural Investment Bill Making Progress
A proposed bill to allow the use of private investment by coops is moving through the Kentucky legislature. Similar to laws passed in Tennessee and several other states, supporters of the proposed bill say it will promote new forms of investment and invigorate the state’s growing biofuels industry. Click here for more information.
CFTC Chairman Mentions Possible Exemption of Coops from Dodd-Frank
Posted on Feb 29, 2012 in Legislative & Politics | Comments Off on CFTC Chairman Mentions Possible Exemption of Coops from Dodd-Frank
In testimony before the U.S. House Committee on Agriculture, the Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the “CFTC”) briefly mentioned that the CFTC was considering exempting rural electric cooperatives from certain provisions of the Dodd-Frank regulations. The complete testimony can be found here.
Facility Owners Should Heed New Cybersecurity Legislation
Posted on Feb 29, 2012 in Grid & Infrastructure, Legislative & Politics, Regulation & Policy, Reliability | Comments Off on Facility Owners Should Heed New Cybersecurity Legislation
The push for new legislation to combat cybersecurity threats appears to be gaining steam in Congress. While election year politics, competing legislative priorities and other roadblocks may ultimately derail these legislative efforts, owners of critical infrastructure should take heed: Facility owners would be subject to “performance requirements,” certification...
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