First Regular Session Sixty-eighth General Assembly STATE OF COLORADO INTRODUCED LLS NO. 11-0599.01 Duane Gall HOUSE BILL 11-1191 HOUSE SPONSORSHIP Tyler, Fischer, Lee, Solano SENATE SPONSORSHIP (None), House Committees Senate Committees Transportation A BILL FOR AN ACT Concerning the sharing of aggregated resource consumption data obtained from Colorado utilities, and, in connection therewith, making the aggregated data available and requiring the data to be purged of personally identifiable information. Bill Summary (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced and does not reflect any amendments that may be subsequently adopted. If this bill passes third reading in the house of introduction, a bill summary that applies to the reengrossed version of this bill will be available at http://www.leg.state.co.us/billsummaries.) The bill directs the public utilities commission (PUC) to certify independent data aggregators (clearinghouses) to obtain customer resource consumption data from utilities furnishing electricity, natural gas, steam, water, thermal energy, or other resources and to provide the data to public and private entities in a manner suitable for measuring: Usage during specified periods of time; The efficiency of buildings in specified geographic areas; The effectiveness of resource efficiency programs, including existing demand-side management programs and emission control plans; and Other parameters. The bill requires personally identifiable information to be removed before the data is shared, and requires geographic location information to be generalized at a level no smaller than the census block level. The bill grants rule-making authority to the PUC and specifies the contents of nondisclosure agreements and other details of the relationship between a clearinghouse, a utility, and governmental entities. Utilities are granted limited immunity for any liability resulting from their participation in data sharing arrangements. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado: SECTION 1. Article 2 of title 40, Colorado Revised Statutes, is amended BY THE ADDITION OF A NEW PART to read: PART 2 RESOURCE CONSUMPTION DATA SHARING 40-2-201. Definitions. As used in this part 2, unless the context otherwise requires: (1) "Actionable", as applied to data, means data that are timely and detailed enough to enable the effective planning, implementation, and evaluation of efficiency programs. (2) "Clearinghouse" means a third-party data aggregator or other entity certified by the commission in accordance with section 40-2-202. (3) "Colorado governmental entity" means any agency of the state of Colorado and any municipal or county government, or agency thereof, in Colorado. (4) "Customer" means a consumer of a service or resource provided by a public utility. (5) "Efficiency program" means any organized effort, whether public or private, to reduce the consumption or increase the efficiency of use of electricity, gas, water, steam, thermal energy, or other resource furnished by a public utility. "Efficiency program" includes demand-side management programs and emission control plans under article 3.2 of this title. (6) "GIS data" means data supplied by or to a geographic information system. (7) "Participating utility" means a utility that elects to share data with a clearinghouse in accordance with this part 2. (8) "Personally identifiable information" means information that could be used to connect an identifiable customer to the customer's resource consumption data or to an identifiable account, credit line, or asset. The term includes a customer's name, address, social security number, utility account number, credit card number, and bank account number. (9) (a) "Resource consumption data" means information used to generate a customer's bill. Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (b) of this subsection (9), the term includes: (I) The amount of electricity, natural gas, water, steam, thermal energy, or other resource consumed during the billing period; (II) The billing period starting and ending dates and the number of days in the billing period; (III) The account number; (IV) The service address; (V) The meter number; and (VI) The meter location. (b) "Resource consumption data" does not include data acquired from advanced metering infrastructure on a daily or more frequent basis. Such data must be aggregated to total consumption values for the entire billing period before delivery to a clearinghouse. (10) "Third party" means a private entity that is not a utility, a retail customer, or a Colorado governmental entity. (11) "Utility" means a public utility, as defined in section 40-1-103, that provides electricity, natural gas, water, steam, thermal energy, or other resource to Colorado customers. The term includes investor-owned utilities, municipal utilities, and cooperative electric associations. 40-2-202. Duties of commission - certification of clearinghouse - rules. (1) In addition to any other powers and duties conferred upon it by law, the commission is authorized and directed to: (a) Certify one or more third-party entities to act as a clearinghouse for actionable resource consumption data of customers in Colorado. In determining whether to certify an entity, the commission shall consider the extent to which the entity has the demonstrated technical capability and experience to: (I) Collect and analyze the required resource consumption data; (II) Spatially link the resource consumption data with tax assessor, demographic, and GIS data as appropriate; (III) Protect customer resource consumption data, personally identifiable information, and customer financial information from unauthorized release; and (IV) Provide Colorado governmental entities, and private entities, as appropriate, with actionable resource consumption data analyses at adequate aggregation levels to protect customer privacy. (b) Develop the standard resource consumption data nondisclosure and security agreements to be signed by a clearinghouse and participating utilities; (c) Develop, in consultation with a clearinghouse, the mechanisms by which utilities and Colorado governmental entities can participate in the sharing of data collected by the clearinghouse and the requirements for participation. The requirements include: (I) Resource consumption data fields to be provided by utilities; (II) Formats and protocols for electronic data transfer of resource consumption data; (III) The amount of historical resource consumption data to be provided; (IV) The frequency of resource consumption data updates to be provided by utilities; and (V) Acceptable formats for individual customers to electronically sign releases for their resource consumption data when participating in resource efficiency or climate planning programs. (d) Establish pricing guidelines for the provision of data to and by a clearinghouse; (e) Determine whether, and to what extent, utilities may: (I) Credit their participation in data sharing under this article toward their resource efficiency programs; and (II) Finance their participation in data sharing under this part 2 from their public benefit funds, emission control funds, efficiency program funds, or other funds. (f) Determine, in consultation with a clearinghouse and Colorado governmental entities, and private entities, as appropriate, acceptable aggregation levels for resource consumption data analyses that will provide actionable information to Colorado governmental entities and private entities while protecting individual customer privacy; (g) Exercise such other powers and perform such other duties as are necessary or incidental to, or implied from, the specific powers and duties specified in this part 2. (2) The commission may adopt rules to implement this part 2. 40-2-203. Clearinghouse - data security - data analysis - reporting. (1) In accordance with rules of the commission, a clearinghouse shall: (a) Collect meter-level resource consumption data from utilities; (b) Spatially link resource consumption data to tax assessor information, demographic data, and GIS data as appropriate; (c) Sign standard resource consumption data nondisclosure and security agreements with participating utilities; (d) Provide actionable resource consumption data analyses to Colorado governmental entities and private entities in a manner consistent with the protection of customer privacy; (e) Provide access to individual customer utility data only if a proper disclosure agreement has been signed by a customer; (f) Provide customer resource consumption data to private parties only if: (I) All personally identifiable information has been removed; and (II) The customer resource consumption data transferred cannot be spatially identified at a geographic level finer than the census block level; and (g) Perform such other duties as may be authorized in this part 2 or required by the commission. (2) A clearinghouse shall not: (a) Sell or otherwise provide individual customer resource consumption data or personally identifiable information to any entity, other than the utility that originally provided it, in any way that would compromise individual customer privacy unless the customer has signed an authorization for the release of the data or information to the specified entity. (b) Use customer resource consumption data: (I) To solicit any business with a customer for whom the clearinghouse has received resource consumption data; or (II) To enable another person or entity to solicit any business with a customer; or (c) Collect or store customer financial information. (3) If a Colorado governmental entity is required to provide customer resource consumption data to a federal government agency in exchange for funding, a clearinghouse may, with the commission's approval, provide the required data on behalf of the Colorado governmental entity if: (a) All personally identifiable information has been removed; and (b) The customer resource consumption data transferred cannot be spatially identified at a geographic level finer than the census block level. (4) To further protect customer privacy, a clearinghouse shall not collect or store resource consumption data from a participating utility at time intervals shorter than the normal billing period used by the utility to bill customers. (5) No later than one year after commencing a customer resource consumption data exchange, a clearinghouse shall provide to the commission a report containing, at a minimum: (a) A detailed description of the data sharing activity, including: (I) The total number of participating utilities and other parties with access to the data; (II) The types of aggregate analyses provided to Colorado governmental entities and private entities, as appropriate, and the purposes of those analyses; and (b) Any recommended improvements, including recommendations for legislative changes to this part 2. 40-2-204. Participating utilities - rights and obligations. (1) In accordance with terms contractually agreed to by a participating utility and a clearinghouse, the participating utility shall: (a) Provide meter-level resource consumption data for its Colorado customers in an acceptable electronic format; (b) Provide historical data and data updates as prescribed by the commission; (c) Complete data nondisclosure and data security agreements with the clearinghouse; (d) Establish an electronic mechanism for its customers to authorize the release of their resource consumption data to Colorado governmental entities and private entities if required for participation in another resource consumption data sharing or data exchange program; and (e) Permit the clearinghouse to provide aggregate analyses of customer resource consumption data to Colorado governmental entities and private entities, subject to appropriate customer privacy protection measures. (2) A participating utility may receive analyses from a clearinghouse that include the customer resource consumption data and any other data sets, including personally identifiable information of customers; except that: (a) Personally identifiable information of customers may be included only in an analysis that is limited to the customers of the participating utility; and (b) Personally identifiable information or customer resource consumption data shall not be included in any analysis if the information or data was not obtained by the clearinghouse directly from the participating utility. (3) (a) A utility that provides data to a clearinghouse certified by the commission in accordance with this part 2, and in compliance with applicable rules of the commission, is immune from any civil or criminal liability that would otherwise result from a release of personally identifiable information of a customer unless the utility acted in a willful, wanton, or malicious manner. (b) A utility may elect to contract separately with a third party that has not been certified by the commission to perform the functions of a clearinghouse if the contract with the third party contains substantially the same data sharing, data analysis, and customer information privacy requirements as are contained in this part 2. 40-2-205. Colorado governmental entities - requests for aggregate data reports. (1) In accordance with terms contractually agreed to by a Colorado governmental entity and a clearinghouse, the Colorado governmental entity may: (a) Elect to participate in data sharing under this part 2; and (b) Request and receive aggregate data analyses of customer resource consumption data in accordance with this part 2 if at least one utility serving the Colorado governmental entity's territory is participating in the program. SECTION 2. Act subject to petition - effective date. This act shall take effect at 12:01 a.m. on the day following the expiration of the ninety-day period after final adjournment of the general assembly (August 10, 2011, if adjournment sine die is on May 11, 2011); except that, if a referendum petition is filed pursuant to section 1 (3) of article V of the state constitution against this act or an item, section, or part of this act within such period, then the act, item, section, or part shall not take effect unless approved by the people at the general election to be held in November 2012 and shall take effect on the date of the official declaration of the vote thereon by the governor.