SENATE 3rd Reading Unamended February 5, 2015 SENATE 2nd Reading Unamended February 3, 2015First Regular Session Seventieth General Assembly STATE OF COLORADO REENGROSSED This Version Includes All Amendments Adopted in the House of Introduction LLS NO. 15-0440.01 Jennifer Berman x3286SENATE BILL 15-044 SENATE SPONSORSHIP Scott, Sonnenberg, Holbert, Cadman, Crowder, Lambert, Lundberg HOUSE SPONSORSHIP Thurlow, Senate Committees House Committees Agriculture, Natural Resources, & Energy A BILL FOR AN ACT Concerning a reduction in Colorado's renewable energy standard. 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.) Under current law, the public utilities commission is required to establish electric resource standards. These standards must set the minimum percentage of electricity that retail electric service providers in Colorado must generate or cause to be generated from recycled energy and renewable energy resources. The bill reduces the minimum percentage of renewable energy required of investor-owned utilities from 20% to 15% for the years 2015 through 2019 and from 30% to 15% for the years 2020 and thereafter. The bill also reduces the minimum amounts for cooperative electric associations from 20% to 15% for the years 2020 and thereafter. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado: SECTION 1. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 40-2-124, amend (1) (c) (I) introductory portion, (1) (c) (I) (C), (1) (c) (I) (D), (1) (c) (V.5), and (8) (b); and repeal (1) (c) (I) (E) as follows: 40-2-124. Renewable energy standards - qualifying retail and wholesale utilities - definitions - net metering - legislative declaration. (1) Each provider of retail electric service in the state of Colorado, other than municipally owned utilities that serve forty thousand customers or fewer, is a qualifying retail utility. Each qualifying retail utility, with the exception of cooperative electric associations that have voted to exempt themselves from commission jurisdiction pursuant to section 40-9.5-104 and municipally owned utilities, is subject to the rules established under this article by the commission. No additional regulatory authority is provided to the commission other than that specifically contained in this section. In accordance with article 4 of title 24, C.R.S., the commission shall revise or clarify existing rules to establish the following: (c) Electric resource standards: (I) Except as provided in subparagraph subparagraphs (V) and (V.5) of this paragraph (c), the electric resource standards shall must require each qualifying retail utility to generate or cause to be generated electricity from eligible energy resources in the following minimum amounts: (C) Twelve percent of its retail electricity sales in Colorado for the years 2011 through 2014, with distributed generation equaling at least one percent of its retail electricity sales in 2011 and 2012 and one and one-fourth percent of its retail electricity sales in 2013 and 2014; and (D) Twenty Fifteen percent of its retail electricity sales in Colorado for the years 2015 through 2019 and thereafter, with distributed generation equaling at least one and three-fourths percent of its retail electricity sales in 2015 and 2016, and two percent of its retail electricity sales in 2017, 2018, and 2019, and three percent of its retail electricity sales in 2020 and thereafter. (E) Thirty percent of its retail electricity sales in Colorado for the years 2020 and thereafter, with distributed generation equaling at least three percent of its retail electricity sales. (V.5) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, each cooperative electric association that provides electricity at retail to its customers and serves one hundred thousand or more meters shall generate or cause to be generated at least twenty fifteen percent of the energy it provides to its customers from eligible energy resources in the years 2020 and thereafter. (8) Qualifying wholesale utilities - definition - electric resource standard - tradable credits - reports. (b) Electric resource standard. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, each qualifying wholesale utility shall generate or cause to be generated at least twenty fifteen percent of the energy it provides to its Colorado members at wholesale from eligible energy resources in the year 2020 and thereafter. If, and to the extent that, the purchase of energy generated from eligible energy resources by a Colorado member from a qualifying wholesale utility would cause an increase in rates for the Colorado member that exceeds the retail rate impact limitation in sub-subparagraph (A) of subparagraph (IV) of paragraph (g) of subsection (1) of this section, the obligation imposed on the qualifying wholesale utility is reduced by the amount of such energy from eligible energy resources necessary to enable the Colorado member to comply with the rate impact limitation. SECTION 2. Act subject to petition - effective date. This act takes 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 5, 2015, if adjournment sine die is on May 6, 2015); 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 will not take effect unless approved by the people at the general election to be held in November 2016 and, in such case, will take effect on the date of the official declaration of the vote thereon by the governor.