SENATE, No. 1977

Whereas, the deferred operation of this act would tend to defeat its purpose, which is forthwith to promote the development of clean renewable energy generation facilities, therefore it is hereby declared to be an emergency law, necessary for the immediate preservation of the Commonwealth’s energy needs and convenience.

SECTION 1. Section 11 F of Chapter 25A of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2004 Official Edition is hereby amended by adding the following new section:-  (e) Not less than once every two years, every distribution company providing default or basic service, as that term is defined by the department of telecommunications and energy, shall conduct a Request for Proposals for contracts for a) Renewable Energy Certificates from eligible new renewable energy generating sources and b) Renewable Energy Certificates bundled with electricity generated from eligible new renewable energy generating sources; and shall sign contracts, subject to department of telecommunications and energy review and approval, that provide the least-cost means of compliance with this section for default or basic service customers. Distribution companies must consider contracts for up to 20 years duration, and must acquire at least thirty percent of their projected compliance obligation from contracts of at least ten years duration.

SECTION 2.   Section 11 F of Chapter 25A of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2004 Official Edition is hereby amended by striking clause (vii) in its entirety and inserting in place thereof the following new clause:- “(vii) incremental energy resulting from increased capacity and/or efficiency at hydroelectric facilities licensed by FERC after 1986, or at hydroelectric facilities that receive FERC approval to construct improvements necessary to provide such incremental energy, so long as such increased capacity and/or efficiency does not involve pumped storage of water, is achieved without involving any new impoundment or diversion of water, and meets the requirements for classification as “low impact” hydropower as certified by the Low Impact Hydropower Institute or as certified by the division in accordance with comparable environmental certification standards; provided that only such improvements to a hydroelectric facility made after January 1, 1998, and only up to five (5) megawatts per facility of incremental new energy attributable to such improvements, shall be considered a new renewable energy generating source.

SECTION 3. Section 11F of Chapter 25A of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2004 Official Edition is hereby amended in line 33 by striking the words “clauses (vi) and (vii) herein.” and inserting in place thereof the following:- “clause (vi).”

SECTION 4.  Said Section 11F of Chapter 25A, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by inserting the following new section:-  (d) Commencing in January 2009 and continuing each year thereafter, the Division shall calculate and provide public notice of the total kilowatt-hour sales of generation from eligible incremental hydroelectric generation used for compliance with this section in the previous calendar year, which shall be reported as a percentage of total kilowatt-hour sales to end-use customers in the Commonwealth by retail electricity suppliers.  The Division shall adjust upward, by this reported percentage, the minimum percentage of kilowatt-hour sales from new renewable energy generation sources that each retail supplier must provide to end-use customers in the Commonwealth in the following year and each year thereafter, which shall be in addition to any other increases in the minimum percentage requirement for the purchase of new renewable energy generation as determined by the Division.

SECTION 5.     Section 11 F of Chapter 25A of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2004 Official Edition is hereby amended by striking sections (a) and (b) and replacing these section with the following new sections:-  (a) The division of energy resources shall establish a renewable energy portfolio standard for all retail electricity suppliers selling electricity to end-use customers in the commonwealth.  By December 31, 1999, the division shall determine the actual percentage of kilowatt-hours sales to end-use customers in the commonwealth which is derived from existing renewable energy generating sources.  Every retail supplier shall provide a minimum percentage of kilowatt-hours sales to end-use customers in the commonwealth from new renewable energy generating sources, according to the following schedule:  (i) an additional one percent of sales by December 31, 2003, or one calendar year from the final day of the first month in which the average cost of any renewable technology is found to be within 10 percent of the overall average spot-market price per kilowatt-hour for electricity in the commonwealth, whichever is sooner; (ii) an additional one-half of one percent of sales each year thereafter until December 31, 2011; and (iii) an additional one percent of sales every year thereafter until January 1, 2020 or a date determined by the division of energy resources, whichever is later.  Commencing on January 1, 2009, such minimum percentage requirement shall be known as the “CLASS I” renewable energy generating source requirement.  Commencing on January 1, 2009, every retail supplier shall also provide a minimum percentage of kilowatt-hour sales to end-use customers in the commonwealth from CLASS II renewable energy generating sources; such minimum percentage requirement for kilowatt-hour sales from CLASS II renewable energy generating sources shall be set by the division of energy resources by December 31, 2008, may be adjusted by the division as necessary to promote the continued operation of existing or new renewable energy generating resources that meet the requirements of subsections 11F(c) or (d), and may be met through kilowatt-hour sales to end-use customers from any energy generating source meeting the requirements of subsections 11F(c) or (d). 

            (b) For the purposes of this section, a renewable energy generating source is one which generates electricity using any of the following: (i) solar photovoltaic or solar thermal electric energy; (ii) wind energy; (iii) ocean thermal, wave, or tidal energy; (iv) fuel cells utilizing renewable fuels; (v) landfill gas; (vi) waste-to-energy which is a component of conventional municipal solid waste plant technology in commercial use; (vii) run-of-the-river hydroelectric; and (viii) low-emission biomass power conversion technologies using such biomass fuels as wood, agricultural, or food wastes, energy crops, biogas, biodiesel, or organic refuse-derived fuel.  After conducting administrative proceedings, the division may add technologies or technology categories to the above list and to the list of new renewable energy generating sources in section (c) below; provided, however, that the following technologies shall not be considered renewable energy supplies: coal, oil, natural gas except when used in fuel cells, and nuclear power.

            (c) For the purposes of this section, a new renewable energy generating source is one that begins commercial operation after December 31, 1997, or the net increase from incremental new generating capacity after December 31, 1997 at an existing facility, where the facility generates electricity using any of the following:  (i) solar photovoltaic or solar thermal electric energy; (ii) wind energy; (iii) ocean thermal, wave, or tidal energy; (iv) fuel cells utilizing renewable fuels; (v) landfill gas; or (vi) low-emission, advanced biomass power conversion technologies, such as gasification using fuels such as wood, agricultural, or food wastes, energy crops, biogas, biodiesel, or organic refuse-derived fuel.  With respect to clause (vi) herein, the division may consider as a new renewable energy generating source any incremental new generation from an existing biomass facility retrofitted with low-emission, advanced biomass power conversion technologies.  By January 1, 2007, such new renewable energy generating sources meeting the requirements of this subsection shall be known as "CLASS I" renewable energy generating sources. 

     (d)  For the purposes of this section, a CLASS II renewable energy generating source is one that began commercial operation before December 31, 1997 and generates electricity using any of the following:  (i) solar photovoltaic or solar thermal electric energy; (ii) wind energy; (iii) ocean thermal, wave, or tidal energy; (iv) fuel cells utilizing renewable fuels; (v) landfill gas; (vi) low-emission biomass power conversion technologies, such as gasification using fuels such as wood, agricultural, or food wastes, energy crops, biogas, biodiesel, or organic refuse-derived fuel; or (vii) a run-of-the river hydroelectric facility that does not utilize a dam constructed subsequent to December 31, 1997, does not entail any new impoundment or diversion of water subsequent to December 31, 1997, and where such facility (a) has a nameplate capacity of 5 megawatts or less, and (b) has not been recommended for decommissioning or removal by any federal, state or local agency. 

SECTION 6.  Section 11F of Chapter 25A is hereby amended by adding to the end thereof the following:-

(c)  Every retail supplier shall provide a portion of the minimum percentage established in subsection (a) from electricity generated using solar photovoltaic or solar thermal electric energy, according to the following schedule:  1 per cent in calendar year 2007; 2 per cent in calendar year 2008; and 3 per cent in calendar year 2009 and thereafter.  A retail supplier may discharge its obligations under this subsection by making a Solar Alternative Compliance Payment to the designee of the division of energy resources.  The Solar Alternative Compliance Payment rate shall be 300 dollars per megawatt-hour for calendar year 2007 and shall be adjusted up or down annually by the division according to the previous year’s consumer price index.  The division shall oversee use of the Solar Alternative Compliance Payment funds so as to maximize the commercial development of new solar generation.

SECTION 7. Subsection (b) of section 11F of chapter 25A of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2004 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the first sentence the following sentence:-  A renewable energy generating source is also one which generates electricity using any low-emission stoker biomass combustion technology using sustainably harvested clean wood or other biomass as its fuel.