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1 | AN ACT concerning regulation.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 5. The Public Utilities Act is amended by adding | ||||||
5 | Section 9-220.3 as follows: | ||||||
6 | (220 ILCS 5/9-220.3 new) | ||||||
7 | Sec. 9-220.3. Renewable energy portfolio standard and | ||||||
8 | energy efficiency portfolio standard. | ||||||
9 | (a) The General Assembly finds and declares that it is | ||||||
10 | desirable to obtain the environmental quality, public health, | ||||||
11 | employment, economic development, rate stabilization, and fuel | ||||||
12 | diversity benefits of developing new renewable energy | ||||||
13 | resources for use in Illinois. The General Assembly has | ||||||
14 | previously found and declared that the benefits of electricity | ||||||
15 | from renewable energy resources accrue to the public at large, | ||||||
16 | thus consumers and electric utilities and alternative retail | ||||||
17 | electric suppliers share an interest in developing and using a | ||||||
18 | significant level of these environmentally preferable | ||||||
19 | resources in the State's electricity supply portfolio. The | ||||||
20 | General Assembly has previously found and declared that | ||||||
21 | renewable forms of energy should be promoted as an important | ||||||
22 | element of the energy and environmental policies of the State. | ||||||
23 | (b) For purposes of this Section: |
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1 | "Renewable energy credit" means a tradable credit that | ||||||
2 | represents the environmental attributes of a certain amount of | ||||||
3 | energy produced from a renewable energy resource. | ||||||
4 | "Renewable energy resources" includes energy or renewable | ||||||
5 | energy credits from wind, solar thermal energy, photovoltaic | ||||||
6 | cells and panels, dedicated crops grown for energy production | ||||||
7 | and organic waste biomass, hydropower that does not involve new | ||||||
8 | construction or significant expansion of hydropower dams, and | ||||||
9 | other such alternative sources of environmentally preferable | ||||||
10 | energy. For purposes of this Section, "renewable energy | ||||||
11 | resources" includes landfill gas from landfills located in the | ||||||
12 | State. "Renewable energy resources" does not include, however, | ||||||
13 | energy from the incineration, burning or heating of waste wood, | ||||||
14 | tires, garbage, general household, institutional and | ||||||
15 | commercial waste, industrial lunchroom or office waste, | ||||||
16 | landscape waste, or construction or demolition debris. | ||||||
17 | (c) The following renewable energy portfolio standards | ||||||
18 | shall apply: | ||||||
19 | (1) An electric utility shall procure or obtain | ||||||
20 | renewable energy resources in amounts that equal or exceed | ||||||
21 | the following percentages of the total electricity that | ||||||
22 | such electric utility supplies to its retail Illinois | ||||||
23 | customers: 2% by December 31, 2008; 4% by December 31, | ||||||
24 | 2009; 5% by December 31, 2010; 6% by December 31, 2011; 7% | ||||||
25 | by December 31, 2012; 8% by December 31, 2013; 9% by | ||||||
26 | December 31, 2014; and 10% by December 31, 2015. It shall |
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1 | be the goal of the State that cost-effective renewable | ||||||
2 | energy resources be available to supply an amount of the | ||||||
3 | total electricity that electric utilities supply to their | ||||||
4 | retail customers that will continue to increase after 2015 | ||||||
5 | by 1.5% per year to 25% by 2025. Provided, however, that if | ||||||
6 | the Commission's promulgation of rules pursuant to item (7) | ||||||
7 | is delayed beyond March 31, 2008, but occurs prior to April | ||||||
8 | 1, 2009, the initial target year and each subsequent target | ||||||
9 | year shall be delayed by one year; the targets shall be | ||||||
10 | delayed by an additional year for each additional year or | ||||||
11 | fraction thereof that the Commission's promulgation of | ||||||
12 | rules is delayed. In the event that the Commission's | ||||||
13 | promulgation of rules is delayed after March 31, 2008, but | ||||||
14 | occurs before July 1, 2008, the utility shall nonetheless | ||||||
15 | meet one-quarter of the target for 2008 of electricity | ||||||
16 | supplied to retail Illinois customers by December 31, 2008. | ||||||
17 | To the extent that it is available, at least 75% of the | ||||||
18 | renewable energy resources used to meet these standards | ||||||
19 | shall come from wind generation. For purposes of this | ||||||
20 | subsection (c), "cost-effective" shall mean that the costs | ||||||
21 | of procuring renewable energy resources do not cause the | ||||||
22 | limit stated in item (3) to be exceeded. | ||||||
23 | (2) For the purposes of this subsection (c), the | ||||||
24 | required procurement of renewable energy resources for a | ||||||
25 | particular year shall be measured as a percentage of the | ||||||
26 | actual amount of electricity (megawatthours) supplied by |
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1 | the electric utility in the calendar year ending | ||||||
2 | immediately prior to the procurement. | ||||||
3 | (3) Notwithstanding the requirements of item (1) of | ||||||
4 | this subsection (c), an electric utility may reduce the | ||||||
5 | amount of renewable energy resources procured under new | ||||||
6 | contracts in any single year by an amount necessary to | ||||||
7 | limit the estimated average increase due to the cost of | ||||||
8 | these resources included in the amounts paid by retail | ||||||
9 | customers in connection with electric service to no more | ||||||
10 | than 0.5% of the amount paid by such customers during the | ||||||
11 | preceding calendar year, with such limit increasing by 0.5% | ||||||
12 | in each of the 3 years 2009 through 2011, for a maximum cap | ||||||
13 | on the allowed estimated average increase due to the cost | ||||||
14 | of these resources of 2.0%. The maximum cap on the allowed | ||||||
15 | estimated average increase due to the cost of these | ||||||
16 | resources is 2%. No later than June 30, 2011, the | ||||||
17 | Commission shall review the rate limitation and report to | ||||||
18 | the General Assembly its findings as to whether the rate | ||||||
19 | cap unduly constrains the procurement of renewable energy | ||||||
20 | resources that are cost effective. | ||||||
21 | (4) Renewable energy resources shall be counted for the | ||||||
22 | purpose of meeting the renewable energy standards set forth | ||||||
23 | in item (1) of this subsection (c) only if they are | ||||||
24 | generated from facilities located in the State, provided | ||||||
25 | that cost-effective renewable resources are available from | ||||||
26 | such facilities. After December 31, 2011, renewable energy |
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1 | resources located in states that adjoin Illinois may be | ||||||
2 | counted towards compliance with the standards set forth in | ||||||
3 | item (1) of this subsection (c) so long as such resources | ||||||
4 | are generated from resources that meet the definition of | ||||||
5 | renewable energy resources as defined by this statute. Any | ||||||
6 | electric utility with fewer than 100,000 but more than | ||||||
7 | 50,000 customers in Illinois as of January 1, 2007 shall be | ||||||
8 | allowed to count renewable energy resources generated in a | ||||||
9 | state adjoining Illinois for the purpose of meeting the | ||||||
10 | renewable energy standard set forth in item (1) of this | ||||||
11 | subsection (c) if such resources are generated from a | ||||||
12 | facility constructed in the year 2006. | ||||||
13 | (5) Each electric utility shall report to the | ||||||
14 | Commission on compliance with these standards by April 1 of | ||||||
15 | each year, beginning in 2009. | ||||||
16 | (6) If an electric utility does not, during a calendar | ||||||
17 | year, procure or obtain the full amount of renewable energy | ||||||
18 | resources specified by the standards in item (1) of this | ||||||
19 | subsection (c), as modified by the limitations of item (3) | ||||||
20 | of this subsection (c), then the electric utility shall pay | ||||||
21 | a penalty of $40 per megawatthour for any shortfall during | ||||||
22 | such year unless and until the utility makes sufficient | ||||||
23 | additional purchases in the following year to offset the | ||||||
24 | shortfall. Provided, however, that, if the electric | ||||||
25 | utility proves to the Commission that cost-effective | ||||||
26 | renewable energy resources are not available in sufficient |
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1 | quantities to meet the renewable energy standards set forth | ||||||
2 | in item (1) of this subsection (c), as modified by the | ||||||
3 | limitations of item (3) of this subsection (c), and, if the | ||||||
4 | Commission finds that the electric utility has, in fact, | ||||||
5 | proved that the cost-effective renewable energy resources | ||||||
6 | are not available in sufficient quantities, after notice | ||||||
7 | and a hearing conducted in accordance with the Commission's | ||||||
8 | rules of practice, then the Commission shall waive the | ||||||
9 | penalty. Any penalty payment shall be deposited into the | ||||||
10 | Renewable Energy Resources Trust Fund to be used by the | ||||||
11 | Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity for the | ||||||
12 | sole purposes of supporting the actual development, | ||||||
13 | construction, and utilization of renewable energy projects | ||||||
14 | in the State. | ||||||
15 | (7) The Commission shall promulgate rules as necessary | ||||||
16 | within 9 months after the effective date of this Act to | ||||||
17 | assist in implementing this subsection (c) including, but | ||||||
18 | not limited to, methods of procurement, accounting, | ||||||
19 | tracking, and reporting in order to achieve the full | ||||||
20 | objectives of this subsection (c). The rules shall also | ||||||
21 | provide for recovery of costs incurred and the pass through | ||||||
22 | to customers of any savings achieved by electric utilities | ||||||
23 | as a result of procuring or obtaining the renewable energy | ||||||
24 | resources specified under item (1) of this subsection (c). | ||||||
25 | The rate elements and rates used for such cost recovery may | ||||||
26 | be established by the electric utility, subject to the |
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1 | Commission's review and approval, outside the context of a | ||||||
2 | general rate case. | ||||||
3 | (8) In connection with their compliance with the | ||||||
4 | requirements of item (1) of this subsection (c), electric | ||||||
5 | utilities may enter into long-term contracts of up to 20 | ||||||
6 | years in length with providers of renewable energy | ||||||
7 | resources, and the costs or savings associated with those | ||||||
8 | contracts shall be reflected in tariffed rates for the | ||||||
9 | duration of those contracts. | ||||||
10 | (9) Nothing shall prohibit an electric utility from | ||||||
11 | issuing a competitive solicitation for renewable energy | ||||||
12 | resources in order to meet the standards of item (1) of | ||||||
13 | this subsection (c) and from beginning to recover the | ||||||
14 | associated costs in advance of the conclusion of the | ||||||
15 | rulemaking referenced in item (7) of this subsection (c), | ||||||
16 | provided that such electric utility shall have first | ||||||
17 | requested and received Commission approval for the design | ||||||
18 | and conduct of such solicitation and the associated cost | ||||||
19 | recovery methodology and tariff, which the Commission | ||||||
20 | shall review and consider.
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21 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
22 | becoming law.
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