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Bill to Watch
Category: Massachusetts
Related Categories: Customer Protection, Legislation, Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (RPS), Supplier
H15 was introduced in the House that would incorporate the recommendations of the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) to strengthen suety requirements and penalties and to close enforcement gaps for the state’s renewable electricity supplier (RES) programs, including the clean energy standard (CES), alternative renewable energy portfolio standard (APS), renewable energy portfolio standard (RPS).
An Act relative to retail electricity suppliers that among other things the bill would:
- define the CES as consisting of “subsections (c) and (d) of section 3 and sections 4 and 7 of chapter 21N; sections 2, 8 and 16 of chapter 21A; and sections 2C and sections 142A to 142E of chapter 111; promulgated as 310 CMR 7.75”;
- set 4/1 as the CES and RPS compliance date and 4/30 as the date for alternative compliance payments (ACPs);
- count ACP non-compliance an unfair or deceptive practice and add the possible remedy of seeking injunctive relief in the superior court;
- subject RPS and APS violations to civil penalty of up to $25,000 for each day or partial day the RES is in violation; and
- require third-party RESs to provide DPU, by 1/31 of each year, evidence of a financial instrument naming DPU as beneficiary or guaranteed party that has an expiration date of not less than one year and shows evidence of liquid funds for the greater of $100,00 or 20% of either the RES’ estimated gross receipts for its first full year of operation or actual gross receipts for the preceding year, not to include basic service revenue after the first year of operation.
