Renewable Electricity Standard Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1974 To amend the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 to establish a renewable electricity standard, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JUNE 26, 2019 Mr. UDALL (for himself, Mr. HEINRICH, Mr. KING, Ms. SMITH, and Mr. WHITEHOUSE) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and re- ferred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources A BILL To amend the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 to establish a renewable electricity standard, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Renewable Electricity 4 Standard Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds that— 7 (1) renewable energy is the cheapest new form 8 of electricity in many regions of the United States; 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:05 Jun 29, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1974.IS S1974 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 1974 IS (2) to meet the climate goals of the United 1 States, every State must transition to carbon-free 2 electricity by 2050; 3 (3) renewable energy is a virtually unlimited re- 4 source that can help avoid pollution of the air, 5 water, and land of the United States; 6 (4) States without high levels of renewable en- 7 ergy should not be penalized for past inaction, but 8 should comply with an annual percentage increase of 9 renewable electricity; and 10 (5) States should be encouraged to create their 11 own renewable electricity standards or clean energy 12 standards above the Federal renewable electricity 13 standard. 14 SEC. 3. RENEWABLE ELECTRICITY STANDARD. 15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title VI of the Public Utility Reg- 16 ulatory Policies Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.) is 17 amended by adding at the end the following: 18 ‘‘SEC. 610. RENEWABLE ELECTRICITY STANDARD. 19 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 20 ‘‘(1) BASE QUANTITY OF ELECTRICITY.— 21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 22 subparagraph (B), the term ‘base quantity of 23 electricity’ means the total quantity of electric 24 energy sold by a retail electric supplier, ex- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:05 Jun 29, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1974.IS S1974 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 1974 IS pressed in terms of kilowatt hours, to electric 1 customers for purposes other than resale during 2 the most recent calendar year for which infor- 3 mation is available. 4 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—The term ‘base quan- 5 tity of electricity’ does not include any quantity 6 of renewable energy delivered by a retail electric 7 supplier to an electric customer pursuant to a 8 voluntarily transaction entered into by the cus- 9 tomer to meet the demand of the customer for 10 renewable energy. 11 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE FACILITY.—The term ‘eligible 12 facility’ means a facility for the generation of elec- 13 tric energy that— 14 ‘‘(A) generates electric energy from a new 15 renewable energy resource using equipment that 16 comes online during calendar year 2020 or 17 thereafter; 18 ‘‘(B) generates additional electric energy 19 during a calendar year from increased efficiency 20 of, or additions of capacity to, existing equip- 21 ment for the generation of electric energy from 22 a renewable energy resource, as compared to 23 the quantity of electric energy generated from 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:05 Jun 29, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1974.IS S1974 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 1974 IS renewable energy resources during the pre- 1 ceding calendar year; 2 ‘‘(C) generates electric energy from a re- 3 newable energy resource using repowered equip- 4 ment that was placed in service before calendar 5 year 2020, even though that repowered equip- 6 ment contains some used property, if the cost 7 of the new property is not less than 4 times the 8 fair market value of the used property con- 9 tained in the repowered equipment; or 10 ‘‘(D) generates electric energy from a re- 11 newable energy resource using equipment that 12 comes online after calendar year 2005 and be- 13 fore calendar year 2020, and that electric en- 14 ergy— 15 ‘‘(i) is not under a contract for the 16 sale of renewable energy credits or physical 17 power to— 18 ‘‘(I) a retail electric supplier for 19 use in complying with a State renew- 20 able portfolio standard; or 21 ‘‘(II) meet voluntary market de- 22 mand; and 23 ‘‘(ii)(I) is delivered for end-use con- 24 sumption in the regional reliability entity 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:05 Jun 29, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1974.IS S1974 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 1974 IS (as recognized by the North American 1 Electric Reliability Corporation) in which 2 the retail electric supplier is located; and 3 ‘‘(II) the end-use consumption within 4 that region can be tracked and verified. 5 ‘‘(3) IMPACTED COMMUNITY.—The term ‘im- 6 pacted community’ means— 7 ‘‘(A) an economically distressed area af- 8 fected by environmental pollution or other haz- 9 ards that can lead to— 10 ‘‘(i) exposure to the pollution or haz- 11 ard, including negative public health ef- 12 fects resulting from that exposure; or 13 ‘‘(ii) environmental degradation; and 14 ‘‘(B) an economically distressed area af- 15 fected by high unemployment due to— 16 ‘‘(i) a significant decline in coal min- 17 ing activity; or 18 ‘‘(ii) the closure of a coal-fired power 19 plant. 20 ‘‘(4) INCREMENTAL HYDROPOWER.—The term 21 ‘incremental hydropower’ means additional genera- 22 tion that is achieved from increased efficiency of, or 23 additions of capacity to, existing hydroelectric facili- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:05 Jun 29, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1974.IS S1974 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 1974 IS ties that are made on or after the date of enactment 1 of this section. 2 ‘‘(5) INDIAN LAND.—The term ‘Indian land’ 3 means— 4 ‘‘(A) any land within the limits of any In- 5 dian reservation, pueblo, or rancheria; 6 ‘‘(B) any land not within the limits of any 7 Indian reservation, pueblo, or rancheria title to 8 which on the date of enactment of this section 9 was held by— 10 ‘‘(i) the United States for the benefit 11 of any Indian Tribe or individual; or 12 ‘‘(ii) any Indian Tribe or individual 13 subject to restriction by the United States 14 against alienation; 15 ‘‘(C) any dependent Indian community; 16 and 17 ‘‘(D) any land conveyed to any Alaska Na- 18 tive Corporation under the Alaska Native 19 Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et 20 seq.). 21 ‘‘(6) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian Tribe’ 22 means any Indian Tribe, band, nation, or other or- 23 ganized group or community, including any Alaskan 24 Native village or regional or village corporation (as 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:05 Jun 29, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1974.IS S1974 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 1974 IS defined in, or established pursuant to, the Alaska 1 Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et 2 seq.)), that is recognized as eligible for the special 3 programs and services provided by the United States 4 to Indians because of their status as Indians. 5 ‘‘(7) RENEWABLE BIOMASS.— 6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘renewable 7 biomass’ means— 8 ‘‘(i) crop byproducts or crop residues 9 that— 10 ‘‘(I) are harvested from actively 11 managed or fallow agricultural land 12 that is cleared prior to January 1, 13 2019; and 14 ‘‘(II) are procured at a rate that 15 adequately maintains soil carbon and 16 prevents erosion; 17 ‘‘(ii) closed-loop biomass (as defined 18 in section 45(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue 19 Code of 1986) that is harvested from land 20 cleared prior to January 1, 2019; 21 ‘‘(iii) byproducts of wood or paper 22 mill operations, including lignin in spent 23 pulping liquors; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:05 Jun 29, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1974.IS S1974 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 1974 IS ‘‘(iv) small diameter thinned trees (as 1 defined in a regulation promulgated by the 2 Secretary, in consultation with the Admin- 3 istrator of the Environmental Protection 4 Agency and Secretary of the Interior, pur- 5 suant to a negotiated rulemaking), logging 6 residues (as defined by the Forest Service), 7 or tops and limbs (as defined by the Forest 8 Service); 9 ‘‘(v) trees removed for purposes of ec- 10 ological restoration, to be determined by 11 the Secretary, in consultation with the 12 Chief of the Forest Service and the Direc- 13 tor of the United States Fish and Wildlife 14 Service, taking into consideration climate 15 impacts; 16 ‘‘(vi) algae; 17 ‘‘(vii) nonhazardous plant matter de- 18 rived from waste— 19 ‘‘(I) including separated yard 20 waste, landscape right-of-way trim- 21 mings, and food waste; but 22 ‘‘(II) not including municipal 23 solid waste, recyclable waste paper, 24 painted, treated or pressurized wood, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:05 Jun 29, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1974.IS S1974 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 1974 IS or wood contaminated with plastic or 1 metals; and 2 ‘‘(viii) vegetative matter removed from 3 within 200 yards of any man-made struc- 4 ture or campground for the purposes of 5 hazardous fuels thinning. 6 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSION OF INVASIVE SPECIES.— 7 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding 8 subparagraph (A), except as provided in 9 clause (ii), the term ‘renewable biomass’ 10 does not include any matter derived from 11 a plant that is invasive or noxious, or from 12 a species or variety of plants that credible 13 risk assessment tools or other credible 14 sources determine is potentially invasive, 15 as determined by the Secretary, in con- 16 sultation with other appropriate Federal or 17 State departments and agencies. 18 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTION.—The term ‘renew- 19 able biomass’ includes matter derived from 20 a plant that is invasive or noxious, or from 21 a species or variety of plants that credible 22 risk assessment tools or other credible 23 sources determine is potentially invasive, 24 if— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:05 Jun 29, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1974.IS S1974 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 1974 IS ‘‘(I) the matter was removed for 1 purposes of control or eradication of 2 the invasive, noxious, or potentially 3 invasive plant; and 4 ‘‘(II) the invasive, noxious, or po- 5 tentially invasive plant was not plant- 6 ed for the purpose of using the plant 7 as an energy crop. 8 ‘‘(8) RENEWABLE ENERGY.—The term ‘renew- 9 able energy’ means electric energy generated by a re- 10 newable energy resource. 11 ‘‘(9) RENEWABLE ENERGY RESOURCE.—The 12 term ‘renewable energy resource’ means— 13 ‘‘(A) solar; 14 ‘‘(B) wind; 15 ‘‘(C) ocean; 16 ‘‘(D) tidal; 17 ‘‘(E) geothermal energy; 18 ‘‘(F) renewable biomass; 19 ‘‘(G) landfill gas; 20 ‘‘(H) incremental hydropower; or 21 ‘‘(I) hydrokinetic energy. 22 ‘‘(10) RETAIL ELECTRIC SUPPLIER.— 23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘retail elec- 24 tric supplier’ means a person that sells electric 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:05 Jun 29, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1974.IS S1974 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 1974 IS energy to electric consumers for purposes other 1 than resale during the preceding calendar year. 2 ‘‘(B) SALES TO PARENT COMPANIES OR 3 AFFILIATES.—For purposes of this paragraph, 4 sales by any person to a parent company or to 5 other affiliates of the person shall not be treat- 6 ed as sales to electric consumers. 7 ‘‘(b) COMPLIANCE.—For calendar year 2020 and 8 each calendar year thereafter, each retail electric supplier 9 shall meet the requirements of subsection (c) by submit- 10 ting to the Secretary, not later than April 1 of the fol- 11 lowing calendar year, 1 or more of the following: 12 ‘‘(1) Federal renewable energy credits issued 13 under subsection (e). 14 ‘‘(2) Certification of the renewable energy gen- 15 erated and electricity savings pursuant to the funds 16 associated with State compliance payments as speci- 17 fied in subsection (e)(4)(F). 18 ‘‘(3) Alternative compliance payments pursuant 19 to subsection (h). 20 ‘‘(c) REQUIRED ANNUAL PERCENTAGE INCREASE.— 21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para- 22 graph (2), for each of calendar years 2020 through 23 2035, the required annual percentage increase of the 24 base quantity of electricity of a retail electric sup- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:05 Jun 29, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1974.IS S1974 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 1974 IS plier that shall be generated from renewable energy 1 resources, or otherwise credited toward the percent- 2 age requirement pursuant to subsection (d), shall be 3 the applicable percentage specified in the following 4 table: 5 Required Amount ‘‘Calendar Year percentage 2020 ............................................................................................. 1.5 2021 ............................................................................................. 2.0 2022 ............................................................................................. 2.0 2023 ............................................................................................. 2.0 2024 ............................................................................................. 2.0 2025 ............................................................................................. 2.0 2026 ............................................................................................. 2.0 2027 ............................................................................................. 2.0 2028 ............................................................................................. 2.0 2029 ............................................................................................. 2.0 2030 ............................................................................................. 2.5 2031 ............................................................................................. 2.5 2032 ............................................................................................. 2.5 2033 ............................................................................................. 2.5 2034 ............................................................................................. 2.5 2035 ............................................................................................. 2.5. ‘‘(2) APPLICATION TO CERTAIN RETAIL ELEC- 6 TRIC SU [Text truncated for display. 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