MEEA Policy Insider - June 2018

MEEA's Policy Team is actively tracking policy developments within our 13-state footprint, and the Policy Insider summarizes the latest state policy activity and provides our newest resources to aid members in their outreach, education and advocacy initiatives.

Ready to get involved? There are advocacy opportunities in Illinois, Indiana,  Michigan and Ohio.

In this issue:

Regulatory

Work on the Illinois Commerce Commission’s (ICC) utility of the future study, NextGrid, continues. All working groups have selected their members and several of the work groups continue to meet and develop work products. The full NextGrid Stakeholder Advisory Committee met on Monday, May 14 at MEEA. Information on NextGrid is available at https://nextgrid.illinois.gov/index.html.

The Future Energy Jobs Act required the development of stakeholder groups to support the low-income portfolio that was transitioning from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to the individual utilities. The second meeting of the Income Qualified EE Advisory Committee North was held on May 22. The second Income Qualified EE Advisory Committee South meeting was held on June 12.

MEEA Activities

MEEA was selected for the ratemaking, regulatory and environmental policy issues and electricity markets working groups and is also serving on the ICC’s NextGrid Stakeholder Advisory Committee.

MEEA is a member of the both the North and South Income Qualified EE Advisory Committees.

How to Get Involved

The Stakeholder Advisory Group and the Income Qualified EE Advisory Committees are open to all interested stakeholders. Information on these groups is available on the IL SAG website.

On June 14 the ICC will host a Next Grid update and public comment session. Register here.

If you have any questions about Illinois or want to get involved, contact Leah Scull.

Regulatory

Governor Holcomb’s office has announced the appointment of Stephanie Krevda to fill the vacancy on the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC). Ms. Krevda currently serves as the executive director of external affairs at the IURC.

Integrated resource plan (IRP) stakeholder processes are underway for Duke Energy Indiana, Indiana Michigan Power and NIPSCO. Meetings will continue through the spring and summer before the November/December filing dates. Updates from the commission on IRPs in Indiana will be posted to the IURC’s IRP page.

How to Get Involved

The utility IRP meetings are open to anyone who is interested in attending. NIPSCO’s next meeting is on July 24 (register here) and IMP’s next meeting is on August 1 (register here).

If you have any questions about Indiana or want to get involved, contact Greg Ehrendreich. 

Legislative

On May 4, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds signed Senate File 2311 (SF 2311) into law, which will make significant changes to the way utilities drive customer energy savings programs within the state. SF 2311 institutes a 2% revenue cap for electric energy efficiency and a 1.5% revenue cap for gas energy efficiency. The law also specifies that a utility’s energy efficiency and demand response plans cumulatively must score greater than a “1” on the Rate Impact Measure (RIM) test or all customers will have the option to opt-out of participating in the energy efficiency program. The RIM test measures what happens to customer bill or rates due to changes in utility revenues and operating costs caused by utility energy efficiency programs. Most states have concluded that the RIM test not only undervalues the benefit of energy efficiency programs but also conflicts with their economic development and job creation policy goals and will lead to higher utility rates for all customers in the long term.

Regulatory

Alliant Energy, MidAmerican Energy and Black Hills Energy recalled their 2019- 2023 plans in light of the passage of SF 2311. Revised proposed utility plans are due no later than July 9, 2018.

How to Get Involved

If you have questions about Iowa or want to get more involved, contact Leah Scull.

Regulatory

In addition to ordering a scaling back of Kentucky Power’s DSM program spending from about $6 million to $2 million for 2018 in January (Case 2017-00097), the Kentucky Public Service Commission (KPSC) has opened additional dockets to investigate the cost-effectiveness of energy efficiency programs for

MEEA Activities

MEEA will continue to monitor these proceedings and other actions at the KPSC.

If you have questions about Kentucky or want to get more involved, contract Greg Ehrendreich

Legislative

On April 24, 2018, a bipartisan coalition of state representatives introduced five house bills (5861, 5862, 5863, 5864 and 5865) collectively dubbed “the energy freedom package.”

  • HB 5861 deals with renewable energy gardens
  • HBs 5862 & 5862 relates to pro-self-generating customer treatment through qualification, valuation and rate structure for cogeneration, microgrids and net metering
  • HB 5864 removes restrictions on self-generating customer participation
  • HB 5865 expands microgrid for municipally-owned electric utilities, electric utilities and private entities.

This package was referred to the House Energy Policy Committee the day it was introduced.

Regulatory

As of April 6, 2018, the Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) has a sub-group to their energy waste reduction (EWR) collaborative focused on low income EWR programs. This comes as a direct result of conversations between the MPSC and MEEA and Energy Efficiency for All (EEFA) partners. The first meeting was held on April 6, 2018 and the second on May 18. Future meetings are scheduled for June 14 and July 26.

The MPSC voted 3-0 to approve DTE’s Certificate of Necessity filing for a 1100 MW combined cycle gas plant.

MEEA Activities

MEEA is working with in-state EEFA partners and the MPSC to develop agendas for a recurring Low Income Energy Waste Reduction stakeholder collaborative meeting. At both the April 6 and May 18 meetings, MEEA Senior Policy Manager Nick Dreher assisted the MPSC with facilitation.

How to Get Involved

The EWR meetings (IRP and Low Income) are open to the public for anyone interested. The next MPSC Low Income EWR meetings are on June 14 and July 26. Contact Nick Dreher if you are interested in attending.

Details of and updates regarding the recent IRP process can be found at www.michigan.gov/energylegislation.

For more information about Michigan or to get more involved, contact Nick Dreher.

Legislative

On May 19, Governor Dayton signed into law SF 3245. This bill made modifications to energy improvement programs, authorizes protection for residential PACE loans and expands energy conservation loan use.

On May 23, Gov. Dayton vetoed the Supplemental Policy and Finance Omnibus Bill, which included provisions relating to energy policy. The bill included language on funding for an energy storage study and pilot, reducing funds for renewables and funding for maintain and improving data reporting within the Conservation Improvement Program. Previous versions of the bill included some building code language that would add a burdensome legislative review process on administrative rules that increased the cost of construction by $1,000 or more per unit. This building code language was stripped from the final omnibus before it even reached the governor.   

How to Get Involved 

For more information about Minnesota or to get more involved, contact Sophia Markowska.

Regulatory

On April 24, Missouri Public Service Commission (MO PSC) staff held a Missouri Energy Efficiency Advisory Collaborative (MEEAC) meeting, wherein non-energy benefits, low-income housing EE and EM&V were discussed. MEEA staff were in attendance.

MEEA Activities

MEEA submitted comments on the draft charter of the statewide DSM collaborative and continues to track its development, including a low-income working group that will begin meeting next month.

MEEA staff submitted comments in response to the MO PSC’s questions issued in the emerging issues in utility regulation working case on distributed energy resources (EW-2017-0245).

On March 7, as part of MEEA’s ongoing Energy Efficiency for All work, MEEA staff attended a low income energy efficiency collaborative meeting in Jefferson City. The next in-person meeting is in development. MEEA has participated in several subgroup calls on non-energy benefits, energy efficiency financing and multifamily energy efficiency. On April 24, Senior Policy Manager Nick Dreher attended the Missouri Energy Efficiency Advisory Collaborative (MEEAC).

For more information on Missouri or if you want to get more involved, contact Nick Dreher.

Legislative

This month the senate introduced a substitute version of HB 114. The senate version adjusts annual energy savings to 1.5% compared to the 1% freeze in the house version (current law has a 2% benchmark); however, both versions have the net effect of reducing the energy efficiency standard to 17.2% from 22.2% by 2026. Both versions expand the eligibility to additional customers to opt out of paying the energy efficiency rider. At present, only those customers with an annual electric usage at 4.5GWh are eligible, but HB 114 expands that to mercantile customers (700 MWh annual usage), allowing aggregation by national accounts such as gas stations, convenience stores and other medium commercial entities. The provisions in the senate substitute bill pared down both the RPS and EERS, adds additional reporting requirements for those using the mercantile opt out, and adds language addressing the sighting of wind turbines. HB 114 is currently still in the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

Regulatory

The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) completed Phase 3 of Power Forward on March 22, which focused on rate making and regulation. The next steps are unclear, but it is expected that a summary report will be released late 2018. To watch the proceedings, visit the Power Forward website.

MEEA Activities

MEEA has submitted written interested party testimony on the house version of HB 114.

How to Get Involved

The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee website has agenda items and information from the June 6 hearing on the substitute to HB 114.

For more information about Ohio or if you want to get more involved, contact Nick Hromalik.

Regulatory

In May, the Wisconsin Public Service Commission announced that the budget for Focus on Energy (Focus) will be maintained at approximately $100 million annually for the years 2019-2022. This decision came after the commission had opened Docket Number 5-FE-101 in March for the Quadrennial Planning Process III. The Commission is obligated to evaluate and set goals for Focus programs and ensure that customers throughout the state have an equal opportunity to receive the benefit of the programs as a part of the Quadrennial Planning Process. The Commission is expected to issue a program administrator for Focus RFP in June and will make a decision regarding the program administrator in the late summer or early fall.

MEEA Activities 

MEEA will continue to monitor the proceeding.

For more information on Wisconsin or if you want to get more involved, contact Sophia Markowksa.