Statewide Energy Omnibus Bills

SB 220: Alaska Sustainable Energy  Act

HB 306: State Energy Policy

 Senate Committee Substitute for Committee Substitute for House Bill No. 306(FIN) Amend Senate Passes!

The Conservation community has much to celebrate with the passage of two breath-taking pieces of Clean Energy legislation. Senate Bill 220 the Alaska Sustainable Energy Act and House Bill 306 the State Energy Policy mark a turning point in Alaska’s years-long progress of renewable energy and energy efficiency.

With strong Energy Efficiency provisions to ensure wise energy use today and with the visionary creation of an Emerging Energy Technology Fund, Alaska continues to move forward and we are getting ever closer to achieving our vision of a sustainable energy future. Together HB 306 and SB 220 set the goals we need to reach in the coming decades and create the incentives we need to get there.

SB220

Alaska Sustainable Energy Act

SB 220 the Alaska Sustainable Energy Act passed through a slew of versions as it marched from committee to committee since the omnibus energy bill was introduced January 19th, 2010.

While the current version of SB220 looks different than the January original, it held on to a bevy of solid energy provisions:

• Energy efficiency revolving loan fund. By using $18 million of what was once contentious federal stimulus fund money we can turn it into a $250 million loan fund. Schools, municipalities and the state are eligible for loan funds for energy efficiency improvements to buildings. It allows the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation to issue bonds to support these loans. This seed money should allow Alaska to make major retrofit progress with public buildings in a reasonable period of time resulting in big savings of money and energy.
• Retrofits and new construction for energy efficiency; energy efficiency report. Requires the Department of Transportation and Public Facilities to make Energy Efficiency retrofits (a Voters Priority) to at least 25 percent of state buildings 10,000 sq ft and larger. Also sets a timeline to reach this goal by January 1, 2020. These Retrofits, to the extent feasible, “shall meet or exceed the most recently published edition of the ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1, Energy Standard for Buildings Except for Low-Rise Residential Buildings, (HERE) as published by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers.” This provision - very important to Senator Wielechowski - was in prior House and Senate versions of the omnibus bill before it was removed by Senate Finance. After an unsuccessful effort by Rep. Edgmon to restore it in House Energy, it was rescued by Reps. Les Gara and Bill Thomas (with the help of Senator Wielechowski’s office) who re-introduced it, and other amendments in House Finance. Attempts to reverse this outcome on the House Floor were unsuccessful. Read Rep. Gara’s take on the amendment.
  
• Emerging Energy Technology Fund. Creates the Emerging Energy Technology Fund (a Voters Priority) to focus on demonstrating new technologies. Senator McGuire was a key advocate for this important idea. The fund may receive as much as $2.4 million in state funds this year and matching funds from Denali Commission. It is an exciting opportunity for Alaska and we are pleased that it survived the gauntlet. The bill includes a sunset for this provision in 2015.

• Governance: Requires the Office of the Governor to submit a report to the legislature regarding the structure of state energy programs. This addresses the state’s existing and complicated energy governance structure. This issue is will probably be addressed in detail next session.
• Public Education: Allows the Alaska Energy Authority to promote energy conservation, energy efficiency, and alternative energy through training and public education.  Another provision saved by Reps. Les Gara and Bill Thomas in House Finance.
  

Also:

• Links benefits from the state’s Heating and Assistance Program to the price of oil providing additional assistance to low-income families when fuel prices are high. This program is a supplement to the federal Low Income Heating Assistance Program
• Gives Alaska Housing Finance Corporation to the power to provide technical assistance to municipalities regarding energy codes and efficiency standards.
• Expands the Southeast Energy Fund to allow more options for money going into the fund and expands the projects for which the fund may be used.
• Requires DOT/PF to purchase energy efficient cars whenever possible.
• Requires the Office of Management and Budget to develop a standardized methodology to collect and store energy consumption and expense data as described in AS 37.07.040(12)
• Requires the DOT/PF to study using compressed natural gas as an alternative fuel in the state fleet of vehicles and develop a proposal for a pilot project if warranted.
• Requires the Department of Revenue to submit a report to the legislature regarding the “feasibility of a municipal energy improvements financing program.”
• Allows loans for commercial building upgrades
• Allows the University of Alaska to apply for loans from the Energy Efficiency Revolving Loan Fund.
• Allows municipal tax exemptions for “certain residential renewable energy systems.” “[a]…system that is used to develop means of energy production using energy sources other than fossil or nuclear fuel, including windmills and water and solar energy devices located in the municipality…
• Makes changes to the state nuclear laws to update them based on recent case law and to “level the playing field” as compared to other energy options. Note that a federal judicial opinion limits state regulation to economic matters, leaving health and safety concerns exclusively to the federal government
• A last minute add to SB 237 by Reps. Gara and Thomas in House Finance will require new school construction to meet smart energy efficiency codes.

Other changes include:

• The renewable energy and energy efficiency goals that were in earlier versions of the bill were removed. However, HB 306: State Energy Policy, is the vehicle for energy policy.
• AS Sec. 35.10.012 Alternative energy for public works was removed. It would have directed DOT/PF to consider an alternative energy system when constructing a public facility. However, this analysis probably will occur without the requirement.
• A provision was removed that would have directed the Alaska Energy Authority to facilitate a statewide fuel cooperative.
• The renewable energy production tax credit has been removed. This will probably be revisited next year.

HB 306

The State Energy Policy

HB 306 the State Energy Policy, sponsored by the House Special Committee on Energy, was built by a stakeholder working group that included ACA and shepherded through the House and Senate by Rep. Charisse Millett, Rep. Bryce Edgmon and their staff Jeff Turner and Adam Berg respectively. This bill holds Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency goals proposed by Alaska Conservation Voters and its sister organization the Alaska Conservation Alliance. They were also included in earlier versions SB 220.

Learn more about the interim Energy Meetings.

The bill’s opening lines cover three of ACV’s top energy goals: improve energy efficiency across the state, increase the use of renewable energy sources, and use natural gas as a bridge fuel to a clean energy economy.

Section 1.

It is the intent of the legislature that

• (1) the state achieve a 15 percent increase in energy efficiency on a per capita basis between 2010 and 2020;
• (2) the state receive 50 percent of its electric generation from renewable and alternative energy sources by 2025;
• (3) the state work to ensure a reliable in-state gas supply for residents of the state;

The bill also shows the intent of the state to promote Energy education and research:

• Sec. 2 (1)(C)  initiating and supporting a program to educate state residents on the benefits of energy efficiency and conservation, including dissemination of information on state and federal programs that reward energy efficiency;
• Sec. 2 (3)(A)  training and education programs that will help create jobs for Alaskans and that address energy conservation, efficiency, and availability, including programs that address workforce development and workforce transition;
• (B) applied energy research and development of alternative and emerging technologies, including university programs, to achieve reductions in state energy costs and stimulate industry investment in the state;
  

Recommends building codes:

• (A) encouraging statewide energy efficiency codes for new and renovated residential, commercial, and public buildings
  

Other notable provisions include:

• Promotes renewable energy resources “geothermal, wind, solar, hydroelectric, hydrokinetic, tidal, and biomass energy,”
• Promotes the efficient use of non-renewable and alternative energy sources “natural gas, coal, oil, gas hydrates, heavy oil and nuclear energy,”
• Puts emphasis on the long-term costs savings provided by projects such as hydroelectric and geothermal energy sources with high up-front costs and long-term price stability.
• Promotes energy efficiency in transportation
  Asks to simplify Alaska’s energy governance by coordinating government functions and streamlining the regulatory process.
• In a marked shift from recent legislation pushing back against federal oversight, the bill recommends actively collaborating with federal agencies “to meet emissions, renewable and alternative energy, and energy production targets.