Reference is to Printer's Date 1/17/19-H.
Amend the bill, as and if amended, by striking all after the enacting words and inserting:
/ SECTION 1. Title 58 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
Section 58-41-05. The commission is directed to address all renewable energy issues in a fair and balanced manner, considering the costs and benefits to all customers of all programs and tariffs that relate to renewable energy and energy storage, both as part of the utility's power system and as direct investments by customers for their own energy needs and renewable goals. The commission also is directed to ensure that the revenue recovery, cost allocation, and rate design of utilities that it regulates are just and reasonable and properly reflect changes in the industry as a whole, the benefits of customer renewable energy, energy efficiency, and demand response, as well as any utility or state-specific impacts unique to South Carolina which are brought about by the consequences of this act.
Section 58-41-10. As used in this chapter:
(1)
'AC' means alternating current as measured at the point of
interconnection of the small power producer's facility to the
interconnecting electrical utility's transmission or
distribution system.
(2)
'Avoided costs' means payments for purchases of
electricity made according to an electrical utility's most
recently approved or established avoided cost rates in this
State or rates negotiated pursuant to PURPA, in the year the
costs are incurred, for purchases of electricity from qualifying
facilities pursuant to Section 210 of the Public Utility
Regulatory Policies Act, said costs to be calculated as set
forth in Section 58-39-140(A)(1).
(3)
'Commission' means the South Carolina Public Service
Commission.
(4)
'Electrical utility' is defined as set forth in Section
58-27-10(7), provided, however, that electrical utilities
serving less than one hundred thousand customer accounts must be
exempt from the provisions of this chapter. A renewable energy
supplier participating in an electrical utility's voluntary
renewable energy program pursuant to this chapter must not be
considered an electrical utility for purposes of this
chapter.
(5)
'Eligible customer' means a retail customer with a new or
existing contract demand greater than or equal to one megawatt
at a single metered location or aggregated across multiple
metered locations.
(6)
'Generation credit' means a credit applied by an
electrical utility to the bill of a participating customer that
is equal to the value of the electrical utility's system of the
energy and capacity provided by a renewable energy facility, as
defined herein.
(7)
'Participating customer' means an eligible customer that
elects to have a portion or all of its electricity needs
supplied by a voluntary renewable energy program.
(8)
'Participating customer agreement' means an agreement
between a participating customer, its electrical utility, and
the renewable energy supplier establishing each party's rights
and obligations under the electrical utility's voluntary
renewable energy program.
(9)
'Power purchase agreement' means an agreement between an
electrical utility and a renewable energy supplier for the
purchase and sale of energy, capacity, and ancillary services
from the renewable energy supplier's renewable energy facility
pursuant to this chapter.
(10)
'PURPA' means the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act
of 1978, as amended.
(11)
'Renewable energy contract' means a contract between an
electrical utility and a renewable energy supplier that commits
the parties to participating in an electrical utility's
voluntary renewable energy program for the purchase and sale of
energy and capacity.
(12)
'Renewable energy facility' means a facility for the
production of electrical energy that utilizes a renewable
generation resource as defined in Section 58-39-120(F), that is
placed in service after the effective date of this chapter, and
for which costs are not included in an electrical utility's
rates.
(13)
'Renewable energy supplier' means the owner or operator of
a renewable energy facility, including the affiliate of an
electrical utility that contracts with a participating
customer.
(14)
'Small power producer' means a person or corporation
owning or operating a 'qualifying small power production
facility' as defined in 16 U.S.C. Section 796, as amended.
(15)
'Standard offer' means the avoided cost rates, power
purchase agreement, and terms and conditions approved by the
commission and applicable to purchases of energy and capacity by
electrical utilities as provided in this chapter from small
power producers up to two megawatts AC in size.
(16)
'Voluntary renewable energy program' means a tariff filed
with the commission by an electrical utility that enables a
participating customer to receive and pay for electric service,
that reflects the program cost. Commercial or industrial energy
and environmental attributes specified in the participating
customer agreement and renewable energy contract, including a
generation credit for such renewable energy, from the electrical
utility pursuant to the terms of the tariff.
(17)
'Neighborhood community solar facility' means a solar
photovoltaic electric generating facility that is connected to
the distribution system of the electrical utility and is
participating in the electrical utility's neighborhood community
solar energy program.
Section 58-41-20. (A)
As soon as practicable after the effective
date of this chapter, the commission shall open a docket for the
purpose of establishing each electrical utility's avoided cost
rates, avoided cost methodologies, standard offer power purchase
agreements, form contract power purchase agreements, commitment
to sell forms, and any other terms or conditions necessary to
implement this section. Within six months after the effective
date of this chapter, and at least once every twenty-four months
thereafter, the commission shall establish or approve each
electrical utility's avoided cost rates, avoided cost
methodologies, standard offer power purchase agreements, form
contract power purchase agreements, commitment to sell forms,
and any other terms or conditions necessary to implement this
section. Within such proceeding the commission shall approve one
or more standard form purchase power agreements for use for
projects not eligible for the standard offer. Such standard
form purchase power agreements shall contain, for example,
provisions for force majeure, indemnification, choice of venue,
and confidentiality provisions and other such terms, but shall
not be determinative of price, volume, or length of contract.
The commission may approve multiple standard form agreements to
accommodate various generation technologies and other project
specific characteristics. This provision shall not restrict the
right of parties to enter into power purchase agreements with
terms that differ from the commission-approved form(s). Any
decisions by the commission shall support the public interest of
the using and consuming public and strive to reduce the risk
placed on the using and consuming public.
(1)
Proceedings must be separate from the electrical
utilities' annual fuel cost proceedings.
(2)
Proceedings shall include an opportunity for intervention,
discovery, filed comments or testimony, and an evidentiary
hearing.
(3)
Each electrical utility's avoided cost rates, avoided cost
methodologies, standard offer power purchase agreements, form
contract power purchase agreements, commitment to sell forms,
and any other terms or conditions set by the commission must be
in the best interests of all customers and consistent with PURPA
and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's implementing
regulations, which require such rates to be just and reasonable
to the ratepayers of the electrical utility, in the public
interest, and nondiscriminatory to the QF.
(B) In the course of
reviewing and approving each electrical utility's avoided cost
rates, avoided cost methodologies, standard offer power purchase
agreements, form contract power purchase agreements, and
commitment to sell forms, the commission shall treat small power
producers on a fair and equal footing with electrical
utility-owned resources by ensuring that:
(1)
rates for the purchase of energy and capacity fully and
accurately reflect the electrical utility's avoided costs;
(2)
power purchase agreements, including terms and conditions,
are commercially reasonable and consistent with regulations
promulgated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
implementing PURPA; and
(3)
each electrical utility's avoided cost methodology fairly
accounts for costs avoided by the electrical utility or incurred
by the utility, including, but not limited to, energy, capacity,
and ancillary services provided by or consumed by small power
producers including those utilizing energy storage equipment.
Avoided cost methodologies proposed by an electrical utility and
approved by the commission may account for differences in costs
avoided based on the geographic location and resource type of a
small power producer's facility.
(C) The avoided cost
rates offered by an electrical utility to a small power producer
not eligible for the standard offer must be calculated based on
the avoided cost methodology approved by the commission in its
most recent proceeding. In the event that a small power producer
and an electrical utility are unable to mutually agree on an
avoided cost rate, the small power producer shall have the right
to have any disputed issues resolved by the commission in a
formal complaint proceeding. The commission may require
mediation prior to a formal complaint proceeding.
(D) A small power
producer shall have the right to sell the output of its facility
to the electrical utility at the rates, and pursuant to the
power purchase agreement terms and conditions, then in effect by
delivering an executed notice of commitment to sell form to the
electrical utility. The commission shall approve a standard
notice of commitment to sell form to be used for this purpose
that provides the small power producer a reasonable period of
time from its submittal of the form to execute a power purchase
agreement. In no event, however, shall the small power producer,
as a condition of preserving the pricing and terms and
conditions established by its submittal of an executed
commitment to sell form to the electrical utility, be required
to execute a power purchase agreement prior to receipt of a
final interconnection agreement from the electrical utility.
(E)(1) The commission
is empowered to set standard offer rates and terms and
conditions for the purchase of power from cogenerators and small
power production facilities designated as Qualifying Facilities
(QF). The commission also has the authority to provide for
negotiation of contracts and for competitive solicitation to
occur within the utility's balancing authority if the commission
determines such action to be in the public interest.
(2)
Electrical utilities shall file with the commission power
purchase agreements entered into pursuant to PURPA, resulting
from voluntary negotiation of contracts between an electrical
utility and a small power producer not eligible for the standard
offer.
(3)
The commission is authorized to open a generic docket for
the purposes of creating competitive solicitation programs
within the utility's balancing authority if the commission
determines such action to be for the public good.
(4)
The commission shall require each electrical utility to
make the standard offer power purchase agreement available to
small power producers. For small power producers not eligible
for the standard offer, the commission shall approve a separate
form contract power purchase agreement to be used by each
electrical utility in purchasing energy, capacity, and other
related services from small power producers.
(5)(a)
Electrical utilities shall offer to enter into a fixed
priced contract for the purchase of energy and capacity at
avoided cost, with commercially reasonable terms and with a
duration of no less than ten years and of longer duration if set
by the commission pursuant to this section. The avoided cost
rates applicable to the fixed price contract in this section
must be based on the avoided cost rates and methodology as
determined by the commission pursuant to this section. The terms
of this subsection apply only to those projects with an
interconnection request on file with the utility prior to the
effective date of this act. Standard offer projects shall not be
impacted by this subsection. The commission may determine any
other necessary terms and conditions as necessary to protect
ratepayers.
(b)
Upon execution of solar Interconnection Agreements and
Power Purchase Agreements representing twenty percent of the
previous five-year average of the electrical utility's South
Carolina retail peak load, the commission shall reevaluate the
appropriate contract term length for projects that had an
interconnection request on file with the utility prior to the
effective date of this act but do not yet have a signed
Interconnection Agreement with the utility.
(c)
Projects with an interconnection request submitted after
the effective date of this act will be subject to the terms,
conditions, rates, and terms of length for contracts as
determined by the commission. The commission shall hold a
proceeding in accordance with this Section to consider the
terms, conditions, rates, and terms of length for projects with
an interconnection request submitted after the effective date of
this act.
(6)
The commission may consider standard offer and form
contract power purchase agreements which prohibit any of the
following, but not limited to:
(a)
uncompensated curtailment of qualifying facilities other
than due to a system emergency as defined in PURPA or in
implementing regulations promulgated by the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission;
(b)
termination of the power purchase agreement, collection of
damages from small power producers, or commencement of the term
of a power purchase agreement prior to commercial operation, if
delays in achieving commercial operation of the small power
producer's facility are due to the electrical utility's
interconnection delays; or
(c)
the electrical utility from reducing the price paid to the
small power producer based on costs incurred by the electrical
utility to respond to the intermittent nature of electrical
generation by the small power producer.
(F) Nothing in this
section prohibits the commission from adopting various avoided
cost methodologies or amending those methodologies in the public
interest.
(G) Unless otherwise
agreed to between the electrical utility and the small power
producer, a power purchase agreement entered into pursuant to
PURPA may not allow curtailment of qualifying facilities in any
manner that is inconsistent with PURPA or implementing
regulations promulgated by the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission.
(H) The commission and
Office of Regulatory Staff are authorized to independently
employ, through contract or otherwise, third-party consultants
and experts in carrying out their duties under this section,
including, but not limited to, for the purpose of evaluating
rates, terms, calculations, and conditions under this section.
The commission and the Office of Regulatory Staff may not hire
the same third-party consultant or expert. The commission is
exempt from complying with the State Procurement Code in the
selection and hiring of the third-party consultant or expert
authorized by this subsection. The commission shall engage, for
each utility, a qualified independent third party to submit a
report that includes the third party's independently derived
conclusions as to that third party's opinion of each utility's
calculation of avoided costs for purposes of these proceedings.
The qualified independent third party is subject to the same ex
parte prohibitions contained in Chapter 3, Title 58, as all
other parties. The qualified independent third party shall
submit all requests for documents and information necessary to
their analysis under the authority of the commission and the
commission shall have full authority to compel response to the
requests. The qualified independent third party's duty will be
to the commission. Any conclusions based on the evidence in the
record and included in the report are intended to be used by the
commission along with all other evidence submitted during the
proceeding, to inform their ultimate decision setting the
avoided costs for each electrical utility. The utilities may
require confidentiality agreements with the independent third
party that do not impede the third party analysis. The
utilities shall be responsive in providing all documents,
information, and items necessary for the completion of the
report. The independent third party shall also include in the
report a statement assessing the level of cooperation received
from the utility during the development of the report and
whether there were any material information requests that were
not adequately fulfilled by the electrical utility. Any party to
this proceeding shall be able to review the report including the
confidential portions of the report upon entering into an
appropriate confidentiality agreement.
(I) Each electrical
utility's avoided cost filing must be reasonably transparent so
that underlying assumptions, data, and results can be
independently reviewed and verified by the parties and the
commission. The commission may approve any confidentiality
protections necessary to allow for independent review and
verification of the avoided cost filing.
(J) This section shall
not be interpreted to supersede the conditions of any settlement
entered into before the commission prior to the adoption of this
act.
Section 58-41-30. (A)
Within one hundred twenty days of the
effective date of this chapter, subject to subsection (F), each
electrical utility shall file a proposed voluntary renewable
energy program for review and approval by the commission. The
commission shall conduct a proceeding to review the program and
establish reasonable terms and conditions for the program.
Interested parties shall have the right to participate in the
proceeding. The commission may periodically hold additional
proceedings to update the program. At a minimum, the program
shall provide that:
(1)
the participating customer shall have the right to select
the renewable energy facility and negotiate with the renewable
energy supplier on the price to be paid by the participating
customer for the energy, capacity, and environmental attributes
of the renewable energy facility and the term of such agreement
so long as such terms are consistent with the voluntary
renewable program service agreement as approved by the
commission;
(2)
the renewable energy contract, power purchase agreement,
and the participating customer agreement must be of equal
duration;
(3)
in addition to paying a retail bill calculated pursuant to
the rates and tariffs that otherwise would apply to the
participating customer, reduced by the amount of the generation
credit, a participating customer shall reimburse the electrical
utility on a monthly basis for the amount paid by the electrical
utility to the renewable energy supplier pursuant to the
participating customer agreement and power purchase agreement,
plus an administrative fee approved by the commission; and
(4)
eligible customers must be allowed to bundle their demand
under a single participating customer agreement and renewable
energy contract and must be eligible annually to procure an
amount of capacity as approved by the commission.
(B) The commission may
approve a program that provides for options that include, but
are not limited both variable and fixed generation credit
options.
(C) The commission may
limit the total portion of each electrical utility's voluntary
renewable energy program that is eligible for the program at a
level consistent with the public interest and shall provide
standard terms and conditions for the participating customer
agreement, the power purchase agreement, and the renewable
energy contract, subject to commission review and approval.
(D) A participating
customer shall bear the burden of any reasonable costs
associated with participating in a voluntary renewable energy
program. An electrical utility may not charge any
nonparticipating customers for any costs incurred pursuant to
the provisions of this section.
(E) A renewable energy
facility may be located anywhere in the electrical utility's
service territory within the utility's balancing authority.
(F) If the commission
determines that an electrical utility has a voluntary renewable
energy program on file with the commission as of the effective
date of this chapter, that conforms with the requirements of
this section, the utility is not required to make a new filing
to meet the requirements of subsection (A).
Section 58-41-40. (A)
It is the intent of the General Assembly to
expand the opportunity to support solar energy and support
access to solar energy options for all South Carolinians,
including those who lack the income to afford the upfront
investment in solar panels or those that do not own their homes
or have suitable rooftops. The General Assembly encourages all
electric service providers in this state to consider adopting
the neighborhood community solar program described in this
section.
(B)(1) Within sixty
days after the effective date of this chapter, the commission
shall open a docket for each electrical utility to review the
community solar programs established pursuant to Act 236 of 2014
and solicit status information on existing programs from the
electrical utilities.
(2)
Within one hundred eighty days after the commission opens
the docket pursuant to item (1), the electrical utilities shall
update their report on their existing programs and to propose
new programs.
(3)
Within one hundred eighty days of receiving the updated
filing and following the period for notice and opportunity for
public comment and public hearing, the commission shall
establish a new 'Community Solar Energy Program' for each
electrical utility to permit customers of an electrical utility
to participate in a solar energy project to allow for a credit
to the customer's utility bill based upon the electricity
generated that is attributed to the customer's participation in
the solar energy project.
(C) At minimum, the
program developed by the commission shall establish for each
utility:
(1)
a per project capacity limit for individual community
solar energy projects;
(2)
minimum and maximum aggregate installed capacity of all
community solar energy projects for each electric public
utility;
(3)
a minimum number of participating customers for each solar
energy project;
(4)
a minimum number of participating customers for each solar
energy project;
(5)
the value of the credit on each participating customer's
bill;
(6)
the provision of access to solar energy projects for low
and moderate income customers;
(7)
standards to ensure the opportunity for residential,
commercial, and tax exempt customers to participate in the
neighborhood community solar program, including residential
customers in multifamily housing;
(8)
standards and methods to verify solar electric energy
generation on a monthly basis for a solar energy project;
(9)
standards and an application process for owners of solar
energy projects who wish to be included in the Community Solar
Energy Program;
(10)
standards covering transferability, portability, and
buy-out provisions for customers who participate in community
solar energy projects; and
(11)
any other requirements as adopted by the commission,
including, but not limited to, requirements proposed by
interested parties.
(D) Subject to review
by the commission, a public utility must be entitled to full and
timely cost recovery for all reasonable and prudent costs
incurred in implementing and complying with this section.
Participating customers shall bear the burden of any reasonable
and prudent costs associated with participating in a
neighborhood community solar program; however, the commission
shall nonetheless ensure access to solar energy projects for low
and moderate income customers pursuant to subsection (C)(6). An
electrical utility may not charge any nonparticipating customers
for any costs incurred pursuant to the provisions of this
section."
SECTION 2. Article 7, Chapter 27, Title 58 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 58-27-845.
(A) The General Assembly finds that
there is a critical need to:
(1)
protect customers from rising utility costs;
(2)
provide opportunities for customer measures to reduce or
manage electrical consumption from electrical utilities in a
manner that contributes to reductions in utility peak electrical
demand and other drivers of electrical utility costs; and
(3)
equip customers with the information and ability to manage
their electric bills.
(B) Every customer of
an electrical utility has the right to a rate schedule that
offers the customer a reasonable opportunity to employ such
energy and cost saving measures as energy efficiency, demand
response, or onsite distributed energy resources in order to
reduce consumption of electricity from the electrical utility's
grid and to reduce electrical utility costs.
(C) In fixing just and
reasonable utility rates pursuant to Section 58-3-140 and
Section 58-27-810, the commission shall consider whether rates
are designed to discourage the wasteful use of public utility
services while promoting all use that is economically justified
in view of the relationships between cost incurred and benefits
received, and that no one class of customers are unduly
burdening another, and that each customer class pays, as close
as practicable, the cost of providing service to them.
(D) For each class of
service, the commission must ensure that each electrical utility
offers to each class of service a minimum of one reasonable rate
option that aligns the customer's ability to achieve bill
savings with long-term reductions in the overall cost the
electrical utility will incur in providing electric service,
including but not limited to time-variant pricing
structures.
(E) Every customer of
an electrical utility has a right to obtain their own electric
usage data in a machine-readable, accessible format to the
extent such is readily available. Electrical utilities shall
allow customers an electronic means to assent to share the
customer's energy usage data with a third-party vendor
designated by the customer."
SECTION 3. Section 58-40-10(C) of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"(C)
'Customer-generator' means the owner, operator, lessee, or
customer-generator lessee of an electric energy generation unit
which:
(1)
generates or discharges electricity from a
renewable energy resource, including an energy storage device
configured to receive electrical charge solely from an onsite
renewable energy resource;
(2)
has an electrical generating system with a capacity
of:
(a)
not more than the lesser of one thousand kilowatts (1,000
kW AC) or one hundred percent of contract demand if a
nonresidential customer; or
(b)
not more than twenty kilowatts (20 kW AC) if a residential
customer;
(3)
is located on a single premises owned, operated, leased,
or otherwise controlled by the customer;
(4)
is interconnected and operates in parallel phase and
synchronization with an electrical utility and complies with the
applicable interconnection standards;
(5)
is intended primarily to offset part or all of the
customer-generator's own electrical energy requirements; and
(6)
meets all applicable safety, performance, interconnection,
and reliability standards established by the commission, the
National Electrical Code, the National Electrical Safety Code,
the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers,
Underwriters Laboratories, the federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, and any local governing authorities."
SECTION 4. Section 58-40-10 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding an appropriately lettered subsection at the end to read:
"( ) 'Solar choice metering measurement' means the process, method, or calculation used for purposes of billing and crediting at the commission determined value."
SECTION 5. Section 58-40-20 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 58-40-20.
(A) Net energy metering rates
approved by the commission under the terms of this chapter shall
be the exclusive net energy metering rates available to
customer-generators. Upon commission approval, such net energy
metering rates shall supersede all prior net energy metering
rates. Customer-generators whose net energy metering facilities
were energized prior to the availability of net energy metering
rates approved by the commission under the terms of this chapter
may remain in historic net energy metering programs through
December 31, 2020.
(B) An
electrical utility shall make net energy metering available to
customer-generators on a first-come, first-served basis until
the total nameplate generating capacity of net energy metering
systems equals two percent of the previous five-year average of
the electrical utility's South Carolina retail peak demand. No
electrical utility shall be required to approve any application
for interconnection from net energy metering customer-generators
if the total rated generating capacity of all applications for
interconnection from net energy metering customer-generators
already approved to date by the electrical utility equals or
exceeds two percent of the previous five-year average of the
electrical utility's South Carolina retail peak demand.
(C) If
determined to be prudent by the commission, the electrical
utility may furnish, install, own, and maintain metering
equipment needed to measure the kilowatt-hours purchased by the
customer-generator from the utility, the kilowatt-hours
generated or delivered to the electrical utility, and, if
applicable under the utility's tariffs, to measure the kilowatt
demand delivered by the electrical utility to the
customer-generator. The electrical utility shall have the right
to install special metering and load research devices on the
customer-generator's equipment and the right to use the
customer-generator's communication devices for communication
with electrical utility's and the customer-generator's
equipment.
(D) The
net electrical energy measurement shall be calculated in the
following manner:
(1) For a customer-generator, an
electrical utility shall measure the net electrical energy
produced or consumed during the billing period in accordance
with normal metering practices for customers in the same rate
class, either by employing a single, bidirectional meter that
measures the amount of electrical energy produced and consumed,
or by employing multiple meters that separately measure the
customer-generator's consumption and production of
electricity;
(2) If the electricity supplied
by the electrical utility exceeds the electricity generated by
the customer-generator during a billing period, the
customer-generator shall be billed for the net electricity
supplied by the electrical utility in accordance with normal
practices for customers in the same rate class;
(3) Any energy generated by the
customer-generator that exceeds the energy supplied by the
electrical utility during a billing period shall not be used to
offset the nonvolumetric electricity charges for that billing
period;
(4) The utility shall maintain an
account of any net excess kWh credits accruing from the
customer-generator's excess generation and allow those kWh
credits to be used to offset the customer-generator's energy
usage during future billing periods. Annually, the utility shall
pay the customer-generator for any accrued net excess generation
at the utility's avoided cost for qualified facilities,
zeroing-out the customer-generator's account of net excess kWh
credits.
(E) Each
electrical utility shall submit an annual net metering report to
the Public Service Commission, with a copy to the Office of
Regulatory Staff, including the following information for the
previous calendar year:
(1) the total number of
customer-generator facilities;
(2) the estimated gross
generating capacity of its net-metered customer-generators;
(3) the estimated net kilowatt
hours received from customer-generators.
(F) Any
and all costs prudently incurred pursuant to the provisions of
this chapter by an electrical utility as approved by the
commission and any and all commission approved benefits
conferred by a customer-generator shall be recoverable by each
entity respectively in the electrical utility's rates in
accordance with these provisions:
(1) The electrical utility's
general rates, tariffs, and any additional monthly charges or
credits, in addition to any other charges or credits authorized
by law, to recover the costs and confer the benefits of net
energy metering shall include such measures necessary to ensure
that the electrical utility recovers its cost of providing
electrical service to customer-generators and customers who are
not customer-generators.
(2) Any charges or credits
prescribed in item (1), and the terms and conditions under which
they may be assessed shall be in accordance with a methodology
established through the proceeding described in item (4). The
methodology shall be supported by an analysis and calculation of
the relative benefits and costs of customer generation to the
electrical utility, the customer-generators, and those customers
of the electrical utility that are not customer-generators.
(3) Upon approval of the
methodology provided for in item (4), each electrical utility
shall file its analysis of the net cost to serve
customer-generators using the approved methodology and shall
propose new net energy metering rates.
(4) No later than thirty days
after the enactment of this act, the commission shall initiate a
generic proceeding for purposes of implementing the requirements
of this chapter with respect to the net energy metering rates,
tariffs, charges, and credits of electrical utilities,
specifically to establish the methodology to set any necessary
charges and credits as required under items (1) and (2). All
interested parties shall be allowed to participate. In its
notice initiating such proceeding the commission must require
the electrical utilities to propose methodologies required by
item (1) and shall allow intervening parties to propose
methodologies required by item (2). The Office of Regulatory
Staff, pursuant to the requirements of Section 58-4-50, shall
represent the public interest in this proceeding and shall serve
as a facilitator to resolve disputes and issues between the
parties to this proceeding.
(5) In evaluating the benefits
and costs of customer generation as required by item (2), and
the methodology for calculating such benefits and costs, the
Office of Regulatory Staff may engage third parties with
relevant prior experience conducting distributed generation
cost-benefit studies. The cost of any experts and consultants
engaged by the Office of Regulatory Staff for purposes of this
proceeding shall be assessed to the electrical utilities pro
rata based on their five-year average of retail peak demand and
shall be recoverable by those electrical utilities through the
base rate for fuel costs established pursuant to Section
58-27-865.
(6) In the event that the
commission determines that future benefits from net energy
metering are properly reflected in net metering rates because
they provide quantifiable benefits to the utility system, its
customers, or both, and to the degree such benefits are not then
being recovered by the electrical utility in its base rates,
then such future benefits shall be deemed an avoided cost and
shall be recoverable pursuant to Section 58-27-865 by the
electrical utility as an incremental cost of the distributed
energy resource program.
(G) In no
event shall the net energy metering provisions of this chapter
be construed as allowing customer-generators to engage in meter
aggregation, group/joint billing projects, and/or virtual net
metering.
(H) The
commission shall approve an electrical utility's proposed net
energy metering rates that meet the requirements of this
chapter, provided that the commission has previously approved
that electrical utility's application to participate in a
distributed energy resource program pursuant to Chapter 39,
Title 58. (A)
It is the intent of the General Assembly to:
(1)
build upon the successful deployment of solar
generating capacity through the South Carolina Distributed
Resource Act to continue enabling market-driven, private
investment in distributed energy resources across the State by
reducing regulatory and administrative burdens to customer
installation and utilization of onsite distributed energy
resources;
(2) avoid disruption to the
growing market for customer-scale distributed energy resources;
and
(3)
require the commission to establish solar choice
metering requirements that fairly allocate costs and benefits to
eliminate any cost shift or subsidization associated with net
metering to the greatest extent practicable.
(B) An
electrical utility shall make net energy metering available to
all customer-generators who apply before June 1, 2021 according
to the terms and conditions provided to all parties in
commission Order No. 2015-194. Customer-generators who apply for
net metering after the effective date of this act but before
June 1, 2021, including subsequent owners of the
customer-generator facility or premises, may continue net energy
metering service as provided for in commission Order No.
2015-194 until May 31, 2029.
(C) No later
than January 1, 2020, the commission shall open a generic docket
to:
(1)
investigate and determine the costs and benefits
of the current net energy metering program; and
(2)
establish a methodology for calculating the
value of the energy produced by customer-generators.
(D) In
evaluating the costs and benefits of the net energy metering
program, the commission shall consider:
(1)
the aggregate impact of customer-generators on
the electrical utility's long-run marginal costs of generation,
distribution, and transmission;
(2)
the cost of service implications of
customer-generators on other customers within the same class,
including evaluation of whether customer-generators provide an
adequate rate of return to the electrical utility compared to
the otherwise applicable rate class when, for analytical
purposes only, examined as a separate class within a cost of
service study;
(3)
the value of distributed energy resource
generation according to the methodology approved by the
commission in commission Order No. 2015-194;
(4)
the direct and indirect economic impact of the
net energy metering program to the state; and
(5)
any other information the commission deems
relevant.
(E) The
value of the energy produced by customer-generators must be
updated annually and the methodology revisited every five
years.
(F) After
notice and opportunity for public comment and public hearing,
the commission shall establish a new 'solar choice metering
tariff' for customer-generators to go into effect for
applications received after May 31, 2021. In establishing the
successor solar choice metering tariff, and in approving any
future modifications, the commission shall determine how meter
information is used for calculating the solar choice metering
measurement that is just and reasonable in light of the costs
and benefits of the solar choice metering program. The new solar
choice metering tariff established pursuant to this subsection
shall include a methodology to compensate customer-generators
for the benefits provided by their generation to the power
system. In determining the appropriate billing mechanism and
energy measurement interval, the commission shall consider:
(1)
current metering capability and the cost of
upgrading hardware and billing systems to accomplish the
provisions of the tariff;
(2)
the interaction of the tariff with time-variant
rate schedules available to customer-generators and whether
different measurement intervals are justified for
customer-generators taking service on a time-variant rate
schedule;
(3)
whether additional mitigation measures are
warranted to transition existing customer-generators;
and
(4)
any other information the commission deems
relevant.
(G) In
establishing a successor solar choice metering tariff, the
commission is directed to:
(1)
eliminate any cost shift to the greatest extent
practicable on customers who do not have customer-sited
generation while also ensuring access to customer-generator
options for customers who choose to enroll in customer-generator
programs; and
(2)
permit solar choice customer-generators to use
customer-generated energy behind the meter without penalty.
(H) The
commission shall establish a minimum guaranteed number of years
to which solar choice metering customers are entitled pursuant
to the commission approved energy measurement interval and other
terms of their agreement with the electrical utility.
(I)
Nothing in this section, however, prohibits an
electrical utility from continuing to recover distributed energy
resource program costs in the manner and amount approved
by commission Order No. 2015-914 for customer-generators
applying before June 1, 2021. Such recovery shall remain
in place until full cost recovery is realized. Electrical
utilities are prohibited from recovering lost revenues
associated with customer-generators who apply for customer-
generator programs after June 1, 2021."
SECTION 6. Section 58-27-2610 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 58-27-2610.
(A) An entity that owns a renewable
electric generation facility, located on a premises or residence
owned or leased by an eligible customer-generator lessee to
serve the electric energy requirements of that particular
premises or residence or to enable the customer-generator lessee
to obtain a credit for or engage in the sale of energy from the
renewable electric generation facility to that
customer-generator lessee's retail electric provider or its
designee, shall be permitted to lease such facility exclusively
to a customer-generator lessee under a lease, provided that the
entity complies with the terms, conditions, and restrictions set
forth within this article and holds a valid certificate issued
by the Office of Regulatory Staff. An entity owning renewable
electric generation facilities in compliance with the terms of
this article shall not be considered an 'electrical utility'
under Section 58-27-10 if the renewable electric generation
facilities are only made available to a customer-generator
lessee for the customer-generator lessee's use on the
customer-generator lessee's premises or the residence where the
renewable electric generation facilities are located, or for the
sale of energy to that customer-generator lessee's retail
electric provider or its designee, and pursuant to a lease.
(B) All
customer-generator lessees that interconnect renewable electric
generation facilities to a retail electric provider's
transmission or distribution system must enroll in the
applicable rate schedules made available by that retail electric
provider, subject to the participation limitations set forth
therein or in the policy adopted by the retail electric provider
not subject to Section 58-40-20(B), and the customer-generator
lessee shall otherwise comply with all requirements of Section
58-40-10, et seq., or the policy adopted by the retail electric
provider not subject to Section 58-40-10, et seq.
(C) To
comply with the terms of this article, each customer-generator
lessee renewable electric generation facility shall serve only
one premises or residence, and shall not serve multiple
customer-generator lessees or multiple premises or
residences.
(D)(C)
Any lease of a renewable electric generation
facility not entered into pursuant to this article is
prohibited. The owner of a renewable electric generation
facility subject to any lease entered into outside of this
program shall be considered an 'electrical utility' under
Section 58-27-10.
(E)(D)
This section shall not be construed as allowing any
sales of electricity from renewable electric generation
facilities directly to any customer of any retail electric
provider by the owner. This article shall not be construed as
abridging or impairing any existing rights or obligations,
established by contract or statute, of retail electric providers
to serve South Carolina customers. The electrical output from
any renewable electric generation unit leased pursuant to this
program shall be the sole and exclusive property of the
customer-generator lessee.
(F)(E)
An entity and its affiliates that lawfully provide
retail electric service to the public may offer leases of
renewable generation facilities in those areas or territories
where it provides retail electric service. No such provider or
affiliate shall offer or enter into leases of renewable
generation facilities in areas served by another retail electric
provider.
(G)(F)
The costs an electrical utility incurs in
marketing, installing, owning, or maintaining solar leases
through its own leasing programs as a lessor shall not be
recovered from other nonparticipating electrical utility
customers through rates, provided, however, that an electrical
utility and the customer-generator lessees which lease
facilities from it may participate on an equal basis with other
lessors and lessees in any applicable programs provided pursuant
to Chapter 39 and nothing in this section shall prevent the
reasonable and prudent costs of a utility's distributed energy
resource programs, including the provision of incentives to its
own lessees and other allowable costs, from being reflected in a
utility's rates as provided for in Chapter 39 or as otherwise
permitted under generally applicable regulatory principles.
(H)
The total installed capacity of all renewable
electric generation facilities on a retail electric provider's
system that are leased pursuant to this article shall not exceed
two percent of the previous five-year average of the retail
electric provider's South Carolina residential and commercial
contribution to coincident retail peak demand and two percent of
the previous five-year average of the retail electric provider's
South Carolina industrial contribution to coincident retail peak
demand. A provider may refuse to interconnect with customers
where to do so would result in this limitation being exceeded.
Every retail electric provider must establish a program for new
installations of leased equipment to permit the reservation of
capacity on its system including provisions to prevent or
discourage abuse of such programs. Such programs must provide
that only prospective individual customer-generator lessees may
apply for, receive, and hold reservations. Each reservation
shall be for a single customer premises only and may not be
sold, exchanged, traded, or assigned except as part of the sale
of the underlying premises. Requests for reservations to
electrical utilities as defined in Section 58-27-10 shall
accompany applications for interconnection of the leased
facilities pursuant to Chapter 40, Title 58 and the reservation
shall remain in force only so long as the application or permit
for interconnection remains active. Electrical utilities as
defined in Section 58-27-10 shall submit programs establishing
the terms of such reservations to the commission for
approval.
(I)
Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (H), for an
electrical utility for which more than fifty percent of the
electricity that it generates in South Carolina comes from
renewable resources, the total installed capacity of all
renewable electric generation facilities on its system that are
leased pursuant to this article shall not exceed one-tenth of
one percent of the previous five-year average of the electrical
utility's South Carolina residential and commercial contribution
to coincident retail peak demand and one-tenth of one percent of
the previous five-year average of the electrical utility's South
Carolina industrial contribution to coincident retail peak
demand. Electrical utilities meeting the requirements of this
subsection shall not be required to establish a capacity
reservation program as required by subsection (H).
(J)(G)(1)
The provisions of this Article 23 related to leased
generation facilities shall not apply to:
(a)
facilities serving a single premises that are not
interconnected with a retail electric provider;
(b)
facilities owned by customer-generators but financed by a
third party; or
(c)
facilities used exclusively for standby emergency service
or participation in an approved standby generation program
operated by a retail electric provider.
(2)
The commission may promulgate regulations consistent with
this section interpreting the scope of these exemptions as to
electrical utilities."
SECTION 7. Chapter 37, Title 58 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 58-37-60.
(A) The commission, in coordination
with the Office of Regulatory Staff, is authorized to initiate
an independent study to evaluate the integration of renewable
energy and emerging energy technologies into the electric grid
for the public good. An integration study conducted pursuant to
this section shall evaluate what is required for electrical
utilities to integrate increased levels of renewable energy and
emerging energy technologies while maintaining economic,
reliable, and safe operation of the electricity grid in a manner
consistent with the public good. Studies shall be based on the
balancing areas of each electrical utility. A steering committee
of interested stakeholders may be established to select the
study consultant and participate in discussion about the
development of the report. The results of the independent study
shall be reported to the General Assembly.
(B) The commission may
require regular updates from utilities regarding the
implementation of renewable energy.
(C) The commission may
hire or retain a consultant to assist with the independent study
authorized by this section. The commission is exempt from
complying with the State Procurement Code in the selection and
hiring of the consultant authorized by this subsection."
SECTION 8. Section 58-37-40 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 58-37-40. (A)
Electrical utilities and the South Carolina Public
Service Authority must prepare integrated resource plans. The
South Carolina Public Service Authority and electrical utilities
regulated by the Public Service Commission must submit their
plans to the State Energy Office. The plan submitted by the
South Carolina Public Service Authority must be developed in
consultation with electric cooperatives and municipally-owned
electric utilities purchasing power and energy from the
authority and must include the effect of demand-side management
activities of electric cooperatives and municipally-owned
electric utilities which directly purchase power and energy from
the authority or sell power and energy which the authority
generates. All plans must be submitted every three years and
must be updated on an annual basis. The first integrated
resource plan of the South Carolina Public Service Authority
must be submitted no later than June 30, 1993. An integrated
resource plan may be patterned after the integrated resource
planning process developed by the Public Service Commission. For
electrical utilities subject to the jurisdiction of the
commission, submission of their plans as required by the
commission constitutes compliance with this section. Nothing in
this subsection may be construed as requiring interstate natural
gas companies whose rates and services are regulated only by the
federal government or gas utilities subject to the jurisdiction
of the South Carolina Public Service Commission to prepare and
submit an integrated resource plan. Each electrical
utility must prepare integrated resource plans consistent with
this section and rules adopted by the commission. All
comprehensive plans must be prepared and submitted to the
commission at least every three years and must be updated on an
annual basis in interim years. Nothing in this subsection may be
construed as requiring interstate natural gas companies whose
rates and services are regulated only by the federal government
or gas utilities subject to the jurisdiction of the commission
to prepare and submit an integrated resource plan.
(B)
Electric Electrical cooperatives
and municipally-owned electric municipally
owned electrical utilities must
shall submit integrated resource plans to the State
Energy Office whenever they are required by federal law to
prepare these plans or if they plan to acquire, by purchase or
construction, ownership of additional generating capacity
greater than twelve megawatts per unit. An integrated resource
plan must be submitted to the State Energy Office by an
electric electrical cooperative or
municipally-owned electric municipally owned
electrical utility twelve months before the acquisition, by
purchase or construction, of additional generating capacity in
excess of twelve megawatts per unit. For an
electric electrical cooperative,
submission to the State Energy Office of its plan in a format
complying with the then current Rural Electrification
Administration United States Department of
Agriculture's Rural Utilities Service regulations
constitutes compliance with this section.
(C) The State
Energy Office, to the extent practicable, shall evaluate and
comment on external environmental and economic consequences of
each integrated resource plan submitted and on the environmental
and economic consequences for suppliers and
distributors. The South Carolina Public Service
Authority shall prepare integrated resource plans that must be
submitted to the State Energy Office. These plans must be
developed in consultation with the electric cooperatives and
municipally owned electrical utilities purchasing power and
energy from the authority and consider any feedback provided by
retail customers and shall include the effect of demand-side
management activities of the electric cooperatives and
municipally owned electrical utilities that directly purchase
power and energy from the authority or sell power and energy
generated by the authority. All plans must be submitted every
three years and must be updated on an annual basis.
(D) The
State Energy Office shall coordinate the preparation of an
integrated resource plan for the State and shall coordinate with
regional groups, including the Southern States Energy
Board. An integrated resource plan shall include all
of the following:
(1)
a long-term forecast of the utility's sales and
peak demand under various reasonable scenarios;
(2)
the type of generation technology proposed for a
generation facility contained in the plan and the proposed
capacity of the generation facility, including fuel cost
sensitivities under various reasonable scenarios;
(3)
projected energy purchased or produced by the
electrical utility from a renewable energy resource;
(4)
a summary of the electrical transmission
investments planned by the electrical utility;
(5)
several resource portfolios developed with the
purpose of fairly evaluating the range of demand-side,
supply-side, storage, and other technologies and services
available to meet the utility's service obligations. Such
portfolios and evaluations must include an evaluation of low,
medium, and high cases for the adoption of renewable energy and
cogeneration, energy efficiency, and demand response measures,
including consideration of the following:
(a)
customer energy efficiency and demand response
programs;
(b)
facility retirement assumptions; and
(c)
sensitivity analyses related to fuel costs,
environmental regulations, and other uncertainties or
risks;
(6)
data regarding the utility's current generation
portfolio, including the age, licensing status, and remaining
estimated life of operation for each facility in the
portfolio;
(7)
plans for meeting current and future capacity
needs with the cost estimates for all proposed resource
portfolios in the plan;
(8)
an analysis of the cost and reliability impacts
of all reasonable options available to meet projected energy and
capacity needs; and
(9)
a forecast of the utility's peak demand and
details regarding the amount of peak demand reduction the
utility expects to achieve and the actions the utility proposes
to take in order to achieve that peak demand reduction.
(E) The State
Energy Office must not exercise any regulatory authority with
regard to the requirements set forth in this chapter.
The integrated resource plan may include distribution
resource plans or integrated system operation plans.
(F) At least
every three years coincident with the utilities' comprehensive
integrated resource plan filings, the commission shall review
each integrated resource plan in a separate commission
proceeding. As part of the comprehensive integrated resource
plan filings, the commission shall allow intervention by
interested persons including electrical customers of the
utility, independent power producers, and other parties accepted
by the commission. The commission shall establish a procedural
schedule to permit reasonable discovery after an integrated
resource plan is filed in order to assist parties in obtaining
evidence concerning the integrated resource plan, including, to,
the reasonableness and prudence of the plan and alternatives to
the plan raised by intervening parties. Not later than three
hundred days after an electrical utility files an integrated
resource plan under this section, the commission shall issue a
final order approving, modifying or denying the plan filed by
the electrical utility.
(G) In the
interim integrated resource plan update years between
comprehensive integrated resource plan filings, the utilities
shall revise their base planning assumptions relative to their
most recently accepted resource plan and present the impacts
those changes had on the selected resource plan. At a minimum,
the utility shall update its energy and demand forecast,
commodity fuel price inputs, the utilities' renewable energy
forecast, their energy efficiency and demand-side management
forecasts, any changes to projected retirement dates of the
utilities' existing units along with other inputs the commission
deems to be for the public good. The Office of Regulatory Staff
shall review the updates and submit a report to the commission
providing a recommendation concerning the reasonableness of the
updated resource plan. Following the filing of the updated
integrated resource plan and the Office of Regulatory Staff
report, the commission may accept the updated integrated
resource plan or direct the utility to make changes to the
updated resource plan that the commission determines to be for
the public good.
(H) The
commission shall accept an integrated resource plan if the
commission determines that the proposed integrated resource plan
represents the most reasonable and prudent means of meeting the
electrical utility's energy and capacity needs as of the time
the plan is reviewed. To determine whether the integrated
resource plan is the most reasonable and prudent means of
meeting energy and capacity needs, the commission, in its
discretion, shall consider whether the plan appropriately
balances the following factors:
(1)
resource adequacy and capacity to serve
anticipated peak electrical load, and applicable planning
reserve margin;
(2)
consumer affordability and least cost;
(3)
compliance with applicable state and federal
environmental regulations;
(4)
power supply reliability;
(5)
commodity price risks;
(6)
diversity of generation supply; and
(7)
other foreseeable conditions that the commission
determines to be for the public good.
(I) If
the commission modifies or rejects an electrical utility's
integrated resource plan, the electrical utility, within sixty
days after the date of the final order, shall submit a revised
plan addressing concerns identified by the commission and
incorporating commission mandated revisions to the integrated
resource plan to the commission for approval. Within sixty days
of the utility's revised filing, the Office of Regulatory Staff
shall review the utility's revised plan and submit a report to
the commission assessing the sufficiency of the revised filing.
Other parties to the IRP proceeding also may submit comments.
Not later than sixty days after the Office of Regulatory Staff
report is filed with the commission, the commission at its
discretion may determine whether to accept the revised
integrated resource plan or to mandate further remedies that the
commission deems appropriate and for the public good.
(J) The
submission, review, and acceptance of an IRP, or the inclusion
of any specific resource or experience in an accepted IRP, shall
not be determinative of the reasonableness or prudence of the
acquisition or construction of any resource or the making of any
expenditure and the electrical utility shall retain the burden
of proof to show that all of its investments and expenditures
are reasonable and prudent when seeking cost recovery in
rates."
SECTION 9. Section 58-33-110 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding an appropriately numbered item at the end to read:
"( )(a) A person
may not commence construction of a major utility facility for
generation in the State of South Carolina without first having
made a demonstration that the facility to be built has been
compared to other generation options in terms of cost,
reliability, and any other regulatory implications deemed
legally or reasonably necessary for consideration by the
commission. The commission is authorized to adopt rules for such
evaluation of other generation options.
(b)
The commission may, upon a showing of a need, require a
commission-approved process that includes:
(i)
the assessment of an unbiased
independent evaluator retained by the Office of Regulatory Staff
as to reasonableness of any certificate sought under this
section for new generation;
(ii)
a report from the independent evaluator to the commission
regarding the transparency, completeness, and integrity of
bidding processes, if any;
(iii)
a reasonable period for interested parties to review and
comment on proposed requests for proposals, bid instructions,
and bid evaluation criteria, if any, prior to finalization and
issuance, subject to any trade secrets that could hamper future
negotiations; however, the independent evaluator may access all
such information;
(iv)
independent evaluator access and review of final bid
evaluation criteria and pricing information for any and all
projects to be evaluated in comparison to the request for
proposal bids received;
(v)
access through discovery, subject to appropriate
confidentiality, attorney client privilege or trade secret
restrictions, for parties to this proceeding to documents
developed in preparing the certificate of public convenience and
necessity application;
(vi) a demonstration
that the facility is consistent with an integrated resource plan
approved by the commission; and
(vii)
treatment of utility affiliates in the same manner as
nonaffiliates participating in the request for proposal
process."
SECTION 10. Section 58-27-460 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 58-27-460.
(A)(1) The commission shall promulgate and
periodically review standards for interconnection of
renewable energy facilities and other nonutility-owned
generation and parallel operation of generating
facilities with a generation capacity of two
thousand kilowatts (2,000 kW AC) eighty megawatts
(80 MW AC) or less to an electrical utility's distribution
and transmission system where:
(a)
the generating facility is a qualifying facility
under PURPA and is precluded from selling any portion of the
output of its generating facility to an entity other than the
electrical utility to which it is interconnecting; or
(b)
the generating facility is not a qualifying
facility under PURPA and is interconnected to a 'first use'
distribution facility of the utility.
Each electrical utility shall implement
such standards in a fair, nondiscriminatory manner.
(2)
The commission shall, within six months of the
effective date of the amendments to this section, establish
proceedings for the purpose of considering revisions to the
standards promulgated pursuant to this section. In developing
such revisions, the commission may consider any issue, which, in
the exercise of its discretion, the commission deems relevant to
improving the fairness and effectiveness of the procedures.
(3)
In implementing item (1), the commission shall
ensure such standards provide for efficient and timely
processing of interconnection requests and take into account the
impact of generator interconnection on electrical utility system
assets, service reliability, and power quality. Such standards
shall address the impact of the addition of energy storage and
the interconnection processes for amending existing
interconnection requests to include energy storage. The
commission shall enact standards that are fair, reasonable,
nondiscriminatory with respect to interconnection applicants,
other utility customers, and electrical utilities, and the
standards shall serve the public good in terms of overall cost
and system reliability.
(B) No customer-generator or
customer-generator lessee generating facility
shall connect or operate an electric generation
unit in parallel phase and synchronization with any
electrical utility without written approval by the electrical
utility that all of the commission's requirements have been met.
For a customer-generator or customer-generator lessee
who generating facility that violates this
provision, an electrical utility immediately may and without
notice disconnect the electric facilities of the
customer-generator or customer-generator lessee and terminate
the customer-generator's or customer-generator lessee's
generating facility electric service.
(C) In the
event of a dispute between an interconnection customer and the
electrical utility on an issue relating to interconnection, the
parties first shall attempt to resolve the claim or dispute
using any dispute resolution procedures provided for pursuant to
the applicable interconnection standards promulgated by the
commission. If the parties are unable to resolve such claim or
dispute using those procedures, then either party may petition
the commission for resolution of the dispute including, but not
limited to, a determination of the appropriate terms and
conditions for interconnection. The commission shall resolve
such disputes within six months from the filing of the petition
in accordance with the terms of applicable state and federal
law.
(D) Each
electrical utility shall comply with the South Carolina
generator interconnection procedures and all commission-approved
agreements regarding interconnection practices and reporting
requirements. The commission shall establish reasonable
guidelines to ensure reasonable interconnection timelines,
including time requirements to deliver a final system impact
study to all interconnection customers that execute a system
impact study agreement prior to three months after the effective
date of this act. The commission shall consider implementation
of additional performance incentives and enforcement mechanisms
for electrical utilities to ensure compliance with this
requirement."
SECTION 11. Chapter 4, Title 58 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 58-4-140. (A)(1) The Office of Regulatory Staff, in collaboration with the Department of Consumer Affairs, is directed to develop consumer protection regulations. These regulations shall provide for the appropriate disclosure provided by sellers and lessors. Sellers must comply with Title 37. Nothing herein alters existing protections afforded by Title 37.
(2)
To fulfill the duties and responsibilities provided for in
this section, the Office of Regulatory staff shall develop a
formal complaint process as part of the consumer protection
regulations.
(B) The Office of
Regulatory Staff is authorized to enforce any applicable
consumer protection provision set forth in this title by:
(1)
conducting an investigation into an alleged violation;
(2)
issuing a cease and desist order against a further
violation;
(3)
imposing an administrative fine not to exceed two thousand
five hundred dollars per violation on a solar company that
materially fails to comply with the consumer protection
requirements; and
(4)
voiding the agreement if necessary to remedy the violation
or violations."
SECTION 12. All costs incurred by the utility necessary to effectuate this act, that are not precluded from recovery by other provisions of this act and that do not have a recovery mechanism otherwise specified in other provisions of the act or established by state law, shall be deferred for Commission consideration of recovery in any proceeding initiated under Section 58-27-870, if deemed reasonable and prudent.
SECTION 13. Notwithstanding another provision of this act, or another provision of law, no costs or expenses incurred nor any payments made by the electrical utility in compliance or in accordance with this act must be included in the electrical utility's rates or otherwise be borne by the general body of South Carolina retail customers of the electrical utility without an affirmative finding supported by the preponderance of evidence of record and conclusion in a written order by the Public Service Commission that such expense, cost or payment was reasonable and prudent and made in the best interest of the electrical utility's general body of customers.
SECTION 14. The provisions of this act are severable. If any section, subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, item, subitem, sentence, clause, phrase, or word of this act is for any reason held to be unconstitutional or invalid, such holding shall not affect the constitutionality or validity of the remaining portions of the act, the General Assembly hereby declaring that it would have passed each and every section, subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, item, subitem, sentence, clause, phrase, and word thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more other sections, subsections, paragraphs, subparagraphs, items, subitems, sentences, clauses, phrases, or words hereof may be declared to be unconstitutional, invalid, or otherwise ineffective.
SECTION 15. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor. /
Renumber sections to conform.
Amend title to conform.