AN ACT relating to public utilities; amending authority of the public service commission as specified; providing authority to purchasers of retiring coal fired power plants as specified; amending limitations on retiring facilities; specifying applicability; and providing for an effective date.
ElectionsEnergyTaxes
Enacted
This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.
Sponsor
Corporations
Last action
2020-03-10
Official status
enrolled
Effective date
7/1/2021
Plain English Breakdown
The bill summary and text do not provide specific details on how utilities can charge extra money to customers.
Rules for Selling Coal-Fired Power Plants
The bill changes rules about selling coal-fired power plants and buying electricity from them.
What This Bill Does
Allows the buyer of a retiring coal plant to sell electricity generated by that plant back to the original utility, but only if the customer has high demand for electricity.
Requires utilities trying to close down coal plants to first try selling those plants to other people who want to keep them running.
Limits how much extra money utilities can charge customers when they buy electricity from a retiring coal plant.
Who It Names or Affects
Utilities that own and operate coal-fired power plants
People or companies interested in purchasing these plants
Terms To Know
Coal fired electric generation facility
A power plant that generates electricity by burning coal.
Retail customer
An individual or business buying electricity from a utility company.
Limits and Unknowns
The bill only applies to facilities retiring on or after July 1, 2021.
It does not specify what happens if the buyer of a coal plant cannot sell electricity back to the original utility.
Amendments
These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.
Plain English: The amendment modifies a bill about coal-fired power plants by changing how certain sections are numbered and adding new requirements for customers who want electricity from retiring coal facilities.
Changes the numbering of paragraphs in section (g) to remove paragraph (g)(ii) and renumber (g)(iii) as (g)(ii).
Adds a new subsection (h) that requires eligible retail customers to purchase partial requirements or equivalent service from an electric public utility if they want electricity from the owner of a retiring coal-fired power plant.
The amendment text is technical and may be difficult for some readers to understand fully without additional context about the bill's original content.
Standing Committee • Senate Corporations, Elections & Political Subdivi
Adopted
Plain English: The amendment allows purchasers of retiring coal-fired power plants to sell electricity from these plants directly to large customers within the utility's service area under specific conditions.
Adds new provisions allowing a person who buys a retiring coal-fired electric generation facility to sell electricity generated by that facility to an existing utility for its retail customers, provided those customers meet certain demand and voltage requirements.
Specifies that if an electric utility purchases electricity from the owner of a retiring coal plant for eligible customers, it must pass through the cost without markup except for taxes and assessments as required by law.
Requires participating customers to also purchase partial requirements or equivalent service from their public utility under rates set by the commission.
The amendment includes complex financial terms that may be hard to understand without additional context about electricity markets and regulatory processes.
Bill History
2020-03-10LSO
Assigned Chapter Number 41
2020-03-10Governor
Governor Signed SEA No. 0023
2020-03-06House
H Speaker Signed SEA No. 0023
2020-03-05Senate
S President Signed SEA No. 0023
2020-03-05LSO
Assigned Number SEA No. 0023
2020-03-05House
H 3rd Reading:Passed 54-6-0-0-0
2020-03-04House
H 2nd Reading:Passed
2020-03-03House
H COW:Passed
2020-02-26House
H Placed on General File
2020-02-26House
H07 - Corporations:Recommend Do Pass 8-0-1-0-0
2020-02-24House
H Introduced and Referred to H07 - Corporations
2020-02-24House
H Received for Introduction
2020-02-21Senate
S 3rd Reading:Passed 29-0-0-0-1
2020-02-20Senate
S 3rd Reading:Laid Back
2020-02-19Senate
S 2nd Reading:Passed
2020-02-18Senate
S COW:Passed
2020-02-14Senate
S Placed on General File
2020-02-14Senate
S07 - Corporations:Recommend Amend and Do Pass 5-0-0-0-0
2020-02-10Senate
S Introduced and Referred to S07 - Corporations 28-0-2-0-0
2020-02-07Senate
S Received for Introduction
2019-12-17LSO
Bill Number Assigned
Official Summary Text
Bill Summary - 20LSO-0013
Bill No.:
SF0021
Effective:
7/1/2021 12:00:00 AM
LSO No.:
20LSO-0013
Enrolled Act No.:
SEA No. 0023
Chapter No.:
41
Prime Sponsor:
Joint Corporations, Elections & Political Subdivisions Interim Committee
Catch Title:
Coal fired electric generation facilities.
Subject:
Coal fired power plant sale amendments.
Summary/Major Elements:
Current law limits cost recovery for public utilities (utilities) that retire coal fired electric generation facilities (facilities) unless the utility first made a good faith effort to sell the facility. Current law also exempts a person purchasing an otherwise retiring coal fired electric generation facility from regulation as a utility, provides a process for the sale of an otherwise retiring coal fired electric generation facility and requires a utility to purchase electricity from an otherwise retiring facility if offered at a specified rate.
The bill allows the purchaser of a facility to sell electricity generated by the facility to the utility selling the facility in order to pass on the generated electricity with specifically permitted markups to customers meeting certain criteria.
The bill also requires any utility seeking to retire a facility to first make a good faith effort to sell the facility for continued use as a coal fired electric generation facility.
The above summary is not an official publication of the Wyoming Legislature and is not an official statement of legislative intent. While the Legislative Service Office endeavored to provide accurate information in this summary, it should not be relied upon as a comprehensive abstract of the bill.
Current Bill Text
Read the full stored bill text
20LSO-0013
ORIGINAL Senate
File No
.
SF0021
ENROLLED ACT NO. 23,
SENATE
SIXTY-FIFTH LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WYOMING
2020 Budget Session
AN ACT relating to public utilities; amending authority of the public service commission as specified; providing authority to purchasers of retiring coal fired power plants as specified; amending limitations on retiring facilities; specifying applicability; and providing for an effective date.
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:
Section 1
.
W.S. 37
‑
2
‑
133(a) and by creating new subsections (f) through (h) and 37
‑
3
‑
117(a) are amended to read:
37
‑
2
‑
133.
Exemption for purchase of coal fired generation facilities that would otherwise have been retired;
public utility purchase requirements; conditions for exemption.
(a)
Except as otherwise provided in this section, t
he
provisions of this chapter and chapters 1 and 3 of this title shall not apply to a person who operates a coal fired electric generation facility purchased under an agreement approved by the commission under W.S. 37
‑
3
‑
117.
(f)
A person purchasing an otherwise retiring coal fired electric generation facility may sell electricity generated by the facility to the electric public utility selling the otherwise retiring coal fired electric generation facility, except for a cooperative or municipal public utility, for the benefit of a retail customer located in the existing service territory of that electric public utility provided that the customer has more than one (1) megawatt average demand and takes service at a primary or transmission voltage level.
(g)
If an electric utility purchases electricity from the owner of an otherwise retiring coal fired electric generation facility for the benefit of an eligible retail
customer, the utility serving that eligible retail customer shall purchase the electricity at a cost and under terms and conditions that are acceptable to and negotiated between the customer and the owner of the otherwise retiring coal fired electric generation facility. The electric public utility shall pass that cost through to the customer without markup or modification except:
(i)
For the collection of applicable taxes and the appropriate uniform assessment, which shall be collected pursuant to W.S. 37
‑
2
‑
106 through 37
‑
2
‑
109;
(ii)
To ensure other Wyoming customers are not negatively impacted by the arrangement provided for in this subsection and subsection (f) of this section, the commission shall also authorize the utility to impose additional charges on participating retail customers to the extent the commission determines that a sale of electricity under this subsection and subsection (f) of this section will result in the utility experiencing incremental stranded generation capacity costs or other incremental costs except for the cost of any undepreciated investments associated with the otherwise retiring coal fired electric generation facility.
(h)
An eligible retail customer under subsection (g) of this section shall only receive electricity as provided in subsection (g) of this section from the owner of an otherwise retiring coal fired electric generation facility if the customer also purchases partial requirements or equivalent service from the electric public utility under rates, terms and conditions set by the commission to compensate the public utility for its costs.
37
‑
3
‑
117.
Limitation for recovery of costs associated with electric generation built to replace retiring coal fired generation facility.
(a)
Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter
:
,
(i)
Any electric public utility seeking to retire a coal fired electric generation facility shall first make a good faith effort to sell the facility for continued use as a coal fired electric generation facility;
(ii)
T
he rates charged by an electric public utility, other than a cooperative electric utility, shall not include any recovery of or earnings on the capital costs associated with new electric generation facilities built, in whole or in part, to replace the electricity generated from one (1) or more coal fired electric generating facilities located in Wyoming and retired on or after January 1, 2022, unless the commission has determined that the public utility that owned the retired coal fired electric generation facility made a good faith effort to sell the facility to another person prior to its retirement and that the public utility did not refuse a reasonable offer to purchase the facility or the commission determines that, if a reasonable offer was received, the sale was not completed for a reason beyond the reasonable control of the public utility.
Section 2.
This act shall apply to coal fired electric generation facilities retiring on or after July 1, 2021.
Section 3.
This act is effective July 1, 2021
.
(END)
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