Read the full stored bill text
20LSO-0251
2020
STATE OF WYOMING
20LSO-0251
Introduced
2.0
SENATE FILE NO. SF0066
Retiring electric generation facilities-financial assurance.
Sponsored by: Senator(s) Driskill, Anderson, Bebout, Boner, Hicks and Wasserburger and Representative(s) Barlow, Clem, Harshman, Lindholm and MacGuire
A BILL
for
AN ACT relating to environmental quality and public utilities; requiring deposits of financial assurance for retiring facilities as specified; defining terms; making conforming amendments; and providing for effective dates.
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:
Section 1
.
W.S. 35
‑
11
‑
2101, 35
‑
11
‑
2102 and 37
‑
2
‑
134 are created to read:
ARTICLE 21
FINANCIAL ASSURANCE REQUIREMENTS FOR RETIRING FACILITIES
35
‑
11
‑
2101.
Definitions.
(a)
As used in this article:
(i)
"Financial assurance" means a bond, federally insured certificates of deposit, government securities or a cash deposit, or any combination thereof;
(ii)
"Public utility" means as defined in W.S. 37
‑
1
‑
101(a)(vi);
(iii)
"Retiring facility" means an electric generation facility or a unit of an electric generation facility that is operated by a public utility and, through designation in an integrated resource plan:
(A)
Is slated for closure, deactivation, decommissioning, or retirement for reasons other than routine maintenance; or
(B)
Is closed, retired, decommissioned or deactivated after July 1, 2020.
35
‑
11
‑
2102.
Decommissioning and financial assurance requirements for retiring facilities.
(a)
Not later than two (2) years before a public utility retires or closes a retiring facility, the public utility shall provide financial assurance payable to the department in a type acceptable to the director and in an amount equal to one hundred percent (100%) of the total costs, as determined by the director and after submission of a decommissioning plan to be approved by the director, of decommissioning the retiring facility, including:
(i)
All remediation and reclamation associated with the retiring facility itself;
(ii)
All associated disposal ponds and infrastructure, including diversion structures and water conveyance systems;
(iii)
Roads constructed by the public utility;
(iv)
Ancillary infrastructure and facilities;
(v)
Groundwater contamination.
(b)
The director shall annually adjust the amount of financial assurance required under subsection (a) of this section for a retiring facility for inflation using the consumer price index or its successor index of the United States department of labor, bureau of labor statistics, for the calendar year immediately preceding the date of adjustment. The public utility shall provide additional financial assurance for a retiring facility based on the amount of inflation as calculated under this subsection.
(c)
The financial assurance required under this section shall be expended by the department only for the proper closure, decommissioning and reclamation of the retiring facility. The department shall not transfer funds deposited under this section to any person who purchases the retiring facility under W.S. 37
‑
2
‑
133, 37
‑
3
‑
117 or any
other provision of law. The public utility seeking to retire the retiring facility shall be responsible for any additional costs for the decommissioning and reclamation of a retiring facility beyond those deposited with the department as required under this section.
(d)
When the director determines that decommissioning and closure activities have been completed for the retiring facility, the director shall release the financial assurance or any remaining portion thereof to the public utility, unless the director determines that the financial assurance is necessary to assure proper performance of any post
‑
closure and decommissioning activities still required of the public utility.
(e)
If the financial assurance submitted under this section is inadequate to cover the costs to carry out necessary decommissioning and reclamation activities and those costs are not paid to the department as required by this section, or if the department has expended state funds for decommissioning and reclamation, the attorney general
shall bring suit to recover the cost of performing the activities where recovery is deemed reasonably possible.
(f)
Before selling a retiring facility, the public utility shall provide notice to all prospective purchasers of the retiring facility that the retiring facility may be subject to the financial assurance requirements of this section. Before a facility is sold and transferred to a purchaser, the public utility shall demonstrate to the department and to the public service commission that the public utility provided notice to the purchaser as required by this subsection.
(g)
Upon receipt of the financial assurance required for a retiring facility, the director shall certify to the public service commission that it has received the financial assurance required by the department from the public utility for the closure, decommissioning and reclamation of the retiring facility.
37
‑
2
‑
134.
Retirement of electric generation facilities; certification of financial assurance.
(a)
The commission shall not approve the decommissioning, deactivation or closure of a retiring facility of a public utility until it has received certification from the director of the department of environmental quality that the public utility has deposited the required financial assurance with the department of environmental quality for the closure, decommissioning and reclamation of the retiring facility as required under W.S. 35
‑
11
‑
2102.
(b)
As used in this section, "retiring facility" means as defined in W.S. 35
‑
11
‑
2101(a)(iii).
Section 2.
W.S. 35
‑
11
‑
103(a)(xiii) is amended to read:
35
‑
11
‑
103.
Definitions.
(a)
For the purpose of this act, unless the context otherwise requires:
(xiii)
"This act" means W.S. 35
‑
11
‑
101 through 35
‑
11
‑
403, 35
‑
11
‑
405, 35
‑
11
‑
406, 35
‑
11
‑
408 through 35
‑
11
‑
1106, 35
‑
11
‑
1414 through 35
‑
11
‑
1432, 35
‑
11
‑
1601 through 35
‑
11
‑
1613, 35
‑
11
‑
1701, 35
‑
11
‑
1801 through 35
‑
11
‑
1803
,
and
35
‑
11
‑
2001 through 35
‑
11
‑
2004
and 35
‑
11
‑
2101 and 35
‑
11
‑
2102
.
Section 3.
The department of environmental quality shall promulgate any rules necessary to implement the provisions of this act.
Section 4
.
(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, this act is effective July 1, 2020.
(b) Sections 3 and 4 of t
his act are
effective immediately upon completion of all acts necessary for a bill to become law as provided by Article 4, Section 8 of the Wyoming Constitution.
(END)
1
SF0066