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SF0022 • 2024

Public service commission-electricity reliability.

AN ACT relating to public utilities; requiring the public service commission to establish standards related to electricity reliability; specifying that failing to comply with standards is subject to penalties; providing that the public service commission shall not allow for rate recovery for new or modified facilities that are likely to result in failure to comply with reliability standards; specifying that public utilities may enter into individualized energy contracts and may utilize customer-specific energy portfolios; and providing for an effective date.

Elections Energy
Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor
Corporations
Last action
2024-03-07
Official status
enrolled
Effective date
3/7/2024

Plain English Breakdown

The bill summary does not provide specific penalties beyond daily fines, leaving some uncertainty on enforcement mechanisms.

Electricity Reliability Standards for Public Utilities

This law requires the public service commission to set electricity reliability standards and penalizes utilities that do not follow these rules.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires the public service commission to establish baseline standards for electric reliability by December 15, 2024.
  • Sets penalties of up to $100,000 per day for each day a utility fails to meet the reliability standards.
  • Does not allow utilities to recover costs from customers if new or modified facilities are likely to cause them to fail to comply with reliability rules.
  • Allows public utilities to enter into individualized energy contracts and use customer-specific energy portfolios.

Who It Names or Affects

  • Public service commission
  • Electricity providers in Wyoming

Terms To Know

reliability standards
Rules set by the public service commission to ensure electricity is available and of good quality.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not specify how penalties will be enforced or collected.
  • It's unclear what happens if utilities cannot meet reliability standards due to unforeseen circumstances.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

SF0022HW001

Committee of the Whole • Representative Olsen

Corrected, Adopted

Plain English: The amendment adds language allowing public utilities to enter into individualized energy contracts and use customer-specific energy portfolios, while also ensuring these activities are not prohibited under existing regulations.

  • Adds a new clause specifying that public utilities can create individualized energy contracts and use customer-specific energy portfolios.
  • Modifies the text by inserting a comma instead of 'and' to improve readability.
  • The amendment's full impact on existing regulations is not entirely clear without further context or explanation.
SF0022S2001

2nd reading • Senator Ellis

Withdrawn

Plain English: The amendment removes a previous addition made by the Senate standing committee from the bill.

  • Removes language added by the Senate standing committee that was previously part of the bill.
  • The exact content and implications of the removed text are not provided, so its specific effects cannot be detailed.
SF0022SW001

Committee of the Whole • Senator Case

Adopted

Plain English: The amendment removes certain language from the bill about electricity reliability standards and adds new wording that allows the Public Service Commission to disallow some investments in resources if those resources do not operate as expected.

  • Removed specific phrases related to how non-compliance with reliability standards will result in penalties, changing it to a more flexible approach where the commission may disallow certain investments.
  • Added new language that gives the Public Service Commission the authority to exclude some or all of the costs associated with resources that do not perform as planned and cause higher expenses for the utility.
  • The exact penalties for non-compliance are not detailed in this amendment, only that the commission may disallow certain investments.
  • It is unclear how the new authority to exclude costs will be implemented or what specific criteria will determine which investments are affected.
SF0022SS001

Standing Committee • Senate Corporations, Elections & Political Subdivi

Adopted

Plain English: The amendment changes how public utilities can include certain types of energy resources in their rate recovery and updates penalties related to electricity reliability standards.

  • Removes references to 'new or modified' facilities when discussing rate recovery for investments that may not comply with reliability standards.
  • Modifies the language around dispatchable power requirements, ensuring utilities have adequate dispatchable power to maintain reliability.
  • Updates penalty provisions by specifying that a public utility failing to meet established standards will face consequences.
  • The amendment text does not provide full details on how penalties for non-compliance with reliability standards would be enforced or what specific actions utilities must take to ensure adequate dispatchable power.

Bill History

  1. 2024-03-07 LSO

    Assigned Chapter Number 58

  2. 2024-03-07 Governor

    Governor Signed SEA No. 0025

  3. 2024-03-04 House

    H Speaker Signed SEA No. 0025

  4. 2024-03-04 Senate

    S President Signed SEA No. 0025

  5. 2024-03-04 LSO

    Assigned Number SEA No. 0025

  6. 2024-03-04 Senate

    S Concur:Passed 24-1-6-0-0

  7. 2024-03-04 Senate

    S Received for Concurrence

  8. 2024-03-04 House

    H 3rd Reading:Passed 60-0-2-0-0

  9. 2024-03-01 House

    H 2nd Reading:Passed

  10. 2024-02-29 House

    H COW:Passed

  11. 2024-02-28 House

    H Placed on General File

  12. 2024-02-28 House

    H07 - Corporations:Recommend Do Pass 8-1-0-0-0

  13. 2024-02-26 House

    H Introduced and Referred to H07 - Corporations

  14. 2024-02-23 House

    H Received for Introduction

  15. 2024-02-23 Senate

    S 3rd Reading:Passed 31-0-0-0-0

  16. 2024-02-22 Senate

    S 2nd Reading:Passed

  17. 2024-02-21 Senate

    S 2nd Reading:Laid Back

  18. 2024-02-20 Senate

    S COW:Passed

  19. 2024-02-16 Senate

    S Placed on General File

  20. 2024-02-16 Senate

    S07 - Corporations:Recommend Amend and Do Pass 5-0-0-0-0

  21. 2024-02-12 Senate

    S Introduced and Referred to S07 - Corporations 31-0-0-0-0

  22. 2024-01-24 Senate

    S Received for Introduction

  23. 2023-12-18 LSO

    Bill Number Assigned

Official Summary Text

Bill Summary - 24LSO-0228

Bill No.:

SF0022

Effective:

Immediately

LSO No.:

24LSO-0228

Enrolled Act No.:

SEA No. 0025

Chapter No.:

58

Prime Sponsor:

Joint Corporations, Elections & Political Subdivisions Interim Committee

Catch Title:

Public service commission-electricity reliability.

Has Report:

No

Subject:

Electricity reliability.

Summary/Major Elements:

This bill requires the public service commission to establish standards related to electricity reliability and specifies that failing to comply with those standards will subject violators to penalties.

The bill provides that the public service commission shall not allow for rate recovery for new or modified facilities that are likely to result in failure to comply with reliability standards.

The bill specifies that it does not prevent public utilities from entering into individualized energy contracts or utilizing customer-specific energy portfolios.

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
24LSO-0228

ORIGINAL Senate

ENGROSSED
File No
.
SF0022

ENROLLED ACT NO. 25,

SENATE

SIXTY-SEVENTH LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WYOMING
2024 Budget Session

AN ACT relating to public utilities; requiring the public service commission to establish standards related to electricity reliability; specifying that failing to comply with standards is subject to penalties; providing that the public service commission shall not allow for rate recovery for new or modified facilities that are likely to result in failure to comply with reliability standards; specifying that public utilities may enter into individualized energy contracts and may utilize customer-specific energy portfolios; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1.

W.S. 37
‑
18
‑
102(a)(v)(A), by creating a new subparagraph (D), by creating a new paragraph (vi) and by creating a new subsection (f) is amended to read:

37
‑
18
‑
102.

Energy generation portfolio standards; reporting requirements; rate recovery and limitations.

(a)

Consistent with the objective of ensuring Wyoming electric utilities maintain access to reliable and cost effective electric generation resources, the public service commission shall establish by rule energy portfolio standards that will maximize the use of dispatchable and reliable low
‑
carbon electricity. In establishing standards, the commission:

(v)

Shall for each public utility:

(A)

Not later than December 15, 2024, e
stablish baseline standards for electric reliability to
ensure adequate reliable dispatchable power in Wyoming. The standards established under this subparagraph may include limits on outages and shall
ensure that new or expanded intermittent generation resources do not unreasonably diminish power quality or increase momentary outages across a utility's service territory or in any particular location;

(D)

In considering generation facilities for inclusion in a utility's investment on which the utility is entitled to earn a rate of return, the commission may disallow the inclusion of some or all of the investment associated with nondispatchable resources if those resources do not operate as projected and require the utility to rely on more expensive sources of generation or materially contribute to a failure to comply with reliability standards.

(vi)

A public utility that fails to maintain the standards established under this subsection may be subject to a civil penalty not to exceed one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000.00) for each day that the violation persists. However, the maximum civil penalty shall not exceed one million dollars ($1,000,000.00) for any related series of violations.

(f)

Nothing in this chapter shall prevent a public utility from entering into individualized energy contracts or arrangements with large commercial or industrial customers to procure energy or capacity to meet customers' needs or from utilizing customer
‑
specific energy portfolios pursuant to tariffs approved by the commission.
Section 2.

This act is 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)

Speaker of the House

President of the Senate

Governor

TIME APPROVED: _________

DATE APPROVED: _________

I hereby certify that this act originated in the Senate.

Chief Clerk

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