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25LSO-0728
2025
STATE OF WYOMING
25LSO-0728
Numbered
2.0
HOUSE BILL NO. HB0325
Industrial power consumption freedom act.
Sponsored by: Representative(s) Filer, Brown, L, Johnson, Singh, Wasserburger and Wylie and Senator(s) Rothfuss
A BILL
for
AN ACT relating to public utilities; authorizing large-scale industrial power users to procure electricity from any person or utility; specifying requirements for the procurement of electricity; providing exemptions from rate regulation and service territory requirements for electric service as specified; making conforming amendments; providing definitions; requiring rulemaking; and providing for effective dates.
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:
Section 1
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W.S. 37
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2
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205.2 is created to read:
37
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2
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205.2.
Large
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scale industrial power users; procurement of electricity; requirements.
(a)
As used in this section:
(i)
"Large
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scale industrial power user" means an electric customer located in Wyoming with annual demand of not less than one (1) megawatt hour;
(ii)
"Person" includes an electric public utility or other person performing the functions specified in W.S. 37
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1
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101(a)(vi)(C), an electric utility operated by a city or town, a cooperative electric utility as defined in W.S. 37
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17
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101(a)(i) and a power district organized under chapter 7 of this title.
(b)
Notwithstanding the requirements of W.S. 37
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2
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205, 37
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2
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205.1 and any other provision of this act establishing or regulating certificated service territories, each large
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scale industrial power user may procure electric power from any person, subject to all of the following:
(i)
Nothing in this section shall be construed to require the person providing electricity to a large
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scale industrial power user under this section to compensate the public utility that has a certificate of convenience and necessity for the location of the large
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scale industrial power user;
(ii)
Electricity purchased by a large
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scale industrial power user under this section shall:
(A)
Be received and consumed by the large
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scale industrial power user on the site where the electricity is received by the large
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scale industrial power user;
(B)
Be consumed only for commercial or industrial use;
(C)
Not be sold or otherwise transferred to another customer or electricity user.
(iii)
Before providing electricity to a large
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scale industrial power user under this section, the person shall file a notice with the commission informing the commission of the agreement to provide electric service to a large
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scale industrial power user and the estimated amount of electricity to be provided on an annual basis. The notice required under this paragraph shall be served on the public utility holding the certificate of convenience and necessity for the location of the large
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scale industrial power user. The commission shall not charge a fee or require a hearing, and no decision of the commission shall be required, before the person providing notice may proceed with providing electric service to the large
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scale industrial user under this section;
(iv)
The person providing electricity to the large
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scale industrial power user may:
(A)
Enter into an agreement with a public utility or other entity to utilize the transmission and storage infrastructure of the public utility or other entity. Nothing in this subparagraph shall be construed to require a public utility or other entity to enter into an agreement with a person for the use of existing transmission or storage infrastructure;
(B)
Develop and construct its own transmission or storage infrastructure. The construction of transmission or storage infrastructure under this subparagraph shall be subject to this act, except that a certificate of convenience and necessity under W.S. 37
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2
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205 and 37
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2
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205.1 shall not be required for infrastructure constructed under this subparagraph.
(v)
Rates charged by a person providing electric service to a large
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scale industrial power user under this section and rates charged by a person that develops and constructs its own transmission or storage infrastructure under subparagraph (iv)(B) of this subsection shall not be subject to regulation of rates under this act;
(vi)
Rates charged by an electric utility to a person providing electric service to a large
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scale industrial power user under this section for the use of transmission lines regulated by the commission shall be regulated by the commission, provided that the commission shall establish rates that ensure that other retail customers not receiving the benefits of electric service under this section are not disproportionately paying joint and common costs of electricity transmission to a large
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scale industrial power user;
(vii)
Electric service provided by a person to a large
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scale industrial power user under this section shall not reduce or otherwise adversely affect the service provided to other customers located in the same certificated service territory as the large
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scale industrial power user.
(c)
Nothing in this section shall be construed to relieve a person providing electric service to a large
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scale industrial power user under this section from complying with applicable federal laws governing the generation and transmission of electricity.
Section 2.
W.S. 37
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2
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205(a), (b) and by creating a new subsection (k), 37
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2
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205.1 by creating a new subsection (f), 37
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101 by creating a new subsection (c) and 37
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102(b) and by creating new subsections (c) and (d) are amended to read:
37
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2
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205.
Certificate of convenience and necessity; hearings.
(a)
Except as provided in this subsection
and W.S. 37
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2
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205.2
, no public utility shall begin construction or complete the purchase of a line or plant, or of any extension of a line or material addition to a plant, without having first obtained from the commission a certificate that the present or future public convenience and necessity require or will require such construction or purchase.
This act shall not be construed to require any public utility operating outside of a city or town to secure a certificate for an extension into an area within which it has lawfully commenced operation, or for an extension into territory contiguous to its line or plant for which no certificate is in force and is not served by a public utility of like character or for any extension within or to territory already served by it, necessary in the ordinary course of its business.
If any public utility, in constructing or extending its line or plant interferes or is about to interfere with the operation of the line or plant of any other public utility already authorized or constructed, the commission on complaint of the public utility claiming to be injuriously affected, may after hearing make such order and prescribe the terms and conditions for the location of the lines or plants affected, as to it are just and reasonable. The power companies may, without the certificate, increase capacity of existing plants. For purposes of this subsection, "material addition" shall not include an addition to a plant that is necessary to serve load growth, provided that the capital investment in the addition shall not exceed one percent (1%) of the total capital investment in the plant on which return is earned, that is assigned or allocated to Wyoming customers, based on the public utility's most recent rate case determination.
(b)
Except as provided by W.S. 37
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2
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205.2, n
o public utility shall henceforth exercise any right or privilege or obtain a franchise or permit to exercise such right or privilege from a municipality or county, without having first obtained from the commission a certificate that public convenience and necessity require the exercise of such right and privilege; provided, that when the commission shall find, after hearing, that a public utility has heretofore begun actual construction work and is prosecuting such work in good faith, uninterruptedly and with reasonable diligence in proportion to the magnitude of the undertaking, under any franchise or permit heretofore granted but not heretofore actually exercised, such public utility may proceed to the completion of such work, and may, after such completion exercise such right or privilege; and provided, further, that this section shall not be construed to validate any right or privilege now invalid or hereafter becoming invalid under any law of this state, nor impair any vested right in any franchise or permit heretofore granted.
(k)
This section shall not apply to persons defined in W.S. 37
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2
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205.2(a)(ii) that provide electric service to large
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scale industrial power users under W.S. 37
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2
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205.2.
37
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2
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205.1.
Nonsitus certificate of public convenience and necessity.
(f)
This section shall not apply to persons defined in W.S. 37
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205.2(a)(ii) that provide electric service to large
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scale industrial power users under W.S. 37
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2
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205.2.
37
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7
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101.
Formation; petition for organization.
(c)
A certificate of necessity specified in subsection (a) of this section shall not be required for a power district that provides electric service to large
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scale industrial power users in accordance with W.S. 37
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2
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205.2.
37
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102.
Retail rate regulation; exemption.
(b)
Nothing in this article shall be construed to alter the certificated service territory of a cooperative electric utility
, except as provided in subsections (c) and (d) of this section
.
(c)
Electric service may be provided by a person defined under W.S. 37
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205.2(a)(ii) to a large
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scale industrial power user in accordance with W.S. 37
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205.2 regardless of the certificated service territory of the cooperative electric utility where the large
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scale industrial power user is located.
(d)
A certificate of necessity shall not be required for a cooperative electric utility that provides electric service to large
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scale industrial power users in accordance with W.S. 37
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2
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205.2.
Section 3
.
The public service commission shall promulgate all rules necessary to implement this act.
Section 4
.
(a)
Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, this act is effective July 1, 2025
.
(b)
Sections 3 and 4 of this 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)
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HB0325