Relates to enacting the "renewable energy credit opportunity and exchange protection act" establishing the rights of consumers and businesses to own and trade renewable energy credits.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
941--A
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 5, 2017
___________
Introduced by Sen. FUNKE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Energy and Telecommuni-
cations -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as
amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to the "renewable
energy credit opportunity and exchange protection act" establishing
the rights of consumers and businesses to own and trade renewable
energy credits
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "renewable
2 energy credit opportunity and exchange protection act".
3 § 2. The public service law is amended by adding a new section 66-o to
4 read as follows:
5 § 66-o. Renewable energy credit opportunity and exchange protection
6 act. 1. Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall
7 have the following meanings:
8 (a) "Attribute" has the meaning given such term in the operating
9 rules, as the same may be amended and revised, and includes the environ-
10 mental attributes;
11 (b) "Renewable energy credit", "renewable energy certificate", "renew-
12 able generation attribute certificate", or "rec" means a tradable,
13 contractual instrument that represents the full suite of attributes,
14 including all of the environmental attributes, associated with the
15 generation of kilowatt-hours or megawatt-hours of electricity from a
16 renewable energy generation facility;
17 (c) "Qualified generation attribute tracking system" means:
18 (i) ERCOT: electric reliability council of Texas;
19 (ii) MIRECS: Michigan renewable energy certification system;
20 (iii) M-RETS: Midwest renewable energy tracking system;
21 (iv) NAR: North American renewables registry;
22 (v) NC-RETS: North Carolina renewable energy tracking system;
23 (vi) NEPOOL-GIS: New England power pool generation information system;
24 (vii) NYGATS: New York generation attribute tracking system;
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD04273-03-7
S. 941--A 2
1 (viii) NVTREC: Nevada tracks renewable energy credits;
2 (ix) PJM-GATS: PJM EIS'S generation attribute tracking system;
3 (x) WREGIS: Western renewable energy generation information system; or
4 (xi) any other attribute tracking system approved for use by the
5 authority;
6 (d) "Renewable energy generation facility" means an electric generat-
7 ing facility that produces or generates electricity from a recognized
8 renewable fuel type under the operating rules, and shall include renewa-
9 ble energy generation facilities paired with storage;
10 (e) "Renewable energy generator" means the owner of a renewable energy
11 generation facility;
12 (f) "REC owner" means the renewable energy generator or person or
13 entity to whom the renewable energy generator transfers and assigns the
14 right to its recs within a qualified generation attribute tracking
15 system. The authority or an electric corporation can be a "REC owner"
16 upon the transfer and assignment by the renewable energy generator;
17 (g) "Authority" means the New York state energy research and develop-
18 ment authority;
19 (h) "Commission" means the New York state public service commission;
20 and
21 (i) "Operating rules" means the New York generation attribute tracking
22 system operating rules issued by the authority, as the same may be
23 amended or revised.
24 2. Renewable energy generator's rights to renewable energy credits.
25 (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law or claims of the authori-
26 ty or the commission to the contrary, a renewable energy generator shall
27 have full rights of ownership of its recs, including but not limited to
28 the right to register, record, transfer, trade, sell, assign or other-
29 wise dispose of such recs on a nondiscriminatory basis in accordance
30 with the rules of the relevant qualified generation attribute tracking
31 system(s). Neither the authority nor the commission shall make any
32 claims to RECs in contradiction of this section, and any rulings,
33 orders, guidance, or other claims of the authority or the commission
34 inconsistent with this section, whether issued prior to or after the
35 effective date of this section, shall be void.
36 (b) Neither the authority, the commission, nor any electric corpo-
37 ration shall make any claims to a renewable energy generation facility's
38 RECs, or deny a renewable energy generator the rights and benefits under
39 this law, based on: (i) a renewable energy generator's receipt of funds
40 or payments from the authority, or federal or state tax incentives; or
41 (ii) participation in net metering under sections sixty-six-j and
42 sixty-six-l of this article, as the same may be amended or superseded,
43 or any similar or successor mechanism that results in compensation to
44 the renewable energy generation facility or its owner or customers from
45 an electric corporation.
46 3. Registration, recording, tracking and transferring renewable energy
47 credits. (a) Any generation attribute tracking system established in
48 New York state, whether under section eighteen hundred fifty-four of the
49 public authorities law or otherwise, shall permit rec owners to regis-
50 ter, record, transfer, trade, sell and assign their renewable energy
51 credits on a nondiscriminatory basis in such system.
52 (b) The commission and the authority shall issue any necessary rulings
53 or orders clarifying the rights of REC owners as outlined in this
54 section no later than thirty days after the effective date of this
55 section.
56 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.