2017 -- H 5369

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LC000794

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2017

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY -- ENERGIZE RHODE ISLAND: CLEAN ENERGY

INVESTMENT AND CARBON PRICING ACT OF 2017

     Introduced By: Representatives Regunberg, Carson, Handy, Keable, and Donovan

     Date Introduced: February 03, 2017

     Referred To: House Finance

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Title 23 of the General Laws entitled "HEALTH AND SAFETY" is hereby

amended by adding thereto the following chapter:

CHAPTER 82.1

ENERGIZE RHODE ISLAND: CLEAN ENERGY INVESTMENT AND CARBON PRICING

ACT OF 2017

     23-82.1-1. Short title.

     This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Energize Rhode Island: Clean

Energy Investment and Carbon Pricing Act of 2017".

     23-82.1-2. Legislative findings.

     The general assembly finds and declares that:

     (1) Climate change increases risks to public health, including health impacts from

extreme heat events, storms and floods, decreased air quality, and illnesses transmitted from food,

water, and disease carriers, as reported by the Rhode Island department of health;

     (2) Climate change increases public safety risks and threats to our private property and

public infrastructure, including risks associated with storms, floods, and sea level rise, and these

risks have been recognized by the Rhode Island emergency management agency as warranting

specific attention;

     (3) In order to promote the general welfare of the people of the state, Rhode Island must

strengthen its economy and make it more resilient over the long term in order to avoid the

economic consequences of climate change, which will require initiatives that encourage the

development and use of innovative technologies and practices;

     (4) Economic consequences, including widespread damage to seaside communities

following Hurricane Sandy, the lobster population reaching historic lows, and both coastal and

river flooding leading to increased costs for and closures of businesses across the state, have been

well-documented, and failing to address these risks will only lead to more severe and persistent

impacts upon our local economy;

     (5) Carbon pricing has been established as the most cost-effective and efficient market-

based means to achieve carbon emissions reductions;

     (6) Rhode Island spends over three billion dollars ($3,000,000,000) annually on fossil

fuels, which are a volatile resource from out-of-state, whereas carbon pricing mechanisms have

been shown to be effective in creating jobs and stimulating the local economy;

     (7) The clean energy sector has proven to be one of the fastest growing segments of

Rhode Island's economy, currently providing nearly fifteen thousand (15,000) jobs and growing

at a rate much higher than the overall state economy; increased investment will provide even

more jobs in addition to a higher quality of life;

     (8) Climate change poses substantial risks to Rhode Island's ecology and natural

resources, and a fundamental responsibility of the state is to secure the right of the people "to the

use and enjoyment of the natural resources of the state with due regard for the preservation of

their values;"

     (9) In 2014, the general assembly enacted the "Resilient Rhode Island Act", which set

goals for reducing "greenhouse gas emissions" in Rhode Island, and established affirmative

obligations to meet these statutory goals.

     23-82.1-3. Legislative intent.

     It is the intent of the general assembly to:

     (1) Create a clean energy and jobs fund to foster innovative practices, which will

strengthen Rhode Island's position in advancing efficient use of energy, make Rhode Island a

nationally recognized leader in energy efficiency, stimulate job creation, and enhance innovation-

based economic growth;

     (2) Price carbon as an incentive to reduce carbon (greenhouse gas) emissions from use of

carbon based fuels by residents and businesses in Rhode Island;

     (3) Provide access to energy efficiency, energy conservation, and renewable energy

programs for low income families and small businesses;

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     (4) Reduce public health, public safety, economic, and natural resource impairment risks

associated with climate change; and

     (5) Meet the state emissions goals for 2035 as set in 2014 by the "Resilient Rhode Island

Act".

     23-82.1-4. Definitions.

     As used in this chapter, the following words and terms shall have the following meanings

unless the context clearly indicates another or different meaning or intent:

     (1) "Carbon dioxide equivalent ("CO2e") means a unit of measure used to compare the

emissions from various greenhouse gases based upon their global warming potential;

     (2) "Carbon price" means the fee imposed by this chapter;

     (3) "Clean energy and jobs fund" means the fund established under this chapter;

     (4) "Commission" means the public utilities commission, set forth in chapter 1 of title 39;

     (5) "Electricity fuel mix" means the mix of fuels for any one year period used to create

electricity by generators within the control area of ISO-NE;

     (6) "Employer" means a person, firm, corporation, partnership, association or public

body, whether for-profit or not-for-profit, that is located in Rhode Island and employs Rhode

Island residents;

     (7) "Fossil fuel" means coal, oil, natural gas, propane, or any other petroleum product.

"Fossil fuel" does not include renewable biomass or waste vegetable oil biodiesel;

     (8) "Independent System Operator-New England" or "ISO-NE" means the regional

transmission organization for New England licensed by the Federal Energy Regulatory

Commission pursuant to the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. Chapter 12);

     (9) "Low-income residential property" means a dwelling unit owned or occupied by a

household eligible to receive benefits under the low-income home energy assistance program

(LIHEAP) as set forth in §39-1-27.12; in instances where a premises contains multiple dwelling

units, the entire premises shall be considered a low-income residential property if fifty percent

(50%) or more of the dwelling units are occupied by LIHEAP eligible households;

     (10) "Person" means any individual, partnership, corporation, company, society, or

association, whether created for-profit or not-for-profit purposes;

     (11) "Petroleum product" means all petroleum derivatives, whether in bond or not, which

are commonly burned to produce heat, electricity, or motion, or which are commonly processed

to produce synthetic gas for burning, including without limitation, propane, gasoline, unleaded

gasoline, kerosene, heating oil, diesel fuel, kerosene based jet fuel, and number 4, number 5 and

residual oil for utility and non-utility uses, but not including, petroleum feedstocks to plastics

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production or other manufacturing;

     (12) "Resident" means a person eighteen (18) years of age or older who is a resident of

Rhode Island. All persons registered to vote in Rhode Island or all persons eighteen (18) years of

age or older who hold a valid Rhode Island driver's license or photo ID shall be presumptively

considered residents for the purposes of this chapter. Persons who do not meet the requirements

for presumptive eligibility may establish eligibility by presenting other acceptable documentation;

and

     (13) "Small business property" means the premises, whether owned or leased, of any

employer, other than a public body, that is a small business as defined by the United States Small

Business Administration.

     23-82.1-5. Carbon pricing.

     (a) A fee shall be collected on all fossil fuels within the state for purposes of distribution

or use within the state, at the rate specified in subsection (b) of this section, in the manner

specified in subsections (e) through (l) of this section.

     (b) Commencing January 1, 2018, and continuing through December 31, 2019, a fee shall

be charged at a rate of fifteen dollars ($15.00) per ton of CO2e that would be released by burning

the fuel sold. Commencing January 1, 2020 and thereafter, the rate in every fiscal year shall be

the rate in the previous fiscal year plus five (5) real 2016 dollars, as calculated before the

beginning of each fiscal year. In addition, the fee shall increase in accordance with inflation, as

measured by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index or, if that index

is not available, another index adopted by the director of revenue.

     (c) The director of revenue shall calculate and publish the rate in current dollars for each

year, by December 1.

     (d) In sales where greenhouse gas emissions from the fossil fuels are to be permanently

sequestered and not released into the atmosphere, charges on the fossil fuels shall be reduced by

the director of revenue in proportion to the amount of CO2e that is to be sequestered. The office

of energy resources shall ensure that in such cases, the emissions are actually sequestered and not

released into the atmosphere.

     (e) The fee shall be collected on all petroleum products at their first point of sale within

the state for consumption or distribution within the state.

     (f) All suppliers of electricity, including all electric distribution companies operating in

the state and all competitive suppliers of electricity to end users, shall pay the fee on behalf of all

of their electricity customers on the basis of each kilowatt-hour of electricity used by each

distribution customer. The per kilowatt-hour fee to be paid by the supplier of electricity will be

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calculated in the following manner:

     (1) The fee shall be calculated on an annual basis, based on the electricity fuel mix as

defined above.

     (2) The CO2e of every kilowatt-hour of electricity shall be determined by taking the

weighted average of the natural gas, coal, and oil portions of the fuel mix and multiplying each of

those portions separately by the amount of CO2e emissions created per kilowatt-hour of

electricity produced by each such fuel, as those carbon intensity levels are from time to time

determined by the United States Energy Information Administration (EIA).

     (3) The supplier of electricity shall deduct from the fee calculated by subsections (f)(1)

and (f)(2) of this section an amount equal to the amount it paid for the same year on account of

regional greenhouse gas initiative (RGGI) clearing auctions; provided, however, that the amount

so deducted may be no greater than the total amount of the fee as calculated in subsections (f)(1)

and (f)(2) of this section. The electricity supplier shall also deduct from the fee calculated an

amount equal to the amount it may have paid for NE-GIS certificates as defined in §39-26-2.

     (g) On April 1 of each year, each supplier of electricity shall file with the commission the

result of its proposed calculation for the year beginning the following July 1. The filing will

include sufficient supporting data to enable the commission to determine whether the calculation

by the supplier of electricity was made fully in accordance with subsection (f) of this section.

Upon receipt of the calculation by the supplier of electricity, the commission shall open a docket.

The sole purpose of the docket shall be for the commission to determine whether the calculation

by the supplier of electricity was made fully in accordance with subsection (f) of this section. If

the commission determines that the calculation by the supplier of electricity was made fully in

accordance with subsection (f) of this section, the commission shall, no later than May 15 of the

same year, issue its order approving the calculation. If the commission determines that the

calculation by the supplier of electricity does not fully comply with subsection (f) of this section,

the commission shall issue an order stating clearly the errors that were made by the supplier of

electricity. In that event, the supplier of electricity shall have twenty-one (21) days to make a

compliance filing with the commission, correcting the errors identified in the commission's order.

     (h) Any person that generates more than twenty-five thousand kilowatt-hours (25,000

KWh) of electricity for on-site use using any combination of one or more fossil fuels shall be

obligated to pay the carbon price, which shall be calculated by multiplying the quantity of each

separate fossil fuel combusted to produce electricity by the CO2e emissions of each separate fuel

so combusted. Within one year following the date of enactment of this chapter, the director of

revenue shall issue rules, pursuant to chapter 35 of title 42, for the regular and efficient

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calculation, assessment, and collection of these carbon price amounts. Any fee already paid on

said fuel pursuant to this section shall be deducted from the fee that would otherwise be due

under this subsection.

     (i) The local distribution company for natural gas shall pay the fee on behalf of all of its

distribution customers. The fee shall be calculated by multiplying the number of cubic feet of

natural gas used by each customer by the amount of CO2e released by burning one cubic foot of

natural gas, as that value is from time to time determined by the United States Energy

Information Administration (EIA).

     (j) The office of energy resources shall determine the amount of CO2e released in the

form of escaped methane due to the extraction, transport, or distribution of natural gas before the

point of consumption in Rhode Island, and shall add an additional charge to the carbon price for

all natural gas or natural-gas-based electricity, based on the rate specified in subsection (b) of this

section. This fee shall be published no later than December 10 of each year.

     (k) Entities whose primary purpose is to provide public transportation that enables energy

efficiency in the state economy shall not be subject to the cost of any fee set forth in this section

for the portion of their business that provides public transport.

     (l) The collection of the fee herein described shall commence upon the promulgation of

all necessary rules for its collection, but not later than January 1, 2019. The fee established by this

chapter shall be reduced by the amount of any fee or payment due under any federal law that sets

a carbon price on the same fossil fuels for the same year as described in this chapter; provided,

however, that such reduction shall not be in an amount of less than zero.

     23-82.1-6. Clean energy and jobs fund.

     (a) There is hereby established a restricted receipt account in the general fund to be

known as the clean energy and jobs fund. All fees collected under this chapter shall be deposited

in the clean energy and jobs fund.

     (b) Unexpended balances remaining in the clean energy and jobs fund shall not be subject

to the ten percent (10%) charge. Unexpended balances and any earnings thereon shall not revert

to the general fund but shall remain solely in the clean energy and jobs fund. The clean energy

and jobs fund shall be used solely to carry out the provisions of this chapter, and to help residents

and employers transition to cleaner energy options and mitigate any potential economic harm

from the carbon price imposed by this chapter.

     (c) Proceeds from the clean energy and jobs fund may only be used for the purposes

described in §23-82.1-7. Proceeds shall be available for the purposes described in §23-82.1-7

without appropriation.

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     23-82.1-7. Clean energy and jobs fund uses.

     (a) The department of revenue shall use the funds from the clean energy and jobs fund as

follows:

      (1) Thirty percent (30%) shall be used to provide direct dividends to employers in the

state, in the manner specified in subsections (b) and (d) of this section;

     (2) Forty percent (40%) shall be used to provide direct dividends to residents in the state,

in the manner specified in subsections (b) and (c) of this section;

     (3) Twenty-five percent (25%) shall go to climate resilience, energy efficiency, energy

conservation, and renewable energy programs that benefit low-income residential properties and

small business properties, where there have been low levels of participation in energy efficiency

and renewable energy programs, to be administered under the auspices of the Rhode Island

infrastructure bank in accordance with rules jointly promulgated by the office of energy resources

and the Rhode Island infrastructure bank;

     (4) Up to five percent (5%) shall be used to pay for administrative costs associated with

collecting the charges, administering the clean energy fund, and carrying out other responsibilities

assigned to the office of energy resources and department of revenue under this chapter. Any

unexpended revenue from this five percent (5%) shall be reallocated to the low-income and small

business program, pursuant to §23-82.1-7(a)(3). From the period commencing on the effective

date of this chapter through the implementation of the regulations necessary for the collection of

fees provided for under this chapter, the administrative allocation shall be the actual

administrative cost, up to ten percent (10%) of the revenue deposited into the clean energy fund,

and the amount of revenue directed to the weatherization program shall be reduced by the amount

above five percent (5%) that is used for administrative costs.

     (b) The dividends specified in subsection (a) of this section shall be implemented, at the

discretion of the director of revenue, through a refundable credit added to tax returns for residents

and employers that file tax returns. For residents and employers who do not file taxes, dividends

will be granted in the form of direct checks. The director of revenue shall make every reasonable

effort to ensure that every resident and employer, regardless of whether or not a particular

resident or employer files tax returns or actually owes taxes, including not-for-profit

organizations and government entities, receives a dividend. Dividends shall be calculated based

on the estimated increased total costs of energy in Rhode Island and distributed at the beginning

of each year. The first set of dividends shall be distributed by December 31, 2018, based on

estimated increased costs from the period of January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2018, which

may be subject to cost reconciliation based on actual total costs by June 30, 2019.

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     (c) Every resident shall receive an equal dividend amount. Every resident who is the head

of a household with children or dependents under the age of eighteen (18) shall have the dividend

increased based on the number of children or dependents under the age of eighteen (18) in

residence, with each child adding the value of one equal dividend amount.

     (d) Every employer shall receive a dividend proportional, in terms of full-time equivalent

employees, to the employer's share of total employment in the state.

     (e) The director of revenue shall issue a public report, submitted to the governor, the

speaker of the house, and the senate president, by December 31 of each year commencing with

2018, stating the expenditures from the clean energy fund for the most recently completed fiscal

year and plans to distribute the balance remaining in the fund, if any.

     23-82.1-8. Promulgation of rules.

     The department of revenue, office of energy resources, and any other state agency or

instrumentality designated by this chapter or by the director of administration to perform

functions or duties to effectuate the purposes and functions of this chapter are hereby authorized

to adopt, in accordance with the provisions of chapter 35 of title 42, administer, and enforce any

rules necessary or convenient to carry out the purposes of this chapter.

     23-82.1-9. Construction of provisions.

     The provisions of this chapter shall be liberally construed for the accomplishment of their

purposes.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect thirty (30) days after the commissioner of the

office of energy resources certifies in writing to the general assembly that another state in New

England which borders Rhode Island and has an aggregate population of at least five million

(5,000,000) persons based on 2010 census figures, has enacted a carbon pricing fee or tax that is

consistent with the provisions of this act, specifically that a fee shall be charged at a rate of at

least fifteen dollars ($15.00) per ton of CO2e that would be released by burning fossil fuels sold.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY -- ENERGIZE RHODE ISLAND: CLEAN ENERGY

INVESTMENT AND CARBON PRICING ACT OF 2017

***

     This act would establish a fee on companies that sell fossil fuels in Rhode Island, paid at

the point of sale within the state for consumption or distribution within the state. It would also

establish a "Clean Energy and Jobs Fund" to disburse the collected funds. The funds would be

disbursed through rebates to all residents and businesses in the state as well as allocated to

climate resilience, energy efficiency, energy conservation, and renewable energy programs that

benefit Rhode Islanders, particularly low income residential properties and small business

properties.

     This act would take effect thirty (30) days after the commissioner of the office of energy

resources certifies in writing to the general assembly that another state in New England which

borders Rhode Island and has an aggregate population of at least five million (5,000,000) persons

based on 2010 census figures, has enacted a carbon pricing fee or tax that is consistent with the

provisions of this act, specifically that a fee shall be charged at a rate of at least fifteen dollars

($15.00) per ton of CO2e that would be released by burning fossil fuels sold.

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