2018 -- H 7677

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LC004622

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2018

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO PUBLIC UTILITIES AND CARRIERS -- DISTRIBUTED GENERATION

INTERCONNECTION

     Introduced By: Representatives Solomon, Johnston, Shanley, Casey, and Coughlin

     Date Introduced: February 15, 2018

     Referred To: House Corporations

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Sections 39-26.3-3 and 39-26.3-4.1 of the General Laws in Chapter 39-26.3

entitled "Distributed Generation Interconnection" are hereby amended to read as follows:

     39-26.3-3. Application process.

     (a) The application process set out in this section shall be applicable to electric

distribution companies thirty (30) days after the enactment of this chapter.

     (b) An applicant for a renewable distributed generation interconnection must submit an

application to the electric distribution company for an impact study, including a request for an

estimate of the cost of interconnecting the renewable distributed generation resource to the

distribution system. The applicant may request a feasibility study prior to requesting an impact

study, but the applicant is not required to do so and may submit an application for an impact

study without having obtained a feasibility study. The distribution company shall follow the

schedule below for all applications.

     (c) Upon receipt of a completed application requesting a feasibility study and receipt of

the applicable feasibility study fee, the electric distribution company shall provide a feasibility

study to the applicant within thirty (30) days.

     (d) Upon receipt of a completed application requesting an impact study and receipt of the

applicable impact study fee, the electric distribution company shall provide an impact study

within ninety (90) sixty (60) days.

     (e) In anticipation of the electric distribution company needing to add resources that are

not currently in Rhode Island or covered in rates, to provide the necessary services to advance the

aggressive goals and objectives set forth in title 39, the electric distribution company shall be

authorized to add up to two (2) five (5) incremental employee and/or subcontracted consultant

resources located in Rhode Island that shall be primarily dedicated to servicing Rhode Island

applicants and customers in connection with net metering and the development of distributed

generation resources, including the requisite resources to perform impact and feasibility studies

for distributed generation interconnections and to assure that feasibility studies and impact

studies, as well as other engineering activity necessary to facilitate the completion of distributed

generation projects in Rhode Island are implemented and delivered on a timely basis. Prior to new

rates going into effect following the company's next general rate case filing, the cost of such

incremental employee resources shall be recovered through rates on an annual basis through an

annual reconciliation mechanism, provided that the total amount of fees collected from impact

studies and feasibility studies shall be netted against such costs. Only the cost of time and work

actually spent on Rhode Island renewable energy project matters shall be included in such annual

reconciliation. The commission shall have the authority to review these positions in the electric

distribution company's next general rate case as a cost of service in the same manner as it reviews

all other expenses in a rate case to determine whether they should continue. Nothing contained in

this section shall preclude the electric distribution company from adding additional resources,

subject to commission approval.

     (f) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, the application process and fees

set forth in this chapter apply only to interconnections to the distribution system by renewable

distributed generation resources. To the extent that a renewable generation resource seeks an

interconnection to the transmission system and such interconnection request is governed by rules

and regulations under the exclusive jurisdiction of the federal energy regulatory commission, the

provisions of this chapter shall not apply.

     (g) The rules and fees established in this chapter shall be incorporated within the

applicable "Standards for Interconnection of Distributed Generation" approved by the

commission.

     39-26.3-4.1. Interconnection standards.

     (a) The electric distribution company may only charge an interconnecting, renewable-

energy customer for any system modifications to its electric power system specifically necessary

for and directly related to the interconnection. The electric distribution company shall provide a

final accounting to the renewable energy customer within sixty (60) days after permission to

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operate has been received from the electric distribution company that includes the following:

     (1) A detailed accounting ledger for all costs, line item charges, including, but not limited

to, wages and benefits, consultants, materials, equipment, overhead allocations, and any and all

other charges that are funded by the renewable energy customer;

     (2) Costs, line item charges and support documents that provide clear verification for

each charge (third-party invoices; wages and benefit reports; overhead allocation reports;

consultant invoices; material and equipment invoices; and the like).

     (b) If the public utilities commission determines that a specific system modification

benefiting other customers has been accelerated due to an interconnection request, it may order

the interconnecting customer to fund the modification subject to repayment of the depreciated

value of the modification as of the time the modification would have been necessary as

determined by the public utilities commission. Any system modifications benefiting other

customers shall be included in rates as determined by the public utilities commission.

     (c) If an interconnecting, renewable-energy customer is required to pay for system

modifications and a subsequent renewable-energy or commercial customer relies on those

modifications to connect to the distribution system within ten (10) years of the earlier

interconnecting, renewable-energy customer's payment, the subsequent customer will make a

prorated contribution toward the cost of the system modifications that will be credited to the

earlier interconnecting, renewable-energy customer as determined by the public utilities

commission.

     (d) An electric distribution company shall acknowledge to the interconnecting,

renewable-energy customer receipt of an application to initiate the interconnection process within

three (3) business days of receipt. The electric distribution company shall notify the

interconnecting, renewable-energy customer in writing within ten (10) business days of receipt

that the application is or is not complete and, if not, advise what is missing. Any disputes

regarding whether and when an application to initiate the interconnection process is complete

shall be resolved expeditiously at the public utilities commission. The maximum time allowed

between the date of the completed application and delivery of an executable interconnection

service agreement shall be one hundred seventy-five (175) ninety (90) calendar days or two

hundred (200) one hundred twenty (120) calendar days if a detailed study is required. All electric

distribution company system modifications must be completed by the date which is the later of:

(1) No longer than two hundred seventy (270) calendar days, or three hundred sixty (360)

calendar days if substation work is necessary, from the date of the electric distribution company's

receipt of the interconnecting, renewable-energy customer's executed interconnection service

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agreement; or (2) The interconnecting, renewable-energy customer's agreed upon extension of the

time between the execution of the interconnection service agreement and interconnection as set

forth in writing. All deadlines herein are subject to all payments being made in accordance with

the distributed generation interconnection tariff on file with the public utilities commission and

the interconnection service agreement. These system modification deadlines cannot be extended

due to customer delays in providing required information, all of which must be requested and

obtained before completion of the impact study. The deadlines for completion of system

modifications will be extended only to the extent of events that are clearly not under the control

of the electric distribution company, such as extended prohibitive weather, union work stoppage

or force majeure, or third-party delays, including, without limitation, delays due to ISO-NE

requirements not attributable to electric distribution company actions, and which cannot be

resolved despite commercially reasonable efforts. The electric distribution company shall notify

the customer of the start of any claimed deadline extension as soon as practicable, its cause and

when it concludes, all in writing. Any actual or indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or

punitive damages of any kind whatsoever that a court of competent jurisdiction orders the electric

distribution company to pay to an interconnecting, renewable-energy customer as a direct or

indirect result of the electric distribution company's failure to comply with the requirements of

this subsection shall be payable by its shareholders and may not be recovered from customers. ,

provided that the total amount of damages awarded for any and all such claims shall not exceed,

in the aggregate, an amount equal to the amount of the incentive the electric distribution company

would have earned as provided for in §§ 39-26.6-12(j)(3) and 39-26.1-4 in the year in which the

system modifications were required to be completed. In no event shall the The electric

distribution company shall be liable to the interconnecting, renewable-energy customer for any

indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages of any kind whatsoever as a result

of the electric distribution company's failure to comply with this section. In addition to the

electric distribution company's liability to the interconnecting renewable energy customer the

division of public utilities and carriers shall open a full investigation for each event of non-

compliance with the policy objective herein and determine to levy a penalty for delays consistent

with §§ 39-2-27 and 39-2-28.

     (e) When an applicant (distributed generation developer) has two (2) or more

interconnection applications under assessment for separate renewable distributed generation

interconnection points by the electric distribution company at the same time and there are

redundant system upgrade costs listed on the impact study (Section 9.0 "Cost Estimate") the

redundant costs shall be apportioned to each application based on the AC weighted average size

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of each application. If, for any reason, one or more of the applicant's interconnections

applications are withdrawn or terminated, the remaining interconnection applications under

assessment shall be assessed the costs attributable to the terminated or withdrawn application and

be required to pay the cost difference within thirty (30) days. A withdrawal or termination of one

or more applications shall not extend the timetable set forth in § 39-26.3-4.1(d).

     (f) On or before September 1, 2017, the public utilities commission shall initiate a docket

to establish metrics for the electric distribution company's performance in meeting the time

frames set forth herein and in the distributed generation interconnection standards approved by

the public utilities commission. The public utilities commission may include incentives and

penalties in the performance metrics.

     (f)(g) The proposed interconnection of any new renewable energy resource that replaces

the same existing renewable energy resource of the same or less nameplate capacity that has been

in operation in the twelve (12) months preceding notification of such replacement shall be subject

to a sixty-day (60) review. The purpose of such sixty-day (60) review is to allow the electric

distribution company to determine whether any system modifications are required to support the

interconnection of the replacement renewable energy resource. If there is a need for system

modifications because of an interconnection policy change implemented by the electric

distribution company, then the system modification may be included in rates as determined by the

public utilities commission. If there is a need for system modifications only because of a change

in the rating or utility disturbance response that adversely affects the impact of the facility on the

distribution system, then the interconnecting, renewable-energy customer shall be responsible for

the cost of the system modifications.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO PUBLIC UTILITIES AND CARRIERS -- DISTRIBUTED GENERATION

INTERCONNECTION

***

     This act would reduce the time that an electric distribution company has to provide an

applicant for a renewable distributed generation interconnection impact study from ninety (90) to

sixty (60) days, authorize additional study to better serve applicants, and provide renewable

energy customers a final accounting of changes and costs.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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