House File 2534 - Introduced
HOUSE FILE 2534
BY THOMSON, GOLDING, SHERMAN,
and HAYES
A BILL FOR
1 An Act relating to wind turbine inspections and the creation of
2 a legislative wind energy consulting committee.
3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
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1 Section 1. NEW SECTION. 476.50 Wind turbines —— inspections
2 and reporting.
3 1. Mandatory inspections. A wind turbine in this state
4 shall be inspected at least once each year as provided in this
5 subsection.
6 a. The inspection shall be conducted according to industry
7 standards and best practices as identified by the board and in
8 consultation with relevant stakeholders.
9 b. The owner or operator of a wind turbine shall be
10 responsible for ensuring the completion of the inspection
11 each year and shall report the compliance with the inspection
12 standards provided in paragraph “a”.
13 c. An inspection may be performed by an on-site technician
14 or contracted third party.
15 d. An inspection must be performed within fifteen days of a
16 lightning storm or high-wind event detected near a wind farm.
17 e. The owner or operator must inspect common wind turbines
18 for industry-known vulnerabilities within three months of an
19 industry-defined trend or after a turbine failure.
20 f. An inspection is required on a wind turbine
21 underperforming against the power curve specification to
22 determine the cause of the degradation.
23 2. Inspection report. The owner or operator shall submit a
24 report to the board each year pursuant to this subsection.
25 a. The report shall include the assets of a wind turbine,
26 the safety record of the wind turbine, inspection records
27 for the wind turbine, and the performance data for the wind
28 turbine.
29 b. The report shall include but not be limited to the
30 following:
31 (1) A description of the wind turbine inspected.
32 (2) The date and time of the inspection.
33 (3) The qualifications of the inspector.
34 (4) A detailed summary of the inspection findings,
35 including any identified defects, damages, or potential safety
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1 hazards. Damages shall be defined by severity, type of damage,
2 and the turbine make and model.
3 (5) Recommendations for corrective action, if necessary.
4 3. Board review and action. The board shall review the
5 inspection report and may take any action necessary to ensure
6 the safety and reliability of the wind turbine, including:
7 a. Requiring the owner or operator to implement corrective
8 action to address an identified defect or hazard.
9 b. Ordering the wind turbine operation to cease if the wind
10 turbine poses an imminent threat to public safety.
11 c. Taking other appropriate enforcement action.
12 4. Public access to inspection reports. The board shall
13 provide an inspection report upon request from the public,
14 subject to reasonable limitations to protect confidential
15 business information.
16 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION. 476.50A Legislative wind energy
17 consulting committee.
18 1. A legislative wind energy consulting committee
19 is created for the purpose of overseeing wind energy
20 sustainability and financing by inquiring into the financing,
21 safety, and environmental impact of wind power in this state,
22 and reporting recommendations to the general assembly.
23 2. The committee shall consist of four voting members of
24 the senate to be appointed by the president of the senate and
25 four members of the house of representatives to be appointed by
26 the speaker of the house of representatives, and one person who
27 is not a member of the general assembly to be chosen jointly
28 by the president of the senate and the speaker of the house of
29 representatives.
30 3. The committee shall submit a report to the general
31 assembly each year by November 1.
32 EXPLANATION
33 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
34 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
35 This bill relates to wind turbine inspections and the
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1 creation of a legislative wind energy consulting committee.
2 The bill requires a wind turbine in the state to be inspected
3 annually by standards identified by the Iowa utilities board
4 (board). Inspections may be completed by a third party, but
5 the owner or operator of the wind turbine is responsible for
6 reporting that the inspection occurred in compliance with the
7 standards identified by the board. An inspection shall take
8 place within 15 days of a lightning storm or high-wind event
9 near the wind turbine. If a wind turbine is underperforming,
10 an inspection is required to determine the cause of the
11 degradation.
12 The bill requires an owner or operator of the wind turbine
13 to submit a report to the board each year containing assets,
14 safety records, inspection records, and performance data for
15 the wind turbine. The board shall review the report and may
16 take action to ensure the safety of the wind turbine, including
17 requiring corrective action and ceasing operation of the wind
18 turbine.
19 The bill requires the board to provide the public access
20 to the annual reports subject to reasonable limitations on
21 confidential business information.
22 The bill creates a legislative wind energy consulting
23 committee to oversee wind energy sustainability and financing.
24 The committee shall submit a report including recommendations
25 to the general assembly each year by November 1.
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