Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

CERTIFICATION OF ENROLLMENT
                       SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5919
                        Chapter 271, Laws of 2024
                                68th Legislature
                              2024 Regular Session
BIOGENIC CARBON DIOXIDE AND COPRODUCTS OF BIOGAS PROCESSING—SALE BY
                      PUBLIC UTILITY DISTRICTS
                       EFFECTIVE DATE: June 6, 2024
 Passed by the Senate February 2, 2024                CERTIFICATE
   Yeas 49 Nays 0
                                         I, Sarah Bannister, Secretary of
                                         the   Senate   of   the   State  of
               DENNY HECK                Washington, do hereby certify that
 President of the Senate                 the attached is SUBSTITUTE SENATE
                                         BILL 5919 as passed by the Senate
                                         and the House of Representatives on
                                         the dates hereon set forth.
 Passed by the House March 1, 2024
   Yeas 96 Nays 0
                                                   SARAH BANNISTER
             LAURIE JINKINS                                           Secretary
 Speaker of the House of
 Representatives
 Approved March 26, 2024 9:40 AM                         FILED
                                                     March 27, 2024
                                                 Secretary of State
               JAY INSLEE                        State of Washington
 Governor of the State of Washington
                           SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5919
                   Passed Legislature - 2024 Regular Session
     State of Washington         68th Legislature        2024 Regular Session
     By Senate Environment, Energy & Technology (originally sponsored by
     Senator King)
     READ FIRST TIME 01/29/24.
     AN ACT Relating to the sale of biogenic carbon dioxide and other
 coproducts of biogas processing; and amending RCW 54.04.190.
 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
     Sec. 1. RCW 54.04.190 and 2022 c 292 s 404 are each amended to
 read as follows:
     (1) In addition to any other authority provided by law, public
 utility districts are authorized to produce and distribute biodiesel,
 ethanol, and ethanol blend fuels, including entering into crop
 purchase contracts for a dedicated energy crop for the purpose of
 generating   electricity   or  producing   biodiesel   produced  from
 Washington feedstocks, cellulosic ethanol, and cellulosic ethanol
 blend fuels for use in internal operations of the electric utility
 and for sale or distribution.
     (2) In addition to any other authority provided by law:
     (a) Public utility districts are authorized to produce renewable
 natural gas, green electrolytic hydrogen, and renewable hydrogen and
 utilize the renewable natural gas, green electrolytic hydrogen, or
 renewable hydrogen they produce for internal operations.
     (b) Public utility districts may sell renewable natural gas,
 green electrolytic hydrogen, or renewable hydrogen that is delivered
                                       p. 1                       SSB 5919.SL
 into a gas transmission pipeline located in the state of Washington
 or delivered in pressurized containers:
     (i) At wholesale;
     (ii) To an end-use customer; or
     (iii) If delivered in a pressurized container, or if the end-use
 customer takes delivery of the renewable natural gas, green
 electrolytic hydrogen, or renewable hydrogen through a pipeline, and
 the end-use customer is an eligible purchaser of natural gas from
 sellers other than the gas company from which that end-use customer
 takes transportation service and:
     (A) When the sale is made to an end-use customer in the state of
 Washington, the sale is made pursuant to a transportation tariff
 approved by the Washington utilities and transportation commission;
 or
     (B) When the sale to an end-use customer is made outside of the
 state of Washington, the sale is made pursuant to a transportation
 tariff approved by the state agency which regulates retail sales of
 natural gas.
     (c) Public utility districts may sell renewable natural gas,
 green electrolytic hydrogen, or renewable hydrogen at wholesale or to
 an end-use customer through a pipeline directly from renewable
 natural gas, green electrolytic hydrogen, or renewable hydrogen
 production facilities to facilities that compress, liquefy, or
 dispense compressed natural gas, liquefied natural gas, green
 electrolytic hydrogen, or renewable hydrogen fuel for end use as a
 transportation fuel.
     (d) Public utility districts may sell green electrolytic hydrogen
 or renewable hydrogen at wholesale or to an end-use customer in
 pressurized containers directly from green electrolytic hydrogen or
 renewable hydrogen production facilities to facilities that utilize
 green electrolytic hydrogen or renewable hydrogen as a nonutility
 related input for a manufacturing process.
     (e) Public utility districts may sell to an end-use customer or
 at wholesale biogenic carbon dioxide, and other marketable coproducts
 resulting from the processing of biogas from landfills, anaerobic
 digesters, and wastewater treatment facilities.
     (3) Except as provided in subsection (2)(b)(iii) of this section,
 nothing in this section authorizes a public utility district to sell
 renewable natural gas, green electrolytic hydrogen, or renewable
                                     p. 2                      SSB 5919.SL
 hydrogen delivered by pipeline to an end-use customer of a gas
 company.
     (4)(a) Except as provided in this subsection (4), nothing in this
 section authorizes a public utility district to own or operate
 natural gas distribution pipeline systems used to serve retail
 customers.
     (b) For the purposes of subsection (2)(b) of this section, public
 utility districts are authorized to own and operate interconnection
 pipelines that connect renewable natural gas, green electrolytic
 hydrogen, or renewable hydrogen production facilities to gas
 transmission pipelines.
     (c) For the purposes of subsection (2)(c) of this section, public
 utility districts may own and/or operate pipelines to supply, and/or
 compressed natural gas, liquefied natural gas, green electrolytic
 hydrogen, or renewable hydrogen facilities to provide, renewable
 natural gas, green electrolytic hydrogen, or renewable hydrogen for
 end use as a transportation fuel if all such pipelines and facilities
 are located in the county in which the public utility district is
 authorized to provide utility service.
     (5) Exercise of the authorities granted under this section to
 public utility districts does not subject them to the jurisdiction of
 the utilities and transportation commission, except that public
 utility districts are subject only to administration and enforcement
 by the commission of state and federal requirements related to
 pipeline safety and fees payable to the commission that are
 applicable to such administration and enforcement.
     (6) The definitions in this subsection apply throughout this
 section unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
     (a) "Green electrolytic hydrogen" means hydrogen produced through
 electrolysis, and does not include hydrogen manufactured using steam
 reforming or any other conversion technology that produces hydrogen
 from a fossil fuel feedstock.
     (b) "Renewable natural gas" means a gas consisting largely of
 methane and other hydrocarbons derived from the decomposition of
 organic material in landfills, wastewater treatment facilities, and
 anaerobic digesters.
     (c) "Renewable hydrogen" means hydrogen produced using renewable
 resources both as the source for the hydrogen and the source for the
 energy input into the production process.
                                     p. 3                      SSB 5919.SL
     (d) "Renewable resource" means: (i) Water; (ii) wind; (iii) solar
 energy; (iv) geothermal energy; (v) renewable natural gas; (vi)
 renewable hydrogen; (vii) wave, ocean, or tidal power; (viii)
 biodiesel fuel that is not derived from crops raised on land cleared
 from old growth or first growth forests; or (ix) biomass energy.
     (e) "Gas company" has the same meaning as in RCW 80.04.010.
     (f) "Biogenic carbon dioxide" means (i) carbon dioxide produced
 from the decomposition or oxidation of organic materials from
 landfills, wastewater treatment facilities, or anaerobic digesters;
 (ii) carbon dioxide produced from the decomposition or processing of
 biomass; and (iii) carbon dioxide produced as a byproduct from
 biological processes in an industrial or manufacturing facility.
 Biogenic carbon dioxide does not include carbon dioxide produced from
 the combustion or processing of fossil fuels.
         Passed by the Senate February 2, 2024.
         Passed by the House March 1, 2024.
         Approved by the Governor March 26, 2024.
         Filed in Office of Secretary of State March 27, 2024.
                                  --- END ---
                                     p. 4                        SSB 5919.SL
Statutes affected: 
Original Bill: 54.04.190
Substitute Bill: 54.04.190
Bill as Passed Legislature: 54.04.190
Session Law: 54.04.190