H-3521.1
HOUSE BILL 2248
State of Washington | 66th Legislature | 2020 Regular Session |
ByRepresentatives Doglio, DeBolt, Fey, Lekanoff, Fitzgibbon, Shewmake, Leavitt, Ramel, Ryu, Tarleton, Appleton, Ramos, Slatter, Ormsby, Macri, Wylie, Kloba, Goodman, Peterson, Hudgins, Pollet, and Tharinger
Prefiled 12/18/19.Read first time 01/13/20.Referred to Committee on Environment & Energy.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) The legislature finds and declares that stimulating local investment in community solar projects continues to be an important part of a state energy strategy by helping to increase energy independence from fossil fuels, promote economic development, hedge against the effects of climate change, and attain environmental benefits. The legislature finds that while previous community solar programs were successful in stimulating these benefits, the programs failed to provide an adequate framework for low-income participation and long-term market certainty. The legislature finds that the vast majority of Washingtonians still do not have access to the benefits of solar energy. The legislature intends to stimulate the deployment of community solar projects for the benefit of all Washingtonians by funding the renewable energy production incentive program for community solar projects and by creating opportunities for broader participation, especially by low-income households and low-income service providers. As of December 2019, the state is thirteen megawatts short of the one hundred fifteen megawatts of solar photovoltaic capacity established as a goal under RCW 82.16.155. The legislature therefore intends to provide an incentive sufficient to promote installation of community solar projects through June 30, 2026, at which point the legislature expects to review the effectiveness of enhancing access to community solar projects. The legislature finds that expansion of electric meter aggregation for net metering systems is a path beyond the renewable energy production incentive program to provide and sustain access for community solar projects. (2) The legislature also finds that chapter
19.405 RCW, the Washington clean energy transformation act, requires electric utilities to make programs and funding available for energy assistance to low-income households by July 31, 2021. The legislature intends for any energy assistance provided to, or reduction in energy burden provided for, low-to-moderate-income households or low-to-moderate-income service provider subscribers of community solar projects under RCW
82.16.165 and
80.60.030 to count toward an electric utility's compliance obligation under RCW
19.405.120.
Sec. 2. RCW
82.16.130 and 2017 3rd sp.s. c 36 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) A light and power business is allowed a credit against taxes due under this chapter in an amount equal to:
(b) Any fees a utility is allowed to recover pursuant to RCW
82.16.165((
(5)))
(6).
(2) The credits must be taken in a form and manner as required by the department.
(a) The credit taken under this section for the fiscal year may not exceed one and one-half percent of the businesses' taxable power sales generated in calendar year 2014 and due under RCW
82.16.020(1)(b) or two hundred fifty thousand dollars, whichever is greater
, for incentive payments made for the following: (i) Renewable energy systems, other than community solar projects, that are certified for an incentive payment as of June 30, 2020; and
(ii) Community solar projects that are under precertification status under RCW 82.16.165(8)(b) as of June 30, 2020, and that are certified for an incentive payment in accordance with the terms of that precertification by June 30, 2021. (b) In addition to the credit provided under (a) of this subsection, for incentive payments made for community solar projects that submit an application for precertification under RCW 82.16.165(9)(b) on or after July 1, 2020, and that are certified for an incentive payment in accordance with the terms of that precertification by June 30, 2026, a light and power business may take for the fiscal year an additional one-quarter of one percent of the businesses' taxable power sales generated in calendar year 2014 and due under RCW 82.16.020(1)(b) or fifty thousand dollars, whichever is greater.
(3) The credit may not exceed the tax that would otherwise be due under this chapter. Refunds may not be granted in the place of credits. Expenditures not used to earn a credit in one fiscal year may not be used to earn a credit in subsequent years.
(4) For any business that has claimed credit for amounts that exceed the correct amount of the incentive payable under RCW
82.16.120, the amount of tax against which credit was claimed for the excess payments is immediately due and payable. The department may deduct amounts due from future credits claimed by the business.
(a) Except as provided in (b) of this subsection, the department must assess interest but not penalties on the taxes against which the credit was claimed. Interest must be assessed at the rate provided for delinquent excise taxes under chapter
82.32 RCW, retroactively to the date the credit was claimed, and accrues until the taxes against which the credit was claimed are repaid.
(b) A business is not liable for excess payments made in reliance on amounts reported by the Washington State University extension energy program as due and payable as provided under RCW
82.16.165((
(20)))
(25), if such amounts are later found to be abnormal or inaccurate due to no fault of the business.
(5) The amount of credit taken under this section is not confidential taxpayer information under RCW
82.32.330 and is subject to disclosure.
(6) The right to earn tax credits for incentive payments made under RCW
82.16.120 expires June 30, 2020. Credits may not be claimed after June 30, 2021.
(7)
(a) The right to earn tax credits for incentive payments made under RCW
82.16.165 for the following expires June 30, 2029
:(i) Renewable energy systems, other than community solar projects, that are certified for an incentive payment as of June 30, 2020; and
(ii) Community solar projects that are under precertification status under RCW 82.16.165(8)(b) as of June 30, 2020, and that are certified for an incentive payment in accordance with the terms of that precertification by June 30, 2021.
(b) Credits may not be claimed after June 30, 2030.
(8) The right to earn tax credits for incentive payments made under RCW 82.16.165 for community solar projects that submit an application for precertification under RCW 82.16.165(9) on or after July 1, 2020, and that are certified for an incentive payment in accordance with the terms of that precertification by June 30, 2026, expires June 30, 2034. Credits may not be claimed after June 30, 2035. Sec. 3. RCW
82.16.160 and 2017 3rd sp.s. c 36 s 5 are each amended to read as follows:
The definitions in this section apply throughout this section and RCW
82.16.165,
82.16.170, and
82.16.175 unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
(1) "Administrator" means the utility, nonprofit, or other local housing authority that organizes and administers a community solar project as provided in RCW
82.16.165 and
82.16.170.
(2) "Certification" means the authorization issued by the Washington State University extension energy program establishing a person's eligibility to receive annual incentive payments from the person's utility for the program term.
(3) "Commercial-scale system" means a renewable energy system or systems other than a community solar project or a shared commercial solar project with a combined nameplate capacity greater than twelve kilowatts that meets the applicable system eligibility requirements established in RCW
82.16.165.
(4) "Community solar project" means a solar energy system that has a direct current nameplate generating capacity that is no larger than one thousand kilowatts and meets the applicable eligibility requirements established in RCW
82.16.165 and
82.16.170.
(5) "Consumer-owned utility" has the same meaning as in RCW
19.280.020.
(6) "Customer-owner" means the owner of a residential-scale or commercial-scale renewable energy system, where such owner is not a utility and such owner is a customer of the utility and either owns the premises where the renewable energy system is installed or occupies the premises.
(7) "Electric utility" or "utility" means a consumer-owned utility or investor-owned utility as those terms are defined in RCW
19.280.020.
(8) "Governing body" has the same meaning as provided in RCW
19.280.020.
(9) "Person" means any individual, firm, partnership, corporation, company, association, agency, or any other legal entity.
(10) "Program term" means: (a) For community solar projects
that are under precertification status under RCW 82.16.165(8)(b) as of June 30, 2020, and that are certified for an incentive payment in accordance with the terms of that precertification by June 30, 2021, eight years or until cumulative incentive payments for electricity produced by the project reach fifty percent of the total system price, including applicable sales tax, whichever occurs first; ((
and)) (b)
for community solar projects that submit an application for precertification under RCW 82.16.165(9)(b) on or after July 1, 2020, and that are certified for an incentive payment in accordance with the terms of that precertification by June 30, 2026, eight years or until cumulative incentive payments for electricity produced by the project reach: (i) One hundred percent of the project cost prorated in proportion to subscriptions of low-to-moderate-income households and low-to-moderate-income service providers; and (ii) no greater than fifty percent of the project cost prorated in proportion to subscriptions of all other subscribers; and (c) for other renewable energy systems, including shared commercial solar projects, eight years or until cumulative incentive payments for electricity produced by a system reach fifty percent of the total system price, including applicable sales tax, whichever occurs first.
(11) "Renewable energy system" means a solar energy system, including a community solar project, an anaerobic digester as defined in RCW
82.08.900, or a wind generator used for producing electricity.
(12) "Residential-scale system" means a renewable energy system or systems located at a single situs with combined nameplate capacity of twelve kilowatts or less that meets the applicable system eligibility requirements established in RCW
82.16.165.
(13) "Shared commercial solar project" means a solar energy system, owned or administered by an electric utility, with a combined nameplate capacity of greater than one megawatt and not more than five megawatts and meets the applicable eligibility requirements established in RCW
82.16.165 and
82.16.175.
(14) "Energy assistance" has the same meaning as provided in RCW 19.405.020. (15) "Energy burden" has the same meaning as provided in RCW 19.405.020. (16) "Low-to-moderate-income household" means a single person, family, or unrelated persons living together whose income is at or below one hundred fifteen percent of the median income where the household is located.
(17) "Low-to-moderate-income service provider" means a local community action agency or local community service agency designated by the department of commerce under chapter 43.63A RCW, local housing authority, tribal housing authority, low-income tribal housing program, affordable housing provider, food bank, or other organization whose primary purpose is to provide services to low-to-moderate-income households. (18) "Multifamily residential building" means a building containing sleeping units or more than two dwelling units where occupants are primarily permanent in nature.
(19) "Subscriber" and "subscription" have the same meanings