Florida Senate - 2020                                     SB 446
       
       
        
       By Senator Brandes
       
       
       
       
       
       24-00471-20                                            2020446__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to renewable energy; amending s.
    3         366.91, F.S.; defining the term “renewable energy
    4         source device”; authorizing owners of commercial or
    5         industrial businesses, or third parties contracted by
    6         such owners, to install, maintain, and operate a
    7         renewable energy source device on or about the
    8         structure in which the business operates or on a
    9         property the business owns or leases; authorizing
   10         owners or contracted third parties to sell electricity
   11         generated from the device to certain businesses
   12         regardless of whether the device is located in a
   13         utility’s service territory; providing applicability;
   14         authorizing utilities to recover the full cost of
   15         providing services to an energy-producing business or
   16         its customers, under certain circumstances;
   17         authorizing utilities to install, maintain, and
   18         operate certain renewable energy source devices;
   19         exempting from regulation the sale of electricity
   20         produced by such devices; authorizing utilities to
   21         recover certain costs under certain circumstances;
   22         authorizing customers to challenge such cost recovery
   23         and receive refunds following a successful challenge;
   24         clarifying applicability and the eligibility
   25         requirements of certain energy rebate or incentive
   26         programs established by law; authorizing the Florida
   27         Public Service Commission to adopt rules; providing an
   28         effective date.
   29          
   30  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   31  
   32         Section 1. Paragraph (e) is added to subsection (2) of
   33  section 366.91, Florida Statutes, and subsection (9) is added to
   34  that section, to read:
   35         366.91 Renewable energy.—
   36         (2) As used in this section, the term:
   37         (e)“Renewable energy source device” has the same meaning
   38  as in s. 193.624(1).
   39         (9)(a) An owner of a commercial or industrial business or a
   40  contracted third party may install, maintain, and operate a
   41  renewable energy source device on or about the structure in
   42  which the business operates or on any property the business owns
   43  or leases. The owner of the business or the contracted third
   44  party may sell the electricity generated from the device,
   45  regardless of whether the device is located in a utility’s
   46  service territory, to a commercial or industrial business that
   47  is located immediately adjacent to the structure, within the
   48  same parcel as the structure, or on an immediately adjacent
   49  parcel. Such sales are not retail sales of electricity for
   50  purposes of this chapter and do not subject the energy-producing
   51  business to regulation under this chapter.
   52         (b) A business entity is not required to purchase directly
   53  or indirectly, by lease or by other contractual arrangement, the
   54  electricity produced pursuant to paragraph (a).
   55         (c) If the energy-producing business or its customers
   56  require additional related services from a utility, such as
   57  backup generation capacity or transmission services, the utility
   58  may recover the full cost of providing these services.
   59         (d) A utility may enter into a contract with a commercial
   60  or industrial business to install, maintain, and operate any
   61  type of renewable energy source device on or about the structure
   62  in which the business operates and to sell the electricity
   63  generated from the device to that business or to a commercial or
   64  industrial business located immediately adjacent to the
   65  structure, within the same parcel as the structure, or on an
   66  immediately adjacent parcel. Such sales are not retail sales for
   67  purposes of this chapter and are not subject to regulation under
   68  this chapter.
   69         (e) If the commission determines that the level of
   70  reduction in electricity purchases by customers using renewable
   71  energy source devices under this section is significant enough
   72  to adversely impact the rates other customers pay in the rate
   73  territory, the commission may approve a utility’s request to
   74  recover its costs of providing capacity, generation, and
   75  distribution of the electricity needed by all customers,
   76  including customers using a renewable energy source device. The
   77  cost recovered must be an appropriate amount of fixed costs to
   78  avoid the adverse impact and may be assessed only to customers
   79  engaged in activity under this section. The cost-recovery
   80  elements that are intended for recovery of the fixed costs of
   81  capacity, generation, and distribution of electricity must be
   82  based on actual costs or on projected costs, must be approved by
   83  the commission by a super majority of the voting members of the
   84  commission, and are subject to adjustment. A customer may
   85  challenge the cost recovery established pursuant to this
   86  paragraph by filing with the commission a petition for a
   87  determination of whether the costs recovered are excessive. Upon
   88  a determination by the commission of any excessive cost
   89  recovery, the customer must be refunded any excess funds
   90  collected by the utility.
   91         (f) For the purpose of any renewable energy rebate or
   92  incentive program established by law, and for application
   93  exclusively in this section, the rebate or incentive is the sole
   94  property of the owner of the renewable energy source device, and
   95  the customer of any electricity sale pursuant to this section is
   96  not eligible to receive the rebate or incentive unless the
   97  customer owns the renewable energy source device.
   98         (g)The commission may adopt rules to provide guidance,
   99  requirements, and procedures to ensure that each utility
  100  continues to recover costs, including the costs of providing
  101  redundant capacity.
  102         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2020.