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April 2012
Greetings!

In this issue of DSIRE's monthly news, you'll find a discussion of 3rd-Party PPAs, laundry lists of recent renewables policy actions and staff speaking engagements, and, by popular demand, another fresh dose of nerd trivia.

Enjoy!


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* In This Issue *
DSIRE Tools & Shortcuts
Juicy Policy Developments
Where It's At
Nerd Trivia!

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DSIRE Tools & Shortcuts 
To get a quick sense of the ubiquity (or non-ubiquity) of a certain type of policy across the United States, check out DSIRE's summary maps. These maps help policymakers, businesses, advocacy organizations and researchers understand the national landscape (and moonscape, in some cases) of renewable energy policies and incentives. Many DSIRE summary maps are stuffed to the gills with information, yet they can't really tell the whole story.

It's my (3rd) party, I can buy if I want to

DSIRE's 3rd-Party Solar PV Power Purchase Agreement map attracts plenty of attention -- and not just because it's a mouthful. A 3rd-party PPA is a financing mechanism in which a solar developer typically owns, operates and maintains a PV system, and sells the electricity generated directly to the host customer under a long-term contract. The DSIRE map summarizes where 3rd-party PV PPAs are allowed and disallowed, and where their legal uncertainty exists. Currently, there are 21 states plus Puerto Rico that have authorized or otherwise allow the use of 3rd-party PPAs (in certain utility service territories, at least), five states that apparently do not allow them, and 24 states where the status is unknown. Several states are currently addressing or studying this issue. Just last week, the Iowa Utilities Board issued a declaratory ruling clarifying that current state law does not allow 3rd-party solar PPAs. Legislation has been introduced in Georgia (SB 401) that would allow 3rd-party PPAs, but the bill is not moving forward this session. In North Carolina, a House committee is studying the issue. If you're aware of a state that's considering this issue or if you know of companies that offer 3rd-party PPAs in a state that we've identified on the DSIRE map as an "unknown," drop us a line so we can continue to keep this public resource as current as possible.

 

 

3PPA map  

 

There are plenty of other policy maps available on DSIRE and DSIRE Solar. We cordially invite you to snoop around. 

 


Juicy Policy Developments 
Every two weeks, we churn out a summary of renewables policy developments, and our good friends at IREC faithfully publish these reports in full. A few examples of the juiciest recent renewables news: 

The DSIRE staff also tracks bills that are currently under consideration by state legislatures. Some intriguing examples are listed below. (To find out more about renewables bills currently in play in state legislatures, check out our policy-tracking service.)

  • Arizona SB 1229 - exempts the sale or transfer of RECs from use tax; defines RECs; prescribes transaction privilege to the transfer of PV electricity and RECs. Signed by governor on April 10. 
  • California SB 1130 - would have created statewide "Building the Economy Through Retrofits" program for commercial building owners, a form of PACE financing. Withdrawn at author's request on April 11.
  • Florida HB 7117 - provides for a portion of local infrastructure surtax to be set aside for loans, grants and rebates for residential energy efficiency and renewable energy improvements; reinstates corporate tax credit and renewable energy tax exemptions. Enacted without governor's signature on April 13.
  • Maryland HB 258 - removes requirement that SREC-purchase contracts directly between electricity suppliers and solar generators up to 10 kW have a minimum term of 15 years. Signed by governor on April 10. 
  • West Virginia HB 2740 - prohibits covenant restrictions on installation or use of solar energy systems, with certain exceptions. Signed by governor on March 30. 

As a reminder, DSIRE provides ongoing lists of new incentives and policies added to DSIRE, and of incentives and policies updated by our staff during the previous two months.

 



Where It's At 
The DSIRE staff regularly travels to conferences (and cyberspace) to discuss policy issues and market trends. Here's where we've been recently, and where we'll be in the near future. If you're nearby, swing by and say hello! 

Renewable Energy Finance Forum - Latin America & the Caribbean, April 24-25, Miami, FL.  Amy Heinemann will attend this forum to learn about and discuss renewables policy issues and markets in Latin America.    

 

Distributed Solar Summit East 2012, April 25-27, Somerset, NJ.  Justin Barnes will give a presentation addressing solar policy and market opportunities in Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island during this event. 

 

U.S. EPA Green Power Partnership Webinar, May 8.  Amy Heinemann will give a presentation that provides an overview of the DSIRE site and its resources, and discusses incentives and policies that support the deployment of renewables. Incentives and policies relevant to businesses and local governments will be emphasized during this webinar.   

 

The Solar Future: Eastern USA, May 10-11, New York, NY.  At this conference, Rusty Haynes will give a presentation addressing PV policy and market drivers in key East Coast states. 

 

World Renewable Energy Forum, May 13-17, Denver, CO.  At this conference, Justin Barnes will present a paper he's authoring with Brian Lips and Amy Heinemann. This paper describes how PV is valued for property-tax purposes in several U.S. states with strong solar markets. In addition, Justin will participate in a forum to discuss tools and resources developed to increase policy transparency and to help consumers, businesses and developers understand how policies and incentives affect their investments in clean energy.

 

Argus U.S. Renewables Trading 2012 Summit, June 7-8, Washington, DC.  Justin Barnes will give a presentation on state-level RPS policies, including RECs and SRECs, during this summit.  

 

Intersolar North America, July 9-12, San Francisco, CA.  Rusty Haynes will give a presentation on current PV policy issues and market drivers in individual U.S. states during the Semi North America PV Fab Manager's Forum.

 
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U.S. DOE SunShot Solar Outreach Partnership Webinar, March 15.  Amy Heinemann participated in a webinar discussion of the status and trends of retail solar PPAs across the United States. Local government PPAs and hybrid PPA models were addressed.

 

Climate Communities Webinar, March 22.  Justin Barnes provided an overview of DSIRE and its resources, and discussed renewables and efficiency policies and considerations relevant to local governments during this webinar.    

 



Nerd Trivia! 
Nerd A

Question:  Which U.S. state or territory recently introduced ZRECs and LRECs? And for that matter, what are those things?

 Respond with an answer on DSIRE's Facebook page, and we'll 
 announce the answer and winner in the next issue.


(Congratulations to Laurel Varnado, of Keyes, Fox & Wiedman, LLP, for correctly answering the previous nerd trivia question. Montana currently offers the highest-percentage tax credit for a residential wind turbine.)

This news blast is published by the N.C. Solar Center at N.C. State University. While the DSIRE project is funded primarily by the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, this publication is supported by other funds.