File No. 471

Senate, April 5, 2016

The Committee on Energy and Technology reported through SEN. DOYLE of the 9th Dist., Chairperson of the Committee on the part of the Senate, that the substitute bill ought to pass.

AN ACT CONCERNING THE USE OF MICROGRID GRANTS AND LOANS FOR CERTAIN DISTRIBUTED ENERGY GENERATION PROJECTS.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:

Section 1. Subsection (c) of section 16-243y of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2016):

(c) The department shall award grants or loans under the microgrid grant and loan pilot program to any number of recipients. To the extent possible, the amount of loans and grants awarded under the program shall be evenly distributed between small, medium and large municipalities. Such grants and loans [shall only be used to provide assistance] may provide: (1) Assistance to recipients for the cost of design, engineering services and interconnection infrastructure for any such microgrid, and (2) matching funds or low interest loans for distributed energy generation projects first placed in service on or after July 1, 2016, for any such microgrid. The department may establish any financing mechanism to provide or leverage additional funding to support the development of interconnection infrastructure, distributed energy generation and microgrids. [that is not limited to the cost of interconnection infrastructure.]

The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose. In general, fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst's professional knowledge. Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.

OFA Fiscal Note

State Impact: None

Municipal Impact: None

Explanation

The bill, which expands the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection's microgrid grant and loan program, has no fiscal impact.

The Out Years

State Impact: None

Municipal Impact: None

OLR Bill Analysis

sSB 272

AN ACT CONCERNING THE USE OF MICROGRID GRANTS AND LOANS FOR CERTAIN DISTRIBUTED ENERGY GENERATION PROJECTS.

SUMMARY:

This bill expands the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection's (DEEP) microgrid grant and loan program to include matching funds or low interest loans for distributed energy projects placed in service after July 1, 2016 for eligible microgrids. Under current law, recipients of grants and loans under DEEP's microgrid program can only use the funds for design, engineering services, and interconnection infrastructure (i.e., not for generation).

The law already allows DEEP to establish a financing mechanism to provide or leverage additional funding to support the development of distributed energy generation and microgrids.

EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 2016

BACKGROUND

Microgrid Grant and Loan Program

By law, municipalities, electric companies, municipal electric utilities, energy improvement districts, and private entities may apply to DEEP's microgrid grant and loan program (CGS § 16-243y(b)). Applicants may collaborate and submit applications together. The proposed microgrid must support critical facilities, which are:

1. hospitals,

2. police and fire stations,

3. water and sewage treatment plants,

4. public shelters,

5. correctional facilities,

6. certain television and radio production and transmission facilities,

7. commercial areas,

8. municipal centers identified by the municipality's chief elected official, and

9. any other facility or area identified by DEEP (CGS § 16-243y(a)(2)).

COMMITTEE ACTION

Energy and Technology Committee

Joint Favorable Substitute