Virginia lawmakers had been considering a slate of clean
energy and storage measures, but according to Greentech Media virtually all of
the more than a dozen bills introduced in this session have been carried over
into the 2017 term.
Only a bill backed by Dominion Energy, HB 1305, which
includes a sales and use tax exemption and real and personal property tax
exemption on solar and wind energy facilities, is still working its way through
the session.
Dominion's plan, to build or purchase up to 500 MW of solar
within the next five years, has already been found to be in the public's best
interest by a law passed in
2015.
Virginia has a ways to go on renewable energy, Greentech
Media points out, and it does not look like it will make much progress this
session. Dominion's measure may make it through, but state law has already been
passed to back the utility's solar plans. As for the other measures, 13 in
total, they have all been kicked down the line into the 2017 session.
Perhaps most disappointing for solar advocates is the delay
on HB 1286, which would have allowed solar customers to enter
into power purchase agreements with third parties, and would have done
away with Virginia's 1% net metering cap. Advocates said the third-party
ownership would help spur solar's growth in Virginia.
According to Greentech Media, essentially, rather than vote
against the measures, House Commerce and Labor Chairman Terry Kilgore
and Senate Commerce and Labor Committee Chairman Frank Wagner opted
to "carry over" the bills.
On paper, the measures will be reviewed over the summer by a
committee. At the moment, the committee doesn't exist yet.
Of the measures delayed, four
aimed to reduce barriers to investment in Virginia's solar
industry. In addition to the third-party PPAs, another measure would have
nixed standby charges for residential solar systems by raising the size of
facilities from 10 kW to 20 kW, which are required to pay.
Other bills would authorize utilities to develop community
solar gardens, establish tax credits for renewable energy property, and direct
Virginia's governor to join the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.
Two other bills sought to promote energy storage. House Bill
(HB) 452 would create a consortorium to boost research and
development of energy storage, with another bill
seeking to develop a program that would enable commercial and
industrial customers to sell battery storage services to the grid.
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