Bill Text: CT SB00358 | 2014 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: An Act Concerning The Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy Program.

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-02-28 - Public Hearing 03/04 [SB00358 Detail]

Download: Connecticut-2014-SB00358-Introduced.html

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General Assembly		Raised Bill No. 358
February Session, 2014		LCO No. 1948
		*01948_______ET_*
Referred to Committee on ENERGY AND TECHNOLOGY
Introduced by:
(ET)

AN ACT CONCERNING THE COMMERCIAL PROPERTY ASSESSED CLEAN ENERGY PROGRAM.

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

Section 1. Subsection (a) of section 16a-40g of the 2014 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage):

(a) As used in this section:

(1) "Energy improvements" means (A) participation in a district heating and cooling system by qualifying commercial real property, (B) participation in a microgrid, as defined in section 16-243y, including any related infrastructure for such microgrid, by qualifying commercial real property, provided such microgrid and any related infrastructure incorporate clean energy, as defined in section 16-245n, (C) any renovation or retrofitting of qualifying commercial real property to reduce energy consumption, [(C)] (D) installation of a renewable energy system to service qualifying commercial real property, or [(D)] (E) installation of a solar thermal or geothermal system to service qualifying commercial real property, provided such renovation, retrofit or installation described in subparagraph [(B),] (C), [or] (D) or (E) of this subdivision is permanently fixed to such qualifying commercial real property;

(2) "District heating and cooling system" means a local system consisting of a pipeline or network providing hot water, chilled water or steam from one or more sources to multiple buildings;

(3) "Qualifying commercial real property" means any commercial or industrial property, regardless of ownership, that meets the qualifications established for the commercial sustainable energy program;

(4) "Commercial or industrial property" means any real property other than a residential dwelling containing less than five dwelling units;

(5) "Benefited property owner" means an owner of qualifying commercial real property who desires to install energy improvements and provides free and willing consent to the benefit assessment against the qualifying commercial real property;

(6) "Commercial sustainable energy program" means a program that facilitates energy improvements and utilizes the benefit assessments authorized by this section as security for the financing of the energy improvements;

(7) "Municipality" means a municipality, as defined in section 7-369;

(8) "Benefit assessment" means the assessment authorized by this section;

(9) "Participating municipality" means a municipality that has entered into a written agreement, as approved by its legislative body, with the authority pursuant to which the municipality has agreed to assess, collect, remit and assign, benefit assessments to the authority in return for energy improvements for benefited property owners within such municipality and costs reasonably incurred in performing such duties; and

(10) "Authority" means the Clean Energy Finance and Investment Authority.

Sec. 2. (Effective from passage) Not later than January 1, 2015, the Clean Energy Finance and Investment Authority shall submit a report, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes, to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to energy. Such report shall assess the potential success and need for a residential property assessed clean energy program, including, but not limited to, an evaluation of (1) potential consistency between such a program and the commercial property assessed clean energy program, as described in section 16a-40g of the general statutes, as amended by this act, and similar programs on the national level, (2) the legal framework for a residential property assessed clean energy program, and (3) the need for such a program, in light of similar current or developing programs at the state or federal level.

This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1	from passage	16a-40g(a)
Sec. 2	from passage	New section

Statement of Purpose:

To (1) amend the definition of energy improvements to include the participation in a microgrid, including any related infrastructure, by qualifying commercial real property, and (2) require the Clean Energy Finance and Investment Authority to study the need for a residential property assessed clean energy program.

[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]