Bill Text: NH SB417 | 2022 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishing an electric school bus pilot program.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 11-4)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2022-05-04 - Lay SB417 on Table (Rep. Steven Smith): Motion Adopted DV 166-151 05/04/2022 House Journal 11 [SB417 Detail]
Download: New_Hampshire-2022-SB417-Introduced.html
SB 417-FN - AS INTRODUCED
2022 SESSION
22-2986
12/10
SENATE BILL 417-FN
AN ACT establishing an electric school bus pilot program.
SPONSORS: Sen. Watters, Dist 4; Sen. Perkins Kwoka, Dist 21; Sen. Whitley, Dist 15; Sen. D'Allesandro, Dist 20; Sen. Sherman, Dist 24; Sen. Hennessey, Dist 1; Sen. Prentiss, Dist 5; Sen. Rosenwald, Dist 13; Sen. Avard, Dist 12; Sen. Soucy, Dist 18; Sen. Carson, Dist 14; Sen. Cavanaugh, Dist 16; Sen. Kahn, Dist 10; Rep. Telerski, Hills. 35; Rep. Steven Smith, Sull. 11
COMMITTEE: Transportation
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ANALYSIS
This bill establishes an electric school bus pilot program within the department of energy.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
22-2986
12/10
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Two
AN ACT establishing an electric school bus pilot program.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Electric Utility Investment in Distributed Energy Resources; Definitions. Amend RSA 374-G:2, I(b) to read as follows:
(b) “"Distributed energy resources" means energy storage, including battery storage in RSA 374-I.
2 New Chapter; Electric School Bus Pilot Program. Amend RSA by inserting after chapter 374-H the following new chapter:
CHAPTER 374-I
ELECTRIC SCHOOL BUS PILOT PROGRAM
374-I:1 Definitions. In this chapter:
I. "Department" means the department of energy.
II. “Electric school bus” means a school bus that is powered exclusively by an electric motor that draws its current from rechargeable storage batteries, which are recharged with electricity from an electric vehicle charging station.
III. “Electric school bus pilot program” means a pilot program conducted by an entity under this chapter.
IV. “Incremental administrative and operating costs” means the amount by which the cost of administering and operating an electric school bus program exceeds the cost of administering and operating a diesel school bus program.
V. “Incremental costs of purchasing and deploying electric school buses” means the amount by which the costs of purchasing and deploying electric school buses exceeds the costs of purchasing and deploying diesel school buses.
VI. “Interconnection equipment” means a group of components or an integrated system that connects an electric vehicle charging station with the distribution system of an electric utility.
VII. “Interconnection facilities” means facilities required by the electric utility to accommodate the interconnection of an electric vehicle charging station.
VIII. “Participating school system” means a school system located within an electric utility company’s service territory that:
(a) Participates in an electric school bus pilot program under an agreement between its school board and a participating entity; and
(b) Owns its school buses or contracts with another entity for school bus services.
IX. “Program costs” means:
(a) Any costs to deploy appropriate electric school bus charging infrastructure that are incurred by an entity implementing an electric school bus pilot program; and
(b) Rebates paid to a participating school system.
X. “Rebate” means an incentive provided by an entity to a participating school system that is equal to:
(a) The incremental costs of purchasing and deploying electric school buses to participating school systems; and
(b) Associated incremental and administrative and operating costs incurred by a participating school system in implementing its electric school bus pilot program.
XI. “Vehicle-to-grid” means a system in which plug-in electric vehicles communicate with the power grid to sell demand response services by either returning electricity to the grid or by throttling their charging rate.
XII. “Pay as you save” means a financial mechanism that allows a utility to pay for the upfront cost of a distributed energy solution and to recover its cost on the monthly bill with a charge that is less than the estimated savings.
374-I:2 Pilot Program Established.
I. There is hereby established an electric school bus pilot program to be implemented and administered by the department of energy.
II. The commissioner of the department of environmental services, at the request of the commissioner of the department of energy, may allocate funding from the New Hampshire Volkswagen Mitigation Trust for the electric school bus pilot program.
III. The commissioner of the department of energy may apply for and accept federal funding for electric vehicles or electric vehicle infrastructure for the purposes of administering this program.
374-I:3 Requests for Proposals.
I. The department shall issue a request for proposals by July 1, 2022 and shall identify qualified pilot programs. The non-incremental costs of the purchase of electric school buses and electric vehicle service equipment shall, to the extent possible with available funds, be provided from funds derived from the Volkswagen settlement, federal, or other grant funds.
II. The request for proposal shall include a provision for the non-incremental costs for school bus purchases through a pay-as-you save program funded by the successful entity, but such a program is not a requirement for selection for the pilot program. To the extent possible electric vehicle service equipment shall be provided for the program by funding from the Volkswagen settlement and federal funds.
374-I:4 Qualified Pilot Programs.
I. Investor-owned utility companies, electric vehicle charging equipment companies, municipalities that operate school buses, and school bus companies contracted for services by a New Hampshire school district, may apply to the department to implement an electric school bus pilot program. A qualifying pilot program must:
(a) Commence on or before December 31, 2023;
(b) Provide for the initial deployment of not less than 5 buses;
(c) Provide for electric school bus rebates to participating school systems;
(d) Allow the participating entity to use the storage batteries of the electric school buses to access the stored electricity through vehicle-to-grid technology, without additional compensation to the school system, for the electricity at times when the participating school system determines that the school buses are not needed to transport students;
(e) Ensure that a utility or other entity that uses electricity that a participating school system provides to charge an electric school bus battery replaces that electricity, at no cost to the participating school system, at times when the school buses are not in use and when:
(1) There is a power outage or emergency;
(2) Energy demand is high; or
(3) Renewable energy resources are intermittent;
(f) Provide for the selection of school systems that are included in the application for the pilot program on the basis of appropriate factors determined by the applicant, including the location benefits that the storage batteries of school buses are expected to bring to the regulation of energy supply and effects on peak demand cost savings for the participating utility or municipal aggregator;
(g) Consider, in determining the appropriate factors for applicant selection, the health and economic effects on target communities;
(h) Provide and install the interconnection equipment for vehicle-to-grid capacity and interconnection facilities for electric vehicle charging stations and train school personnel in the proper use of the equipment and facilities;
(i) Equip each electronic school bus with lap and shoulder belts in accordance with recommendations from the National Transportation Safety Board; and
(j) Consider criteria that benefit the health of students and the school districts that have a higher percentage of students receiving free and reduced meals than the state average.
II. An entity that applies to implement an electric school bus pilot program shall provide to the department any information, data, and analysis that the department requires.
III. The department shall approve, deny, or approve with modifications an application to implement an electric school bus pilot program.
374-I:5 Rulemaking Authority; Costs.
I. The department shall adopt rules, pursuant to RSA 541-A, to implement this chapter and, to the extent this program materially affects the interests of electric distribution utilities and their customers, to reasonably balance such interests with those of school districts and municipalities, and the health of students, for the public good, which may also be done through adjudicative proceedings to the extent specified or not addressed in rules. Such rules shall include but not be limited to rules governing the provisions of the program for rebates and payments, metering, billing, and access to customer data for planning and operation of the program. Where the department has adopted rules in conformity with this chapter, complaints to and proceedings shall not be subject to RSA 541-A:29 or RSA 541-A:29-a.
II. Subject to the department’s approval, a program operator may recover all reasonable and prudent program costs incurred under an electric school bus pilot program through a rate application to be reviewed and approved by the department. The cost to a utility for make-ready transmission to a facility for this program shall be a recoverable cost.
III. A rate application under this subsection shall include conforming changes to the participating company’s applicable rate schedule, if such exist.
IV. Subject to the department’s approval, the electric school bus pilot program shall become a regular rate schedule of the participating entity.
374-I:6 Reports. An entity that establishes an electric school bus pilot program authorized by this chapter shall, in consultation with each participating school system, by January 1, 2023 and each year thereafter for the duration of the pilot program, report, on the status of the pilot program to the department, the governor, the senate president, speaker of the house, and chairs of the senate transportation committee, and the house transportation and science, technology, and energy committees. The report shall include:
I. An evaluation of the environmental and health benefits of the pilot program; and
II. The financial costs and benefits of implementing the pilot program to the participating school system and the participating entity, including:
(a) The deployment, operating, and maintenance of the electric school buses; and
(b) The use of vehicle-to-grid technology.
374-I:7 Additional Funds.
I. If additional funds become available for the program, at the request of a pilot program organization, the department may authorize an expansion of the scope, deployment, program costs, and duration of the electric school bus pilot program, or issue a new request for proposals.
II. If an entity that establishes an electric school bus program independent of a program established under this chapter may submit an application for approval of the electric school bus program.
3 Prospective Repeal. RSA 374-I, relative to electric school bus pilot programs, is repealed.
I. Section 3 of this act shall take effect January 1, 2027.
II. The remainder of this act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.
22-2986
12/21/21
SB 417-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AS INTRODUCED
AN ACT establishing an electric school bus pilot program.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Due to time constraints, the Office of Legislative Budget Assistant is unable to provide a fiscal note for this bill, as introduced, at this time. The Department of Energy was contacted for a fiscal note worksheet initially on 11/23/2021 and again on 12/14/2021. When completed, the fiscal note will be forwarded to the Senate Clerk's Office.
AGENCIES CONTACTED:
Department of Energy
