II 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2146 

To amend the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 to create 

a market-oriented standard for clean electric energy generation, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 1, 2012 

Mr. BINGAMAN (for himself, Mr. WYDEN, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. UDALL of Colorado, Mr. FRANKEN, Mr. COONS, Mr. KERRY, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, and 

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico) introduced the following bill; which was read 

twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To amend the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 

to create a market-oriented standard for clean electric 

energy generation, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Clean Energy Stand5 ard Act of 2012’’. 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 2146 IS

1 SEC. 2. FEDERAL CLEAN ENERGY STANDARD. 

2 Title VI of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act 

3 of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.) is amended by adding 

4 at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 610. FEDERAL CLEAN ENERGY STANDARD. 

6 ‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this section is to cre7 ate a market-oriented standard for electric energy genera8 tion that stimulates clean energy innovation and promotes 

9 a diverse set of low- and zero-carbon generation solutions 

10 in the United States at the lowest incremental cost to elec11 tric consumers. 

12 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

13 ‘‘(1) CLEAN ENERGY.—The term ‘clean energy’ 

14 means electric energy that is generated— 

15 ‘‘(A) at a facility placed in service after 

16 December 31, 1991, using— 

17 ‘‘(i) renewable energy; 

18 ‘‘(ii) qualified renewable biomass; 

19 ‘‘(iii) natural gas; 

20 ‘‘(iv) hydropower; 

21 ‘‘(v) nuclear power; or 

22 ‘‘(vi) qualified waste-to-energy; 

23 ‘‘(B) at a facility placed in service after 

24 the date of enactment of this section, using— 

25 ‘‘(i) qualified combined heat and 

26 power; or 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 2146 IS

1 ‘‘(ii) a source of energy, other than 

2 biomass, with lower annual carbon inten3 sity than 0.82 metric tons of carbon diox4 ide equivalent per megawatt-hour; 

5 ‘‘(C) as a result of qualified efficiency im6 provements or capacity additions; or 

7 ‘‘(D) at a facility that captures carbon di8 oxide and prevents the release of the carbon di9 oxide into the atmosphere. 

10 ‘‘(2) NATURAL GAS.— 

11 ‘‘(A) INCLUSION.—The term ‘natural gas’ 

12 includes coal mine methane. 

13 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘natural 

14 gas’ excludes landfill methane and biogas. 

15 ‘‘(3) QUALIFIED COMBINED HEAT AND

16 POWER.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘qualified 

18 combined heat and power’ means a system 

19 that— 

20 ‘‘(i) uses the same energy source for 

21 the simultaneous or sequential generation 

22 of electrical energy and thermal energy; 

23 ‘‘(ii) produces at least— 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 2146 IS

1 ‘‘(I) 20 percent of the useful en2 ergy of the system in the form of elec3 tricity; and 

4 ‘‘(II) 20 percent of the useful en5 ergy in the form of useful thermal en6 ergy; 

7 ‘‘(iii) to the extent the system uses 

8 biomass, uses only qualified renewable bio9 mass; and 

10 ‘‘(iv) operates with an energy effi11 ciency percentage that is greater than 50 

12 percent. 

13 ‘‘(B) DETERMINATION OF ENERGY EFFI14 CIENCY.—For purposes of subparagraph (A), 

15 the energy efficiency percentage of a combined 

16 heat and power system shall be determined in 

17 accordance with section 48(c)(3)(C)(i) of the 

18 Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

19 ‘‘(4) QUALIFIED EFFICIENCY IMPROVEMENTS

20 OR CAPACITY ADDITIONS.— 

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara22 graphs (B) and (C), the term ‘qualified effi23 ciency improvements or capacity additions’ 

24 means efficiency improvements or capacity ad25 ditions made after December 31, 1991, to— 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 2146 IS

1 ‘‘(i) a nuclear facility placed in service 

2 on or before December 31, 1991; or 

3 ‘‘(ii) a hydropower facility placed in 

4 service on or before December 31, 1991. 

5 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘qualified ef6 ficiency improvements or capacity additions’ 

7 does not include additional electric energy gen8 erated as a result of operational changes not di9 rectly associated with efficiency improvements 

10 or capacity additions. 

11 ‘‘(C) MEASUREMENT AND CERTIFI12 CATION.—In the case of hydropower, efficiency 

13 improvements and capacity additions under this 

14 paragraph shall be— 

15 ‘‘(i) measured on the basis of the 

16 same water flow information that is used 

17 to determine the historic average annual 

18 generation for the applicable hydroelectric 

19 facility; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) certified by the Secretary or the 

21 Commission. 

22 ‘‘(5) QUALIFIED RENEWABLE BIOMASS.—The 

23 term ‘qualified renewable biomass’ means renewable 

24 biomass produced and harvested through land man25 agement practices that maintain or restore the comVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:15 Mar 02, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2146.IS S2146

smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 2146 IS

1 position, structure, and processes of ecosystems, in2 cluding the diversity of plant and animal commu3 nities, water quality, and the productive capacity of 

4 soil and the ecological systems. 

5 ‘‘(6) QUALIFIED WASTE-TO-ENERGY.—The 

6 term ‘qualified waste-to-energy’ means energy pro7 duced— 

8 ‘‘(A) from the combustion of— 

9 ‘‘(i) post-recycled municipal solid 

10 waste; 

11 ‘‘(ii) gas produced from the gasifi12 cation or pyrolization of post-recycled mu13 nicipal solid waste; 

14 ‘‘(iii) biogas; 

15 ‘‘(iv) landfill methane; 

16 ‘‘(v) animal waste or animal byprod17 ucts; or 

18 ‘‘(vi) wood, paper products that are 

19 not commonly recyclable, and vegetation 

20 (including trees and trimmings, yard 

21 waste, pallets, railroad ties, crates, and 

22 solid-wood manufacturing and construction 

23 debris), if diverted from or separated from 

24 other waste out of a municipal waste 

25 stream; and 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
7 

•S 2146 IS

1 ‘‘(B) at a facility that the Commission has 

2 certified, on an annual basis, is in compliance 

3 with all applicable Federal and State environ4 mental permits, including— 

5 ‘‘(i) in the case of a facility that com6 mences operation before the date of enact7 ment of this section, compliance with emis8 sion standards under sections 112 and 129 

9 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7412, 

10 7429) that apply as of the date of enact11 ment of this section to new facilities within 

12 the applicable source category; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a facility that pro14 duces electric energy from the combustion, 

15 pyrolization, or gasification of municipal 

16 solid waste, certification that each local 

17 government unit from which the waste 

18 originates operates, participates in the op19 eration of, contracts for, or otherwise pro20 vides for recycling services for residents of 

21 the local government unit. 

22 ‘‘(7) RENEWABLE ENERGY.—The term ‘renew23 able energy’ means solar, wind, ocean, current, wave, 

24 tidal, or geothermal energy. 

25 ‘‘(c) CLEAN ENERGY REQUIREMENT.— 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
8 

•S 2146 IS

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Effective beginning in cal2 endar year 2015, each electric utility that sells elec3 tric energy to electric consumers in a State shall ob4 tain a percentage of the electric energy the electric 

5 utility sells to electric consumers during a calendar 

6 year from clean energy. 

7 ‘‘(2) PERCENTAGE REQUIRED.—The percentage 

8 of electric energy sold during a calendar year that 

9 is required to be clean energy under paragraph (1) 

10 shall be determined in accordance with the following 

11 table: 

‘‘Calendar year 

Minimum 

annual 

percentage 

2015 ................................................................................................ 24

2016 ................................................................................................ 27

2017 ................................................................................................ 30

2018 ................................................................................................ 33

2019 ................................................................................................ 36

2020 ................................................................................................ 39

2021 ................................................................................................ 42

2022 ................................................................................................ 45

2023 ................................................................................................ 48

2024 ................................................................................................ 51

2025 ................................................................................................ 54

2026 ................................................................................................ 57

2027 ................................................................................................ 60

2028 ................................................................................................ 63

2029 ................................................................................................ 66

2030 ................................................................................................ 69

2031 ................................................................................................ 72

2032 ................................................................................................ 75

2033 ................................................................................................ 78

2034 ................................................................................................ 81

2035 ................................................................................................ 84. 

12 ‘‘(3) DEDUCTION FOR ELECTRIC ENERGY GEN13 ERATED FROM HYDROPOWER OR NUCLEAR


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
9 

•S 2146 IS

1 POWER.—An electric utility that sells electric energy 

2 to electric consumers from a facility placed in service 

3 in the United States on or before December 31, 

4 1991, using hydropower or nuclear power may de5 duct the quantity of the electric energy from the 

6 quantity to which the percentage in paragraph (2) 

7 applies. 

8 ‘‘(d) MEANS OF COMPLIANCE.—An electric utility 

9 shall meet the requirements of subsection (c) by— 

10 ‘‘(1) submitting to the Secretary clean energy 

11 credits issued under subsection (e); 

12 ‘‘(2) making alternative compliance payments of 

13 3 cents per kilowatt hour in accordance with sub14 section (i); or 

15 ‘‘(3) taking a combination of actions described 

16 in paragraphs (1) and (2). 

17 ‘‘(e) FEDERAL CLEAN ENERGY TRADING PRO18 GRAM.— 

19 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 

20 days after the date of enactment of this section, the 

21 Secretary shall establish a Federal clean energy 

22 credit trading program under which electric utilities 

23 may submit to the Secretary clean energy credits to 

24 certify compliance by the electric utilities with sub25 section (c). 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
10 

•S 2146 IS

1 ‘‘(2) CLEAN ENERGY CREDITS.—Except as pro2 vided in paragraph (3)(B), the Secretary shall issue 

3 to each generator of electric energy a quantity of 

4 clean energy credits determined in accordance with 

5 subsections (f) and (g). 

6 ‘‘(3) ADMINISTRATION.—In carrying out the 

7 program under this subsection, the Secretary shall 

8 ensure that— 

9 ‘‘(A) a clean energy credit shall be used 

10 only once for purposes of compliance with this 

11 section; and 

12 ‘‘(B) a clean energy credit issued for clean 

13 energy generated and sold for resale under a 

14 contract in effect on the date of enactment of 

15 this section shall be issued to the purchasing 

16 electric utility, unless otherwise provided by the 

17 contract. 

18 ‘‘(4) DELEGATION OF MARKET FUNCTION.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the 

20 program under this subsection, the Secretary 

21 may delegate— 

22 ‘‘(i) to 1 or more appropriate market23 making entities, the administration of a 

24 national clean energy credit market for 

25 purposes of establishing a transparent naVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:15 Mar 02, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2146.IS S2146

smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
11 

•S 2146 IS

1 tional market for the sale or trade of clean 

2 energy credits; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) to appropriate entities, the track4 ing of dispatch of clean generation. 

5 ‘‘(B) ADMINISTRATION.—In making a del6 egation under subparagraph (A)(ii), the Sec7 retary shall ensure that the tracking and re8 porting of information concerning the dispatch 

9 of clean generation is transparent, verifiable, 

10 and independent of any generation or load in11 terests subject to an obligation under this sec12 tion. 

13 ‘‘(5) BANKING OF CLEAN ENERGY CREDITS.— 

14 Clean energy credits to be used for compliance pur15 poses under subsection (c) shall be valid for the year 

16 in which the clean energy credits are issued or in 

17 any subsequent calendar year. 

18 ‘‘(f) DETERMINATION OF QUANTITY OF CREDIT.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise pro20 vided in this subsection, the quantity of clean energy 

21 credits issued to each electric utility generating elec22 tric energy in the United States from clean energy 

23 shall be equal to the product of— 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
12 

•S 2146 IS

1 ‘‘(A) for each generator owned by a utility, 

2 the number of megawatt-hours of electric en3 ergy sold from that generator by the utility; and 

4 ‘‘(B) the difference between— 

5 ‘‘(i) 1.0; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) the quotient obtained by divid7 ing— 

8 ‘‘(I) the annual carbon intensity 

9 of the generator, as determined in ac10 cordance with subsection (g), ex11 pressed in metric tons per megawatt12 hour; by 

13 ‘‘(II) 0.82. 

14 ‘‘(2) NEGATIVE CREDITS.—Notwithstanding 

15 any other provision of this subsection, the Secretary 

16 shall not issue a negative quantity of clean energy 

17 credits to any generator. 

18 ‘‘(3) QUALIFIED COMBINED HEAT AND

19 POWER.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The quantity of clean 

21 energy credits issued to an owner of a qualified 

22 combined heat and power system in the United 

23 States shall be equal to the difference be24 tween— 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
13 

•S 2146 IS

1 ‘‘(i) the product obtained by multi2 plying— 

3 ‘‘(I) the number of megawatt4 hours of electric energy generated by 

5 the system; and 

6 ‘‘(II) the difference between— 

7 ‘‘(aa) 1.0; and 

8 ‘‘(bb) the quotient obtained 

9 by dividing— 

10 ‘‘(AA) the annual car11 bon intensity of the gener12 ator, as determined in ac13 cordance with subsection 

14 (g), expressed in metric tons 

15 per megawatt-hour; by 

16 ‘‘(BB) 0.82; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) the product obtained by multi18 plying— 

19 ‘‘(I) the number of megawatt20 hours of electric energy generated by 

21 the system that are consumed onsite 

22 by the facility; and 

23 ‘‘(II) the annual target for elec24 tric energy sold during a calendar 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
14 

•S 2146 IS

1 year that is required to be clean en2 ergy under subsection (c)(2). 

3 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL CREDITS.—In addition 

4 to credits issued under subparagraph (A), the 

5 Secretary shall award clean energy credits to an 

6 owner of a qualified heat and power system in 

7 the United States for greenhouse gas emissions 

8 avoided as a result of the use of a qualified 

9 combined heat and power system, rather than a 

10 separate thermal source, to meet onsite thermal 

11 needs. 

12 ‘‘(4) QUALIFIED WASTE-TO-ENERGY.—The 

13 quantity of clean energy credits issued to an electric 

14 utility generating electric energy in the United 

15 States from a qualified waste-to-energy facility shall 

16 be equal to the product obtained by multiplying— 

17 ‘‘(A) the number of megawatt-hours of 

18 electric energy generated by the facility and 

19 sold by the utility; and 

20 ‘‘(B) 1.0. 

21 ‘‘(g) DETERMINATION OF ANNUAL CARBON INTEN22 SITY OF GENERATING FACILITIES.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of deter24 mining the quantity of credits under subsection (f), 

25 except as provided in paragraph (2), the Secretary 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
15 

•S 2146 IS

1 shall determine the annual carbon intensity of each 

2 generator by dividing— 

3 ‘‘(A) the net annual carbon dioxide equiva4 lent emissions of the generator; by 

5 ‘‘(B) the annual quantity of electricity gen6 erated by the generator. 

7 ‘‘(2) BIOMASS.—The Secretary shall— 

8 ‘‘(A) not later than 180 days after the date 

9 of enactment of this section, issue interim regu10 lations for determining the carbon intensity 

11 based on an initial consideration of the issues 

12 to be reported on under subparagraph (B); 

13 ‘‘(B) not later than 180 days after the 

14 date of enactment of this section, enter into an 

15 agreement with the National Academy of 

16 Sciences under which the Academy shall— 

17 ‘‘(i) evaluate models and methodolo18 gies for quantifying net changes in green19 house gas emissions associated with gener20 ating electric energy from each significant 

21 source of qualified renewable biomass, in22 cluding evaluation of additional sequestra23 tion or emissions associated with changes 

24 in land use by the production of the bio25 mass; and 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
16 

•S 2146 IS

1 ‘‘(ii) not later than 1 year after the 

2 date of enactment of this section, publish 

3 a report that includes— 

4 ‘‘(I) a description of the evalua5 tion required by clause (i); and 

6 ‘‘(II) recommendations for deter7 mining the carbon intensity of electric 

8 energy generated from qualified re9 newable biomass under this section; 

10 and 

11 ‘‘(C) not later than 180 days after the 

12 publication of the report under subparagraph 

13 (B)(ii), issue regulations for determining the 

14 carbon intensity of electric energy generated 

15 from qualified renewable biomass that take into 

16 account the report. 

17 ‘‘(3) CONSULTATION.—The Secretary shall con18 sult with— 

19 ‘‘(A) the Administrator of the Environ20 mental Protection Agency in determining the 

21 annual carbon intensity of generating facilities 

22 under paragraph (1); and 

23 ‘‘(B) the Administrator of the Environ24 mental Protection Agency, the Secretary of the 

25 Interior, and the Secretary of Agriculture in 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
17 

•S 2146 IS

1 issuing regulations for determining the carbon 

2 intensity of electric energy generated by bio3 mass under paragraph (2)(C). 

4 ‘‘(h) CIVIL PENALTIES.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

6 an electric utility that fails to meet the requirements 

7 of this section shall be subject to a civil penalty in 

8 an amount equal to the product obtained by multi9 plying— 

10 ‘‘(A) the number of kilowatt-hours of elec11 tric energy sold by the utility to electric con12 sumers in violation of subsection (c); and 

13 ‘‘(B) 200 percent of the value of the alter14 native compliance payment, as adjusted under 

15 subsection (m). 

16 ‘‘(2) WAIVERS AND MITIGATION.— 

17 ‘‘(A) FORCE MAJEURE.—The Secretary 

18 may mitigate or waive a civil penalty under this 

19 subsection if the electric utility was unable to 

20 comply with an applicable requirement of this 

21 section for reasons outside of the reasonable 

22 control of the utility. 

23 ‘‘(B) REDUCTION FOR STATE PEN24 ALTIES.—The Secretary shall reduce the 

25 amount of a penalty determined under paraVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:15 Mar 02, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2146.IS S2146

smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
18 

•S 2146 IS

1 graph (1) by the amount paid by the electric 

2 utility to a State for failure to comply with the 

3 requirement of a State renewable energy pro4 gram, if the State requirement is more strin5 gent than the applicable requirement of this 

6 section. 

7 ‘‘(3) PROCEDURE FOR ASSESSING PENALTY.— 

8 The Secretary shall assess a civil penalty under this 

9 subsection in accordance with section 333(d) of the 

10 Energy Policy and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 

11 6303(d)). 

12 ‘‘(i) ALTERNATIVE COMPLIANCE PAYMENTS.—An 

13 electric utility may satisfy the requirements of subsection 

14 (c), in whole or in part, by submitting in lieu of a clean 

15 energy credit issued under this section a payment equal 

16 to the amount required under subsection (d)(2), in accord17 ance with such regulations as the Secretary may promul18 gate. 

19 ‘‘(j) STATE ENERGY EFFICIENCY FUNDING PRO20 GRAM.— 

21 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than Decem22 ber 31, 2015, the Secretary shall establish a State 

23 energy efficiency funding program. 

24 ‘‘(2) FUNDING.—All funds collected by the Sec25 retary as alternative compliance payments under 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
19 

•S 2146 IS

1 subsection (i), or as civil penalties under subsection 

2 (h), shall be used solely to carry out the program 

3 under this subsection. 

4 ‘‘(3) DISTRIBUTION TO STATES.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An amount equal to 

6 75 percent of the funds described in paragraph 

7 (2) shall be used by the Secretary, without fur8 ther appropriation or fiscal year limitation, to 

9 provide funds to States for the implementation 

10 of State energy efficiency plans under section 

11 362 of the Energy Policy and Conservation Act 

12 (42 U.S.C. 6322), in accordance with the pro13 portion of those amounts collected by the Sec14 retary from each State. 

15 ‘‘(B) ACTION BY STATES.—A State that 

16 receives funds under this paragraph shall main17 tain such records and evidence of compliance as 

18 the Secretary may require. 

19 ‘‘(4) GUIDELINES AND CRITERIA.—The Sec20 retary may issue such additional guidelines and cri21 teria for the program under this subsection as the 

22 Secretary determines to be appropriate. 

23 ‘‘(k) EXEMPTIONS.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—This section shall not apply 

25 during any calendar year to an electric utility that 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
20 

•S 2146 IS

1 sold less than the applicable quantity described in 

2 paragraph (2) of megawatt-hours of electric energy 

3 to electric consumers during the preceding calendar 

4 year. 

5 ‘‘(2) APPLICABLE QUANTITY.—For purposes of 

6 paragraph (1), the applicable quantity is— 

7 ‘‘(A) in the case of calendar year 2015, 

8 2,000,000; 

9 ‘‘(B) in the case of calendar year 2016, 

10 1,900,000; 

11 ‘‘(C) in the case of calendar year 2017, 

12 1,800,000; 

13 ‘‘(D) in the case of calendar year 2018, 

14 1,700,000; 

15 ‘‘(E) in the case of calendar year 2019, 

16 1,600,000; 

17 ‘‘(F) in the case of calendar year 2020, 

18 1,500,000; 

19 ‘‘(G) in the case of calendar year 2021, 

20 1,400,000; 

21 ‘‘(H) in the case of calendar year 2022, 

22 1,300,000; 

23 ‘‘(I) in the case of calendar year 2023, 

24 1,200,000; 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
21 

•S 2146 IS

1 ‘‘(J) in the case of calendar year 2024, 

2 1,100,000; and 

3 ‘‘(K) in the case of calendar year 2025 and 

4 each calendar year thereafter, 1,000,000. 

5 ‘‘(3) CALCULATION OF ELECTRIC ENERGY

6 SOLD.— 

7 ‘‘(A) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, 

8 the terms ‘affiliate’ and ‘associate company’ 

9 have the meanings given the terms in section 

10 1262 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 

11 U.S.C. 16451). 

12 ‘‘(B) INCLUSION.—For purposes of calcu13 lating the quantity of electric energy sold by an 

14 electric utility under this subsection, the quan15 tity of electric energy sold by an affiliate of the 

16 electric utility or an associate company shall be 

17 treated as sold by the electric utility. 

18 ‘‘(l) STATE PROGRAMS.— 

19 ‘‘(1) SAVINGS PROVISION.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph 

21 (2), nothing in this section affects the authority 

22 of a State or a political subdivision of a State 

23 to adopt or enforce any law or regulation relat24 ing to— 

25 ‘‘(i) clean or renewable energy; or 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
22 

•S 2146 IS

1 ‘‘(ii) the regulation of an electric util2 ity. 

3 ‘‘(B) FEDERAL LAW.—No law or regula4 tion of a State or a political subdivision of a 

5 State may relieve an electric utility from com6 pliance with an applicable requirement of this 

7 section. 

8 ‘‘(2) COORDINATION.—The Secretary, in con9 sultation with States that have clean and renewable 

10 energy programs in effect, shall facilitate, to the 

11 maximum extent practicable, coordination between 

12 the Federal clean energy program under this section 

13 and the relevant State clean and renewable energy 

14 programs. 

15 ‘‘(m) ADJUSTMENT OF ALTERNATIVE COMPLIANCE

16 PAYMENT.—Not later than December 31, 2016, and an17 nually thereafter, the Secretary shall— 

18 ‘‘(1) increase by 5 percent the rate of the alter19 native compliance payment under subsection (d)(2); 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(2) additionally adjust that rate for inflation, 

22 as the Secretary determines to be necessary. 

23 ‘‘(n) REPORT ON CLEAN ENERGY RESOURCES THAT

24 DO NOT GENERATE ELECTRIC ENERGY.— 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
23 

•S 2146 IS

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years 

2 after the date of enactment of this section, the Sec3 retary shall submit to Congress a report examining 

4 mechanisms to supplement the standard under this 

5 section by addressing clean energy resources that do 

6 not generate electric energy but that may substan7 tially reduce electric energy loads, including energy 

8 efficiency, biomass converted to thermal energy, geo9 thermal energy collected using heat pumps, thermal 

10 energy delivered through district heating systems, 

11 and waste heat used as industrial process heat. 

12 ‘‘(2) POTENTIAL INTEGRATION.—The report 

13 under paragraph (1) shall examine the benefits and 

14 challenges of integrating the additional clean energy 

15 resources into the standard established by this sec16 tion, including— 

17 ‘‘(A) the extent to which such an integra18 tion would achieve the purposes of this section; 

19 ‘‘(B) the manner in which a baseline de20 scribing the use of the resources could be devel21 oped that would ensure that only incremental 

22 action that increased the use of the resources 

23 received credit; and 

24 ‘‘(C) the challenges of pricing the re25 sources in a comparable manner between orgaVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:15 Mar 02, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2146.IS S2146

smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
24 

•S 2146 IS

1 nized markets and vertically integrated mar2 kets, including options for the pricing. 

3 ‘‘(3) COMPLEMENTARY POLICIES.—The report 

4 under paragraph (1) shall examine the benefits and 

5 challenges of using complementary policies or stand6 ards, other than the standard established under this 

7 section, to provide effective incentives for using the 

8 additional clean energy resources. 

9 ‘‘(4) LEGISLATIVE RECOMMENDATIONS.—As 

10 part of the report under paragraph (1), the Sec11 retary may provide legislative recommendations for 

12 changes to the standard established under this sec13 tion or new complementary policies that would pro14 vide effective incentives for using the additional 

15 clean energy resources. 

16 ‘‘(o) EXCLUSIONS.—This section does not apply to an 

17 electric utility located in the State of Alaska or Hawaii. 

18 ‘‘(p) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 1 year after the 

19 date of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall pro20 mulgate regulations to implement this section. 

21 ‘‘SEC. 611. REPORT ON NATURAL GAS CONSERVATION. 

22 ‘‘Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment 

23 of this section, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a 

24 report that— 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS
25 

•S 2146 IS

1 ‘‘(1) quantifies the losses of natural gas during 

2 the production and transportation of the natural 

3 gas; and 

4 ‘‘(2) makes recommendations, as appropriate, 

5 for programs and policies to promote conservation of 

6 natural gas for beneficial use.’’. 

Æ 


smartinez on DSK6TPTVN1PROD with BILLS