Code of Maine Rules › 95 - INDEPENDENT AGENCIES › 648 - EFFICIENCY MAINE TRUST › Chapter 3 - ELECTRIC EFFICIENCY AND CONSERVATION PROGRAMS › Section 648-3-2 - DEFINITIONS

Current through 2024-29, July 17, 2024
A.
Administrative costs
.
				"Administrative costs" means costs of the Trust that are funded pursuant to and
				associated with the implementation of
				35-A
				M.R.S.A. §10110, including, but not
				limited to, costs of program planning and evaluation, costs of securing
				necessary administrative expertise, costs associated with contract formation
				and administration and costs of monitoring and enforcing contractual
				obligations.
B.
Administrative fund
. "Administration fund" means the conservation
				administration fund established by the Trust pursuant to
				35-A
				M.R.S.A. §
										10110(8).
B-1.
Board.
"Board" means the
				Board of Trustees of the Efficiency Maine Trust.
B-2.
Beneficial electrification.
"Beneficial electrification" means electrification of a technology or process
				that results in reduction in the use of a fossil fuel, including
				electrification of a technology or process that would otherwise require energy
				from a fossil fuel, and that provides a benefit to a utility, a ratepayer or
				the environment, without causing harm to utilities, ratepayers or the
				environment, by improving the efficiency of the electricity grid or reducing
				consumer costs or emissions, including carbon emissions.
B-3.
Commission.
"Commission"
				means the Maine Public Utilities Commission.
C.
Conservation programs
.
				"Conservation programs" means programs developed by the Trust pursuant to
				35-A
				M.R.S.A. §10110 and this Chapter
				designed to reduce inefficient electricity use.
D.
Low-income residential
				consumer
. "Low-income residential consumer" means a customer of a
				transmission and distribution utility receiving benefits under the utility's
				program to assist low-income customers, or a household that has qualified at
				any time in the prior 12 month period to receive assistance through any state
				or federal program in which low income and/or limited assets are criteria for
				eligibility.
D-1.
Maximum
				Achievable Cost-Effective Energy Conservation (MACE)."
Maximum
				Achievable Cost-Effective Energy Conservation" or "MACE" means all
				cost-effective, reliable, and achievable energy conservation savings for
				purposes of
				35-A
				M.R.S.A.
				§§10104(4) and
				10110(4-A). In
				this Chapter, the term MACE applies to a quantity of energy savings and a
				budget for Trust programs that is reasonably likely to achieve that
				savings.
E.
Measure
.
				"Measure" means a device, application, operation, or any combination thereof,
				that is installed or implemented and that improves energy efficiency.
F.
Participant
. "Participant"
				means a customer who directly takes part in a Conservation Program.
G.
Program fund
. "Program fund"
				means the conservation program fund established by the Trust pursuant to
				35-A
				M.R.S.A.
				§10110(7).
H.
Small business consumer
.
				"Small business consumer" means a non-residential customer of a transmission
				and distribution utility that is designated in the utility's distribution
				rates, based on the customer's energy usage at a specific location or on a
				specific account, to receive general service through the customer class
				reserved for small non-residential users, including where applicable the small
				general service and the medium general service customer classes. This excludes
				any commercial utility accounts designated for large customers, customers who
				take power at the transmission or subtransmission voltage, street or area
				lighting only, space or water heating only, municipal water pumping,
				agricultural produce storage, or snow making. If the utility does not make such
				designations in its accounts or billing, then the Trust may extend the
				definition to a business customer that employs 50 or fewer full-time equivalent
				employees across all locations in Maine, giving consideration to the average
				number of employees that the business employs annually.
I.
Triennial Plan.
"Triennial
				Plan" means the detailed, triennial, energy efficiency, beneficial
				electrification, alternative energy resources and conservation plan developed
				by staff of the Trust, approved by the Board, and then approved by the
				Commission consistent with the provisions of 35-A M.R.S.A. §10104
				subsections (4) and (6).
J.
Utility procurement order
. "Utility procurement order" means the
				procurement amount to be paid by each transmission and distribution utility to
				the Trust each fiscal year of the Triennial Plan period, per the order of the
				Commission after approving the MACE budget and netting out other funding
				streams allocated to the MACE budget by the Board in the Trust's Triennial
				Plan.