Legislative Updates
Great River Energy Legislative Update – week ending April 8, 2022
Deadline
April 8 marks the third and final committee deadline. This means committees must act on all finance and appropriation bills by today.
Easter/Passover break will begin on April 9 and the Legislature will be in recess through Monday, April 18. Legislative Update will not be published next week.
House Energy
The House Climate and Energy Committee took up their version of the Omnibus Energy Bill this week. HF3337 (Long, DFL-Minneapolis) combines a number of bills that were heard this session as well as provisions discussed last year. HF3337 contains some provisions that Great River Energy supports. This includes an appropriation for state-matching funds to meet provisions of the federal infrastructure bill and rebates for electric vehicles.
However, a majority of HF3337 is either unnecessary or problematic. For example, the bill creates an Innovative Finance Authority that merely duplicates and hinders work already done via co-ops and utilities working with end-use members. The bill also gives an unfair advantage in the permitting process to solar developers while utilities are hamstrung with going through all of the existing statutory processes. Finally, HF3337 requires mandatory diversity reporting. While Great River Energy and its member-owner cooperatives support the goals of this provision, it adds significant administrative burdens to cooperatives.
There are many other provisions that raise concerns for utilities. HF3337 is vastly different from the Senate Omnibus Energy Bill so differences will need to be worked out in conference committee. Great River Energy will work with Minnesota Rural Electric Association to advocate for our members’ interests.
HF3337 was passed along a party-line vote and sent to the House Ways and Means Committee.
Senate Energy
The Senate Energy Committee took up SF4392 (Senjem, R-Rochester). This is the Department of Commerce’s supplemental budget request. The Department makes an additional budget request of $34.5 million for weatherization. The Department also includes the $20 million appropriation for matching funds related to the federal infrastructure bill. Both of these items are notable because they were not included in the Senate version of the Omnibus Energy Bill.