The Public Utility Commission Thursday issued for comment a proposed rulemaking that would revise certain regulations of the Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards Act of 2004, including regulations pertaining to net metering, interconnection and compliance provisions of the AEPS Act.

The Commission voted 5-0 to receive comments on the proposed changes to existing regulations which, among other things, would increase certain reporting requirements and strengthen enforcement measures, revise interconnection and net metering rules, and clarify Commission procedures and standards for certifications and verification of compliance with the Act. The AEPS Act, which became effective on Feb. 28, 2005, was amended on two previous occasions through Act 135 of 2007 and Act 129 of 2008.

Written comments shall be submitted within 30 days of publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin. Further instructions on filing comments will be contained in the Final Order.

The AEPS Act requires that a certain percentage of all electric energy sold to retail customers within the Commonwealth be derived from alternative energy sources. By 2021, electric distribution companies (EDCs) and electric generation suppliers (EGSs) must supply 18.5 percent of electricity using alternative energy resources. The percentage of Tier I, Tier II and solar photovoltaic resources gradually increases over this period.

The Act applies to both EDCs and EGSs, who must demonstrate their compliance on an annual basis. However, compliance with the portfolio standards is deferred until an EDC’s generation rate caps expire.

Since the passage of the AEPS Act in late 2004, the PUC has moved expeditiously to develop the rules and regulations necessary for fostering Pennsylvania’s alternative energy market and has implemented a website to make information about AEPS available to the public in a user-friendly manner.

A copy of the PUC Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards 2007 Report is available online.

For more information, visit the PUC’s Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards webpage.

2/24/2014