131st MAINE LEGISLATURE
		LD 1986		LR 1471(03)
	An Act Relating to Net Energy Billing and Distributed Solar and Energy Storage Systems
	Fiscal Note for Bill as Engrossed with: C "A" (S-421)
	Committee: Energy, Utilities and Technology
Fiscal Note
			FY 2023-24	FY 2024-25	Projections  FY 2025-26	Projections  FY 2026-27
Appropriations/Allocations
	Other Special Revenue Funds		$500	$253,053	$51,011	$51,011
Revenue
	Other Special Revenue Funds		$0	$252,553	$50,511	$50,511
Fiscal Detail and Notes
	This bill makes certain adjustments to the Net Energy Billing Program rules and institutes new administrative requirements for the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) regarding the program activities. The bill also establishes the Distributed Solar and Energy Storage Program within the Governor's Energy Office (GEO). The GEO is required to obtain any available federal funding to fund the new program, but the bill allows the GEO to request funding from the PUC Reimbursement Fund or PUC Regulatory Fund for administrative expenses. The fiscal note assumes the funding will come from the PUC Reimbursement Fund or the PUC Regulatory Fund and the bill includes Other Special Revenue Funds allocations of $500 to establish the program and allow funding from one of those sources to be expended.
	The PUC has indicated that the additional administrative requirements for the Net Energy Billing program cannot be absorbed within existing resources. The bill includes one-time allocations of $252,553 in fiscal year 2024-25 for the costs of contracted consulting services. The PUC would require additional allocations of $50,511 beginning in fiscal year 2025-26 for the cost of contracted services for ongoing updates to the economic models developed by the initial consultant. Since the PUC is funded by assessments on impacted utilities set to produce sufficient revenue for the expenditures needed to operate it, the increased allocations in this bill require a corresponding increase in revenue from those assessments.