Legislative Session number- 86

Bill Name: SF0657

4E Relating to energy; providing direction for the use of the federal government
stimulus money for energy programs

ARTICLE 1 - DEFINITIONS; LEGISLATIVE
NOTICE

Providing for stimulus funding allocation provided to the state under
the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 for energy efficiency and
conservation block grants, the weatherization assistance program and the state
energy program; defining certain terms; limiting administrative costs of the
programs; regulating contractors bidding; requiring commissioner of commerce to
provide legislative notice for the awarding of certain grants

ARTICLE 2 -
ENERGY EFFICIENCY

Specifying income eligibility limits for participants under
the weatherization assistance program, requiring the commissioner to attempt to
increase the number of low-income rental units weatherized, providing
eligibility for shelters and certain solar heat assistance recipients,
specifying certain duties of the commissioner relating to federal waivers,
authorizing payments to weatherization service providers for certain allowable
expenses; requiring commissioner to coordinate with the housing finance agency
(HFA) to use stimulus funds for certain residential energy efficiency programs;
requiring commissioner to make a grant to a city of the first class and a grant
to a small rural city located in the service area of Minnesota Power for an
innovative energy residential efficiency program, specifying certain program
requirements, match requirement; providing grants for outreach activities to
increase residential participation in energy activities, specifying certain
eligibility requirements; providing energy efficiency and conservation block
grants to local governments, exceptions; providing local government and school
district renovation grants to make energy efficiency improvements in existing
local government and school district facilities and providing for the use of
stimulus funds for state government building renovations to enhance energy
efficiency; specifying certain reporting requirements; authorizing commissioner
of administration to covenant in a master lease-purchase agreement under the
state energy improvement financing program, specifying agreements not debt,
requiring commissioner of finance to reduce the operating budgets of state
agencies using the master lease-purchase programs under a financial agreement;
requiring commissioner of commerce to award a grant to a nonprofit organization
to develop an energy technology transfer center; requiring commissioner to
develop a plan for a national energy efficiency center to test energy efficiency
equipment and systems

ARTICLE 3 - RENEWABLE ENERGY

Authorizing and
providing for renewable electric generation and geothermal facility rebates,
solar rebates to homeowners and businesses installing solar energy projects and
solar cities program grants to local units of government for the installation of
large and small scale solar electric or thermal projects; establishing a school
district and local government renewable energy grant program to award grants to
units of government to finance the purchase and installation of a renewable
energy system or a geothermal heating and cooling system; establishing an
emerging renewable energy industries grant program to award grants to eligible
businesses to assist in the development of certain energy systems and to
businesses manufacturing components for certain energy systems; authorizing
commissioner to award a grant to the city of Kennedy for the energy conversion
of a former school building to utilize geothermal, wind and solar energy and to
house a renewable energy business center; regulating solar electric
installations

ARTICLE 4 - COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL SECTOR ENERGY
PROJECTS

Authorizing and providing for grants to commercial and industrial
facilities; authorizing commissioner to award a grant to a port authority
located in the electric service area of the electric facility with the largest
number of commercial and industrial customers for a program to provide for the
design, financing and installation of energy efficiency improvements and
renewable energy systems in commercial facilities, industrial facilities and
facilities owned by a nonprofit organization; authorizing commissioner to award
grants to economic development authorities or to owners of commercial and
industrial facilities and facilities owned by a nonprofit organizations for
certain energy programs in buildings

ARTICLE 5 - MISCELLANEOUS

Requiring
the commissioner in conjunction with department of employment and economic
development (DEED), the office of higher education and Minnesota state colleges
and universities to develop and implement a training and workforce development
plan for energy professionals, specifying certain plan components and
procedures, providing for training access and affordability; requiring
commissioner to provide an accountability and transparency report to the
legislature of federal stimulus money spent on funded programs, requiring report
availability to the public on the office of energy security Web site; requiring
commissioner to coordinate state and local government effects to obtain
competitive grants for energy-related purposes, specifying certain consultation
requirements

ARTICLE 6 - APPROPRIATIONS

Appropriating money to
commissioner of commerce for the weatherization assistance program, the energy
efficiency and conservation block program and the state energy program;
authorizing certain funding reallocations under certain conditions

ARTICLE 7
- EFFECTIVE DATE

Providing an effective date
(je)