HF 948

2nd Engrossment - 80th Legislature (1997 - 1998) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act
  1.2             relating to the environment; requiring disclosure of 
  1.3             the amount of mercury emitted in the generation of 
  1.4             electricity; appropriating money; proposing coding for 
  1.5             new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 116. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  [TITLE.] 
  1.8      Section 2 may be referred to as the Mercury Emissions 
  1.9   Consumer Information Act of 1997. 
  1.10     Sec. 2.  [116.925] [ELECTRIC ENERGY; MERCURY EMISSIONS 
  1.11  REPORT.] 
  1.12     Subdivision 1.  [REPORT.] To address the shared 
  1.13  responsibility between the providers and consumers of 
  1.14  electricity for the protection of Minnesota's lakes, each person 
  1.15  that generates electricity for sale at retail or at wholesale in 
  1.16  the state, or that generates electricity for that person's own 
  1.17  use in the state, shall provide the commissioner an annual 
  1.18  report of the amount of mercury emitted in generating that 
  1.19  electricity at that person's facilities. 
  1.20     Subd. 2.  [TERMS AND CONDITIONS.] (a) The report referenced 
  1.21  in subdivision 1 must be made to the commissioner annually.  
  1.22  This report must include: 
  1.23     (1) a list of all generation sources owned or operated by 
  1.24  the person which are subject to subdivision 1; 
  1.25     (2) information for each facility owned or operated by the 
  2.1   person which is subject to subdivision 1, stating the amount of 
  2.2   electricity generated at the facility for sale at retail or 
  2.3   wholesale in the state; and the total amount of mercury emitted 
  2.4   from that facility in the previous calendar year or the average 
  2.5   mercury concentration in each fuel used at that facility; and 
  2.6      (3) information regarding the amount of electricity 
  2.7   purchased by the person for use in the state. 
  2.8      (b) The report, as well as the calculation of mercury 
  2.9   emissions, shall be made under terms and conditions established 
  2.10  by the commissioner.  As part of these terms and conditions, the 
  2.11  commissioner may establish a de minimis standard for the report 
  2.12  required under this section.  Persons subject to this section 
  2.13  who are under the de minimis standard may be subject to reduced 
  2.14  or no reporting requirements.  The establishment of the terms 
  2.15  and conditions for the report is subject to chapter 14. 
  2.16     Subd. 3.  [REPORT TO CONSUMERS.] By September 30, 1998, and 
  2.17  biennially thereafter in the report on air toxics required under 
  2.18  section 115D.15, the commissioner shall report the amount of 
  2.19  mercury emitted in the generation of electricity, based on the 
  2.20  information in the reports under this section. 
  2.21     Subd. 4.  [GOOD NEIGHBORS, CLEAN LAKES; VOLUNTARY 
  2.22  DISCLOSURE.] (a) A person that sells electricity at retail or at 
  2.23  wholesale in the state, or that generates electricity for that 
  2.24  person's own use in the state, may represent that the person is 
  2.25  a member of the state of Minnesota's "Good Neighbors, Clean 
  2.26  Lakes" program in the person's advertising, marketing, and other 
  2.27  communications to customers if: 
  2.28     (1) by January 1, 1998, the person voluntarily provides the 
  2.29  commissioner with the information described in subdivision 2, 
  2.30  paragraph (a); or 
  2.31     (2) after the adoption of the terms and conditions for 
  2.32  required reports under this section, the person demonstrates a 
  2.33  five percent reduction in mercury emissions. 
  2.34     (b) The commissioner shall establish voluntary guidelines 
  2.35  and procedures for the purpose of administering the "Good 
  2.36  Neighbors, Clean Lakes" program, and shall use all reasonable 
  3.1   efforts to promote the program and publicize the participation 
  3.2   of its members. 
  3.3      Sec. 3.  [116.926] [ASSESSMENT FOR RULEMAKING AND 
  3.4   ADMINISTRATION.] 
  3.5      The commissioner of the pollution control agency shall 
  3.6   periodically certify to the department of public service the 
  3.7   costs the agency has incurred in developing and adopting the 
  3.8   rules required under section 116.925, subdivision 2, paragraph 
  3.9   (b), and in administering the "Good Neighbors, Clean Lakes" 
  3.10  program described in section 116.925, subdivision 4.  The 
  3.11  department shall assess against electric utilities, as defined 
  3.12  in section 216B.38, subdivision 5, the amount certified to the 
  3.13  department by the commissioner under this section.  These 
  3.14  assessments shall be in addition to assessments made under 
  3.15  Minnesota Statutes 1996, section 216B.62.  Amounts assessed 
  3.16  under this section are appropriated to the commissioner of the 
  3.17  pollution control agency and are available until expended. 
  3.18     Sec. 4.  [INITIAL REPORT.] 
  3.19     The commissioner shall issue the terms and conditions for 
  3.20  the required disclosure under section 2, subdivision 2, by July 
  3.21  1, 1998.  Persons subject to section 2 shall make the initial 
  3.22  report and all subsequent reports in accordance with those terms 
  3.23  and conditions. 
  3.24     Sec. 5.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
  3.25     Sections 1 to 4 are effective on the day following final 
  3.26  enactment.