HF 1214

as introduced - 85th Legislature (2007 - 2008) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

A bill for an act
relating to energy; providing for a rural wind development assistance program;
appropriating money.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1. new text begin RURAL WIND ENERGY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM.
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new text begin (a) The Institute for Renewable Energy and the Environment at the University of
Minnesota shall make a grant to a nonprofit organization with experience dealing with
energy issues to design and implement a rural wind energy development assistance
program. The program must be designed to maximize rural economic development and
stabilize rural community institutions, including hospitals and schools, by increasing the
income of local residents and increasing local tax revenues. The grant may be disbursed in
two installments. The program must provide assistance to rural entities seeking to develop
wind energy electric generation projects and to sell the energy from the projects. Among
other strategies, the program must consider combining rural entities and others into
groups with the size and market power necessary for planning and developing significant
rural wind energy projects and create a revolving loan fund to assist with transmission
interconnection studies by the Midwest Independent System Operator.
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new text begin (b) The program must provide assistance by, among other things:
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new text begin (1) providing legal, engineering, and financial services;
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new text begin (2) identifying target communities with favorable wind resources, community
interest, and local political support;
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new text begin (3) providing assistance to obtain wind turbines;
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new text begin (4) creating market opportunities for utilities to meet their renewable energy
obligations;
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new text begin (5) assisting in the negotiation of fair power purchase agreements;
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new text begin (6) reducing the risk and increasing public support for transmission investment; and
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new text begin (7) lowering the market risk facing potential wind investors by supporting local wind
development from start to finish.
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new text begin The grantee must demonstrate an ability to sustain program functions with ongoing
revenue from sources other than state funding and shall provide a 35 percent grant match.
The grant must be awarded on a competitive basis. The commission shall use best
practices regarding grant management functions, including selection and monitoring of
the grantee, compliance review, and financial oversight.
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Sec. 2. new text begin APPROPRIATION.
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new text begin $1,000,000 in fiscal year 2008 and $1,000,000 in fiscal year 2009 are appropriated
from the general fund to the Board of Regents of the University of Minnesota for its
Institute for Renewable Energy and the Environment for the purpose of making the grant
under section 1. This is a onetime appropriation and is not added to the agency's budget
base.
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