1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to energy; requiring certain renewable energy 
  1.3             expenditures; amending Minnesota Statutes 2003 
  1.4             Supplement, section 216B.2411, subdivision 1.  
  1.5   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.6      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2003 Supplement, section 
  1.7   216B.2411, subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  1.8      Subdivision 1.  [GENERATION PROJECTS.] (a) ~~Any~~ In order to 
  1.9   facilitate compliance with the renewable energy objectives under 
  1.10  section 216B.1691, each electric utility, including each public 
  1.11  utility, municipality, or rural electric association ~~providing~~ 
  1.12  ~~electric service and~~, that is subject to section 216B.241 and 
  1.13  that the commission finds is not meeting the objectives under 
  1.14  section 216B.1691 ~~may, and each public utility may~~, shall use 
  1.15  five percent of the total amount to be spent on energy 
  1.16  conservation improvements under section 216B.241, and may use an 
  1.17  additional five percent of that total, on: 
  1.18     (1) projects in Minnesota to construct an electric 
  1.19  generating facility that utilizes eligible renewable energy 
  1.20  sources as defined in subdivision 2, such as methane or other 
  1.21  combustible gases derived from the processing of plant or animal 
  1.22  wastes, biomass fuels such as short-rotation woody or fibrous 
  1.23  agricultural crops, or other renewable fuel, as its primary fuel 
  1.24  source; or 
  1.25     (2) projects in Minnesota to install a distributed 
  2.1   generation facility of ten megawatts or less of interconnected 
  2.2   capacity that is fueled by natural gas, renewable fuels, or 
  2.3   another similarly clean fuel.  
  2.4      (b) For public utilities, as defined under section 216B.02, 
  2.5   subdivision 4, projects under this section must be considered 
  2.6   energy conservation improvements as defined in section 
  2.7   216B.241.  For cooperative electric associations and municipal 
  2.8   utilities, projects under this section must be considered 
  2.9   load-management activities described in section 216B.241, 
  2.10  subdivision 1, paragraph (i).