1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to energy; modifying the solar energy standard;amending Minnesota 
1.3 	Statutes 2017 Supplement, section 216B.1691, subdivision 2f.
1.4 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.5 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2017 Supplement, section 216B.1691, subdivision 2f, is 
1.6 	amended to read:
1.7 		Subd. 2f.Solar energy standard. (a) In addition to the requirements of subdivisions 2a 
1.8 	and 2b, each public utility shall generate or procure sufficient electricity generated by solar 
1.9 	energy to serve its retail electricity customers in Minnesota so that by the end of 2020, at 
1.10 	least 1.5 percent of the utility's total retail electric sales to retail customers in Minnesota is 
1.11 	generated by solar energy.
1.12 	(b) For a public utility with more than 200,000 retail electric customers, at least ten 
1.13 	percent of the 1.5 percent goal must be met by solar energy generated by or procured from 
1.14 	solar photovoltaic devices with a nameplate capacity of 20 kilowatts or less.
1.15 	(c) (b) A public utility with between 50,000 and 200,000 retail electric customers:
1.16 	(1) must meet at least ten percent of the 1.5 percent goal with solar energy generated by 
1.17 	or procured from solar photovoltaic devices with a nameplate capacity of 40 kilowatts or 
1.18 	less;, and
1.19 	(2) may apply toward the ten percent goal in clause (1) individual customer subscriptions 
1.20 	of 40 kilowatts or less to a community solar garden program operated by the public utility 
1.21 	that has been approved by the commission.
2.1 	(d) (c) The solar energy standard established in this subdivision is subject to all the 
2.2 	provisions of this section governing a utility's standard obligation under subdivision 2a.
2.3 	(e) (d) It is an energy goal of the state of Minnesota that, by 2030, ten percent of the 
2.4 	retail electric sales in Minnesota be generated by solar energy.
2.5 	(f) (e) For the purposes of calculating the total retail electric sales of a public utility 
2.6 	under this subdivision, there shall be excluded retail electric sales to customers that are:
2.7 	(1) an iron mining extraction and processing facility, including a scram mining facility 
2.8 	as defined in Minnesota Rules, part 6130.0100, subpart 16; or
2.9 	(2) a paper mill, wood products manufacturer, sawmill, or oriented strand board 
2.10 	manufacturer; or
2.11 	(3) a large customer facility, as defined in section 216B.241, subdivision 1, that has been 
2.12 	exempted by the commissioner from the investment and expenditure requirements under 
2.13 	section 216B.241, subdivision 1a.
2.14 	Those customers may not have included in the rates charged to them by the public utility 
2.15 	any costs of satisfying the solar standard specified by this subdivision.
2.16 	(g) (f) A public utility may not use energy used to satisfy the solar energy standard under 
2.17 	this subdivision to satisfy its standard obligation under subdivision 2a. A public utility may 
2.18 	not use energy used to satisfy the standard obligation under subdivision 2a to satisfy the 
2.19 	solar standard under this subdivision.
2.20 	(h) (g) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, a solar renewable energy credit associated 
2.21 	with a solar photovoltaic device installed and generating electricity in Minnesota after 
2.22 	August 1, 2013, but before 2020 may be used to meet the solar energy standard established 
2.23 	under this subdivision.
2.24 	(i) (h) Beginning July 1, 2014, and each July 1 through 2020, each public utility shall 
2.25 	file a report with the commission reporting its progress in achieving the solar energy standard 
2.26 	established under this subdivision.

2.27 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment.