1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to energy; establishing an energy conservation utility stakeholder group;
1.3 	amending Minnesota Statutes 2017 Supplement, section 216B.241, subdivision 
1.4 	1d.
1.5 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.6 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2017 Supplement, section 216B.241, subdivision 1d, is 
1.7 	amended to read:
1.8 		Subd. 1d.Technical assistance. (a) The commissioner shall evaluate energy conservation 
1.9 	improvement programs on the basis of cost-effectiveness and the reliability of the 
1.10 	technologies employed. The commissioner shall, by order, establish, maintain, and update 
1.11 	energy-savings assumptions that must be used when filing energy conservation improvement 
1.12 	programs. The commissioner shall establish an inventory of the most effective energy 
1.13 	conservation programs, techniques, and technologies, and encourage all Minnesota utilities 
1.14 	to implement them, where appropriate, in their service territories. The commissioner shall 
1.15 	describe these programs in sufficient detail to provide a utility reasonable guidance 
1.16 	concerning implementation. The commissioner shall prioritize the opportunities in order of 
1.17 	potential energy savings and in order of cost-effectiveness. The commissioner may contract 
1.18 	with a third party to carry out any of the commissioner's duties under this subdivision, and 
1.19 	to obtain technical assistance to evaluate the effectiveness of any conservation improvement 
1.20 	program. The commissioner may assess up to $850,000 annually for the purposes of this 
1.21 	subdivision. The assessments must be deposited in the state treasury and credited to the 
1.22 	energy and conservation account created under subdivision 2a. An assessment made under 
1.23 	this subdivision is not subject to the cap on assessments provided by section 216B.62, or 
1.24 	any other law.
2.1 	(b) Of the assessment authorized under paragraph (a), the commissioner ~~may~~ must
2.2 	expend ~~up to $400,000 annually~~ $800,000 each biennium for the purpose of developing, 
2.3 	operating, maintaining, and providing technical support for a uniform electronic data 
2.4 	reporting and tracking system available to all utilities subject to this section, in order to 
2.5 	enable accurate measurement of the cost and energy savings of the energy conservation 
2.6 	improvements required by this section. ~~This paragraph expires June 30, 2018.~~
2.7 	(c) The commissioner must establish a utility stakeholder group to direct development 
2.8 	and maintenance of the tracking system available to all utilities. The utility stakeholder 
2.9 	group will direct 50 percent of the biennium expenditures. The utility stakeholder group 
2.10 	consists of four members, with the Minnesota Rural Electric Association, the Minnesota 
2.11 	Municipal Utility Association, investor-owned utilities, and the commissioner each appointing 
2.12 	one member. One of the appointed utility stakeholder members must serve as chair. The 
2.13 	utility stakeholder group must develop and submit its workplan to the commissioner. The 
2.14 	utility stakeholder group must meet regularly at the call of the chair. Meetings of the utility 
2.15 	stakeholder group are subject to chapter 13D.