Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Energy Funding topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Committee directs FERC license fees to renewable energy fund in bid to shore up state energy coordination
Summary
The committee approved Senate Bill 1020 to route approximately $150,000 per year from FERC licensee assessments into the state's Renewable Energy Resources Fund to support coordination of federal permitting and mining oversight by the Governor’s Office of Energy and Mineral Resources.
The Senate Resources and Environment Committee voted to send Senate Bill 1020 to the floor with a “do pass” recommendation after hearing from Richard Stover, administrator of the Governor’s Office of Energy and Mineral Resources (OEMR).
Stover said OEMR coordinates the state’s engagement on federal permitting matters, including National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) processes, and that workloads have increased by about 40% over the past three years. He told the committee that the Renewable Energy Resources Fund, created in 2009, has not produced steady revenue and that SB 1020 would direct an existing assessment paid by FERC‑licensed hydropower utilities into that state fund. Stover estimated the flow would be about $150,000 per year.
“The bottom line is we’re just gonna continue to see more and more projects coming,” Stover said, arguing the funding would help OEMR protect state interests and coordinate a single state voice on energy and mining project reviews, including hydropower relicensing and mining projects.
Committee members pressed for fiscal clarity. Stover said the fiscal note did not show increased appropriations because the proposal moves existing assessments into a dedicated fund rather than increasing state revenues; he said the Department of Finance and Management agreed this is not a material appropriation increase.
Senator Van Orden moved to send SB 1020 to the floor with a due‑pass recommendation; Senator Taylor seconded. The committee approved the motion by voice vote.
The bill, if enacted, would redirect a currently assessed payment from FERC licensees (utility operators of hydropower facilities) to the Renewable Energy Resources Fund to support OEMR activities, including expanded NEPA coordination and mining project engagement.
