ORIGINAL HOUSE ENGROSSED

BILL NO. 0195

ENROLLED ACT NO. 62, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

FIFTY-SIXTH LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WYOMING

2001 GENERAL SESSION

AN ACT relating to net metering programs; requiring an
electric utility to utilize a net metering program;
determining appropriate billing amounts; and providing for
an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1.  W.S. 37-16-101 through 37-16-104 are
created to read:

37-16-101. Definitions.

(a) As used in this article unless the context
otherwise requires:

(i) "Commission" means public service commission
of Wyoming;

(ii) "Customer-generator" means a user of a net
metering system;

(iii) "Electrical company" means any person,
corporation or governmental subdivision, excluding
municipalities, authorized and operating under the
constitution and laws of the state of Wyoming which is
primarily engaged in the generation or sale of electric
energy;

(iv) "Electric cooperative" means any nonprofit,
member-owned cooperative organized under the laws of the
state of Wyoming and engaged in the business of
distributing electric energy in the state of Wyoming;

(v) "Electric utility" means any electrical
company, irrigation district or electric cooperative that

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is engaged in the business of distributing electricity to
retail electric customers in the state;

(vi) "Irrigation district" means an irrigation
district under W.S. 41-7-201;

(vii) "Net metering" means measuring the
difference between the electricity supplied by an electric
utility and the electricity generated by a
customer-generator that is fed back to the electric utility
over the applicable billing period;

(viii) "Net metering system" means a facility
for the production of electrical energy that:

(A) Uses as its fuel either solar, wind or
hydropower;

(B) Has a generating capacity of not more
than twenty-five (25) kilowatts;

(C) Is located on the customer-generator's
premises;

(D) Operates in parallel with the electric
utility's transmission and distribution facilities; and

(E) Is intended primarily to offset part or
all of the customer-generator's requirements for
electricity.

(b) A person acting as a customer-generator under
this act shall not be considered a "public utility" as
defined by W.S. 37-1-101.

37-16-102. Electric utility requirements.

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(a) An electric utility:

(i) Shall offer to make available to each of its
eligible customer-generators that has installed a net
metering system an energy meter that is capable of
registering the flow of electricity in two (2) directions;

(ii) May, at its own expense and with the
written consent of the customer-generator, install one (1)
or more additional meters to monitor the flow of
electricity in each direction;

(iii) Shall not charge a customer-generator any
fee or charge that would increase the customer-generator's
minimum monthly charge to an amount greater than that of
other customers of the electric utility in the same rate
class as the customer-generator.

37-16-103. Calculation requirements.

(a) Consistent with other provisions of this chapter,
the net energy measurement shall be calculated in the
following manner:

(i) The electric utility shall measure the net
electricity produced or consumed during the billing period,
in accordance with normal metering practices;

(ii) If the electricity supplied by the electric
utility exceeds the electricity generated by the customer
generator, the customer-generator shall be billed for the
appropriate customer charges for that month, in accordance
with W.S. 37-16-102;

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(iii) If the electricity supplied by the
customer-generator exceeds that supplied by the electric
utility, the customer-generator shall be credited or
compensated for the excess kilowatt-hours generated during
the month with the kilowatt-hour credit or compensation
appearing on the bill for the following month for all
metered locations of customer-generators supplied by the
electric utility.

(b) At the beginning of each calendar year, any
remaining unused kilowatt-hour credit accumulated during
the previous year shall be sold to the electric utility, at
the electric utility's filed avoided cost.

37-16-104. Safety and performance requirements.

(a) A net metering system used by a
customer-generator shall meet all applicable safety and
performance standards established by the national
electrical code, the institute of electrical and
electronics engineers and underwriters laboratories.

(b) The customer-generator shall at its expense
provide lockable, switching equipment capable of isolating
the net metering facility from the electric utility's
system. Such equipment shall be approved by the electric
utility and shall be accessible by the electric utility at
all times.

(c) The electric utility shall not be liable directly
or indirectly for permitting or continuing to allow an
attachment of a net metering facility, or for acts or
omissions of the customer-generator that cause loss or
injury, including death, to any third party.

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(d) The customer-generator is responsible for all
costs associated with its facility and is also responsible
for all costs related to any modifications to the facility
that may be required by the electric utility for purposes
of safety and reliability.

(e) The commission, after appropriate notice and
opportunity for comment, may adopt by regulation additional
control and testing requirements for customer-generators
that the commission determines are necessary to protect
public safety and system reliability.

Section 2. This act is effective July 1, 2001.

(END)

Speaker of the House President of the Senate

Governor

TIME APPROVED: _________

DATE APPROVED: _________

I hereby certify that this act originated in the House.

Chief Clerk

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