During its May 18 voting meeting, the California Public Utilities Commission (Commission) voted to open a new rulemaking proceeding that will consider improvements to its permitting procedures for electric infrastructure projects that fall under its jurisdiction. The Commission’s action is
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CPUC Considers Party Proposals on Implementing New Prevailing Wage Requirements for Renewable Energy Projects in California
The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC or Commission) is weighing party comments on implementation of Assembly Bill (AB) 2143. Enacted last year, AB 2143 will take effect on January 1, 2024. This bill extends existing prevailing wage requirements for public…
D.C. Circuit Affirms FERC’s Broadview Order Confirming that Qualifying Facilities May Install Greater than 80 MW of Nameplate Generating Capacity

Yesterday, February 14, 2023, the D.C. Circuit issued an order affirming FERC’s order in Broadview Solar, LLC, 174 FERC 61,199 (2021) and its “send-out” approach to determining the net power production capacity of a Qualifying Facility (“QF”). As a brief…
Commission Issues Long-Awaited Proposed Decision in Transportation Electrification (TE) Proceeding, Setting a Framework for California TE Policy and Investment

On October 14, 2022, the assigned Commissioner (Rechtschaffen) issued a proposed decision (PD) on Transportation Electrification Policy and Investment in the pending rulemaking (R.) 18-12-006 before the California Public Utilities Commission (Commission). Commission approval of the PD would adopt a…
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Proposes Revisions to Eagle Permit Rules, Including General Permits for Qualifying Wind Energy Projects, Power Lines, and Disturbance and Nest Take

On September 30, 2022 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (“Service”) published notice in the Federal Register of a proposed rule amending its regulations authorizing permits for eagle incidental take and eagle nest take. Although the proposed rule includes other…
Effective Immediately, California Energy Commission Jurisdiction Expands to Include Non-Thermal Projects Greater Than 50 MW

On June 30, 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 205 (“AB 205”), which, among various other things, expands the siting jurisdiction of the California Energy Commission (“CEC”) to include non-thermal generating facilities, such as solar and wind projects,…
FERC Proposes Broad Reforms to Interconnection Process

At its June 16, 2022, open meeting, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or Commission) issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR), Improvements to Generator Interconnection Procedures and Agreements, 179 FERC ¶ 61,194 (2022), proposing reforms to the Commission’s…
California Releases Its Draft Deployment Plan for Federal Funding Under the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Program
The California Energy Commission (CEC) hosted a workshop on Tuesday, June 14 to discuss its recently issued (June 10) proposal to deploy federal electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure funding under the NEVI Program authorized by President Biden’s federal infrastructure bill signed…
Updated FERC Guidance on Qualifying Facility Certifications
FERC issued two notable orders this spring in Irradiant Partners, LP (Docket No. EL22-8-000) and Dalreed Solar (Docket No. QF20-1037-002) that provide further guidance on qualifying facility (QF) certifications. Here are the key takeaways:
- QF Re-Certifications Should Be Filed Before
…
The California Public Utilities Commission Issues Proposed Decision on New Resource Adequacy Framework
On May 20, 2022, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC or Commission) issued a proposed decision (PD) that would, among other things, adopt Southern California Edison’s (SCE) 24-hour-slice proposal as the new resource adequacy (RA) framework applicable to load-serving entities…