|
|
|---|
Contact Guide to Federal Air Emission Regulations: Click here to view the Guide to Federal Regulations |
Latest News: States are constantly re-evaluating regulations affecting DG. |
|
||||||
Under some state electric industry restructuring programs, generators who install DG may be required to pay "exit fees" or similar charges for reduced use of the grid. As part of electric restructuring, many states require traditional electric utilities to divest themselves into electric generation companies and electric transmission and distribution companies. These requirements leave many utilities with stranded costs that need to be recovered through the use of exit fees, also known as competitive transition charges (CTC). The utilities argue that customers who install DG shift an unfair financial burden upon the utility's other customers, who must make up the loss by paying higher CTCs. Most exit fees are determined by state restructuring laws or by regulations promulgated by the state public utility commission (PUC). In general, they are assessed as a fee multiplied by the customer's historical load usage in kilowatt-hours. They vary by state, sometimes by application, and may change or phase out over time. Some exit fees call for a one-time lump sum payment, while others are spread out over a number of years. There are sometimes exemptions or variations depending on the kind of generation used (e.g. renewable, CHP). These fees can have a significant effect on the economic viability of a DG project.
State |
Exit Fees |
Alabama does not have a statewide exit fee policy. DG unit owners/operators should be exempt from such fees. |
|
Alaska has no statewide policy on exit fees. |
|
There are no exit fees for DG in Arizona. |
|
Arkansas does not have a statewide policy on exit fees. DG customers will not be charged an exit fee. There may be an early termination fee for customers that enter into long-term contracts. |
|
There are three different kinds of exit fees in California, which apply to customers of Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), Southern California Edison (SCE), and San Diego Gas and Electric (SDG&E) . See the California state page for more detailed information. |
|
Colorado does not have a statewide policy on exit fees. DG system owners/operators will not be charged such fees. |
|
There are exit fees outlined in HB 5753 and apply to "most entities that began generating electricity for their own use on or after July 1, 1998." See the Connecticut state page for more information. |
|
There are no exit fees for DG in the state of Delaware. |
|
There are no exit fees for DG in the District of Columbia. |
|
Florida does not have a statewide policy on exit fees. DG units should be exempt from such fees in the state. |
|
No statewide exit fee policy has been identified. Contact the Georgia Public Service Commission or the local utility to confirm. |
|
Hawaii does not have a statewide policy on exit fees. DG units do not have to pay exit fees. |
|
Idaho has no statewide policy on exit fees. DG units would not be charged such a fee. |
|
Exit fees are no longer allowed to be assessed in Illinois. |
|
There is no statewide policy on exit fees in Indiana; however, no utilities in the state charge exit fees. |
|
There is no statewide policy on exit fees in Iowa; however, no utilities in the state charge exit fees. |
|
There is no statewide policy on exit fees in Kansas; however, no utilities in the state charge exit fees. |
|
Kentucky does not have a statewide exit fee policy. |
|
No statewide exit fee policy has been identified. Contact the Louisiana Public Service Commission or the local utility to confirm. |
|
There are no exit fees for DG in Maine. |
|
There are no explicit exit fees in Maryland. However, some utilities have still been able to recover their stranded costs. See the Maryland state page for more information. |
|
There are exit fees in Massachusetts for DG applications that are greater than 60 kW. Renewable energy technologies and fuel cells are exempt regardless of their power rating. See the Massachusetts state page for more information. |
|
Exit fees are not allowed to be collected in the state of Michigan due to Senate Bill SB 937. |
|
There is no statewide policy on exit fees in Minnesota; however, no utilities in the state charge exit fees. |
|
No statewide exit fee policy has been identified. Contact the Mississippi Public Service Commission or the local utility to confirm. |
|
There is no statewide policy on exit fees in Missouri; however, no utilities in the state charge exit fees. |
|
Montana does not have a statewide exit fee policy. DG unit owners/operators are not charged exit fees. |
|
There is no statewide policy on exit fees in Nebraska; however, no utilities in the state charge exit fees. |
|
The NV PUC does allow for DG systems to be charged an exit fee. |
|
There are no exit fees for DG in Maine. |
|
In a certain case DG operators may be assessed an exit fee – see the state page for more detailed information. |
|
No statewide policy on exit fees has been identified. Contact the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission or the local utility to confirm. |
|
A single utility (Niagara Mohawk) in the state of New York has been given authority by the PSC to assess an exit fee. |
|
No statewide policy on exit fees has been identified. Contact the North Carolina Utilities Commission or the local utility to confirm. |
|
There is no statewide policy on exit fees in North Dakota; however, no utilities in the state charge exit fees. |
|
According to the PUC there are no exit fees for DG applications in the state of Ohio. |
|
There is no statewide policy on exit fees in Oklahoma; however, no utilities in the state charge exit fees. |
|
Oregon has no statewide policy on exit fees. Utilities are not charging such fees to DG owners/operators. |
|
In the state of Pennsylvania, a utility may asses an exit fee on a DG customer for the loss of load to the utility's system. See the state page for more information. |
|
There are no exit fees for DG in the state of Rhode Island. |
|
No statewide policy on exit fees has been identified. Contact the Public Service Commission of South Carolina or the local utility to confirm. |
|
There is no statewide policy on exit fees in South Dakota; however, no utilities in the state charge exit fees. |
|
No statewide policy on exit fees has been identified. Contact the Tennessee Valley Authority or your local utility to confirm. |
|
There is a statewide exit fee policy in place that does not allow utilities to collect fees from DG applications smaller than 10 MW. |
|
No statewide policy on exit fees has been identified. Contact the Utah Public Service Commission or the local utility to confirm. |
|
Vermont does not have a state level policy on exit fees. There are no exit fees for DG in the state. |
|
There are exit fees for DG in the state of Virginia. SB 1416 passed in 2007 governs exit fees and other utility policies. See the state page for more information. |
|
WA does not have a statewide policy on exit fees, but. DG unit owners are typically not charged an exit fee. However, many of the large industrial DG owners have their own special contracts with the utility and in the contract terms the DG owner may be charged some sort of fee. |
|
There is no statewide policy on exit fees in WV. |
|
There is no statewide policy on exit fees in Wisconsin; however, no utilities in the state charge exit fees. |
|
No statewide policy on exit fees has been identified. Contact the Wyoming Public Service Commission or your local utility to confirm. |
Get Acrobat Reader
Energy and Environmental Analysis Inc. | US DOE Distributed Energy Program | US EPA Air Quality Division | SiteMap/Search
Send Questions or Comments to Jessica Rackley | © 2008 Energy and Environmental Analysis Inc., an ICF International Company, All Rights Reserved
1655 Fort Meyer Drive, Arlington, VA 22209