The Virginia House and Senate were prepared to vote Tuesday on sweeping energy legislation that would overhaul how Virginia’s utilities generate electricity and, supporters say, take the state from the back of the pack to a national leader in green energy.
“This would be a transformative bill in Virginia. A bill that would leap Virginia in to the future and into the top tier of states in terms of climate and energy policy,” House sponsor Del. Rip Sullivan said in a floor speech.
Critics, though, warned that the legislation, drafted privately by a group of industry stakeholders and environmental groups, strips state regulators of some oversight and leaves ratepayers on the hook for what could be excessive costs.
The measure, called the Clean Economy Act, lays out a plan to get Virginia to 100% renewable generation. The House version would demand that goal be met by 2045 and the Senate’s version sets a deadline of 2050, codifying a goal Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam issued in an executive order in September.
The legislation paves the way for an enormous expansion of solar and offshore wind generation plus battery storage and sets an energy efficiency standard that utilities must meet. It also includes language that would add Virginia to the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a carbon cap-and-trade program.
Both chambers were expected to vote on the measure Tuesday, which is the final day for each chamber to send legislation to the other for consideration. Differences between the two versions will have to be worked out before final passage.
Both versions would effectively block new fossil fuel generation facilities in the short term while state officials study whether a permanent ban should be enacted. The House version contains a provision that says if state officials determine by 2028 that the greenhouse gas reductions are not on target, then there will be a moratorium on the issuance of fossil fuel-fired generating facilities by 2030.
Bill sponsors said in committee hearings that hundreds of hours of negotiations had gone into the crafting of the legislation. Participants in those talks included Dominion Energy, influential environmental groups including the League of Conservation Voters and the Southern Environmental Law Center, plus solar interests and Advanced Energy Economy, a national association of businesses.
The lawmakers carrying the measure have said it will help address climate change by moving Virginia toward a carbon-free future while creating thousands of good-paying jobs at the same time.
The bill clears the way for the development of up to 5,200 megawatts of offshore wind, which is costlier than other forms of renewable energy, by declaring it in public interest. Dominion currently has a small pilot project underway and has previously announced plans for a 220-turbine project in federal waters.
Advocates have noted that a race is underway among East Coast states jockeying for a spot in a supply chain expected to develop for the nascent offshore wind industry. They say Virginia could reap a payoff that could include thousands of new, high paying manufacturing and construction jobs, a boost to the state’s port, and billions of dollars in private investment supporting an industry that will help the environment.
But critics are raising concerns about the price tag.
“In this century, we now have technologies to produce electricity that are clean and cheap,” said Tom Hadwin, a former utility executive who does consulting work for Virginia environmental groups and reviewed the legislation. “This bill encourages the ‘clean’ but loses the ‘cheap.'”
Attorney General Mark Herring’s office has cautioned lawmakers that language in the bill expressly eliminates the State Corporation Commission’s role in determining whether “enormous costs” of implementing its plans are reasonable and prudent and therefore can be passed along to customers.
“In our view the legislation will prevent the regulator from being able to work to accomplish the Commonwealth’s clean energy goals in a manner consistent with ratepayer protections,” Senior Assistant Attorney General Meade Browder told a Senate committee considering the bill.
An SCC analysis of one version of the bill found that the typical residential customer would likely see an increase of $23.30 a month between 2027 and 2030. The legislation currently includes provisions intended to protect low-income people from seeing a rate increase.
Some Democrats opposed the overall legislation, saying it didn’t go far enough to address climate change.
Republicans have pushed back too, raising concerns about cost and the shift away from coal.
The legislation has gone through numerous changes since it was first introduced and more are expected. Even participants in crafting it have expressed confusion about what it does or does not contain and on Monday Sullivan introduced amendments to fix a litany of typos in the bill that passed out of committee.