SB 18-064

Senate Bill 18-064 requires all electric utilities in Colorado, including cooperatives and municipally owned ones, to use only renewable energy sources like wind and solar by the year 2035. The bill also removes certain types of energy from being counted towards this goal, allows utilities to earn credits for making homes more energy-efficient, especially for low-income residents, and phases out a system that allowed trading of renewable energy credits after 2035. This means that starting in 2035, all electricity must come directly from renewable sources without any trade-offs or multipliers. The bill has been signed into law, so these changes will now be implemented as planned.

Official Summary

The bill updates the renewable energy standard to require that all electric utilities, including cooperative electric associations and municipally owned utilities, derive their energy from 100% renewable sources by 2035. The bill also: Removes recycled energy from the types of energy sources eligible for meeting the renewable energy standard; Allows a utility to obtain energy efficiency credits equal in value to renewable energy credits based on any energy efficiency upgrades made for a low-income residential customer; Removes multipliers used for counting certain renewable energy generated; and Phases out the system of tradable renewable energy credits so that renewable energy generated after 2035 is not eligible for renewable energy credits.(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced.) Read More