Massachusetts Passes "Minibus" Clean Energy Bill

On July 31, the Massachusetts Legislature passed H.4857, An Act to Advance Clean Energy." The bill, released late on July 30, was the result of a compromise between the Senate's broad, omnibus bill passed in early June and the House's more modest proposals, passed piecemeal in mid-July. Among other things, the bill:

• increases opportunities for energy efficiency by expanding the definition of qualifying programs;
• increases the Renewable Portfolio Standards ("RPS") from 1% to 2% annually from 2020 through 2029, bringing the overall RPS to 35% by 2030;
• establishes a Clean Peak Standard ("CPS");
• sets a storage target goal of 1,000 megawatt hours ("MWh") by 2025;
• creates a path for the solicitation of an additional 1,600 megawatts (MW) of off-shore wind;