ROBERT L. EHRLICH, JR., Governor

Ch. 542

(b)     The General Assembly finds and declares that a program to provide net
energy metering for eligible customer-generators is a means to encourage private
investment in renewable energy resources, stimulate in-State economic growth,
enhance continued diversification of the State's energy resource mix, and reduce costs
of interconnection and administration.

(c)     An electric company serving an eligible customer-generator shall ensure
that the meter installed for net energy metering is capable of measuring the flow of
electricity in two directions.

(d)     The Commission shall require electric utilities to develop a standard
contract or tariff for net energy metering and make it available to eligible
customer-generators on a first-come, first-served basis until the rated generating
capacity owned and operated by eligible customer-generators in the State reaches
34.722 megawatts, 0.2% of the State's adjusted peak-load forecast for 1998.

(e)     (1) A net energy metering contract or tariff shall be identical, in energy
rates, rate structure, and monthly charges, to the contract or tariff that the customer
would be assigned if the customer were not an eligible customer-generator.

(2) (i) A net energy metering contract or tariff may not include charges
that would raise the eligible customer-generator's minimum monthly charge above
that of customers of the rate class to which the eligible customer-generator would
otherwise be assigned.

(ii) Charges prohibited by this paragraph include new or additional
demand charges, standby charges, customer charges, and minimum monthly charges.

(f)      The electric company shall calculate net energy metering, subject to the
following:

(1)     net energy produced or consumed on a monthly basis shall be
measured in accordance with standard metering practices;

(2)     if electricity supplied by the grid exceeds electricity generated by the
eligible customer-generator during a month, the eligible customer-generator shall be
billed for the net energy supplied in accordance with subsection (e) of this section; and

(3)     if electricity generated by the eligible customer-generator exceeds
the electricity supplied by the grid, the eligible customer-generator shall be required
to pay only customer charges for that month in accordance with subsection (e) of this
section.

(g)     (1) A solar-electric generating system OR A WIND ELECTRIC
GENERATING SYSTEM used by an eligible customer-generator shall meet all
applicable safety and performance standards established by the National Electrical
Code, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and Underwriters
Laboratories.

(2) The Commission may adopt by regulation additional control and
testing requirements for eligible customer-generators that the Commission
determines are necessary to protect public safety and system reliability.

- 2575 -