An Act To Amend Title 26 Of The Delaware Code Relating To Renewable Energy Portfolio Standards.
Summary
HB80 would amend Delaware’s Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (RPS) law in Title 26 by lowering the required share of electricity that utilities and municipal electric companies must source from eligible renewable resources. The bill would reduce the RPS from the current scheduled path of 25% and rising to 40% by 2035, and instead set the requirement at 10% for the next 10 years. After that 10-year period, the schedule would resume with annual increases beginning in 2036, eventually reaching 15% by 2040 under the bill’s revised table.
The bill’s synopsis says the change is intended to address what sponsors describe as a mismatch between renewable energy demand and available supply in Delaware and the regional grid. It also notes that utilities have been paying compliance penalties when renewable energy cannot be procured, and that those costs are passed on to ratepayers. In that framing, HB80 is presented as a temporary rollback designed to provide consumer relief and time for renewable generation capacity to catch up before higher RPS targets resume.
Impact
HB80 would directly amend Section 354 of Title 26 of the Delaware Code, changing the statutory renewable energy portfolio schedule for regulated utilities and municipal electric companies. The practical effect would be to reduce near-term renewable procurement obligations, likely lowering compliance costs, renewable energy credit purchases, and penalty exposure for utilities that cannot meet higher mandates. It would also affect renewable energy developers and suppliers by reducing mandated demand in the Delaware market for a decade.
Sentiment
The bill text reflects strong support from its sponsors for easing what they describe as an overly aggressive and costly renewable mandate, with the stated goal of reducing electricity costs for consumers. No committee transcript or vote record is provided, so there is no documented debate or recorded legislative sentiment beyond the sponsor’s explanation. Based on the bill’s synopsis, the overall tone is pro-relief and skeptical of the current RPS trajectory.
Contention
The central point of contention is the policy tradeoff between affordability and clean-energy goals. Supporters argue the current RPS outpaces available renewable supply and imposes unnecessary costs on ratepayers through compliance fees and transmission charges. Opponents, if any, would likely focus on the bill’s reduction in renewable procurement requirements and the potential to slow Delaware’s transition to cleaner energy, but no opposing statements are included in the provided materials. The bill also raises a timing dispute: whether Delaware should pause its escalating targets for a decade or continue pushing utilities toward higher renewable percentages despite supply constraints.
An Act To Amend Title 7 Of The Delaware Code Relating To Environmental Control By Repealing The Delaware Advanced Clean Car Program Under Regulation 1140 Of Title 7 Of The Delaware Administrative Code And Adopting The Delaware Low Emission Vehicle Program.