Energy Innovation Pilot Program; established, report.
SB 1373 would create an Energy Innovation Pilot Program within the Virginia Code, administered by the State Corporation Commission (the Commission). The program is designed to encourage testing of “innovative energy projects” by allowing approved participants to operate for a limited period while certain state laws, regulations, licensing requirements, and other authorization requirements are waived or suspended. The bill defines innovative energy projects broadly to include projects using new energy technologies to generate energy, provide grid services, or deliver other beneficial energy measures.
Under the bill, applicants would have to submit detailed information about the project, the laws they want waived, consumer benefits and risks, testing plans, and how the project will end without harming consumers or the grid. The Commission would have authority to approve, deny, or partially approve applications, consult with other agencies on requested waivers, impose conditions, and require fees to fund program administration. Approved projects could test for up to 60 months, with possible extensions up to a total of 96 months, and participants would have to provide ongoing reports, maintain records, and comply with consumer disclosure and complaint procedures.
The bill would add a new chapter to Title 56 of the Code of Virginia and temporarily suspend the application of selected utility and energy laws for approved pilot projects, including provisions in the Utility Facilities Act and the Virginia Electric Utility Regulation Act, subject to safety, worker protection, and environmental exceptions. It would also create a new regulatory framework for waivers, consumer protections, inspections, reporting, and Commission oversight, while preserving local siting authority and prohibiting public utilities from recovering program costs through generation and distribution rates. In effect, it would give the Commission a new sandbox-style authority to authorize experimental energy services that otherwise might not fit existing utility regulation.
The available voting history suggests the bill did not advance, as it was stricken at the request of the patron in the Senate Commerce and Labor Committee by a 15-0 vote. That outcome indicates there was no recorded opposition in the committee vote itself, but also that the patron chose to withdraw the measure before further consideration. Because there are no committee transcripts provided, the record does not show detailed debate or expressed support beyond the bill’s introduction and referral.
The main points of potential contention are the breadth of the regulatory waivers, the extent of Commission authority to suspend or override existing utility rules, and the risks to consumers and grid reliability. The bill tries to address those concerns through agency consultation, public health and safety limits, consumer disclosures, liability and reserve requirements, and Commission power to suspend or revoke participation. Likely stakeholders on different sides would include innovators and clean-energy developers favoring regulatory flexibility, versus utilities, regulators, consumer advocates, and local governments concerned about safety, oversight, cost recovery, and the impact on existing energy regulation.