A BILL to amend the Code of Virginia by adding in Chapter 17 of Title 45.2 an article numbered 10, consisting of sections numbered 45.2-1735 through 45.2-1740, relating to Virginia Clean Energy and Battery Storage Promotion, Research, and Market Development Program, Board, and Fund established; tax assessment; report.
HB935 would create a new Virginia Clean Energy and Battery Storage Promotion, Research, and Market Development Program within Title 45.2 of the Code of Virginia. The bill establishes a policy board in the executive branch to coordinate the program, with a 13-member board made up primarily of industry representatives, plus a consumer/ratepayer advocate, an academic/research representative, and members with clean energy economics, marketing, or deployment experience. The program’s stated goals are to promote solar energy and battery storage adoption, support market development and workforce/public information efforts, and conduct research on cost reduction, deployment barriers, and grid integration.
The bill also creates a special nonreverting fund in the state treasury to finance the program. Funding would come from appropriations, gifts, grants, and a new fee on solar photovoltaic projects and energy storage systems. The fee is set at $0.02 per watt of AC generation capacity for solar projects and $0.02 per watt of AC storage capacity for energy storage systems, assessed on the first purchase for use in Virginia and paid only once per project or system. The Director, in consultation with the board, could adopt regulations to administer and enforce the fee and program, and the board would be responsible for approving projects, managing expenditures, and issuing annual reports to the Governor and General Assembly.
If enacted, HB935 would add a new article to Title 45.2 and create a dedicated administrative structure, funding source, and fee regime for clean energy and battery storage promotion in Virginia. It would authorize the state to collect project-based fees from solar and storage developers, deposit those revenues into a special nonreverting fund, and use the money solely for program administration, grants, contracts, research, and related market-development activities. The bill would also expand state oversight of clean energy promotion through a new board and reporting requirements, while allowing the Director to promulgate regulations to implement the fee and program.
The available legislative history suggests the bill did not advance out of committee and was continued to the next session by voice vote in Labor and Commerce. That procedural outcome indicates the measure received enough interest to remain under consideration, but not enough consensus for immediate passage. Because there are no recorded floor votes or committee transcript excerpts, the public record provided here shows limited direct debate, but the continuation suggests the proposal was still being evaluated rather than broadly adopted or rejected.
The main likely point of contention is the new fee on solar photovoltaic projects and energy storage systems, which would be paid by developers and could be viewed as increasing project costs. Supporters would likely emphasize the bill’s funding of research, market development, workforce development, and grid-integration studies, while critics may question whether a fee on clean energy deployment could discourage investment or raise costs for ratepayers and developers. The board’s composition, which gives substantial representation to solar and battery industry members, may also draw scrutiny from those concerned about balance, consumer representation, or the role of industry in administering a state program.