An act relating to repealing the Renewable Energy Standard
H.159 would repeal Vermont’s Renewable Energy Standard (RES) by repealing the core statutory sections that establish the standard and its related compliance requirements. The bill also makes conforming changes throughout Title 30 and related statutes to remove references to the RES, including provisions tied to renewable energy compliance, net metering attribute treatment, the baseload renewable power portfolio requirement, enhanced energy planning, and reporting on RES progress. In addition, it repeals or revises language that currently allows certain renewable energy and net metering attributes to be used to satisfy RES obligations.
Beyond repealing the RES itself, the bill updates the state’s energy planning and reporting framework to reflect the removal of that program. It would eliminate statutory requirements for annual reporting on RES costs, benefits, deployment, and compliance, while also removing references to RES-related categories in municipal energy planning and other state energy policy provisions. The bill leaves in place the standard offer program and other clean energy-related statutes, but strips out the RES as the organizing compliance structure for Vermont retail electricity providers.
If enacted, H.159 would substantially change Vermont’s electric utility regulatory framework by removing the Renewable Energy Standard from state law and deleting multiple statutory cross-references that depend on it. Retail electricity providers would no longer have RES compliance obligations under the repealed sections, and state agencies would no longer be required to produce the detailed RES progress reports currently mandated by law. The bill would also affect how renewable energy attributes, net metering credits, and certain distributed generation resources are counted or applied toward utility obligations, because several provisions that currently tie those resources to RES compliance would be repealed.
Based on the bill’s introduction and sponsor list, the measure appears to have support from a sizable group of House members, suggesting interest in revisiting or dismantling the current renewable compliance regime. However, there is no committee transcript or recorded vote history provided here, so there is no direct evidence of debate, amendment activity, or final chamber sentiment. The bill’s title and structure indicate a clear policy direction toward repeal, but the available record does not show whether that view is broadly shared across committees or the full legislature.
The main point of contention is likely the policy choice to eliminate the Renewable Energy Standard entirely. Supporters may view repeal as a way to reduce electricity costs, simplify utility regulation, and remove mandates they see as burdensome; opponents would likely argue that the RES is a key driver of renewable deployment, emissions reductions, and long-term energy planning. Additional likely disputes involve the treatment of net metering and renewable energy credits, the role of distributed generation in compliance, and whether removing RES reporting requirements would reduce transparency about rate impacts and climate progress.