West Virginia House Bill HB2040

West Virginia 2025 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/12/25
• Refer: 2/12/25
• Refer: 2/14/25

Caption

Relating to certified industrial business expansion development programs

Summary

HB2040 amends West Virginia’s Certified Industrial Business Expansion Development Program to remove the requirement that electricity supplied to high impact industrial business development districts be generated from renewable sources. The bill keeps the overall program structure in place: the Department of Economic Development may certify up to two districts, each no larger than 2,250 acres, located on state-sold or state-leased land or on former coal mining land, if the district is expected to have a significant positive economic impact and is needed to attract at least two businesses. The bill continues to allow qualifying electric providers and industrial customers within a certified district to operate outside several Public Service Commission requirements, including rate regulation, certificates of convenience and necessity, net metering and interconnection standards, and certain siting requirements for exempt wholesale generators. It also preserves the ability of the PSC to approve or establish special electric rates for eligible customers and retains the program’s sunset date of June 30, 2028, while protecting any districts already approved before expiration.

Impact

HB2040 would change state law by eliminating the renewable-generation condition that currently applies to electricity used in high impact industrial business development districts. As a result, the program would no longer require that electricity in those districts come from renewable sources, broadening the types of power that can be used to support industrial development. The bill leaves intact the district certification process, the limit of two districts, the new-load eligibility rules, and the regulatory exemptions and special-rate provisions tied to the program.

Sentiment

Based on the bill text and the absence of recorded committee debate or votes in the provided materials, the overall sentiment appears pro-development and aimed at making the program more flexible for industrial recruitment. The bill’s stated purpose is to remove a renewable-energy requirement, suggesting support from sponsors who want to reduce barriers to attracting industrial projects. No formal opposition, amendments, or recorded vote history is included in the provided context.

Contention

The main point of contention is the removal of the renewable electricity requirement. Supporters are likely to view this as a practical economic-development change that makes the program more attractive to industrial users and easier to implement. Opponents, if any, would likely object on environmental or clean-energy policy grounds, arguing that the original renewable-source condition was an important safeguard or incentive. A secondary issue is the continued regulatory exemption for district power providers, which may raise concerns about PSC oversight and utility competition, though no specific objections are documented in the provided materials.