HB 1381 – Commercial Wind and Solar Standards and Siting
Authored by Rep. Ed Soliday (R-Valparaiso)
Establishes statewide default standards for large-scale renewable energy siting. Provides that a local unit of government may not impose standards that are more restrictive than the default standards. It has provisions for construction and decommissioning. It also establishes procedures for project owners or interested parties (residents of the unit; affected property owner; political subdivisions; and other interested parties) to submit petitions to the Indiana Utilities Regulatory Commission requesting review of the decision of a permit authority with regards to an application.
Chamber position: Support
The latest: Heard in the House Utilities Committee on Wednesday, then passed with bipartisan support by a vote of 12-1. Now eligible for further action in the House.
Indiana Chamber action/commentary: We testified in support of the bill, noting it will alleviate a problem that has already created issues in Indiana and costs renewable energy companies money to attempt to resolve with local government. State-level guidelines such as these can aid local authorities in their consideration of renewable energy siting rules. The Indiana Chamber Foundation’s energy study, Powering Indiana’s Economic Future, has a section that addresses these types of scenarios (pages 166-168).
Resource: Greg Ellis at (317) 264-6881 or email: gellis@indianachamber.com
