Bill > SB142

This bill aims to streamline the development of thermal energy resources, such as geothermal energy and thermal energy networks, by reducing unnecessary costs and legal uncertainties. It grants local governments, including cities, towns, counties, and special districts, express authority to aggregate thermal energy demand from various entities, including private participants, and enter into contracts for thermal energy services for up to twenty-five years. Importantly, local governments operating these networks are not considered public utilities and are not subject to regulation by the Public Utilities Commission (PUC). The bill also allows local governments to issue revenue bonds or other financing mechanisms to fund thermal energy network infrastructure, and clarifies that providing thermal energy service is not considered natural gas service. Additionally, it mandates the collection of data on geothermal resources by the Colorado Geological Survey and the Commission, and establishes processes for investor-owned electric utilities to develop both small-scale (25 megawatts or less) and large-scale geothermal projects, with specific requirements for applications, evaluations, and labor standards. Finally, the bill clarifies that emission reductions from thermal energy networks can be counted towards a utility's clean heat plan requirements.