S-1946               _______________________________________________

                                         SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL NO. 3487

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State of Washington                              49th Legislature                              1985 Regular Session

By Senate Committee on Energy and Utilities (originally sponsored by Senators Goltz, Bailey, Williams and Benitz)

Read first time  2/12/85.

AN ACT Relating to energy consumption by state agencies; adding new sections to chapter 43.21F RCW; making an appropriation; and providing an expiration date.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.     Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this section apply throughout sections 1 through 5 of this act.

          (1) "Base energy consumption level" means the calculated average energy consumption for a particular biennium based on the energy consumption in the previous biennium.

          (2) "Facility" has the meaning defined in RCW 43.19.670.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.     The state energy office shall establish base energy consumption levels for state-owned facilities which are maintained under state funding for the 1985-87 biennium and each biennium thereafter.  Facilities or the agency responsible for them shall report accurate monthly energy consumption and cost figures for all fuels to the state energy office quarterly, including any changes in total space served or facility operations.  The state energy office shall make appropriate adjustments to the base energy consumption level for the facility to reflect such changes.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3.     The state energy office, after consultation with the department of general administration, shall determine the reduction in energy consumption for each state-owned facility for the 1985-87 biennium and each biennium thereafter relative to the appropriate base energy consumption level, and shall calculate the estimated dollar value of these energy consumption reductions for an agency's facilities.  The state energy office, with the assistance of the office of financial management, shall allocate to the agency eighty percent of the dollar savings from the previous biennium for the agency.  The remaining twenty percent shall be allocated to  the  fund or account of origin.

          The state energy office shall request an appropriation, and administer and allocate the appropriation for this program.  Payments for energy consumption reductions during a biennium shall be payable in the following biennium.  Eighty percent of the agency's allocations for energy consumption reductions achieved prior to July 1, 1991, and allocated prior to July 1, 1993, shall be used by the agency to maintain energy consumption reductions or to further reduce energy consumption in the  agency's facilities.  The remaining twenty percent received by the agency may be expended as determined by the director of the agency.

          One hundred percent of each agency's allocations for energy consumption reductions received after June 30, 1993, shall be used for maintaining energy consumption reductions or to further reduce energy consumption in the agency's facilities, as provided in this section.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4.     There is hereby created an energy savings account in the general fund of the state treasury.  All expenditures from this account are subject to chapter 43.88 RCW and this chapter.  Within six months of the beginning of each biennium, the state treasurer shall transfer to the energy savings account from the general fund or other fund or account of origin, the equivalent of the prior biennium's energy savings as calculated by the state energy office in accordance with this chapter.  The transfer shall be based on avoided energy costs due to energy consumption reductions for each fund or account.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5.     After consultation with the office of financial management and the department of general administration, the state energy office shall adopt such rules as are necessary to properly administer sections 1 through 3 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6.     There is appropriated to the state energy office from the general fund, for the biennium ending June 30, 1987, the sum of thirty-two thousand dollars, or so much thereof as may be necessary, to carry out the purposes of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7.     Sections 1 through 5 of this act are each added to chapter 43.21F RCW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8.     Sections 1 through 5 of this act shall each expire on June 30, 1997.