"NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. (1) The utilities and transportation commission must study the cost to convert large combination utility customers from natural gas to nonemitting energy including, but not limited to, renewable natural gas, green hydrogen, thermal energy networks, electricity, or other sources.

(2) The study required in subsection (1) of this section must identify and consider:

(a) The cost to residential, commercial, and industrial natural gas customers as a result of converting from natural gas to nonemitting resources;

(b) The cost to convert state-owned buildings, public K-12 school buildings, public buildings of institutions of higher education, and buildings owned by local governments from natural gas to electricity or other nonemitting resources;

(c) The impacts of increased electrification on a large combination utility and other electric utilities to procure and deliver electric power to reliably meet that load; and

(d) The impact on regional system resource adequacy and the transmission and distribution infrastructure requirements for a conversion from natural gas to nonemitting resources.

(3) The utilities and transportation commission may require data and analysis from a large combination utility to inform the study. The utilities and transportation commission's findings must be reported to the appropriate committees of the legislature by December 1, 2024.

(4) For the purposes of this section, "large combination utility" means a public service company that is both an electrical company and a gas company that serves more than 800,000 retail electric customers and 500,000 retail gas customers in the state of Washington as of June 30, 2024."