HB 1542 — establishing a committee to study New Hampshire's electric renewable portfolio standard and the renewable energy fund.

0241h 26Mar2026...SESSION 26-2766 07/05 HOUSE BILL 1542-FN AN ACT allowing alternative compliance payments to the renewable energy fund to be refunded to ratepayers on a per kilowatt hour basis.

1085h SESSION 26-2766 07/05 HOUSE BILL 1542-FN AN ACT directing alternative compliance payments to the renewable energy fund to be refunded to ratepayers.

Science, Technology and Energy ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── AMENDED ANALYSIS This bill provides that alternative compliance payments to the renewable energy fund under RSA 362-F:10, II shall be refunded to ratepayers.ratepayers on a per kilowatt hour basis.

0241h 26Mar2026...26-2766 07/05 STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty-Six AN ACT allowing alternative compliance payments to the renewable energy fund to be refunded to ratepayers on a per kilowatt hour basis.

1085h 26-2766 07/05 STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty-Six AN ACT directing alternative compliance payments to the renewable energy fund to be refunded to ratepayers.

Class II moneys shall primarily be used to support solar energy technologies in New Hampshire.Hampshire] shall be rebated to ratepayers in the state on a per-kilowatt-hour basis.

All initiatives supported out of these funds shall be subject to audit by the department of energy as deemed necessary.]necessary. that are in excess of administration costs and funding for the office of offshore wind industry development and energy innovation shall be transferred to the general fund.

Income received on HB 1542-FN - AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE - Page 2 - investments made by the state treasurer shall also be credited to the fund.

Any remaining moneys paid into the fund under HB 1542-FN - AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE - Page 2 - paragraph II of this section[, excluding class II moneys, shall be used by the department of energy to support thermal and electrical renewable energy initiatives and offshore wind initiatives, including the office of offshore wind industry development and energy innovation.

Class II moneys shall primarily be used to support solar energy technologies in New Hampshire.Hampshire] shall be rebated to ratepayers in the state on a per-kilowatt-hour basis.

All initiatives supported out of these funds shall be subject to audit by the department of energy as deemed necessary.]necessary. that are in excess of administration costs and funding for the office of offshore wind industry development and energy innovation shall be rebated to all retail electric ratepayers in the state on a per-kilowatt-hour basis, in a timely manner to be determined by the commission.

Section 2 of this act shall take effect on July 1, 2027,2027 at 12:01 a.m.

The remainder of this act shall take effect JuneJuly 30,1, 2026.

LBA 26-2766 04/15/202603/09/2026 HB 1542-FN- FISCAL NOTE AS AMENDED BY THE HOUSE (AMENDMENT ##2026-0241h) 2026-1085h) AN ACT directingallowing alternative compliance payments to the renewable energy fund to be refunded to ratepayers.ratepayers on a per kilowatt hour basis.

EstimatedThis Statebill Impactdoes FYnot 2026provide FYfunding, 2027nor FYdoes 2028it FYauthorize 2029new Revenuepositions. $0 $1,000,000 $0 $0 Revenue Fund(s) General Fund Estimated Estimated Increase of $6.45Increase of $6.45 million rebated million rebated to ratepayers to ratepayers ($1,000,000) and decrease of and decrease of Expenditures* $0 Decrease to REF $6.45 million to $6.45 million to REF programs/ REF programs/ programs Estimated Estimated Decrease of Decrease of approx.

Estimated State Impact FY 2026 FY 2027 FY 2028 FY 2029 Revenue $0 $0 $0 $0 Revenue Fund(s) Estimated Estimated Estimated Increase of $6.45 Increase of $6.45 Increase of $6.44 million rebated million rebated million rebated to ratepayers to ratepayers to ratepayers and decrease of and decrease of and decrease of $6.45 million to $6.45 million to $6.44 million to Expenditures* $0 REF programs/ REF programs/ REF programs/ Estimated Estimated Estimated Decrease of Decrease of Decrease of approx $59,000 approx.

$59,000 related to state related to state related to state agency usage agency usage agency usage Funding Source(s) Renewable Energy FundFund, and Various Agencystate Fundsagency funds Appropriations* $0 $0 $0 $0 Funding Source(s) None *Expenditure = Cost of bill *Appropriation = Authorized funding to cover cost of bill Estimated Political Subdivision Impact FY 2026 FY 2027 FY 2028 FY 2029 County Revenue $0 $0 $0 $0 County Expenditures $0 $0Indeterminable Indeterminable Indeterminable Local Revenue $0 $0 $0 $0 Local Expenditures $0 $0Indeterminable Indeterminable Indeterminable METHODOLOGY:

SectionThis 1 of this bill alignsdirects theany statutoryremaining languagefunds with the allocation structure assumed in the operatingrenewable budgetenergy underfund Laws(REF) ofto 2025,be 141:141rebated forto FYratepayers 2027,in with the exceptionstate thaton ita eliminatesper-kilowatt thehour provisionbasis. allocating up to $1,000,000 annually to support thermal and electrical renewable energy initiatives.

UnderThe LawsDepartment ofestimates 2025,revenue 141:141,into moneys in the RenewableREF Energyof Fundapproximately (REF)$7.0 aremillion usedper foryear. administrative costs and up to $1,000,000 annually for renewable energy initiatives, with the remaining balance transferred to the General Fund.

ByFrom eliminatingthis amount, the $1,000,000Department allocationestimates inadministrative FYcosts 2027,of this$550,000 bill results in anFY increase2027, to$555,000 Generalin FundFY revenue2028 ofand approximately$560,000 $1,000,000 in FY 2027.2029.

SectionThe 2Department ofstates thisfunding bill,for effective5 Julypositions 1,will 2027,no requireslonger remainingbe available (3 REF moneys,program afterrelated administrativepositions costs,and to2 bepositions rebatedin tothe ratepayersOffice onof aEnergy per-kilowatt-hourInnovation) basis.unless funds are appropriated from the General Fund or another funding source.

TheAfter Departmentdeducting ofthe Energyestimated estimatesadministrative revenuecosts intofor FY 2027 through FY 2029, the REFestimated ofamount approximatelyto $7,000,000be perrebated year.back to ratepayers is $6.45 million in FY 2027, $6.45 million in FY 2028, and $6.44 in FY 2029.

FromBased thison amount,calendar year 2025 kWh sales of 10,764,460,724, the Department estimates administrativethe costsper ofkWh $555,000rebate into FYratepayers 2028,andwould $560,000be $0.00055 in FYfiscal years 2027 through 2029.

AfterThe deductingstate administrativerepresents costs,approximately the1% estimatedof amountsales, towhich bewould rebatedresult toin ratepayersan isestimated approximatelyannual $6,400,000rebate to $6,500,000the annuallystate beginningof $59,000 in FYfiscal 2028.years 2027 through 2029.

BasedCounty onand calendarmunicipal yearimpacts 2025are kWhindeterminable salesbecause of 10,764,460,724, the Department estimatesdoes thenot perhave kWhconsumption rebatedata tofor ratepayersthose wouldentities.. be approximately $0.00055 in FY 2028 and FY 2029.

The state represents approximately 1% of sales, which would result in an estimated annual rebate to the state of approximately $59,000 in FY 2028 and FY 2029.

Because the allocation structure in Laws of 2025, 141:141 applies only to FY 2026 and FY 2027, the ratepayer rebate beginning in FY 2028 does not result in an impact to the General Fund when compared to that baseline.

The bill also references the Office of Offshore Wind Industry Development, which appears to no longer exist in statute.

County and municipal impacts are indeterminable because the Department does not have consumption data for those entities.