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The City of Seattle
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An ordinance relating to the City Light Department; authorizing ten-year agreements with customers eligible for transportation electrification programs.
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Recitals:
RCW 35.92.450 and Seattle Municipal Code Section 21.53.015 authorize the City Light Department as a municipal utility to adopt and implement transportation electrification plans and associated incentives, programs, policies, and other mechanisms that accelerate installation of transportation electrification infrastructure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector, provided that City Light’s outreach and investment in such infrastructure does not increase net costs to ratepayers consistent with rules set forth in RCW 35.92.450.
An analysis conducted for City Light estimated the City Light service area may require between ten and 20 times more electric vehicle charging stations by 2030 to meet anticipated demand and meet the City’s greenhouse gas emission reduction goals.
Consistent with legislative authority, anticipated demand for electric charging stations, and the City’s desire to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the Department offers electrification transportation programs and incentives that defray the significant cost of building charging stations.
Some incentives help to defray the cost of installing upgraded underground infrastructure equipped to serve an anticipated growing base of charging units (future proofing).
The Department wishes to execute a program agreement for up to ten years with third parties to address the needs of future proofing projects to enable the Department to inspect and enforce program requirements over the entire buildout.
Chapter 70.A.535 RCW establishes a Clean Fuels Program and RCW 70A.535.080 and WAC 173-424-220 provides a mechanism for a utility to generate revenue, as an owner of qualified equipment and assignee of Clean Fuels Program credits.
In exchange for a Department provided incentive, the recipient assigns their Clean Fuel Program credits to the Department for the duration of the program contract. A contract term up to ten years allows the Department to continue to receive Clean Fuel Program credits over a longer contract term to offset some of the incentives issued to the Participant or raise revenue which can be applied to fund authorized clean fuel projects. Therefore,
Be it ordained by The City of Seattle as follows:
Section 1. The City Light Department (Department) is authorized to execute ten-year agreements with customers to provide transportation electrification program services, substantially in the form of the Participation Agreement attached to this ordinance as Attachment A (Agreement) with such changes as the Department may deem appropriate and are consistent with this ordinance. The Agreement establishes program terms and conditions for customers to receive incentives to install electric vehicle charging infrastructure, sets operational expectations for the chargers, provides extended timelines to support phased construction, and allows for the Department to enforce program requirements and collect data related to electric vehicle charger utilization to meet compliance and regulation in chapter 70A.535 RCW and WAC 173-424-220.
Attachments:
Attachment A - Transportation Electrification Incentive Program Participaction Agreement
This ordinance shall take effect as provided by Seattle Municipal Code Sections 1.04.020 and 1.04.070.
Passed by the City Council and signed in open session in authentication of its passage on .
President of the City Council
on .
Katie B. Wilson, Mayor
Scheereen Dedman, City Clerk