SECTION 165:35-41-4. Demand portfolio submission and implementation

(a)   All electric utilities under rate regulation of the Commission having more than 10,000 meters in the state of Oklahoma shall propose, at least once every three years, and be responsible for the administration and implementation of a Demand Portfolio of Demand Programs within their service territories. Such proposals shall be made by filing an application with the Commission on or before July 1 prior to the year the programs will be effective. The application shall describe the Demand Portfolio and contain the following information:

(1)   A description of the intent of the Demand Portfolio as a whole;

(2)   A description of the intent of each Demand Program;

(3)   A description and quantification of the target market of each Demand Program, differentiated by customer sectors;

(4)   A base line describing the state of the market that each Demand Program is intended to address, taking into account applicable building energy codes and appliance and equipment energy standards;

(5)   A description of the barriers to investment in energy efficiency and demand response in the absence of each Demand Program and the ways each program Demand Program will reduce or eliminate these barriers;

(6)   A description of research and public input that contributed to the development of the content of each Demand Program;

(7)   A report of the cost-effectiveness of each Demand Program and the Demand Portfolio, including program and measure-level supporting data which shall include, but not be limited to, cost-effectiveness screening assumptions of gross and net energy and demand savings, coincident demand factors, energy allocation factors for seasonal and for peak, off-peak and shoulder periods, non-electric resource benefits, non-resource benefits, participation and/or measure unit numbers, inducement levels, measure cost, and other non-inducement program costs;

(8)   A detailed description of the derivation of the energy, generation, and transmission and distribution avoided costs, retail cost projections, reserve margins, discount rates, and average and peak line loss assumptions used in the cost-effectiveness calculations.

(9)   A description of how each Demand Program is expected to change over its course to reflect expected changes in market penetration, technology, and other market information, as well as lessons learned;

(10)   A plan for evaluation, measurement, and verification of performance and results of the demand portfolio and each program, including a plan for the use of deemed savings, if applicable, or the use of statistical sampling, if applicable, or the use of metering, where appropriate; provided that costs associated with the EM&V plan shall not exceed five percent (5%) of the total three-year Demand Portfolio budget;

(11)   A plan for evaluation of the market effects of each Demand Program or applicable group of programs;

(12)   A plan for evaluation of administration and implementation of each Demand Program or applicable group of programs;

(13)   A plan for ending a Demand Program, if applicable;

(14)   A process for amending a Demand Program;

(15)   An annual budget for each Demand Program, providing detail for program costs, and differentiating evaluation, measurement, and verification costs from other program costs;

(16)   A report on how the Demand Portfolio is expected to affect rates, sales, average bills and total revenue requirement for each customer sector;

(17)   A report on how the Demand Portfolio meets savings goals that may be in place at the time of filing;

(18)   An estimate of expected savings in peak demand, energy use, and capacity, with location information about the source of savings if savings are not expected to be evenly distributed throughout the utility system;

(19)   Detailed explanation of the utility's request for recovery of prudently incurred program costs, recoupment and calculation of lost net revenue, and additional incentives the utility proposes it requires to make the programs workable; and

(20)   Identification of the Demand Portfolio administrator, including name, job title, business postal address, business electronic mail address, and business telephone number.

(b)   Demand Portfolios shall:

(1)   Contain Demand Programs for all customer sectors;

(2)   Strike a balance among procuring peak demand reduction, procuring energy savings, procuring capacity savings, educating the public, and transforming markets for energy efficiency;

(3)   Include standard offers to customers and trade allies to encourage simple ways to participate, where appropriate;

(4)   Contain customized opportunities for energy efficiency and demand response among larger customers;

(5)   Not include programs or measures that promote fuel switching. For new construction, an electric utility shall not offer customer or builder inducements for the use of specific electric equipment or appliances with the exception of programs or measures that promote renewable technologies such as geothermal, solar and other renewable resources;

(6)   Be consistent with the utility's integrated resource plan;

(7)   Have an implementation schedule of no more than three years;

(8)   Address opportunities presented by new construction and renovation;

(9)   Promote comprehensive energy efficiency and demand response in buildings;

(10)   Address programs for low-income customers and hard-to-reach customers to assure proportionate Demand Programs are deployed in these customer groups despite higher barriers to energy efficiency investments. Demand Programs targeted to low-income or hard-to-reach customers may have lower threshold cost-effectiveness results than other Demand Programs; and

(11)   Allow any High-Volume Electricity User, after the utility has a reasonable opportunity to contact and present customized opportunities to such user, to opt out of some or all Demand Programs by submitting notice of such decision to the director of the Public Utility Division and to the electric utility that submits the Demand Portfolio.

(A)   High-Volume Electricity Users may opt out with thirty (30) days notice after the company has received final approval of the Demand Portfolio.

(B)   High-Volume Electricity Users who chose to participate in Demand Programs shall remain as a participant for the Demand Portfolio period (three years) and shall pay their calculated contribution to the Demand Programs recovery for the Demand Portfolio period. This requirement does not apply to High-Volume Electricity Users who participate only in the demand response portion of the Demand Programs.

(C)   High-Volume Electricity Users who chose to opt out may not opt back in unless they agree to pay their calculated contribution to the Demand Programs recovery for the Demand Portfolio period. This requirement does not apply to High-Volume Electricity Users who participate only in the demand response portion of the Demand Programs.

(D)   Once a High Volume Electricity User has opted out of Demand Programs, none of the costs of any Demand Programs shall be charged to such User, including its affiliate or subsidiary listed on such User's opt out notice, unless and until the User chooses to opt back into the Demand Programs.

(c)   Demand portfolios may:

(1)   Integrate energy efficiency and demand response;

(2)   Include research and development and pilot programs that would lead to effective Demand Programs or other energy end use efficiency for Oklahoma so long as the total budget for such programs does not exceed five percent of the total budget for Demand Programs and the Commission finds the cost-effectiveness for the Demand Portfolio remains sufficient;

(3)   Encourage utility cooperation in state, regional and national programs that have the potential to save energy, reduce peak demand, or avoid capacity addition in Oklahoma; and

(4)   Encourage utility cooperation in state, regional and national programs to take advantage of economies of scale, provide consistent mass media messages, or otherwise improve program administration or customer acceptance.

(5)   Encourage utility cooperation in state, regional and national efforts to accelerate the development and improve the enforcement of building energy codes and product efficiency standards.

[Source: Added at 26 Ok Reg 1849, eff 6-25-09; Amended at 31 Ok Reg 1057, eff 1-1-16]