On July 15, 2010, the Midwest Independent Transmission System Operator, Inc. (“Midwest ISO”) submitted to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC” or the “Commission”) a new proposal to allocate the costs of new transmission projects.  Notably, the proposal asks for the creation of a new category of projects, the Multi Value Projects (“MVPs”) category, and widely socialized costs for such projects across the entire Midwest ISO footprint. 

On July 15, 2010, FERC ruled that sections of the Federal Power Act (“FPA”) and the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (“PURPA”) do not preempt the California Public Utilities Commission’s (“CPUC”) decision to require utilities to offer a minimum price for power from certain small combined heat and power (“CHP”) generators if they are Qualifying Facilities (“QF”) under PURPA.  

In a July 23, 2010 opinion, the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (“D.C. Circuit”) denied several appeals regarding the Calfornia Independent System Operator Corporation’s (“CA ISO”) Market Redesign and Technology Upgrade (“MRTU”) initiative, in which the CA ISO overhauled its tariff, markets and the technology it employs to administer those markets. 

On July 22, 2010,  a House Appropriations subcommittee, on a vote of 7-7, rejected a proposal to impose a two-year delay on the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) regulation of greenhouse gases (“GHG”) from stationary sources.  The proposal, introduced as an amendment to the Interior and Environment fiscal-year 2011 spending bill, would have imposed a two-year moratorium on the EPA’s ability to regulate GHGs from power plants and other stationary emitters.

As Congress returned from the July 4 recess, legislative efforts on cap-and-trade focused on the possibility of a utility-only program.  Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) announced that he intends to bring a bill to the floor during the week of July 26 that will include four components:  the Gulf oil spill, clean energy, energy efficiency and cap-and-trade. 

On July 15, 2010, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC” or the “Commission”) conditionally approved the Southwest Power Pool, Inc’s (“SPP”) modified transmission planning process, the Integrated Transmission Plan (“ITP”).   The ITP will be used to determine future regional transmission needs.

On July 15, 2010, the Commission released Order No. 729-B, which granted requests for rehearing on the implementation timeline for Order No. 729-A.  In its new order, FERC decided to calibrate the timing of the MOD Reliability Standards implementation date from the date of FERC approval, not the date of publication in the Federal Register. 

On July 15, 2010, Ray Palmer from the Office of Electric Reliability presented an update the Commission’s Smart Grid Policy Statement (the “Policy Statement”) at the Commission’s monthly meeting.  The Commission originally issued the Policy Statement last July (see March 20, 2010 edition of the WER).