Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 757 § 757.300 — Net

Net metering facility allowed to connect to public utility; conditions for connecting and measuring energy; rules; application to out-of-state utilities. (1) As used in this section: (a) “Customer-generator” means a user of a net metering facility. (b) “Electric utility” means a public utility, a people’s utility district operating under ORS chapter 261, a municipal utility operating under ORS chapter 225 or an electric cooperative organized under ORS chapter 62. (c) “Net metering” means measuring the difference between the electricity supplied by an electric utility and the electricity generated by a customer-generator and fed back to the electric utility over the applicable billing period. (d) “Net metering facility” means a facility for the production of electrical energy that: (A) Generates electricity using: (i) Solar power; (ii) Wind power; (iii) Fuel cells; (iv) Hydroelectric power; (v) Landfill gas; (vi) Digester gas; (vii) Waste; (viii) Dedicated energy crops available on a renewable basis; (ix) Low-emission, nontoxic biomass based on solid organic fuels from wood, forest or field residues; (x) Geothermal energy; or (xi) Renewable marine energy, including wave energy, wave-wind hybrid energy and tidal energy; (B) Is located on the customer-generator’s premises, the territorial sea as defined in ORS 196.405, or the outer continental shelf; (C) If located on the territorial sea or the outer continental shelf, is directly interconnected to the customer-generator’s premises; (D) Can operate in parallel with an electric utility’s existing transmission and distribution facilities; and (E) Is intended primarily to offset part or all of the customer-generator’s requirements for electricity. (2) An electric utility that offers residential and commercial electric service: (a) Shall allow net metering facilities to be interconnected using a standard meter that is capable of registering the flow of electricity in two directions. (b) May at its own expense install one or more additional meters to monitor the flow of electricity in each direction. (c) May not charge a customer-generator a fee or charge that would increase the customer-generator’s minimum monthly charge to an amount greater than that of other customers in the same rate class as the customer-generator. However, the Public Utility Commission, for a public utility, or the governing body, for a municipal electric utility, electric cooperative or people’s utility district, may authorize an electric utility to assess a greater fee or charge, of any type, if the electric utility’s direct costs of interconnection and administration of the net metering outweigh the distribution system, environmental and public policy benefits of allocating such costs among the electric utility’s entire customer base. The commission may authorize a public utility to assess a greater fee or charge under this paragraph only following notice and opportunity for public comment. The governing body of a municipal electric utility, electric cooperative or people’s utility district may assess a greater fee or charge under this paragraph only following notice and opportunity for comment from the customers of the utility, cooperative or district. (3)(a) For a customer-generator, an electric utility shall measure the net electricity produced or consumed during the billing period in accordance with normal metering practices. (b) If an electric utility supplies a customer-generator more electricity than the customer-generator feeds back to the electric utility during a billing period, the electric utility shall charge the customer-generator for the net electricity that the electric utility supplied. (c) Except as provided in paragraph (d) of this subsection, if a customer-generator feeds back to an electric utility more electricity than the electric utility supplies the customer-generator during a billing period, the electric utility may charge the minimum monthly charge described in subsection (2) of this section but must credit the customer-generator for the excess kilowatt-hours generated during the billing period. An electric utility may value the excess kilowatt-hours at the avoided cost of the utility, as determined by the commission or the appropriate governing body. An electric utility that values the excess kilowatt-hours at the avoided cost shall bear the cost of measuring the excess kilowatt-hours, issuing payments and billing for the excess hours. The electric utility also shall bear the cost of providing and installing additional metering to measure the reverse flow of electricity. (d) For the billing cycle ending in March of each year, or on such other date as agreed to by the electric utility and the customer-generator, any remaining unused kilowatt-hour credit accumulated during the previous year shall be granted to the electric utility for distribution to customers enrolled in the electric utility’s