Public Utilities (GPU) — Title 7. Gas, Electric, and Water Companies

manufacture artificial gas;

sell or furnish any quantity of natural gas or artificial gas that may be required in any municipal corporation or county of the State;

lay pipe under the roadways or other public ways of any county or municipal corporation of the State to transmit natural gas or artificial gas; and

connect the pipe from the place of supply to any structure or object.

A gas company must have the consent of the governing body of the municipal corporation or county before laying any gas pipe in accordance with subsection (a) of this section.

The governing body of the municipal corporation or county may adopt reasonable regulations and conditions for the laying of a gas pipe, including regulations requiring the gas company to refill and repave any roadway or other public way under which the pipe is laid.

extend the duration of a franchise granted by the governing body of a municipal corporation or county; or

except as provided in this section, change the terms or conditions of the franchise.

manufacture, sell, and furnish electric power in any municipal corporation or county of the State;

construct a power line to transmit power under, along, on, or over the roadways or public ways of any municipal corporation or county of the State; and

connect the power line from the place of supply to any other structure or object.

An electric company must have the consent of the governing body of the municipal corporation or county before laying or constructing any power line in accordance with subsection (a) of this section.

The governing body of the municipal corporation or county may adopt reasonable regulations and conditions for the laying of a power line, including regulations requiring the electric company to refill and repave any roadway or public way under which the power line is laid.

acquire, possess, and use land, water rights, and other property for those purposes; and

lay pipes and construct works necessary or suitable to carry out its purposes.

A water company shall obtain the consent of the governing body of the municipal corporation or county before laying pipes or constructing waterworks in that jurisdiction under subsection (a) of this section.

The governing body of the municipal corporation or county may adopt reasonable regulations for the laying of pipes, construction of works, and operations of a water company.

Talbot County;

Washington County; or

the municipal corporation of Berlin, Centreville, Hagerstown, Rock Hall, or Snow Hill.

The sale, lease, exchange, or other disposition of an electric plant or a gas plant by a municipal corporation is subject to approval by the Commission.

If the Commission approves the sale, lease, exchange, or other disposition, at least twice within 15 days after the date of the order of approval by the Commission, the municipal corporation shall publish notice of the sale, lease, exchange, or other disposition and of the approval by the Commission:

A proposed sale, lease, exchange, or other disposition of a municipally owned electric plant or gas plant shall be ratified at a special election by the affirmative vote of a majority of the residents of the municipal corporation eligible to vote at the last preceding regular election for municipal officers if a petition, subject to paragraph (2) of this subsection, is delivered to the municipal corporation requesting the municipal corporation to hold a special election for the ratification or disapproval of the proposed sale, lease, exchange, or other disposition.

A petition under paragraph (1) of this subsection shall be:

The municipal corporation shall hold a special election under this subsection at the time and place in the municipal corporation and in the manner that the municipal corporation requires.

If the sale, lease, exchange, or other disposition is ratified at the special election, the municipal corporation shall consummate the sale, lease, exchange, or other disposition.

If a petition for a special election is not delivered to the municipal corporation in accordance with subsection (e) of this section:

A sale, lease, exchange, or other disposition that is consummated under this subsection is as valid and effective as a disposition ratified under subsection (e) of this section.

In this section the following words have the meanings indicated.

“Affiliate” has the meaning stated in § 7–501 of this title.

“Meeting” means any committee, user group, task force, or other part of the regional transmission organization in which votes are taken.

“Recorded vote” means a vote that is tabulated, either individually or as part of a sector, for any purpose at a meeting, regardless of:

“Regional transmission organization” means an entity that qualifies as a regional transmission organization under 18 C.F.R. § 35.34.

On or before February 1 each year, each electric company shall submit to the Commission a report on each recorded vote cast by the electric company or, subject to paragraph (2) of this subsection, a State affiliate of the electric company at a meeting of a regional transmission organization during the immediately preceding calendar year.

The report shall include:

Annually, the Chairman of the Commission shall forward to the Secretary of Natural Resources a 10-year plan listing possible and proposed sites, including the associated transmission routes, for the construction of electric plants within the State.

The Chairman shall include information in the annual 10-year plan on current and projected efforts by electric companies and the Commission to moderate overall electrical generation demand and peak demand through the electric companies’ promotion of energy conservation by customers and through the electric companies’ use of alternative energy sources, including cogeneration.

To the extent that the Commission requires an electric company to report the information described in paragraph (3) of this subsection, a small rural electric cooperative described in § 7-502(a) of this title may satisfy the requirement by submitting to the Commission a copy of the power requirement study that the small rural electric cooperative submits to the rural utilities service.

The Commission shall evaluate the cost-effectiveness of the investments by electric companies in energy conservation to reduce electrical demand and in renewable energy sources to help meet electrical demand.

The evaluation of investments shall include:

the suitability of sites owned by an electric company, both within and outside the State;

the anticipated growth of electric power demand and the alternative means and locations for meeting that demand, both within and outside the State; and

any other factors required by law.

The Commission may determine that a power plant site is needed only after the Commission gives public notice and holds a public hearing.

The hearing shall be held in the legislative district in which the site under consideration is located.

The Commission shall:

To the extent that an electric company fails to collect the surcharge from its customers, the amount uncollected shall be deemed a cost of power distribution and allowed and computed as such together with other allowable expenses for purposes of rate making.

The Comptroller shall collect the revenue from the surcharge imposed under subsection (a) of this section and place the revenue into a special fund, the Environmental Trust Fund.

The Comptroller shall maintain the method of collection of the surcharge from each electric company, and the money collected shall accrue to the Fund.

Each fiscal year, the Secretary of Natural Resources shall coordinate the preparation of the annual budget required to carry out the provisions of the Power Plant Research Program under Title 3, Subtitle 3 of the Natural Resources Article.

Each fiscal year, on approval of the annual budget by the General Assembly for the Power Plant Research Program, the Commission shall establish the amount of the environmental surcharge per kilowatt hour of electric energy distributed in the State that is to be imposed on each electric company in accordance with subsection (a) of this section.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this subtitle, the amount of the surcharge for each account of each retail electric customer may not exceed the lesser of 0.15 mill per kilowatt hour or $1,000 per month.

The Department of Natural Resources shall credit against the amount the Commission requires each electric company to pay into the Environmental Trust Fund 0.75% of the total surcharge amount attributed to the electric company on the basis of the amount of the electricity distributed in the State.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this division, at least 30 days before a hearing, a public service company shall provide to each owner of land and each owner of adjacent land, by certified mail, written notice of intent to run a line or similar transmission device over, on, or under the land.

On receipt of an application for the construction of a transmission line under § 7–207 or § 7–208 of this subtitle, the Commission shall provide, or direct the person applying for a certificate of public convenience and necessity to provide, by certified mail, notice of intent to run a line or similar transmission device over, on, or under the land to:

Notice provided under this subsection shall include information regarding:

if the failure is willful or deliberate, the public hearing is invalidated and another hearing must take place; or

if the failure is not willful or deliberate, the Commission may require another hearing to take place.

In this section, “modification” means a physical alteration of, replacement of, or other change to the facilities at a power plant, or a change in the fuel used by the plant, that could result in a change of the air emissions from the plant or from a generating unit of the plant.

“Modification” does not include:

Unless the Commission orders otherwise, an application for a modification to a power plant shall be filed with the Commission at least 180 days before the date on which the modification is to commence.

The applicant for the modification shall submit to the Commission and to the Department of the Environment all information relating to the modification, including:

§§ 7-203, 7-207, and 7-208 of this subtitle; and

the procedures set forth in § 7-205 of this subtitle and § 2-405 of the Environment Article.

for pollution control equipment or a change in the method of operation at a generating station; and

for compliance with:

In this section the following words have the meanings indicated.

“Advanced transmission technologies” means:

“Brownfields site” means:

“Generating station” does not include:

“High performance conductors” means conductors, including advanced steel core conductors, carbon fiber and composite core conductors, and superconductors, that have a direct current electrical resistance that is at least 20% less than traditional ACSR conductors of a similar diameter when used on the electric transmission system at the standard operating temperature of 20 degrees Celsius.

“Qualified generator lead line” means a transmission line and any associated advanced transmission technology designed to carry, or support the carrying of, a voltage in excess of 69,000 volts and would allow an out–of–state Tier 1 or Tier 2 renewable source to interconnect with a portion of the electric system in Maryland that is owned by an electric company.

“Storage used as a transmission asset” means an energy storage facility that:

“Traditional ACSR conductors” means electrical cables used in transmission systems that consist of a central core of steel wires surrounded by strands of aluminum.

Unless a certificate of public convenience and necessity for the construction is first obtained from the Commission, and the Commission has found that the capacity is necessary to ensure a sufficient supply of electricity to customers in the State, a person may not exercise a right of condemnation in connection with the construction of a generating station.

On receipt of an application for a certificate of public convenience and necessity under the section, the Commission shall provide notice immediately or require the applicant to provide notice immediately of the application to:

The Commission, when sending the notice required under paragraph (1) of this subsection, shall forward a copy of the application to:

On receipt of an application for a certificate of public convenience and necessity under this section, the Commission shall provide notice of the application on the Commission’s social media platforms and website.

The Commission shall hold the public hearing jointly with the governing body of the county or municipal corporation in which any portion of the construction of the generating station, transmission line, or qualified generator lead line is proposed to be located, unless the governing body declines to participate in the hearing.

the recommendation of the governing body of each county or municipal corporation in which any portion of the construction of the generating station, transmission line, or qualified generator lead line is proposed to be located;

the effect of the generating station, transmission line, or qualified generator lead line on:

the effect of climate change on the generating station, transmission line, or qualified generator lead line based on the best available scientific information recognized by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change;

for a generating station:

for a solar energy generating station specified under § 7–218 of this subtitle, whether the owner of a proposed solar energy generating station complies with the site requirements under § 7–218(f) of this subtitle.

take final action on an application for a certificate of public convenience and necessity only after due consideration of:

require as an ongoing condition of the certificate of public convenience and necessity that an applicant comply with:

require the applicant to identify whether the transmission line is proposed to be constructed on:

The Commission may not authorize, and a person may not undertake, the construction of an overhead transmission line that is aligned with and within 1 mile of either end of a public airport runway, unless:

A privately owned airport runway shall qualify as a public airport runway under this subsection only if the runway has been on file with the Federal Aviation Administration for at least 2 years as being open to the public without restriction.

A county or municipal corporation has the authority to approve or deny any local permit required under a certificate of public convenience and necessity issued under this section or a distributed generation certificate of public convenience and necessity issued under § 7–207.4 of this subtitle.

A county or municipal corporation shall approve or deny any local permits required under a certificate of public convenience and necessity issued under this section or a distributed generation certificate of public convenience and necessity issued under § 7–207.4 of this subtitle:

A county or municipal corporation may not condition the approval of a local permit required under a certificate of public convenience and necessity issued under this section or a distributed generation certificate of public convenience and necessity issued under § 7–207.4 of this subtitle on receipt of any of the following approvals for any aspect of a generating station, a transmission line, or a qualified lead line proposed to be constructed under the certificate:

a generating unit or facility that:

a combination of two or more generating units or facilities that:

a generating unit or facility that:

a combination of two or more generating units or facilities that satisfy item (3) of this subsection.

constructs a generating station:

constructs a generating station if:

The Commission shall require a person that is exempted from the requirement to obtain a certificate of public convenience and necessity under § 7–207(b)(1)(ii)1 of this subtitle to obtain approval from the Commission under this section before the person may construct a generating station described in subsection (b) of this section.

An application for approval under this section shall:

the governing body of each county or municipal corporation in which any portion of the generating station is proposed to be constructed;

the governing body of each county or municipal corporation within 1 mile of the proposed location of the generating station;

each member of the General Assembly representing any part of a county in which any portion of the generating station is proposed to be constructed; and

each member of the General Assembly representing any part of each county within 1 mile of the proposed location of the generating station.

ensure the safety and reliability of the electric system;

require the person constructing the generating station to notify the Commission 2 weeks before the first export of electricity from a generating station approved under this section; and

conduct its review and approval in an expeditious manner.

The Commission shall provide an opportunity for public comment and hold a public hearing as provided under this subsection on an application for approval made under subsection (b)(1)(ii) of this section in each county and municipal corporation in which any portion of the construction of a generating station is proposed to be located.

Upon the request of the governing body of a county or municipal corporation in which any portion of the construction of a generating station is proposed to be located, the Commission shall hold the public hearing jointly with the governing body.

Once in each of 2 successive weeks immediately before the hearing date, the Commission, at the expense of the applicant, shall provide weekly notice of the public hearing and opportunity for public comment by advertisement in a newspaper of general circulation in the county or municipal corporation affected by the application.

a generating unit or facility that:

a combination of two or more generating units or facilities that:

a generating unit or facility that:

a combination of two or more generating units or facilities that satisfy item (3) of this subsection.

has the capacity to produce more than 2 megawatts of electricity, as measured by the alternating current rating of the system’s inverter, from a solar photovoltaic system; and

is exempted under § 7–207(b)(1)(ii) of this subtitle from the requirement to obtain a certificate of public convenience and necessity.

A person shall file an application for approval to construct a generating station under § 7–207.1 of this subtitle at least 6 months before construction commences.

The Commission shall require a person who files an application for approval to construct a generating station to pay a deposit of 1% of total installed costs.

The Commission shall place any deposits collected under subsection (c) of this section into an escrow account.

If a person demonstrates to the Commission that the person is fully authorized to commence construction within 18 months after filing an application for approval, the Commission shall refund the deposit, less reasonable administrative costs.

On or before December 1, 2025, and each December 1 thereafter, the owner or operator of a generating unit or facility specified under § 7–207(a)(4)(iii) of this subtitle shall submit to the Department of the Environment a report that includes:

Unless the Department of the Environment determines that the report required under paragraph (1) of this subsection poses a risk to cybersecurity, national security, or the security of the State, the report:

advancements in backup generation technologies;

the commercial availability of new backup generation technologies that can be procured; and

the affordability of adopting new backup generation technologies.

In this section the following words have the meanings indicated.

“Distributed generation certificate of public convenience and necessity” or “DGCPCN” means a certificate issued by the Commission under this section that authorizes the construction and operation of a distributed solar energy generating system.

“Distributed solar energy generating system” means a community solar energy generating system, as defined in § 7–306.2 of this title, that:

“Forest” has the meaning stated in § 5–1601 of the Natural Resources Article.

“Power Plant Research Program” means the program within the Department of Natural Resources under Title 3, Subtitle 3 of the Natural Resources Article.

“Standard licensing conditions” means the predetermined licensing conditions adopted by the Commission under this section for the construction and operation of a distributed solar energy generating system that has been issued a DGCPCN under this section.

“Standard siting and design requirements” means the predetermined objective requirements adopted by the Commission under this section for the siting and design of a distributed solar energy generating system that has been issued a DGCPCN under this section.

On or before July 1, 2026, the Power Plant Research Program, after giving notice and opportunity for public comment, shall develop and submit to the Commission proposed standard siting and design requirements and proposed standard licensing conditions for the issuance of a DGCPCN.

In developing the proposed standard siting and design requirements and the proposed standard licensing conditions, the Power Plant Research Program shall:

Subject to paragraph (2) of this subsection, on or before July 1, 2027, the Commission shall adopt regulations to:

The Commission shall:

A person may not begin construction of a distributed solar energy generating system unless:

At least 30 days before submitting an application for a DGCPCN to the Commission, the applicant shall submit a copy of the application to the governing body of the county in which the distributed solar energy generating system is proposed to be located.

When a person submits an application for a DGCPCN to the Commission, the person shall submit a copy of the application to the Power Plant Research Program.

After receiving an application for a DGCPCN but before a determination is made under subsection (f) of this section, the Commission shall provide an opportunity for public comment and hold a public hearing on an application for a DGCPCN in each county in which any portion of the construction of the distributed solar energy generating system is proposed to be located.

The Commission may hold the public hearing virtually rather than in person if the Commission provides a comparable opportunity for public comment and participation in the hearing.

After an application for a DGCPCN is filed with the Commission and within the time period set by the Commission under subsection (c)(1)(iv) of this section, the Power Plant Research Program shall:

In making a determination under paragraph (1) of this subsection, the Power Plant Research Program shall consider public comments received by the Commission.

Within 60 days after the Power Plant Research Program makes its determination under subsection (f)(1) of this section, the Commission shall schedule a hearing to consider the application for a DGCPCN.

In making a determination under this subsection, the Commission shall consider public comments received by the Commission under subsection (e) of this section.

A DGCPCN issued by the Commission under this section shall require the person constructing the distributed solar energy generating system to obtain the following permits and approvals from the county, municipal corporation, or soil conservation district in which the system is to be constructed:

The provisions of § 7–207(h) of this subtitle shall apply to any permits and approvals required under paragraph (1) of this subsection.

In this section the following words have the meanings indicated.

“Construction” has the meaning stated in § 7–207 of this subtitle.

“Energy storage device” has the meaning stated in § 7–216 of this subtitle.

“Generating station” has the meaning stated in § 7–207 of this subtitle.

“Large capacity energy resource” means a generating station that:

“Qualifying project” means a dispatchable energy generation project or large capacity energy resource project that has been approved by the Commission under § 7–1208 of this title.

at least 45 days before submitting an application under this section, notify the Commission and the Power Plant Research Program; and

unless otherwise specified under this section, complete all pre–application requirements before submitting an application.

Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, the timelines associated with the normal pre–application requirements under § 7–207 of this subtitle, including the requirements under COMAR 20.79.01.04 and COMAR 20.79.01.05, shall be shortened to 45 days for applications submitted under this section.

If the proposed location of a qualifying project is in an overburdened community or underserved community, as defined in § 1–701 of the Environment Article, the timeline for the pre–application requirements under COMAR 20.79.01.04 and COMAR 20.79.01.05 shall remain at 90 days.

The Commission shall:

The Commission may extend the time to take final action on a certificate of public convenience and necessity under this section if an applicant fails to comply with the law, regulatory requirements, or Commission orders associated with obtaining a certificate of public convenience and necessity.

Notwithstanding any other law or regulation, in order to meet the required timelines for the issuance of a certificate of public convenience and necessity under this section, the Commission may review and determine whether to approve decommissioning plans for a qualifying project after the certificate of public convenience and necessity has been issued.

request, within 90 days before beginning construction, the Commissioner of Labor and Industry to determine the prevailing wage rate for each classification of worker required to perform work on the project;

require that any contractor or subcontractor on the project pay its employees not less than the prevailing wage rate as determined by the Commissioner of Labor and Industry under item (1) of this subsection and Title 17, Subtitle 2 of the State Finance and Procurement Article; and

include in the application an attestation that the person shall comply with the provisions of this section and any additional requirements imposed by the Commissioner of Labor and Industry.

Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3) of this subsection, on or before December 1, 2026, and every 4 years thereafter, each owner or operator of a transmission line shall submit to the Commission a report that:

The report required under paragraph (1) of this subsection shall distinguish between regional and local congestion drivers and reference the PJM planning inputs or any other planning inputs used to support the congestion forecasts and proposed congestion relief solutions.

The Commission may modify the reporting schedule specified in paragraph (1) of this subsection.

In this section the following words have the meanings indicated.

“Construction” has the meaning stated in § 7–207 of this subtitle.

“Generating station” does not include:

“Qualified offshore wind project” has the meaning stated in § 7–701 of this title.

“Qualified submerged renewable energy line” means:

constructing a generating station and its associated transmission lines designed to carry a voltage in excess of 69,000 volts;

exercising the right of condemnation in connection with the construction; or

constructing a qualified submerged renewable energy line.

To obtain the certificate of public convenience and necessity required under § 7–207 of this subtitle for construction under this section, a person shall file an application with the Commission at least 2 years before construction of the facility will commence.

The Commission may waive the 2–year requirement on a showing of good cause.

include in an application under this section the information that the Commission requests initially; and

furnish any additional information that the Commission requests subsequently.

On the receipt of an application under this section, together with any additional information requested under subsection (d)(2) of this section, the Commission shall provide notice to:

On receipt of an application under this section, and whenever additional information is received under subsection (d)(2) of this section, the Commission shall provide notice immediately or require the applicant to provide notice immediately to:

The Commission shall hold a public hearing on the application as required by § 7–207 of this subtitle after:

notify all interested parties of its decision.

The Commission shall include in each certificate it issues under subsection (f) of this section:

The Commission may not adopt any method or condition under paragraph (1)(ii) of this subsection that the Department of the Environment determines is inconsistent with federal and State environmental laws and standards.

A decision of the Commission regarding the issuance of a certificate requires the vote of a majority of the members of the Commission.

If a majority of the members of the Commission fails to reach agreement on the conditions to be attached to a conditional certificate, the certificate shall be denied.

authority for the person to dredge and construct bulkheads in the waters or private wetlands of the State and to appropriate or use the waters; and

registration and a permit to construct, as required under Title 2, Subtitle 4 of the Environment Article.

A county or municipal corporation has the authority to approve or deny any local permit required under a certificate of public convenience and necessity issued under this section.

A county or municipal corporation shall approve or deny any local permits required under a certificate of public convenience and necessity issued under this section:

A county or municipal corporation may not condition the approval of a local permit required under a certificate of public convenience and necessity issued under this section on receipt of any of the following approvals for any aspect of a generating station, a transmission line, or a qualified lead line proposed to be constructed under the certificate:

the existing transmission line is convenient to the service area; or

the use of the transmission line will best promote economic and efficient service to the public.

A municipal corporation may not build, maintain, or operate a plant for supplying gas or electricity for other than municipal purposes unless the municipal corporation has a certificate of authority from the Commission.

If the Commission denies the certificate of authority, the municipal corporation may not reapply for a certificate until at least 6 months have elapsed from the date that the Commission denied the previous application.

the municipal corporation:

the Commission determines that modification of the service territory of an electric company and the transfer of a franchise or right under the franchise is in the public interest.

A municipal corporation that acquires the exclusive right under subsection (d) of this section to supply electricity within an area annexed by the municipal corporation may exercise the right of eminent domain to acquire the existing installed facilities of each electric company within the annexed area that are used solely to supply electricity to the annexed area.

The value of any property taken under paragraph (1) of this subsection shall be determined as of the date of the taking.

cost–sharing agreements with neighboring states in the PJM region to mitigate the risks of developing new nuclear energy generating stations; and

agreements with federal agencies regarding the siting of small modular reactors:

the status of the efforts made under subsection (b) of this section, including an assessment of any opportunities to participate with other states, federal agencies, and public or private partners in a multistate procurement of new nuclear energy technology; and

an evaluation and status of the nuclear energy procurement process established under Subtitle 12, Part III of this title.

Subject to paragraph (2) of this subsection, the regulations shall ensure that, subject to availability, purchases of liquid–immersed distribution transformers by electric companies occurring on or after January 1, 2009, are based on the life–cycle cost methodology contained in Section 2 of Standard TP–1–2002 published by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association.

The regulations adopted under this section may not apply to an electric cooperative that supplies electricity to less than 60,000 electric meters in the State.

In this section the following words have the meanings indicated.

“Fund” means the Electric Reliability Remediation Fund established under subsection (j) of this section.

“System–average interruption duration index” or “SAIDI” means the sum of the customer interruption hours divided by the total number of customers served.

“System–average interruption frequency index” or “SAIFI” means the sum of the number of customer interruptions divided by the total number of customers served.

SAIFI;

SAIDI; and

any other performance measurement that the Commission determines to be reasonable.

The regulations adopted under subsection (d) of this section shall:

The regulations adopted under subsection (d) of this section may include a separate reliability standard for each electric company in order to account for system reliability differentiating factors, including:

In adopting the regulations required under subsection (d) of this section, the Commission shall:

A county or municipal corporation may not adopt or enforce a local law, rule, or regulation or take any other action that interferes with, or materially increases the cost of the work of an electric company toward, compliance with the vegetation management standards adopted under subsection (d) of this section.

On or before September 1 of each year, the Commission shall determine whether each electric company has met the service quality and reliability standards adopted by the Commission for that electric company under subsection (d) of this section and under § 7–213.1(e) of this subtitle.

On or before April 1 of each year, each electric company shall submit to the Commission an annual performance report that summarizes the actual electric service reliability results for the preceding year.

The annual performance report shall include:

At the request of an electric company, the Commission shall hold a hearing to discuss the annual performance report of the electric company.

There is an Electric Reliability Remediation Fund in the Commission.

The purpose of the Fund is to provide resources to target remediation efforts to improve electric service quality and reliability for the worst performing electric distribution lines in the State.

The Commission shall administer the Fund.

The Fund consists of:

an assisted living facility as defined in § 19–1801 of the Health – General Article;

a congregate housing services program under Title 10, Subtitle 2 of the Human Services Article;

a hospice facility as defined in § 19–901 of the Health – General Article;

a hospital as defined in § 19–301 of the Health – General Article or a similar institution;

a nursing home as defined in § 19–1401 of the Health – General Article; or

any other type of facility that the Commission designates in regulation as a special medical needs facility.

further the service quality and reliability goals under § 7–213 of this subtitle as they relate to special medical needs facilities; and

encourage the reliable delivery of service to special medical needs facilities.

on or before January 1 of each year, establish and provide a list of special medical needs facilities, including the licensed capacity of each facility, to each electric company for its service territory;

post the list required under item (1) of this subsection on the website of the Maryland Department of Health; and

establish a procedure to allow a special medical needs facility to remove its information from the list established under item (1) of this subsection.

a list of special medical needs facilities that are served by protective devices that activated five or more times during the reporting period, resulting in a power outage;

a list of special medical needs facilities that experienced a service interruption that:

a list of special medical needs facilities that are served by the 3% of feeders assigned to an electric company’s service territory in the State that are identified by the electric company as having the poorest reliability during the reporting period; and

a description of the electric company’s performance in assessing and acting to remediate, and future plans and proposals to improve, the reliability of feeders and protective devices identified under this subsection.

In this section the following words have the meanings indicated.

“Contact voltage” means a voltage condition that may result in an object or surface being inadvertently energized.

“Contact voltage risk zone” or “CVRZ” means the portions of each electric company’s service territory that:

“Contact voltage survey” means a survey performed by an electric company to detect contact voltage consistent with the electric company’s voltage survey plan.

“Voltage survey plan” means a plan, submitted by an electric company and approved by the Commission, that governs the electric company’s contact voltage detection and testing equipment and voltage detection and testing procedures to be used when conducting contact voltage surveys.

On or before September 1, 2012, each electric company shall file with the Commission for approval:

Within 30 days after the Commission approves a CVRZ within an electric company’s service territory, the electric company shall file its voltage survey plan for Commission approval.

On Commission approval of its voltage survey plan, each electric company shall conduct:

Each electric company shall conduct an initial and each subsequent contact voltage survey within each CVRZ of all objects and surfaces that are:

At least 60 days before implementing a material change to a voltage survey plan, an electric company shall file an amended voltage survey plan for Commission approval.

The Commission may modify the frequency or scope of any contact voltage survey requirement on a showing of good cause.

Each electric company shall include in its voltage survey plan all equipment used for detecting contact voltage.

Each electric company shall confirm and document all contact voltage detected in its contact voltage survey using a voltmeter and a 500 ohm shunt resistor.

Until a potential contact voltage condition can be confirmed under paragraph (1) of this subsection, each electric company shall make an area safe after detecting a potential contact voltage condition during its contact voltage survey.

If an electric company detects a contact voltage measurement under paragraph (1) of this subsection that is at least 1 volt of alternating current, the electric company shall:

On or before April 1 of each year, each electric company shall file a compliance report with the Commission:

The Commission shall approve the form of the report.

waive or modify any provision of this section; or

impose additional requirements as circumstances require.

has the capacity to produce more than 2 megawatts of electricity; and

is designed to produce electricity for sale on the wholesale market.

Not later than 30 days after selling or otherwise transferring ownership of a solar electric generating facility the owner of the facility shall provide notice of the sale or transfer to:

The notice under this section shall include the name, address, phone number, and e–mail address of the new owner.

In this section the following words have the meanings indicated.

“Investor–owned electric company” means an electric company that is not a municipal electric utility or an electric cooperative.

The Commission shall establish an Energy Storage Pilot Program.

The cumulative size of the pilot projects under the program shall be between 5 and 10 megawatts, with a minimum of 15 megawatt–hours.

a “utility–only” model under which the electric company would own the project, control the project for grid reliability, and operate the project in wholesale markets or other applications when not providing grid services;

a “utility and third–party” model under which the electric company would own the project and control the project for grid reliability, and a third party would operate the project in wholesale markets or other applications when the project is not providing grid services;

a “third–party ownership” model under which the electric company would:

a “virtual power plant” model under which:

Each investor–owned electric company shall submit applications for Commission approval to deploy energy storage projects from at least two of the models described under subsection (c) of this section, one of which must be from a model described in subsection (c)(3) or (4) of this section.

A proposed project must be able to meet reasonably the program’s timelines and data collection requirements.

An investor–owned electric company shall give priority to projects that directly defer or replace an existing or anticipated distribution need.

An investor–owned electric company may propose a project that does not directly defer or replace an existing or anticipated distribution need if the project includes grid benefits, ratepayer benefits, or otherwise helps meet the State’s policy goals.

An investor–owned electric company shall describe in the company’s application whether a project demonstrates an opportunity to reduce system costs.

best estimates of costs and savings for the project, including:

project location;

project size in watts and duration in watt–hours;

primary and secondary applications;

the business model selected for the project under subsection (c) of this section;

the project developer or engineering, procurement, and construction firm selected for the project;

the type of energy storage technology;

the process the investor–owned electric company used to solicit offers for the project, including feedback on models not selected and an explanation for why the chosen model was selected; and

any other information required by the Commission.

an investor–owned electric company to own or operate an energy storage device;

an energy storage device owned or operated by an investor–owned electric company to participate in all available PJM wholesale revenue markets in order to realize benefits for investor–owned electric company customers;

full and timely cost recovery by the investor–owned electric company, at the rate of return authorized by the Commission in the most recent base rate proceeding for the investor–owned electric company, taking into account any use of an asset that may not be included in base rates;

an investor–owned electric company to coordinate the use of an energy storage device;

an investor–owned electric company to use fully until the end of the device’s useful life, an energy storage device owned or operated by the investor–owned electric company; and

an investor–owned electric company to offer rebates or other incentives for energy storage devices behind or in front of the meter that can be configured to provide temporary backup power to a customer.

The pilot program shall begin on or before June 1, 2019.

On or before April 15, 2021: