NAC704.8897. Temporary renewable energy development program: Duties of utility provider regarding TRED trust; duties and rights of TRED trust.

     1. Within 30 days after the issuance of an order by the Commission to establish a TRED program, the utility provider shall appoint a third-party professional trustee acceptable to the Commission and shall take all actions necessary to initiate a temporary renewable energy development trust. The TRED trust shall receive money collected by the utility provider from retail customers pursuant to a temporary renewable energy development charge and disburse that money to eligible new renewable energy projects. The TRED trust has the sole right to receive revenue generated by the TRED charge, and the right to receive such revenue constitutes a current property right granted to and vested in the TRED trust.

     2. The utility provider shall file an executed copy of the trust agreement between the utility provider and the trustee of the TRED trust with the Commission for its approval.

     3. The trust agreement must contain a provision establishing a minimum level of reserve for the TRED trust that is equal to three times the highest projected monthly payment to each eligible new renewable energy project for the period during which the TRED charge will be in effect.

     4. The costs incurred by a utility provider to initiate and maintain a TRED trust, including, without limitation, the cost of reserves advanced by the utility provider to the TRED trust, the taxes assessed on the utility provider for amounts related to the TRED trust and the fees charged by the trustee, must be considered expenses associated with the acquisition of purchased power. The amount must be booked by the utility provider in a subaccount of FERC Account No. 182.3, if the cumulative month-end balance is a debit, or a subaccount of FERC Account No. 254, if the cumulative month-end balance is a credit. The amount may be recovered by the utility provider pursuant to the deferred energy accounting process set forth in NAC 704.023 to 704.195, inclusive. The utility provider shall use a subaccount of FERC Account No. 407.3 to offset the tax liability recorded in the subaccount of FERC Account No. 182.3 pursuant to this subsection or a subaccount of FERC Account No. 407.4 to offset the tax liability recorded in the subaccount of FERC Account No. 254 pursuant to this subsection. The utility shall record current taxes and any related deferred taxes in the appropriate subaccount of FERC Account Nos. 409, 410 and 411, as applicable.

     5. Once the TRED charge is established by an order of the Commission issued pursuant to NAC 704.8898, the utility provider shall begin collecting the TRED charge from its retail customers. Beginning with the first full calendar week thereafter and continuing once each week following, the utility provider shall estimate and remit to the TRED trust the total amount collected pursuant to the TRED charge through the last calendar day of the previous collection period.

     6. On the 20th calendar day of each month, the utility provider shall provide the trustee of the TRED trust with a statement showing the calculation of the amounts to be disbursed to each eligible new renewable energy project in accordance with its respective renewable energy or portfolio energy credits contracts based on the production of each eligible new renewable energy project during the previous calendar month. The TRED trust shall, within 7 calendar days after receiving the statement from the utility provider, remit payment to each eligible new renewable energy project in accordance with the statement.

     (Added to NAC by Pub. Utilities Comm’n by R153-04, eff. 11-10-2004; A by R051-09, 1-28-2010; R064-10, 10-15-2010; R043-12, 11-1-2012)