Florida Power Line: Volume 1 March 2023

Take a look at recent Florida legislation and news. In the News Sanibel / Captiva Chamber of Commerce leading the way with the community on clean energy  Orlando Economic Partnership and CMG Clean Tech - clean tech jobs coming soon Sarasota-based financial services company Cumberland Advisors OpEd on environmental, social, and governance metrics   Tampa Bay’s Resiliency Plans - Sean Sullivan, executive director of the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council, outlines plans for the area Innovation Center supports clean energy innovation in the Tampa Bay area In Central Florida, the Wendy’s Frosty is solar powered! Introduced Legislation The 2023 Florida legislative session is underway and Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy is tracking several clean energy related bills.  There are many headlines about partisan issues in Tallahassee. We are here to help you understand clean energy issues and, in particular, several bills with bipartisan support that we consider good for the economy. These represent fiscally-sound legislation and ones that also help Florida utilize clean energy. Here are a few of the more important clean energy-related bills we currently see: Measuring total cost of ownership for state owned vehicles - SB 284/HB 1025 These bills give greater flexibility to governmental agencies to consider multiple types of vehicles in addition to traditional gasoline-fueled vehicles.  Currently, state governments must take into account fuel efficiency when calculating cost of ownership and buying vehicles. For example, gasoline fuel efficiency is not the same metric used to assess total cost of ownership for an electric vehicle. Thanks to this bill, that metric is remedied to enable ‘apples to apples’ cost comparison. Status: It has passed two Senate committees with bipartisan and unanimous support. Solar Power on Schools - HB195/SB178 These bills could help local school districts become more resilient by adding solar to the schools. HB195/SB178 eliminates restrictions on spending capital dollars on this effort. By adding solar panels to schools, not only do they become better emergency shelters, but this also frees up operational dollars for classroom instruction.   Status: This bill has passed one committee with unanimous bipartisan support. Providing competitive EV infrastructure - HB1591/SB1176 HB1591/SB1176 bills relate to electric vehicle charging infrastructure. They require the Public Service Commission to adopt rules to maintain a competitive market for electric vehicle charging stations which meet certain requirements and provide a timeline for the proposal and adoption of such rules. They also prohibit a public utility from using rate base investment for certain purposes.   Status: This legislation has not received a committee hearing as of yet. Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Metrics and Reporting - SB302/ HB3 SB302/HB3 focus on banking regulations, bond issuance, and investing where ESG and/or social credit metrics are applied. These bills are a priority for Governor Ron DeSantis and House Speaker Paul Renner. How does this relate to clean energy?   Viewing the bills through a strictly economic lens, the question is whether reporting on things such as resilience preparedness, energy security, or hurricane propensity, should be used as a way to assess risk in a financial transaction. That transaction may involve anything from consumer or pension fund investments to governments borrowing money via bond issues. The common thread is risk/return assessment. Risk assessment is part of the capital markets system and for this reason, CICE supports improvements to metrics to accurately reflect risk over a multi-year horizon.   Status: Passed its final committee March 14 - on the House floor calendar. For More Information Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy is happy to provide further information and education for your membership on the above bills or any of the other energy related bills. For follow up, contact anne@chambersforinnovation.com. Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy chambersforinnovation.com

Chambers for Innovation and Clean Energy | 2804 Battleground Drive, Murfreesboro, TN 37129 Unsubscribe cicecoordinator@chambersforinnovation.com Update Profile | Constant Contact Data Notice Sent by anne@chambersforinnovation.com in collaboration with Try email marketing for free today!