Hartford Business Journal

GOvERnmEnT WATCH Malloy Eyes Massive Solar Investment Plan Although the Connecticut General As- sembly won't pass the massive energy and environmental overhauls that have been its hallmarks under the administration of Gov. Dannel P. malloy, several proposals are work- ing their way through the legislature this session that could have significant impact on industry if they are approved before the end of June. malloy has proposed a resi- dential solar credit program similar to the Zero-emissions/ Low-emissions Renewable Energy Credit program (ZREC/LREC). This new Solar Home Energy Renewable Credit Program (SHREC) will offer owners of solar arrays on residential property 15-year contracts from the state utilities to buy the energy credits. The governor hopes this new program – the successor to the current Residential Solar investment program – will attract $1 billion in private capital over its lifetime. Other proposals under consideration at the legislature include capping the basic monthly connection fee for electric ratepay- ers to $10, roughly half of what Eversource Energy customers pay now; allowing electricity suppliers to charge ratepayers only fixed-rate contracts, and no more vari- able rates; establishing a Long island Sound Blue Plan to protect the resources along the coast; launching a regulatory study of the impacts of renewable energy programs on ratepayers. News Cycle Government Grades by Brad Kane Transportation Overhaul – Gov. Dannel P. malloy went big with his proposed budget this year, calling for a $110 billion, 30-year investment to make the state's transporta- tion infrastructure a true intermodal system. Strong leadership was needed on this, but malloy's failure to identify a funding source for the spending left his pitch a little flat. it's OK, governor, you can say, "Tolls." it won't kill you. Renewable Teamup – Picking up the failed pieces of the plan to have all new England states work together to address the region's energy issues, the governors of Con- necticut, massachusetts, and Rhode island came together to use their collective buying power to pay for significant renewable energy installations. Grade: A- Grade: C+ 10 COnnECTiCUT GREEn GUiDE • SprinG 2015 www.CTGreenGuide.com SmART BUSinESS: JACKSOn LABORATORy JAX Lands $1.2M Energize Incentive T o help its sustainability efforts, the Jackson Laboratory of Bar Harbor, Maine, received a $1.2 million Energize Connecticut incentive for its new Farmington facility, which has since been certified LEED Gold. Prior to construction of the Genomic Medicine lab in Farmington, which opened in October, Senior Facilities Director John Fitzpatrick worked with Hart- ford utility Eversource Energy to utilize Energize Connecticut programs and create a customized plan to reduce the lab's energy footprint. Eversource, along with Or- ange utility United Illuminating, administers the Energize Connecticut initiative. The energy-saving measures implemented during construction of the 184,000 square foot building will save JAX Genomic Medicine more than $620,000 a year on its energy bill. The total cost of the efficiency portion of the project was roughly $2.4 million, so after incentives covered half of that, the payback will be less than two years. That helped achieve the Gold level of the U.S. Green Building Council's Leader- ship in Energy & Environmental Design program. "Working with Eversource, we were able to develop a plan and leverage the Energize Connecticut incentives into tangible actions that delivered a favorable return on investment," said Fitzpatrick. "The money we are saving can now be reinvested back into our operations in the form of new equip- ment and personnel with the promise to transform medicine and contrib- ute to greater overall human health." One of the most effective measures installed at the facility was a monitor- Gov. Dannel P. Malloy

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