1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to energy; increasing the amount of wind 
  1.3             energy eligible for incentive payments; amending 
  1.4             Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 216C.41, subdivision 
  1.5             5. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 216C.41, 
  1.8   subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
  1.9      Subd. 5.  [AMOUNT OF PAYMENT.] (a) An incentive payment is 
  1.10  based on the number of kilowatt hours of electricity generated. 
  1.11  The amount of the payment is: 
  1.12     (1) for a facility described under subdivision 2, paragraph 
  1.13  (a), clause (4), 1.0 cent per kilowatt hour; and 
  1.14     (2) for all other facilities, 1.5 cents per kilowatt hour.  
  1.15  For electricity generated by qualified wind energy conversion 
  1.16  facilities, the incentive payment under this section is limited 
  1.17  to no more than ~~100~~ 200 megawatts of nameplate capacity.  During 
  1.18  any period in which qualifying claims for incentive payments 
  1.19  exceed 100 megawatts of nameplate capacity, the payments must be 
  1.20  made to producers in the order in which the production capacity 
  1.21  was brought into production.  
  1.22     (b) For wind energy conversion systems installed and 
  1.23  contracted for after January 1, 2002, the total size of a wind 
  1.24  energy conversion system under this section must be determined 
  1.25  according to this paragraph.  Unless the systems are 
  2.1   interconnected with different distribution systems, the 
  2.2   nameplate capacity of one wind energy conversion system must be 
  2.3   combined with the nameplate capacity of any other wind energy 
  2.4   conversion system that is: 
  2.5      (1) located within five miles of the wind energy conversion 
  2.6   system; 
  2.7      (2) constructed within the same calendar year as the wind 
  2.8   energy conversion system; and 
  2.9      (3) under common ownership. 
  2.10  In the case of a dispute, the commissioner of commerce shall 
  2.11  determine the total size of the system, and shall draw all 
  2.12  reasonable inferences in favor of combining the systems. 
  2.13     (c) In making a determination under paragraph (b), the 
  2.14  commissioner of commerce may determine that two wind energy 
  2.15  conversion systems are under common ownership when the 
  2.16  underlying ownership structure contains similar persons or 
  2.17  entities, even if the ownership shares differ between the two 
  2.18  systems.  Wind energy conversion systems are not under common 
  2.19  ownership solely because the same person or entity provided 
  2.20  equity financing for the systems.