Wyoming lawmakers recommend new wind regulations

A Wyoming legislative task force has recommended tightening wind development standards at the county and state level to help establish a regulatory structure for companies pursuing wind farms here.

The Legislature created the Task Force on Wind Energy this year to study wind energy development in the state.

The group's primary recommendations are to establish statewide minimum county standards for wind projects and expand the Industrial Siting Act - the state regulatory process for major industrial projects - to cover more wind farms.

The intent is to help Wyoming be competitive as a wind resource by establishing firm rules, said Sen. Jim Anderson, R-Glenrock, chairman of the task force.

"We were repeatedly told that one of the things lacking in Wyoming's whole structure was certainty," he said.

Wyoming has about 20 wind farms that produce about 1,000 megawatts of electricity, including 170 megawatts added this summer. Companies are pursuing dozens of more projects in the state.

Developers said they welcome the state's efforts to provide regulatory certainty but are against adding new regulations that would duplicate existing requirements.

"It's not knowing what the rules are that makes life difficult," said Cheryl Riley, executive director of Wyoming Power Producers Coalition.

"We'll see how it develops, because obviously this is a very initial draft, but as of right now, we're pretty supportive of it," she said.

The task force discussed various issues related to taxing wind energy production, but didn't make any specific recommendations. The Joint Revenue Committee is studying tax policies that could be proposed in the next legislative session.

Riley said Wyoming's tax policy could be more important than regulations in determining the industry's viability in the state.

"How do we keep it competitive, while at the same time making sure that we pay our fare share?" Riley said. "It may make the difference between Wyoming wind being developed and Wyoming wind not being developed, at least in the near future."

The task force's recommendations would establish county permitting authority over any wind project capable of generating more than .5 megawatts of power. Six of Wyoming's 23 counties have wind development regulations in place, and eight counties have no zoning at all. Counties would be allowed to enforce more stringent regulations if they want.

The permit application would require plans for logistics such as waste management and traffic, minimum setbacks, and public hearing and comment requirements. The county regulations would also require companies to show plans and financial assurances for taking down wind farms, known as decommissioning.

Under the recommendations, counties would also be able to defer permitting authority to the state Industrial Siting Council, regardless of the project's size.

Among other measures, the task force recommended revising the Industrial Siting Act to give the council authority over wind projects of 30 or more turbines or those that generate at least 50 megawatts.

Anderson said he expects task force members to sponsor bills with the recommendations. Because the next Legislature will be a budget session, such measures would require a two-thirds vote to be introduced.