,,ii #aaith ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #cibf ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,february #bf1 #bjbf,mr4 ,welch 7for himself and ,mr4 ,van ,hollen7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,energy and ,natural ,resources ,a ,,bill ,to promote competition in the area of digital energy management tools1 enhance consumer access to electric energy and natural gas information1 allow for the development and adoption of innovative products and services to help consumers1 organizations1 and governments manage their energy usage and improve electric grid reliability1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,access to ,consumer ,energy ,information ,act or the ,e-,access ,act4 #b4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,commission ,the term ,commission means the ,federal ,energy ,regulatory ,commission4 7#b7 ,covered wholesale electricity market ,the term covered wholesale electricity market means a wholesale electricity market regulated by1 or otherwise subject to the jurisdiction of1 the ,federal ,energy ,regulatory ,commission4 7#c7 ,electric consumer ,the term electric consumer has the meaning given the term in section #c of the ,public ,utility ,regulatory ,policies ,act of #aigh 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #bfjb74 7#d7 ,electric meter software platform ,the term electric meter software platform means the meter of an electric utility and any accompanying software that enables software applications to be developed1 installed1 and executed on the grid edge computer for the purpose of analyzing or transmitting retail electric energy information or grid edge consumer insights4 7#e7 ,electric utility ,the term electric utility has the meaning given the term in section #c of the ,public ,utility ,regulatory ,policies ,act of #aigh 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #bfjb74 7#f7 ,gas consumer ,the term gas consumer has the meaning given the term in section #cjb of the ,public ,utility ,regulatory ,policies ,act of #aigh 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #cbjb74 7#g7 ,gas utility ,the term gas utility has the meaning given the term in section #cjb of the ,public ,utility ,regulatory ,policies ,act of #aigh 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #cbjb74 7#h7 ,green button connect my data ,the term ,green ,button ,connect ,my ,data means the standard of the same name that is maintained by the ,green ,button ,alliance 7or any successor organization7 that enables access to and secure transmission of retail electric energy information and retail natural gas information by an electric consumer or gas consumer1 including any subsequent updates to the standard or successor standards4 7#i7 ,grid edge computer ,the term grid edge computer means a device1 whether part of1 or separate from1 a meter1 that-- 7,a7 measures power1 voltage1 current1 or other aspects of electric energy at or near the premises of an electric consumer2 and 7,b7 is capable of running #a or more software applications to analyze1 in real time1 any measurement described in subparagraph 7,a7 in order to derive grid edge consumer insights or information about the status or operation of the electric grid4 7#aj7 ,grid edge consumer insight ,the term grid edge consumer insight means-- 7,a7 the power1 voltage1 current1 or other aspects of electric energy measured and analyzable by a grid edge computer2 and 7,b7 any calculation1 estimate1 or inference from a grid edge computer that pertains to1 or reflects the characteristics of1 the use of electric energy by a particular electric consumer4 7#aa7 ,independent ,system ,operator ,the term ,independent ,system ,operator has the meaning given the term in section #c of the ,federal ,power ,act 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #gif74 7#ab7 ,meter ,the term meter means a device that measures and records energy usage data at any interval4 7#ac7 ,regional ,transmission ,organization ,the term ,regional ,transmission ,organization has the meaning given the term in section #c of the ,federal ,power ,act 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #gif74 7#ad7 ,retail electric energy information ,the term retail electric energy information means-- 7,a7 the electric energy usage of an electric consumer over a time interval1 as measured and recorded by the applicable meter2 7,b7 the retail electric energy prices and applicable rate applied to the electric energy usage for the time interval described in subparagraph 7,a7 for the electric consumer2 7,c7 the costs of service provided to an electric consumer1 as displayed on billing information provided to that electric consumer at the level of each line item2 7,d7 in the case of nonresidential electric meters1 any other electrical information that the meter is programmed to record that is used for billing purposes 7such as demand measured in kilowatts1 voltage1 frequency1 current1 and power factor72 7,e7 grid edge consumer insights2 and 7,f7 customer-specific information including1 at a minimum-- 7i7 customer name1 mailing address1 premises address1 contact information1 payment history1 and account number2 and 7ii7 any information that may be necessary for participation in1 or to determine customer eligibility for1 bill payment assistance1 renewable energy1 demand-side management1 load management1 energy efficiency programs1 or wholesale markets4 7#ae7 ,retail natural gas information ,the term retail natural gas information means-- 7,a7 the natural gas usage of a gas consumer1 as measured and recorded by the applicable gas utility2 7,b7 the retail natural gas prices and applicable rate applied to the natural gas usage described in subparagraph 7,a7 for the gas consumer2 7,c7 the cost of service provided to a gas consumer1 as displayed on billing information provided to that gas consumer at the level of each line item2 7,d7 in the case of nonresidential natural gas meters1 any other information that the meter is programmed to record that is used for billing purposes2 and 7,e7 customer-specific information including1 at a minimum-- 7i7 customer name1 mailing address1 premises address1 contact information1 payment history1 and account number2 and 7ii7 any information that might be necessary for participation in1 or to determine customer eligibility for1 bill payment assistance1 demand-side management1 energy efficiency programs1 or wholesale markets4 7#af7 ,secretary ,the term ,secretary means the ,secretary of ,energy4 7#ag7 ,state energy office ,the term ,state energy office means the office or agency of a ,state responsible for developing the ,state energy conservation plan for the ,state under section #cfb of the ,energy ,policy and ,conservation ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #fcbb74 #c4 ,consumer access to electric energy and natural gas information 7a7 ,eligibility for ,state energy plans ,section #cfb7;d7 of the ,energy ,policy and ,conservation ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #fcbb7;d77 is amended-- 7#a7 in paragraph 7#ag71 by striking and after the semicolon at the end2 7#b7 by redesignating paragraph 7#ah7 as paragraph 7#ai72 and 7#c7 by inserting after paragraph 7#ag7 the following3 7#ah7 programs to promote competition in the area of digital energy management tools-- 7,a7 to enhance consumer access to1 and understanding of1 electric energy and natural gas usage and cost information1 including1 with respect to each particular customer-- 7i7 the residential and commercial retail electric energy information 7as defined in section #b of the ,e-,access ,act7 of that customer2 and 7ii7 the retail natural gas information 7as defined in that section7 of that customer2 7,b7 to facilitate the development and adoption of innovative products and services to assist consumers in managing energy consumption and expenditures2 and 7,c7 to increase the adoption of measured1 performance-based energy efficiency and demand response programs2 and 4 7b7 ,guidelines for electric consumer and gas consumer data access 7#a7 ,in general ,not later than #ahj days after the date of enactment of this ,act and subject to paragraph 7#b71 the ,secretary and the ,commission shall jointly develop and issue guidelines that establish model data sharing standards and policies for ,states to provide electric consumers and gas consumers1 and third-party designees of those electric consumers and gas consumers1 with access to retail electric energy information and retail natural gas information4 7#b7 ,consultation ,before issuing guidelines under paragraph 7#a71 the ,secretary shall-- 7,a7 consult with-- 7i7 ,state and local regulatory authorities2 7ii7 other appropriate ,federal agencies1 including the ,national ,institute of ,standards and ,technology and the ,federal ,trade ,commission2 7iii7 consumer and privacy advocacy groups2 7iv7 electric utilities and gas utilities2 7v7 the ,national ,association of ,state ,energy ,officials2 and 7vi7 other appropriate entities1 including groups representing public utility commissions1 commercial and residential building owners1 residential contractors1 and groups that represent demand response and electricity data devices and services2 and 7,b7 provide notice and opportunity for comment4 7#c7 ,state and local regulatory action ,in issuing guidelines under paragraph 7#a71 the ,secretary1 to the maximum extent practicable1 shall be guided by actions taken by ,state and local regulatory authorities to ensure electric consumer and gas consumer access to retail electric energy information and retail natural gas information1 including actions taken after consideration of the standard established under section #aaa7;d77#ai7 of the ,public ,utility ,regulatory ,policies ,act of #aigh 7#af ,u4,s4,c4 #bfba7;d77#ai774 7#d7 ,contents ,in carrying out paragraph 7#a71 the ,secretary shall include-- 7,a7 guidelines specifying that retail electric energy information and retail natural gas information of an electric consumer or a gas consumer should be made available to the electric consumer or gas consumer 7or a third-party designee of the electric consumer or gas consumer7 by the electric utility or gas utility of the electric consumer or gas consumer 7or such other entity as may be designated by the utility71 in consultation with1 or with approval from1 as applicable1 the applicable retail regulatory authority of the utility2 7,b7 guidelines regarding the timeliness and specificity of retail electric energy information and retail natural gas information to be made available to an electric consumer or a gas consumer 7or a third-party designee of an electric consumer or a gas consumer71 including that the retail electric energy information and retail natural gas information should be made available-- 7i7 in an electronic machine-readable form1 without additional charge1 in conformity with nationally recognized open standards and best practices2 7ii7 via a website or other electronic access authorized by the electric consumer or gas consumer1 including at least #bd months of historical information2 7iii7 in as close to real-time as is reasonably practicable2 7iv7 at the level of specificity that the data are transmitted by the meter or grid edge computer1 to the extent reasonably practicable2 and 7v7 in a manner that provides adequate protections for the security of the information and the privacy of the electric consumer or gas consumer1 utilizing recognized energy data privacy programs such as the ,data,guard ,energy ,data ,privacy ,program of the ,department of ,energy or other programs approved by the ,secretary2 7,c7 guidelines regarding appropriate nationally recognized open standards for data exchange2 7,d7 guidelines regarding consumer consent requirements to ensure that an electric consumer or gas consumer can conveniently and securely authorize a third-party designee to access the retail electric energy information or retail natural gas information of that electric consumer or gas consumer1 including standardized authorization language to which an electric consumer or gas consumer will agree prior to the electric consumer or gas consumer authorizing1 or the applicable electric utility or gas utility sharing1 retail electric energy information or retail natural gas information of that electric consumer or gas consumer2 7,e7 guidelines specifying that electric utilities and gas utilities should1 when a meter is servicing an electric consumer or gas consumer1 communicate retail electric energy information or retail natural gas information to the device of the electric consumer or gas consumer or through the network of an electric consumer or gas consumer to a third-party designee of the electric consumer or gas consumer2 7,f7 with respect to the terms and conditions to be agreed to by a third-party designee of an electric consumer or a gas consumer and an electric utility or a gas utility for access to the retail electric energy information or retail natural gas information of that electric consumer or gas consumer1 guidelines specifying that-- 7i7 those terms and conditions shall be reasonable and nondiscriminatory2 7ii7 those terms and conditions shall not require anything of a third-party designee beyond requiring-- 7,i7 the third-party designee to provide to the electric utility or gas utility-- 7aa7 the contact information and ,federal tax identification number of the third-party designee2 and 7bb7 an acknowledgment of compliance with a privacy requirement1 such as the ,data,guard ,energy ,data ,privacy ,program of the ,department of ,energy2 and 7,,ii7 that the third-party designee has not been disqualified by the applicable retail regulatory authority of the utility2 7iii7 due process shall be afforded to the third-party designee by the applicable regulatory authority1 including by giving the third-party designee an opportunity to rebut allegations of wrongdoing by that third-party designee prior to any enforcement action being taken by the applicable regulatory authority2 7iv7 the online authorization process offered by the applicable gas utility or electric utility to the consumer shall be user-friendly1 and the personal information required to establish identity shall be consistent with1 and no more onerous than1 the standard practices of the applicable gas utility or electric utility2 and 7v7 the third party may receive retail electric energy information and retail natural gas information from an electric utility or gas utility with consumer consent1 except if otherwise prohibited by ,federal law or by a finding of a ,state court or other ,state adjudicatory body2 7,g7 guidelines specifying that electric utilities and gas utilities shall1 on a periodic basis as recommended by the ,secretary1 provide certification by an independent body of adherence to the latest ,green ,button ,connect ,my ,data or another1 similar1 standard2 7,h7 guidelines specifying that ,green ,button ,connect ,my ,data system availability1 as provided by electric utilities and gas utilities1 shall exceed #ii-percent availability without severe errors or defects2 7,i7 guidelines specifying that electric utilities and gas utilities shall report on a publicly available website the timeliness and performance of the processing of electronic data-sharing authorizations and the timeliness of completing third-party administrative and technical onboarding with an electric utility or gas utility1 including recommendations from the ,secretary as to whether electric utilities and gas utilities1 or ,state or ,federal agencies1 should host such publicly available websites2 7,j7 guidelines specifying that-- 7i7 an electric meter software platform shall-- 7,i7 have terms that are fair1 reasonable1 and nondiscriminatory to any authorized user2 7,,ii7 transparently disclose uptime1 performance1 and availability2 and 7,,iii7 transparently disclose the timelines and procedures for evaluating new software applications submitted for deployment on the platform2 7ii7 software developers and distributed energy resources that use electric meter software platforms or retail electric customer information shall-- 7,i7 have access to platform software documentation2 and 7,,ii7 be afforded due process rights with regard to disputes concerning functionality or availability2 7iii7 owners or operators of electric meter software platforms shall address fair competition issues1 including self-preferencing1 surveillance of competitive software applications1 and undue use of default software applications that have the effect of reducing consumer choices2 and 7iv7 electric consumers1 gas consumers1 electric utilities1 and gas utilities shall have the right to select1 install1 and operate applications of their choosing on the electric meter1 subject to reasonable technical requirements2 and 7,k7 guidelines addressing appropriate circumstances in which analysis of retail electric energy information1 retail natural gas information1 and estimates of energy saved as a result of any efficiency measure may be released publicly1 without the consent of the consumer1 only by protection of individual consumer privacy via mathematical methods such as differential privacy1 or by alternative means at the discretion of the ,secretary1 if required1 that prevent reidentification of the attributes of individual consumers when publishing aggregate information4 7#e7 ,revisions ,every #c years1 the ,secretary shall review and1 as necessary1 revise the guidelines issued under paragraph 7#a7 to reflect changes in technology1 privacy needs1 and the market for electric energy and natural gas and related services4 7c7 ,verification and implementation 7#a7 ,in general ,a ,state energy office may submit to the ,secretary a description of the policies of the ,state relating to electric consumer and gas consumer access to retail electric energy information and retail natural gas information for certification by the ,secretary that the policies meet the guidelines issued under subsection 7b74 7#b7 ,assistance ,subject to the availability of amounts appropriated pursuant to paragraph 7#c71 the ,secretary shall make amounts available to any ,state that has policies described in paragraph 7#a7 that the ,secretary certifies meet the guidelines issued under subsection 7b7 to assist the ,state in implementing programs described in paragraph 7#ah7 of section #cfb7;d7 of the ,energy ,policy and ,conservation ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #fcbb7;d77 7as amended by subsection 7a774 7#c7 ,authorization of appropriations ,there is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection #aj1jjj1jjj for fiscal year #bjbf1 to remain available until expended4 7d7 ,report on accurate electric meter settlement 7#a7 ,in general ,not later than #a year after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary and the ,commission shall jointly develop and submit to the ,committee on ,energy and ,natural ,resources of the ,senate and the ,committee on ,energy and ,commerce of the ,house of ,representatives a report evaluating the costs and benefits of electric utilities transmitting meter data for each individual electric consumer to covered wholesale electricity markets for the purpose of settling market prices4 7#b7 ,inclusions ,the report submitted under paragraph 7#a7 shall include-- 7,a7 the number of customers of electric utilities across the ,united ,states served by advanced metering infrastructure2 7,b7 the number of customers and the associated capacity of megawatts of flexible electricity demand that lack access to1 or settlement on1 electric meter data2 7,c7 case studies of regions across the ,united ,states in which electric meter data is used for settling covered wholesale electricity market purchases1 including best practices2 7,d7 an analysis of potential anticompetitive impacts of denying customers of electric utilities access to electric meter data1 which may include impacts from preventing the aggregation or transmission of electric meter data for the purposes of settling covered wholesale electricity market purchases2 7,e7 an estimate of the amount of taxpayer and electric ratepayer dollars spent on electric metering and supporting systems associated with restructured retail markets that do not settle covered wholesale electricity market purchases based on electric meter data2 7,f7 an estimate of the number of customers of electric utilities that are unable to participate in demand-side covered wholesale electricity market programs because the applicable electric meter is not programmed at the necessary time intervals2 7,g7 an estimate of the reasonably foreseeable costs that electric utilities would incur to reprogram electric meters-- 7i7 to participate in demand-side covered wholesale electricity market programs2 and 7ii7 to match the requirements of operators of relevant covered wholesale electricity markets with respect to the use of demand-side resources2 7,h7 an estimate of the reasonably foreseeable costs that electric utilities1 ,independent ,system ,operators1 and ,regional ,transmission ,organizations would incur in settling covered wholesale electricity market purchases based on electric meter data2 and 7,i7 an analysis of potential benefits to reliability1 customer choice1 and technology availability that may result from settling covered wholesale electricity market purchases based on electric meter data4