HomeMy WebLinkAboutRES 022724-5.F - Electric Line & MeteringRESOLUTION NO. 022-7-24 —,5 F
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
GEORGETOWN, TEXAS, AMENDING THE ELECITRIC LINE
EXTENSION AND ELECTRIC METERING POLICY; REPEALING
CONFLICTING RESOLUTIONS; INCLUDING A SEVERABILITY
CLAUSE; AND ESTABLISHING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, the City's policy is to collect 100% of the electric infrastructure costs as a
result of requests for new service; and
WHEREAS, the City previously approved an Electric Line Extension and Electric
Metering Policy ("Policy") ensuring the City's costs for said extensions are collected and enhance
the City's ability to provide economic and reliable service to its customers on March 24, 2020
through Resolution No. 041420-AA; and
WHEREAS, the City amended the Policy on July 27, 2021 through Resolution
No.072721-1, on February 22, 2022 through Resolution No. 022222-AI, and on January 24, 2023
through Resolution No. 012423-6.F; and on September 12, 2023 through Resolution No. 091223-
5.Q
WHEREAS, certain new requirements and fees are needed to ensure safety and full
recovery of substation and transmission capacity costs, and minor modifications to the language
of the Policy will enhance understanding and provide clarification; and
WHEREAS, the City finds it necessary to amend the Policy to add clarification and
continue to collect 100% of the costs for electric infrastructure costs as a result of requests for new
service.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY
OF GEORGETOWN TEXAS:
Section 1. The meeting at which this resolution was approved was conducted in
compliance with the Texas Open Meetings Act, Texas Government Code, Chapter 551.
Section 2. The facts and recitations contained in the preamble of this resolution are hereby
found and declared to be true and correct and are incorporated by reference herein and expressly
made a part hereof, as if copied verbatim.
Section 3. The Electric Line Extension and Electric Metering Policy is hereby updated as
shown in Exhibit A.
Section 4. All resolutions that conflict with the provisions of this resolution are hereby
repealed, and all other resolutions of the City not in conflict with the provisions of this resolution
shall remain in full force and effect.
Resolution No. 02 27 Z 4 — 5- F
Subject: February 2024 Electric Line Extension and Electric Meter Connect Policy
Date Approved tl
Page 1
Section 5. If any provision of this resolution, or application thereof, to any person or
circumstance, shall be held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect the other provisions, or
application thereof, of this resolution, which can be given effect without the invalid provision or
application, and to this end the provisions of this resolution are hereby declared to be severable.
Section 6. The Mayor is hereby authorized to sign this resolution and the City Secretary to
attest. This resolution shall become effective and be in full force and effect immediately in
accordance with the provisions of the City Charter of the City of Georgetown.
PASSED AND APPROVED on the 214' day of F 2024.
ATTEST:
CITY OF/GEORGETOWN, TEXAS
By:
Robyn Igen7smore, City Secretary osh Sqhroeder, Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
Skye asson, ity Attorney
Resolution No. 0%V? 24 —5 • F
Subject: Februar; 2024 Electric Line Extension and Electric Meter Connect Policy
Date Approved Pt60Ap,n4 2t"
Page 2
Electric Line Extension and Electric Meter Connect
Policy
Purpose:
The Electric Line Extension and Electric Metering Policy (Policy) establishes the basic
conditions and requirements for adding electric infrastructure to serve new or modified service
installations.
This Policy shall apply to all customers of the City of Georgetown's Electric Utility, both new
and existing, who request or require modifications or extensions to the existing electric power
system to meet their needs while maintaining overall system reliability and resiliency.
This Policy shall apply to the entire City of Georgetown's electric service territory, including
Single, Double, or Triple Certified areas, as defined by the Public Utility Commission of Texas
(PUCT) approved Certificate of Convenience and Necessity (CCN).
The City of Georgetown Electric Utility's policy is to recover all costs associated with line
extensions and infrastructure additions, including substation and transmission infrastructure,
distribution system upgrades, and retirements required to serve based on the line extension
service application, customer load, and redundancy requirements.
The electric power infrastructure design and installation shall meet industry standards and
regulations, follow the Electric Utility's engineering and construction standards, the Unified
Development Code of the City of Georgetown, and the latest edition of the National Electric
Safety Code (NESC) and National Electric Code (NEC).
The City of Georgetown will design, procure materials, and install electric distribution
infrastructure based on a service request. If the service requires additional and/or upgraded
substation and transmission infrastructure, the City will coordinate the associated studies,
engineering, design, and installation of such infrastructure through the Transmission Service
Provider (TSP). The substation and transmission infrastructure additions and upgrades may be
installed and operated by other Transmission Service Providers.
Due to the complexity of designing and maintaining reliable electric power systems, this Policy
cannot detail all the line extension issues the Electric Utility may encounter. The Electric Utility
shall determine the additional requirements and costs required to provide safe and reliable
service to all its customers at its sole discretion and on a case -by -case basis.
3
Line Extension Process:
The line extension process for all the electric service requests shall follow the
4-step process outlined below.
Stepl: Line Extension Application
Applicants shall submit a line extension application provided by the City of Georgetown and the required
line extension application fee as outlined below.
Service Request Type
Application Fee
Single Family service and upgrades
$300
• Single Lot Residential (single-family
residential structure on a lot)
• Small General Service (as defined in
Code Sec. 13.04.020)
• Commercial Tenant*
• Existing Service upgrades under 1
MW
Service requests for any service type up to 1
$2500
Megawatt MW of connected load
Service requests for any customer type
$2500/MW
greater than 1 MW up to 25 MW of
connected load
All other requests
At cost, to be provided by the Electric Utility
* Typically, these are tenants who reside in a commercial building strip center.
The application fee is non-refundable. A line extension application shall be submitted on the
required form and include the site development plan, construction plan, additional detailed
electric load data, and any other information required by the Electric Utility.
Additional information is required for customer loads greater than 1 Megawatt (MW) of
connected load, including but not limited to the load ramp -up schedule and projected 3-year load
forecast.
All the required information shall be provided in the format the City needs. The applicant is
responsible for ensuring that the site development plan, construction plan, electric load data, and
other customer requirements submitted are accurate and up to date, as any subsequent changes
will result in additional engineering costs and line extension fees to the applicant.
4
Issuance of Initial Design and Cost Estimate letter:
Upon receipt of the application, the application fee, and the required information, the Electric
Utility shall complete a detailed engineering analysis and design of the electric distribution,
substation, and transmission infrastructure additions (if needed) required to serve the customer.
This forms the basis for the line extension fees. Additional costs listed below are included in the
line extension fees, if applicable. The Cost Estimate Letter, which the Electric Utility will send
to the customer, provides a detailed breakdown of the line extension fees along with other
requirements related to the customer's request.
Processing times for initial design: The following are the typical processing times of the line
extension application and the issuance of initial design and cost estimate letter:
Service Request Type
Processing Times
Single Family service and upgrades
30 business days
• Single Lot Residential (single-family residential
structure on a lot)
• Small General Service (as defined in Code Sec.
13.04.020)
• Commercial Tenant*
Existing Service upgrades under 1 MW
Service requests for any service type up to 1 Megawatt (MW)
60 business days
of connected load
Service requests for any customer type greater than 1 MW up
90 business days
to 25 MW of connected load
All other requests
90 business days
Please note that the above -mentioned processing times will apply only upon receipt of the
application, the application fee, and the required information in the required format.
The Cost Estimate letter and the line extension fees will be valid for90 days from the date of
issue of the letter. The Electric Utility reserves the right to recalculate the actual cost of the line
extension if more than 90 days elapse from the time the most recent Cost Estimate Letter is
presented to the Customer or in the case of extraordinary events that affect such costs by more
than 10%.
Any changes to the site development plan, construction plan, electric load data, and other
customer requirements after the Cost Estimate Letter is issued will result in additional
engineering costs and potential changes in the line extension fees for which the applicant is
responsible.
All costs used to generate the line extension fees shall be reviewed at least annually to adjust for
changes in labor, material, and engineering costs required to provide standard electric distribution
infrastructure at the service location. Any proposed per dwelling unit (residential single-family
5
and residential multi -family) cost changes greater than 5% from the existing fee shall be
presented to the City of Georgetown's City Council for approval.
Single Family Residential, including Detached Multi -family and Duplexes.
Fee Per Dwelling Unit $4460*
*The Fee Per Dwelling Unit includes the applicable labor, material, and engineering costs
required to provide standard electric distribution infrastructure and substation capacity needed
at the service location. This includes but is not limited to the conductor, transformers, and
metering equipment associated with the electric service. The applicable Plant Investment Fee
(PIF) is also included in this fee. The additional costs (if applicable) are outlined in the Additional
Costs and Requirements section below. The electric connect fees are separate from this Policy and
are not included in the line extension fees.
Residential Multi -Family Development (Apartments)
Fee per multi -family unit $1100 *
*The Fee per Multi -Family Unit includes the labor, material, and engineering costs required to
provide standard electric distribution infrastructure and substation capacity needed at the
service location. This includes but is not limited to the conductor, transformers, and metering
equipment associated with the electric service. The applicable Plant Investment Fee (PIF) is also
included in this fee. The additional costs (if applicable) are outlined in the Additional Costs and
Requirements section below.
The electric connect fees (including the cost of the metering equipment) are in addition to the
line extension fees. The connect Fees for multifamily developments shall be billed and collected
along with the line extension fees.
All Other Requests
Line Extension fees for all other requests shall be based upon the detailed engineering analysis
and design of electric distribution, substation, and transmission infrastructure required to serve
the customer. They will include the labor, material, and engineering costs required to provide
standard electric distribution infrastructure and substation capacity needed at the service
location. This includes but is not limited to the conductor, transformers, metering equipment,
and all other equipment associated with the electric service. The additional costs are outlined in
the Additional Costs and Requirements section below.
0
The electric connect fees (including the cost of the metering equipment) for commercial requests
shall be billed and collected along with the line extension fees.
Additional Costs and Requirements:
For all service request types, the following requirements and the associated costs will be
included in the line extension fees and are the responsibility of the Applicant; Some of these
requirements and costs may not apply to all service requests.
1. The extension and/or upgrade of three-phase electric power lines to serve new load.
2. The relocation and/or upgrade of existing underground or overhead electric facilities.
3. The substation and transmission infrastructure needed to serve the customer's load
requirements. This includes right-of-way acquisition and any associated studies.
4. The retirement of existing and/or temporary electric infrastructure.
5. The Plant Investment Fee, a one-time charge that recovers costs associated with
extending and upgrading the existing electrical infrastructure, including substation and
distribution feeder capacity, to accommodate growth.
6. Installation and retirement of temporary power.
7. Additional permits required to serve the service location. (TxDOT, Railroad,
environmental, etc.).
8. System protection devices necessitated by the developer/service request and/or
required to meet the utility design guidelines and NESC.
9. Advanced Metering Infrastructure Costs.
10. Metering equipment.
11. Civil infrastructure (installed by developer/customer) installation inspection costs.
12. Street light infrastructure (installed by developer/customer) installation inspection costs.
13. Infrastructure verification costs. For multi -family installation, before installing the
permanent meters, the developers must correctly label meter sockets with matching unit
designations. This process shall be performed in the presence of City of Georgetown
personnel.
14. Specialized power quality/power factor correction equipment required by the service
request and/or required to meet the utility, NEC, and NESC design guidelines.
15. Dual feeds required by the developer/service request. In the case of a dual/redundant
feed, the customer shall be required to pay theapplicable monthly stand-by rate.
16. Any requirements needed to comply with the electric utility's engineering and
construction standards and the Unified Development Code of the City of Georgetown.
17. Costs associated with auxiliary service locations such as serving clubhouses, pumping
loads, pools, signage, mail kiosks, etc.
18. Based on some customers' demands and energy usage, additional requirements may be
necessary for service.
19. Any non-standard costs necessitated by the customer's/developer's service request.
20. The Electric Utility's ability to serve a customer is dependent on the availability of enough
substation capacity. All applications for new service will be subject to substation capacity
review. This review will determine if the capacity is available for the additional load
presented by the line extension application.
7
Civil Infrastructure Responsibility:
The applicant is responsible for the complete installation and associated cost for civil
infrastructure designed to support, protect, or convey electric equipment, such as, but not limited
to, material and installation of conduit, transformer pads, and meter pedestal pads.
The cost for Civil Infrastructure is not included in the line extension fee and is an obligation of the
applicant.
Streetlights:
The Electric Utility will design the street lighting required for new subdivisions.
The developer shall install the conduit, the conductor, the foundations, poles, light fixtures, and
secondary pull -boxes.
The developer is responsible for installing the streetlights according to Section 12.06 (F) in the
Design and Technical Standards of the Unified Development Code (UDC).
The cost for street light infrastructure (including the cost of installation) is not included in the
line extension fee and is an obligation of the applicant.
Other Requirements:
• The Electric Utility may require additional clearance and access easements to ensure
accessibility to maintain the infrastructure safely.
• The customer must grant the City an easement on the City's standard form.
• The Electric Utility's point of interconnection/point of delivery for residential services is
the meter pedestal.
• The Electric Utility's standard transformer and meter pedestal installation is on the front lot
line.
• The electric infrastructure shall be designed, installed, and maintained per Section 13.06 of
the UDC.
Step 2: Issuance of Electric Utility Services Availability Letter
Within 45 days of issuing the Cost Estimate Letter, the Electric Utility requires the payment of
50% of the line extension fees before issuing the "Electric Utility Services Availability letter"
that is required by the City of Georgetown's Planning Department for the approval of the
construction plans/site development plans.
The Connect Fees for multifamily and commercial developments shall be billed and collected
along with the line extension fees.
Any design changes the applicant requests after issuing the "Electric Utility Services
Availability letter" shall result in additional engineering costs and potential changes in the line
extension fees. The applicant must pay the actual engineering costs incurred due to the changes
and the updated line extension fees.
Processing times for final and approved for construction design: The following are the typical
processing times for the issuance of the final and approved for construction design:
Service Request Type
Processing Times
Single Family service and upgrades
30 business days
• Single Lot Residential (single-family residential
structure on a lot)
• Small General Service (as defined in Code Sec.
13.04.020)
• Commercial Tenant*
Existing Service upgrades under 1 MW
Service requests for any service type up to 1 Megawatt (MW)
60 business days
of connected load
Service requests for any customer type greater than 1 MW up
90 business days
to 25 MW of connected load
All other requests
90 business days
Please note that the above -mentioned processing times will apply only upon receipt of the 50%
payment of the line extension fees outlined in the cost estimate letter.
Step 3: Payment of All Outstanding Fees
All outstanding line extension fees, connect fees, and additional engineering costs (if applicable)
shall be paid in full before the Electric Utility installs the electric distribution infrastructure. All
outstanding line extension fees shall be received no later than 90 days from issuing the Cost
Estimate Letter. No material procurement or construction scheduling shall occur until all
outstanding Line Extension fees and Additional Costs, if any, are paid in full.
Due to the long lead times associated with electric distribution, substation, and transmission
equipment (transformers, conductors, poles, specialized protective equipment, etc.), all
outstanding line extension fees must be paid well before the scheduled electric infrastructure
installation date at a time determined by the Electric Utility.
Step 4: Electric Connect Fees. (Per Meter)
The following electric connect fees apply to all new services, service relocations, re -builds,
upgrades, small general commercial building tenants, and conversions from overhead to
underground and shall be paid by the applicant when requesting the electric service to be
energized.
The Electrical Connect Fee is based on the City of Georgetown's cost to provide the metering
equipment, the labor to install the metering equipment, the initial inspection of the meter, and
related metering and engineering system updates.
1. Single Phase Power (for single-family and multi -family residential
service): Fee assessed and payment due before any Building Permit is issued.
0-400 amps
Greater than 400 amps
$350 Connect Fee
Actual Cost
2. Commercial Single -Phase or Three -Phase*: Fee assessed and payment due
before any Building Permit is issued.
Commercial Connect Fee - Actual Cost
* Applicable to customers whose monthly peak demand exceeds 50 kW
Small General - Commercial Tenant*: Fee assessed and payment due before any
Building Permit is issued. This fee is applicable to existing commercial buildings with
existing infrastructure.
Small General Commercial Tenant $900^
* Applicable to all commercial and general service consumers whose monthly peak demand for
all uses is less than 50 M Typically, these are tenants who reside in a commercial building strip
center.
^ Includes the labor and material for metering equipment and other system costs.
Connect Fees for multifamily developments and commercial developments shall be billed and
collected along with the line extension fees.
Inactive Line Extension Applications: Line extension applications inactive for more than 6
months from the issuance of the cost estimate will be considered inactive. The cost estimate
and the design will no longer be valid. Any subsequent requests for design updates shall
treated as new requests.
10
Refunds: A customer who has paid the line extension fees can request a refund of the paid
fees. The Electric Utility will reimburse the costs net of engineering costs and other non -
reimbursable costs incurred by the utility.
Version History:
1. Original Version: March 24, 2020
2. Update # 1: July 27, 20021
3. Update #2: February 22, 2022
4. Update #3: January 24, 2023
5. Update #4: September 12, 2023.
6. Update #5 (this update): February 13, 2024
11
Memorandum
NewGen
Strategies :
225 Union Boulevard
Suite 450
Lakewood, CO 80228
Phone: (7201 633-4514
To: Daniel N Bethapudi, General Manager— Electric Utility, City of Georgetown, Texas
From: NewGen Strategies and Solutions, LLC
Date: February 21, 2024
Re: Plant Investment Fee/Capacity Charges
The City of Georgetown (City) and Georgetown Electric Utility (Georgetown or the Utility) have retained
NewGen Strategies and Solutions, LLC (NewGen) to assist in the review and development of potential
Plant Investment Fees (PIF) for new electrical load. Plant Investment Fees are typically structured as up-
front charges applied to new load and load upgrades for the purpose of recovering investment in the
utility system's capacity. The City has requested NewGen to review its proposed PIF fee development and
provide comments and an opinion on the reasonableness of those charges.
Background
Due to the rapid load growth on the Georgetown distribution system, the available substation and
backbone feeder capacity is being used up which affects the operational flexibility. Additionally, the costs
associated with adding new substations and backbone feeder upgrades are outpacing cost recovery in its
retail rates. To address this issue, the City proposes to recover some of these costs through adjustments
to its Electric Line Extension and Electric Metering Policy. Historically, the Electric Line Extension and
Electric Metering Policy has been utilized to recover localized (site -specific) investments required to serve
new load, including transformers, service drops, and metering infrastructure. However, with significant
load growth, the City is proposing to establish a PIF to recover some of the substation and backbone
feeder capacity upgrade costs in addition to costs associated with site -specific incremental infrastructure
requirements.
A PIF is a one-time charge that recovers costs associated with extending and upgrading the existing
electrical system, including substation and distribution feeder capacity, to accommodate growth. In some
jurisdictions/utilities, these fees are also referred to as a PIF Charge, Capacity Charge, or Development
Fee. Contributions in Aid of Construction (CAIC) is generally a more comprehensive category of cost
recovery mechanisms often associated with large new load and includes site -specific infrastructure costs
defined in the City's current Line Extension and Meter Connect Policy. The City's current Line Extension
Policy includes requirements for CAIC from developers for site -specific incremental infrastructure costs.
There are a variety of ways to calculate a PIF. The City is proposing to utilize the Incremental Cost Method,
which is based on the value or cost to expand the existing system's capacity. This approach is generally
used when the existing system has limited or no capacity to serve new development. Therefore, new or
incremental facilities are needed to serve new development now and into the future. The City's Capital
Improvement Plan (CIP) and planned substation capacity projects are utilized to estimate the incremental
costs for these new facilities.
Economics ( Strategy ( Stakeholders I Sustainability
www.newgenstrategies.net
Memorandum
Daniel N Bethapudi, General Manager
February 21, 2024
Page 2
Revenues recovered from the PIF (as well as from the CAIC) are used to offset the incremental costs
incurred by the utility to upgrade its electric distribution system to serve new load. When the utility
conducts a cost of service (COS) study, future projections of these non -rate revenues sources are used to
offset the total revenue requirements of the utility. This helps in lowering the pressure on retail rates.
This process ensures that current rate payers are not allocated all the costs to support future growth,
allowing the utility to implement its strategy of having "growth pay for growth." The addition of the
proposed PIF to the City's Electric Line Extension and Electric Metering Policy further advances this
strategy by requiring new loads to "buy in" to the existing and future capacity additions to the utility
system. The PIF is an equitable method to recover these costs from those that are utilizing the system and
is consistent with assigning costs based on cost causation.
Proposed PIF Rates
The City has developed its proposed PIF to reflect incremental costs associated with specific equipment
as well as capacity addition projects identified in its annual CIP. Specific equipment costs include those for
a single large power transformer, based on information received from the Lower Colorado River Authority
(LCRA) which owns the substations serving the City. The unit rating of the transformer serves as the basis
for the denominator in the PIF rate (converted to a kilowatt [kW] unit). System improvements for capacity
increases and upgrades and specific substation feeder additions and upgrades from the City's 2024 5-year
CIP are also included in the calculation of the PIF. The total 5-year average estimated costs for these
incremental system improvements are divided by the capacity rating for the specific transformers to
develop a base PIF rate of $154.12/kW, which is proposed to be updated annually.
The PIF rate is proposed to be applied to the City's current Electric Line Extension and Electric Metering
Policy for all new load additions based on their expected demand. For all customer classes, the diversified
demand is discounted by 75% to develop an adjusted demand that is used to calculate the PIF. The
rationale for discounting the demand is to reduce the upfront cost impact of the PIF and to recognize that
some of these system -related costs will be recovered through the retail rates. For residential single family
and multi -family classes, the diversified demand is based on historical usage data. For all other selected
customer classes, the diversified demand is based on the expected load profile of the customer. For
example, the PIF assumes an average diversified demand of 5 kW and 3 kW for Single Family and Multi -
Family dwellings, respectively. The discounted diversified demand applied to the PIF rate for these two
applications is 1.25 kW and 0.75 kW, respectively. The 2024 PIF for Single Family dwellings is proposed to
be $192.65 per unit, and the 2024 PIF for Multi -Family dwelling units is proposed to be $115.59 per unit.
For other selected customer classes, the PIF will be charged on the demand provided by the customer,
discounted by 75%. For large loads associated with commercial and industrial customer classes, which
require the addition of a dedicated new substation and/or new feeders and upgrades, the City will charge
the actual costs estimated for the incremental investment required to service the new large load.
As noted, revenue generated from the proposed PIF will reduce the need to generate revenues from retail
rates. Further, the addition of the PIF program to the existing Electric Line Extension and Electric Metering
Policy is consistent with the City's strategy of having "growth pay for growth" and accepted industry
practices. Based on discussion with the City and our understanding of the costs and methodology
supporting the development of the PIF program, NewGen is of the opinion that the proposed PIF charges
are equitable and reasonable.
Georgetown PIF Memo_Final_02.27.2024