Energy Commission License and Compliance Fees
Related to Generation Facilities

Application for Certification

Section 25806 of the Warren Alquist Act requires the Energy Commission to collect Application for Certification and compliance monitoring fees.

A person who submits to the commission an application for certification for a proposed generating facility shall submit with the application a fee of two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000) plus five hundred dollars ($500) per megawatt of gross generating capacity of the proposed facility. The total fee accompanying an application shall not exceed seven hundred fifty thousand dollars ($750,000).

A person who receives certification of a proposed generating facility shall pay an annual fee of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000). For a facility certified on or after January 1, 2004, the first payment of the annual fee is due on the date the commission adopts the final decision. All subsequent payments are due by July 1 of each year in which the facility retains its certification. The fiscal year for the annual fee is July 1 to June 30, inclusive.

The fees shall be adjusted annually to reflect the percentage change in the Implicit Price Deflator for State and Local Government Purchases of Goods and Services, as published by the United States Department of Commerce. The fees above are non-refundable per Title 20 California Code of Regulations Section 1708(g).

Small Power Plant Exemptions

A Small Power Plant Exemption (SPPE) application requires full reimbursement of the actual cost of the Energy Commission's environmental review with a deposit of $200,000 required at the time of filing. The account will be settled after the final decision is made by the Energy Commission. The project developer will be billed for the costs that exceed the deposit, or a refund will be provided if the costs are less than the deposit. Section 2308, Title 20, of the California Code of Regulations addresses the SPPE fee. There is no annual compliance fee for an SPPE because the Energy Commission is not licensing the project.

California Department of Fish and Game Fee

Effective January 1, 2013

Section 711.4 of the Fish and Game Code requires a current fee of $1,018.50 for all Application for Certification projects receiving Energy Commission certification before the Commission Decision can be filed. An SPPE is equivalent to a California Environmental Quality Act Negative Declaration or Mitigated Negative Declaration, for which the Department of Fish and Wildlife receives a fee of $2156.25 per Section 711.4. The Energy Commission staff collects the fees, which are payable to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, immediately following the Commission's decision. Additional information for Department of Fish and Wildlife environmental review fees can be found at: http://www.dfg.ca.gov/habcon/ceqa/ceqa_changes.html.