Title 16 — ConservationRelease 119-73

§839a Definitions

Title 16 › Chapter CHAPTER 12H— - PACIFIC NORTHWEST ELECTRIC POWER PLANNING AND CONSERVATION › § 839a

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Defines key words used in this chapter. It gives short meanings for twenty terms used in the rules. Acquire/acquisition: does not let the Administrator build or own any power plant under this chapter or any other law. Administrator: the head of the Bonneville Power Administration. Conservation: cutting electricity use by making use, production, or delivery more efficient. Cost-effective: a measure must be forecast to be reliable and available when needed, to meet or cut customer demand, and to have an estimated incremental “system cost” no higher than the cheapest similarly reliable option; “system cost” means all direct costs over the measure’s life (like transmission, disposal, fuel, and measurable environmental effects) using the Council’s method or, if no plan, the Administrator’s method; expected savings must use realistic performance estimates and past experience; a conservation measure is not treated as costlier than a nonconservation one unless its incremental system cost exceeds 110 percent of the nonconservation cost. Consumer: an end user of electric power. Council: the members of the Pacific Northwest Electric Power and Conservation Planning Council. Customer: anyone who contracts to buy power from the Administrator under this chapter. Direct service industrial customer: an industrial buyer who takes power directly from the Administrator. Electric power: peaking capacity, electric energy, or both. Federal base system resources: the Federal Columbia River hydro projects, long-term resources bought under contracts in force on December 5, 1980, and any resources bought to replace lost capability of those. Indian tribe: a tribe or band in the region with a governing body recognized by the Secretary of the Interior. Major resource: planned capability over fifty average megawatts and, if bought by the Administrator, bought for more than five years. New large single load: a new or expanded facility not committed before September 1, 1979, that increases a customer’s needs by ten average megawatts or more in any twelve-month period. Pacific Northwest/region: Oregon, Washington, Idaho, western Montana (west of the Continental Divide), and parts of Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming in the Columbia River basin, plus nearby areas up to 75 air miles that were served by a rural electric co-op customer of the Administrator on December 5, 1980, if that co-op serves both inside and outside the region. Plan: the Regional Electric Power and Conservation Plan and its amendments, which apply to the Administrator as stated in this chapter. Renewable resource: solar, wind, hydro, geothermal, biomass, or similar sources used to make electricity or to reduce a consumer’s electric needs, including direct use. Reserves: power kept available to avoid specific planning or operating shortages for firm-power customers, from resources or from contract rights to interrupt or reduce customer deliveries. Residential use/load: usual home, apartment, seasonal dwelling, and farm electrical uses, but only the first 400 horsepower per monthly bill for farm irrigation and pumping. Resource: either electric power (existing or planned capability) or actual/planned load reduction from a renewable resource used by a consumer or from a conservation measure. Secretary: the Secretary of Energy.

Full Legal Text

Title 16, §839a

Conservation — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

As used in this chapter, the term—

(1)“Acquire” and “acquisition” shall not be construed as authorizing the Administrator to construct, or have ownership of, under this chapter or any other law, any electric generating facility.

(2)“Administrator” means the Administrator of the Bonneville Power Administration.

(3)“Conservation” means any reduction in electric power consumption as a result of increases in the efficiency of energy use, production, or distribution.

(4)(A)“Cost-effective”, when applied to any measure or resource referred to in this chapter, means that such measure or resource must be forecast—

(i)to be reliable and available within the time it is needed, and

(ii)to meet or reduce the electric power demand, as determined by the Council or the Administrator, as appropriate, of the consumers of the customers at an estimated incremental system cost no greater than that of the least-cost similarly reliable and available alternative measure or resource, or any combination thereof.

(B)For purposes of this paragraph, the term “system cost” means an estimate of all direct costs of a measure or resource over its effective life, including, if applicable, the cost of distribution and transmission to the consumer and, among other factors, waste disposal costs, end-of-cycle costs, and fuel costs (including projected increases), and such quantifiable environmental costs and benefits as the Administrator determines, on the basis of a methodology developed by the Council as part of the plan, or in the absence of the plan by the Administrator, are directly attributable to such measure or resource.

(C)In determining the amount of power that a conservation measure or other resource may be expected to save or to produce, the Council or the Administrator, as the case may be, shall take into account projected realization factors and plant factors, including appropriate historical experience with similar measures or resources.

(D)For purposes of this paragraph, the “estimated incremental system cost” of any conservation measure or resource shall not be treated as greater than that of any nonconservation measure or resource unless the incremental system cost of such conservation measure or resource is in excess of 110 per centum of the incremental system cost of the nonconservation measure or resource.

(5)“Consumer” means any end user of electric power.

(6)“Council” means, unless otherwise specifically provided, the members appointed to the Pacific Northwest Electric Power and Conservation Planning Council established pursuant to section 839b of this title.

(7)“Customer” means anyone who contracts for the purchase of power from the Administrator pursuant to this chapter.

(8)“Direct service industrial customer” means an industrial customer that contracts for the purchase of power from the Administrator for direct consumption.

(9)“Electric power” means electric peaking capacity, or electric energy, or both.

(10)“Federal base system resources” means—

(A)the Federal Columbia River Power System hydroelectric projects;

(B)resources acquired by the Administrator under long-term contracts in force on December 5, 1980; and

(C)resources acquired by the Administrator in an amount necessary to replace reductions in capability of the resources referred to in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of this paragraph.

(11)“Indian tribe” means any Indian tribe or band which is located in whole or in part in the region and which has a governing body which is recognized by the Secretary of the Interior.

(12)“Major resource” means any resource that—

(A)has a planned capability greater than fifty average megawatts, and

(B)if acquired by the Administrator, is acquired for a period of more than five years.

(13)“New large single load” means any load associated with a new facility, an existing facility, or an expansion of an existing facility—

(A)which is not contracted for, or committed to, as determined by the Administrator, by a public body, cooperative, investor-owned utility, or Federal agency customer prior to September 1, 1979, and

(B)which will result in an increase in power requirements of such customer of ten average megawatts or more in any consecutive twelve-month period.

(14)“Pacific Northwest”, “region”, or “regional” means—

(A)the area consisting of the States of Oregon, Washington, and Idaho, the portion of the State of Montana west of the Continental Divide, and such portions of the States of Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming as are within the Columbia River drainage basin; and

(B)any contiguous areas, not in excess of seventy-five air miles from the area referred to in subparagraph (A), which are a part of the service area of a rural electric cooperative customer served by the Administrator on December 5, 1980, which has a distribution system from which it serves both within and without such region.

(15)“Plan” means the Regional Electric Power and Conservation plan (including any amendments thereto) adopted pursuant to this chapter and such plan shall apply to actions of the Administrator as specified in this chapter.

(16)“Renewable resource” means a resource which utilizes solar, wind, hydro, geothermal, biomass, or similar sources of energy and which either is used for electric power generation or will reduce the electric power requirements of a consumer, including by direct application.

(17)“Reserves” means the electric power needed to avert particular planning or operating shortages for the benefit of firm power customers of the Administrator and available to the Administrator (A) from resources or (B) from rights to interrupt, curtail, or otherwise withdraw, as provided by specific contract provisions, portions of the electric power supplied to customers.

(18)“Residential use” or “residential load” means all usual residential, apartment, seasonal dwelling and farm electrical loads or uses, but only the first four hundred horsepower during any monthly billing period of farm irrigation and pumping for any farm.

(19)“Resource” means—

(A)electric power, including the actual or planned electric power capability of generating facilities, or

(B)actual or planned load reduction resulting from direct application of a renewable energy resource by a consumer, or from a conservation measure.

(20)“Secretary” means the Secretary of Energy.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

16 U.S.C. § 839a

Title 16 — Conservation

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73