Title 16 — ConservationRelease 119-73not60

§839a Definitions

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

Last updated Apr 5, 2026|Official source

Summary

Defines the main words used in the chapter so readers know what they mean. "Acquire" or "acquisition" does not let the Administrator build or own an electric generating plant. "Administrator" is the head of the Bonneville Power Administration. "Conservation" means cutting electric use by using, producing, or moving energy more efficiently. "Cost-effective" means a measure or resource must be reliable, ready when needed, and meet or cut customer demand at an estimated incremental system cost no greater than the least-cost similar reliable alternative; "system cost" means all direct costs over its life (including distribution, waste disposal, end-of-cycle costs, fuel including projected increases, and any quantifiable environmental costs or benefits the Administrator assigns using the Council’s method); the Council or Administrator must use projected realization and plant factors when estimating savings; a conservation option is not counted as more costly than a nonconservation option unless its incremental system cost is more than 110 percent of the nonconservation option. "Consumer" means the end user of electric power. "Council" means the Pacific Northwest Electric Power and Conservation Planning Council. "Customer" is anyone who buys power from the Administrator under this chapter. "Direct service industrial customer" is an industrial buyer who uses the power directly. "Electric power" means peaking capacity, energy, or both. "Federal base system resources" are (A) the Federal Columbia River Power System hydro projects; (B) resources bought under long-term contracts in force on December 5, 1980; and (C) resources bought to replace any lost capability from (A) or (B). "Indian tribe" means a tribe or band partly or fully in the region with a governing body recognized by the Secretary of the Interior. "Major resource" is a resource with planned capability over fifty average megawatts and, if bought by the Administrator, bought for more than five years. "New large single load" is a load not contracted or committed before September 1, 1979, that will add ten average megawatts or more in any twelve-month period. "Pacific Northwest/region/regional" names specific states and parts of states in the Columbia River basin and nearby areas up to 75 air miles that were served by a rural cooperative customer on December 5, 1980. "Plan" is the Regional Electric Power and Conservation plan adopted under this chapter. "Renewable resource" uses solar, wind, hydro, geothermal, biomass, or similar sources for power or to reduce a consumer’s electric needs. "Reserves" are power kept available to avoid shortages, from resources or from contractual rights to interrupt or cut deliveries. "Residential use/residential load" covers usual home, apartment, seasonal dwelling, and farm electric uses, but only the first four hundred horsepower per monthly billing period for farm irrigation and pumping. "Resource" means either electric power (including planned generator capability) or planned load reduction from direct use of renewables or from conservation. "Secretary" means 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 5, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60