United States Smart Grid Policy 2010

In-Depth Analysis of Ten Key States Driving Deployment

The smart grid will be an essential component of state power scenarios as energy efficiency and renewable energy mandates proliferate across the United States.  Since 2009, the Federal government has awarded US$4.5 billion in stimulus funds to spur smart grid investment and demonstration.  With this injection of funds and the near-term potential of a scaling smart grid, state legislators, regulators, utilities and grid operators are surveying the stakes of commercial integration and laying boundaries for the sector via policy and pilot initiatives.

Report Atlas With Federal Smart Grid Stimulus by State and Utility

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Because the laboratories for smart-grid policy are emerging at the state and utility levels, standards and requirements have been more numerous and evolved more rapidly than those at the national level.  This state-to-state evolution has presented a variety of market environments for smart-grid technology / application providers to navigate; the variations between each state can be viewed as "case studies" for more specific approaches in the future.  Ranging from the example of Florida- where smart-grid development is occurring in the absence of either a statutory mandate or a specific regulatory initiative- to California- where the grid is being smartened under the eagle eye of regulators, politicians and highly-motivated public interest groups- each market's opportunities and challenges will be based on a matrix of existing grid capability, political will, regulatory direction and utility approach.

This report focuses on the factors contributing to smart grid deployment in the 10 states that collectively received nearly half of the US$4.5 billion in Federal smart-grid stimulus: California, Colorado, Florida, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas.  Each state's analysis includes a smart grid status summary, legislative and regulatory breakdowns as well as utility implementation initiative profiles.

Questions the Report Addresses:

• What is driving smart grid initiatives in these states?
• How are states shaping their markets for competitive smart-grid integration?
• Which investor-owned and municipal utilities are most active in smart-grid implementation?
• How are policymakers and utilities addressing early-adopter difficulties?

Key Elements of the Report:

• A "State of the State" overview and scenario summary
• Analysis of relevant legislation affecting smart grid deployment
• Description and analysis of the current regulatory situation - including recent decisions and open proceedings
• Summaries of smart grid infrastructure activities by utilities and other grid operators in the state
• A tabular breakdown of federal smart-grid funding in each state
• More than 140 primary documents tagged and linked for direct access
• A comprehensive glossary of smart-grid-related acronyms