Governor's Office of Energy Policy

KRS 152.710 TO 152.725 directs the Governor's Office of Energy Policy to:

Oversee the development and implementation of Kentucky's comprehensive energy strategy;
Provide leadership to enhance the benefits of energy efficiency and alternative energy through supporting awareness, technology development, energy preparedness, partnerships, and resource development;
Enhance the economic opportunities and benefits to Kentucky citizens and industry through expansion of current markets and the development of market opportunities for Kentucky coal, natural gas, petroleum, oil shale, tar sands, liquid and gaseous fuels from coal, and chemicals from coal;
To the extent funding is available, administer grant programs to support energy-related research, development, and demonstration, including the support of multistate cooperative regional partnerships and research initiatives;
Develop and implement programs for the development, conservation, and utilization of energy in a manner to meet essential human needs while maintaining the Kentucky economy at the highest feasible level. The programs shall include:

Central access for collection, maintenance, and analysis of data and information on all forms of energy supply, demand, conservation, and related subjects;
Formulation of a contingency plan to address any energy shortage which may occur from time to time. The contingency plan shall relate to the curtailment, allocation, planning, and management of all forms of energy;
Development and implementation of major energy conservation programs involving all sectors of the Kentucky economy, including energy audits of educational facilities and state-owned buildings; and
Provision for the application of appropriate technologies with regard to alternative energy development, including the development of solar and other renewable resources and small-scale hydroelectric plants, and promotion, when feasible, of the production of energy from other resources such as solid waste and biomass;

Provide technical assistance to the Finance and Administration Cabinet in implementing the Energy Efficiency in Government Buildings Program;
Enter into agreements, administer grant programs, and serve as a liaison with the federal government and other states in matters relating to energy; and
Participate in the review of applications and, upon request of the authority, assist the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority in monitoring tax incentive agreements as provided in Subchapter 27 of KRS Chapter 154.
The office may establish reasonable application fees to offset costs associated with reviewing and processing applications, including costs associated with hiring outside consultants.
The office is encouraged to use state funding available to it as a match for federal or private funding to increase the resources available to support energy research and development.
The office is encouraged to explore and develop regional partnerships and cooperative research initiatives with other states and governmental entities to enhance resources available for energy research and development.

To ensure that Kentucky will lead the states in securing the energy independence of the United States and will consequently benefit from economic growth and stabilization of the Commonwealth’s coal industry and agriculture, KRS 152.720 directs the Governor's Office of Energy Policy to develop and implement a strategy for production of alternative fuels and synthetic natural gas from fossil energy resources and biomass resources.

The strategy shall address:

Technologies available or in use for producing alternative[transportation] fuels and synthetic natural gas from fossil energy resources and biomass resources and the relative advantages of these in terms of process efficiencies, environmental performance, and marketable products, including chemicals, industrial feedstocks, and electricity;
Research, demonstration, and commercial-scale construction and operation of one (1) or more technologies, and follow-up expansion;
The essential nature of efficient cooperation, coordination, and synergy between the efforts of the Governor's Office of Energy Policy and those of Kentucky's universities in order to maximize Kentucky's opportunities to access federal funds and to receive research grants and awards from federal and other sources to fund the development of clean coal technology, coal-to-liquid-fuel conversion, synthetic natural gas, alternative transportation fuels, and biomass resources;
The identification of federal funds available for research, development, construction, and operation of alternative fuels or synthetic natural gas plants at laboratory, demonstration, and commercial scale;
Establishment of a major federal energy research laboratory in Kentucky;
Industry participation, both by single firms and by consortia, in research, development, construction, and operation of alternative transportation fuels or synthetic natural gas plants;
Establishment or expansion of Kentucky state government incentives for development, construction, or operation of alternative transportation fuels and synthetic natural gas production facilities, including but not limited to financial incentives, tax incentives, mandating or providing incentives for use of alternative transportation fuels and synthetic natural gas by state government, school districts, or utilities, authority to issue bonds, and acquisition and preliminary environmental assessment of industrial sites; and
Development of incentives to encourage energy conservation and renewable fuel and energy use and deployment of renewable energy, including solar power, wind power, hydropower, and other sources.

Legislative Mandate