[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2041 Introduced in House (IH)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2041

 To provide equal treatment for utility special entities using utility 
           operations-related swaps, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 28, 2015

Mr. LaMalfa (for himself and Mr. Costa) introduced the following bill; 
           which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To provide equal treatment for utility special entities using utility 
           operations-related swaps, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Public Power Risk Management Act of 
2015''.

SEC. 2. TRANSACTIONS WITH UTILITY SPECIAL ENTITIES.

    Section 1a(49) of the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 1a(49)) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(E) Certain transactions with a utility special 
                entity.--
                            ``(i) Transactions in utility operations-
                        related swaps shall be reported pursuant to 
                        section 4r.
                            ``(ii) In making a determination to exempt 
                        pursuant to subparagraph (D), the Commission 
                        shall treat a utility operations-related swap 
                        entered into with a utility special entity, as 
                        defined in section 4s(h)(2)(D), as if it were 
                        entered into with an entity that is not a 
                        special entity, as defined in section 
                        4s(h)(2)(C).''.

SEC. 3. UTILITY SPECIAL ENTITY DEFINED.

    Section 4s(h)(2) of the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 6s(h)(2)) 
is amended by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(D) Utility special entity.--For purposes of this 
                Act, the term `utility special entity' means a special 
                entity, or any instrumentality, department, or 
                corporation of or established by a State or political 
                subdivision of a State, that--
                            ``(i) owns or operates, or anticipates 
                        owning or operating, an electric or natural gas 
                        facility or an electric or natural gas 
                        operation;
                            ``(ii) supplies, or anticipates supplying, 
                        natural gas or electric energy to another 
                        utility special entity;
                            ``(iii) has, or anticipates having, public 
                        service obligations under Federal, State, or 
                        local law or regulation to deliver electric 
                        energy or natural gas service to customers; or
                            ``(iv) is a Federal power marketing agency, 
                        as defined in section 3 of the Federal Power 
                        Act.''.

SEC. 4. UTILITY OPERATIONS-RELATED SWAP.

    (a) Swap Further Defined.--Section 1a(47)(A)(iii) of the Commodity 
Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 1a(47)(A)(iii)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of subclause (XXI);
            (2) by adding ``and'' at the end of subclause (XXII); and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
                                    ``(XXIII) a utility operations-
                                related swap;''.
    (b) Utility Operations-Related Swap Defined.--Section 1a of such 
Act (7 U.S.C. 1a) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(52) Utility operations-related swap.--The term `utility 
        operations-related swap' means a swap that--
                    ``(A) is entered into to hedge or mitigate a 
                commercial risk;
                    ``(B) is not a contract, agreement, or transaction 
                based on, derived on, or referencing--
                            ``(i) an interest rate, credit, equity, or 
                        currency asset class;
                            ``(ii) except as used as fuel for electric 
                        energy generation, a metal, agricultural 
                        commodity, or crude oil or gasoline commodity 
                        of any grade; or
                            ``(iii) any other commodity or category of 
                        commodities identified for this purpose in a 
                        rule or order adopted by the Commission in 
                        consultation with the appropriate Federal and 
                        State regulatory commissions; and
                    ``(C) is associated with--
                            ``(i) the generation, production, purchase, 
                        or sale of natural gas or electric energy, the 
                        supply of natural gas or electric energy to a 
                        utility, or the delivery of natural gas or 
                        electric energy service to utility customers;
                            ``(ii) fuel supply for the facilities or 
                        operations of a utility;
                            ``(iii) compliance with an electric system 
                        reliability obligation;
                            ``(iv) compliance with an energy, energy 
                        efficiency, conservation, or renewable energy 
                        or environmental statute, regulation, or 
                        government order applicable to a utility; or
                            ``(v) any other electric energy or natural 
                        gas swap to which a utility is a party.''.
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