Initiative To Introduce Energy Choice In Nevada Will Appear on November Ballot

Nevada Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske has certified that the petition returned for The Energy Choice Initiative are sufficient, and the initiative will appear on the 2016 general election ballot.

The Energy Choice Initiative has been designated as Question Number 3

As previously reported by RetailEnergyX.com, the proposal would amend the state's constitution to provide that, "Effective upon the dates set forth in subsection 3 [noted below], every person, business, association of persons or businesses, state agency, political subdivision of the State of Nevada, or any other entity in Nevada has the right to choose the provider of its electric utility service, including but not limited to, selecting providers from a competitive retail electric market, or by producing electricity for themselves or in association with others, and shall not be forced to purchase energy from one provider. Nothing herein shall be construed as limiting such persons' or entities' rights to sell, trade or otherwise dispose of electricity."

Furthermore, the proposal would amend the constitution to provide that, "Not later than July 1, 2023, the Legislature shall provide by law for provisions consistent with this Act to establish an open, competitive retail electric energy market, to ensure that protections are established that entitle customers to safe, reliable, and competitively priced electricity, including, but not limited to, provisions that reduce costs to customers, protect against service disconnections and unfair practices, and prohibit the grant of monopolies and exclusive franchises for the generation of electricity"

As the initiative would amend the state's constitution, it must be passed by voters in two separate elections to take effect

The petition for the ballot initiative is being made by Nevadans for Affordable, Clean Energy Choices

To qualify for the ballot, petitioners were required to collect and submit 55,234 valid signatures from registered Nevada voters, including at least 13,809 signatures in each of the four petition districts. Only registered voters of the county and petition district where the petitions were circulated were qualified to sign the petitions.

See the text of the initiative here

Under Nevada's current law, only very large customers (1 MW or above) may take alternative supply, and customers must receive approval from the PUC to do so. The PUC has ruled that such customers must pay exit fees to keep other customers whole; exit fees for several Las Vegas casinos exiting utility supply were set in the range of $15 million to $87 million