Murkowski bill would modify and continue Snettisham's exemption from federal hydropower licensing

The hydroelectric plant that supplies most of Juneau's electricity has operated outside the federal hydropower licensing system since the 1990s. A bill Sen. Lisa Murkowski introduced Thursday would "modify and continue" that exemption, according to its title.

The Snettisham Hydroelectric Project is owned by the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority, a public corporation of the state, which bought it from the federal government in 1998. Alaska Electric Light and Power operates the 78-megawatt plant and buys its power. AIDEA's figures put Snettisham's share of Juneau's electricity at 65% to 70%.

Most privately and locally owned hydroelectric dams in the U.S. need a license from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and those licenses have to be renewed. Murkowski has called that relicensing process "broken", saying it brings unwarranted delays and costly federal requirements.

Snettisham doesn't need a license. The 1995 law that let the federal government sell the plant to the state exempted it from federal licensing, along with the Eklutna hydroelectric project near Anchorage. Under that law, though, the exemption ends for any part of Snettisham that AIDEA later sells or transfers to someone else. AIDEA's agreements with AEL&P give the utility an option to buy the plant.

Sen. Dan Sullivan cosponsored the bill, which was sent to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. In July, Murkowski also cosponsored the Hydropower Licensing Affordability Act, which would narrow the conditions federal agencies can attach to hydropower licenses.