State New Energy Mandates Work

Updated renewable portfolio standards will lead to more renewable electricity generation

Richard Bowers, February 27, 2019 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)

As of the end of 2018, 29 states and the District of Columbia (DC) had renewable portfolio standards (RPS), polices that require electricity suppliers to supply a set share of their electricity from designated renewable resources or eligible technologies. Although no additional states have adopted an RPS policy since Vermont in 2015, Connecticut, New Jersey, Massachusetts, California, and the District of Columbia extended their existing targets in 2018 or early 2019, continuing a trend in recent years across the United States…States with legally binding renewable portfolio standards collectively accounted for 63% of electricity retail sales in the United States in 2018…

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In addition to the 29 states with binding RPS policies, 8 states have nonbinding renewable portfolio goals…[In May 2018, Connecticut increased its overall RPS target in May 2018 to a 48% renewable generation share of electricity sales by 2030…[and] New Jersey increased its RPS target to 50% of eligible generation share of sales by 2030…In August 2018, Massachusetts increased its overall RPS target to 35% of sales by 2030…In September 2018, California increased its RPS target to a 60% renewable generation share of sales by 2030 and an additional 40% generation share of sales of carbon-free resources by 2045, for a total of 100% carbon-free power by 2045…In January 2019, the District of Columbia (DC) increased its RPS target to a 100% renewable share of sales by 2040…” click here for more

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