The Latest from the UT Legislative Session

We are now in Week 3 of the 2026 Utah Legislative Session. Energy continues to be at the top of the list of focus areas for this session, though there are fewer bills than in 2025. Thus far, energy efficiency, geothermal, and nuclear energy are the hottest topics in the energy space this year. Our team has been hard at work advocating for clean energy and energy efficiency.

You can see all the bills we are tracking on our 2026 Legislative Tracker here. 

Priority Bills 

Appropriations Request for On-Bill Repayment Study, Rep. Clint Okerlund (Support)
We are working to support a study of on-bill repayment for energy efficiency programs, a promising voluntary tool to help residents and businesses pay for energy efficiency measures. The goal is to set up a program that would allow customers to pay off these investments through a line item on their utility bills. This would reduce upfront costs for the home energy upgrades while also reducing monthly energy costs from day one. We presented the request for a $60,000 study requested by Representative Clint Okerlund in the Economic and Community Development Appropriations Subcommittee. A study would be a great first step in creating a Utah-based inclusive financing program. 

HB 65-Construction Code Amendments, Rep. Tom Peterson (Support 4^th Substitute)
We are closely watching HB 65, which makes changes to Utah’s residential and commercial building codes. Kevin Emerson, Director of Building Efficiency and Decarbonization for Utah Clean Energy, helped to broker an important compromise with Representative Tom Peterson, home energy raters, and the Utah Homebuilders Association to preserve air-tightness and air-leakage testing requirements that are critical to keeping energy costs low. This bill adopts the 2024 IECC provisions for commercial buildings, an important update to Utah’s building code.

The 4th substitute of this bill passed the Senate Business and Labor Committee on (2/3). Thank you to Representative Peterson for his work here. We will continue to monitor it as it makes its way through the Senate and returns to the House.

HB 323-Solar Panel Disposal Amendments, Rep. Colin Jack (Oppose as filed)
This bill would impose new regulations and fees on residential, commercial, and utility-scale solar installers to address the eventual disposal of solar panels at the end of their useful lives. While we support thoughtful strategies and incentives to ensure panels are recycled and disposed of responsibly, the reality is that solar panel waste is currently minimal and does not pose a risk to human health. Fortunately, a compromise appears likely before the bill is heard in committee, allowing advocates, the solar industry, and the Department of Environmental Quality to work together on cost‑effective, market‑based approaches to support solar panel recycling. We expect this bill to be heard in the House Public Utilities, Energy, and Technology Committee later this week.

Other Bills We are Watching 

• HB 413-Surplus Interconnection Service Amendments, Rep. Christine Watkins (Support): This bill would encourage Rocky Mountain Power to evaluate and to make use of spare capacity on the transmission lines at existing power generation facilities. Surplus interconnection is already a commonly used tool, but it is becoming all the more important to find ways to reduce times to interconnect new power facilities to the grid.  

• SB 21-Geothermal Amendments, Sen. Mike McKell (Support): This bill would address surface rights and water rights for property being used for geothermal wells and drilling for electricity generation in Utah. This is a good opportunity to deal with some of these issues as Utah develops more geothermal capacity. We expect a 1^st substitute to go to the Senate Natural Resources, Environment, and Agriculture Committee. 

• HB 263-Heavy Duty Trucking Amendments, Rep. Tyler Clancy (Support): This bill would place a modest registration fee on heavy duty trucks that are older than 2009 and weigh more than 14,000 pounds. Funds would go to the state Environmental Mitigation and Response Fund. 

• HB 401-Geothermal Study Amendments, Rep. Christine Watkins (Support): This bill would ask the Office of Energy Development to work with the Utah Geological Survey and others to study the potential for geothermal development near our existing coal-fired power plants. Many coal sites are potentially attractive places for future geothermal development. It has passed the House Public Utilities, Energy, and Technology Committee.  

• HB 185-Carbon Credit Amendments (1^st substitute), Rep. Troy Shelley (Oppose): This bill would place a 19% tax on certain carbon market and carbon offset credits at firms operating in Utah, though it would allow certain carbon market activities to receive an exemption from the tax. We oppose this bill. It’s still in the House Rules Committee.