According to the PUC the site evaluation committee is made up of 3 members of the PUC. If they did not have the authority to approve the 20 year agreement don't you think they would know that. Here is a list of the departments that compromise the committee and also their powers which state "Determine the terms and conditions of any certificate issued under this chapter." Below is the list of their responsibilities and from what I see they have the power to issue a 20 year contract if they want to.
The Site Evaluation Committee is responsible for issuing certificates to energy facilities such as natural gas pipelines and certain electric generating and transmission facilities. The Committee is also authorized to impose terms and conditions upon such certificates and to monitor the construction and operation of the certificated facilities.
The Site EvaluationCommittee is comprised of the following members:
* The three Public Utilities Commissioners and the Chief Engineer of the Public Utilities Commission, the Chairman of the Public Utilities Commission is the vice-chair.
* The Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Services (or the Assistant Commissioner as designee) chairs the Committee.
* Other Committee members include:
o the Director of the Division of Water;
o the Commissioner of the Department of Resources and Economic Development (or the Director of the Division of Economic Development as designee);
o the Commissioner of the Department of Health and Human Services (or one of the 2 most senior administrators within the Department responsible for management of public health services as designee);
o the Executive Director of the Fish and Game Department;
o the Director of the Division of Parks and Recreation;
o the Director of the Division of Forests and Lands;
o the Director of the Division of Air Resources;
o the Director of the New Hampshire Office of Energy and Planning (OEP) (or Deputy Director as designee); and
o the Commissioner of the Department of Transportation (or Assistant Commissioner as designee)
More information about the Site Evaluation Committee can be found at NH RSA Chapter 162-H or by calling the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services at 603-271-3503.
162-H:4 Powers of the Committee. –
I. The committee shall:
(a) Issue any certificate under this chapter for an energy facility.
(b) Determine the terms and conditions of any certificate issued under this chapter.
(c) Monitor the construction and operation of any energy facility granted a certificate under this chapter.
(d) Enforce the terms and conditions of any certificate issued under this chapter.
II. The committee shall hold hearings as required by this chapter and such additional hearings as it deems necessary and appropriate.
III. The committee may delegate the authority to monitor the construction or operation of any energy facility granted a certificate under this chapter to such state agency or official represented on the committee as it deems appropriate, but, subject to RSA 162-H:10, it may not delegate authority to hold hearings, issue certificates, determine the terms and conditions of a certificate, or enforce a certificate. Any authorized representative or delegate of the committee shall have a right of entry onto the premises of any part of the energy facility to ascertain if the facility is being constructed or operated in continuing compliance with the terms and conditions of the certificate. During normal hours of business administration and on the premises of the facility, such a representative or delegate shall also have a right to inspect such records of the certificate-holder as are relevant to the terms or conditions of the certificate.
III-a. The committee may delegate to an agency or official represented on the committee the authority to specify the use of any technique, methodology, practice, or procedure approved by the committee within a certificate issued under this chapter, or the authority to specify minor changes in the route alignment to the extent that such changes are authorized by the certificate for those portions of a proposed electric transmission line or energy transmission pipeline for which information was unavailable due to conditions which could not have been reasonably anticipated prior to the issuance of the certificate.
IV. In cases where the committee determines that other existing statutes provide adequate protection of the objectives of RSA 162-H:1, the committee may, within 60 days of acceptance of the application, or filing of a request for exemption with sufficient information to enable the committee to determine whether the proposal meets the requirements set forth below, and after holding a public informational hearing in a county where the energy facility is proposed, exempt the applicant from the approval and certificate provisions of this chapter, provided that the following requirements are met:
(a) Existing state or federal statutes, state or federal agency rules or municipal ordinances provide adequate protection of the objectives of RSA 162-H:1;
(b) A review of the application or request for exemption reveals that consideration of the proposal by only selected agencies represented on the committee is required and that the objectives of RSA 162-H:1 can be met by those agencies without exercising the provisions of RSA 162-H;
(c) Response to the application or request for exemption from the general public indicates that the objectives of RSA 162-H:1 are met through the individual review processes of the participating agencies; and
(d) All environmental impacts or effects are adequately regulated by other federal, state, or local statutes, rules, or ordinances.
V. Once an energy facility application has been accepted, the chairperson may designate a subcommittee of no fewer than 7 members that shall consider such application. The subcommittee shall include the chairperson or the vice-chairperson of the committee, and at least 3 members selected from among the department of environmental services, the department of resources and economic development, and the fish and game department. With the exception of the chairperson or vice-chairperson, each member of the committee may designate an employee from his or her agency to assume his or her responsibilities as a subcommittee member for the purposes of this paragraph, provided that such designee shall be a senior administrator within the agency, department, or division that the member represents under RSA 162-H:3. The chairperson may designate the assistant commissioner of the department of environmental services to assume his or her responsibilities as a subcommittee member for the purposes of this paragraph. For purposes of statutory interpretation and executing the regulatory functions of this chapter, the subcommittee shall assume the role of and be considered the committee, with all of its associated powers and duties.
Source. 1991, 295:1. 1997, 298:26, eff. June 20, 1997. 2007, 364:5, eff. July 17, 2007. 2008, 348:7, eff. July 7, 2008. 2009, 65:6-8, eff. Aug. 8, 2009
