00                            HOUSE BILL NO. 334                                                                          
01 "An Act allowing a public utility to bill and collect certain payments for energy                                       
02 efficiency loans made by a third-party financial institution; relating to the duties of the                             
03 Alaska Housing Finance Corporation; and providing for an effective date."                                               
04 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                                
05    * Section 1. AS 42.05 is amended by adding a new section to article 4 to read:                                     
06            Sec. 42.05.445. Utility bill loan repayment. (a) The commission shall allow a                              
07       public utility that furnishes, by transmission or distribution, petroleum, petroleum                              
08       products, natural or manufactured gas, or electrical service to the public for                                    
09       consumption to enter into an agreement with a financial institution at the request of a                           
10       borrower for the purpose of allowing the utility to add, as a separate charge, an                                 
11       installment payment of a loan made in accordance with this section onto the utility bill                          
12       of a borrower who is also a customer of the utility. The public utility may also add, as                          
13       a separate charge, the cost of administering the loan.                                                            
14            (b)  To qualify for the loan repayment method established under (a) of this                                  

01       section, a borrower shall obtain an energy audit performed by an energy rater                                     
02       approved under regulations adopted by the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation. The                                 
03       cost of the audit shall be borne by the borrower. The energy rater shall, under                                   
04       regulations adopted by the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation, perform an on-site                                 
05       inspection of the home and estimate the cost of                                                                   
06                 (1)  increasing the energy efficiency of a borrower's home or business;                                 
07       or                                                                                                                
08                 (2)  replacing an existing appliance in the borrower's home or business                                 
09       with an appliance that consumes less energy, as determined by the Federal Trade                                   
10       Commission Appliance EnergyGuide Label rating.                                                                    
11            (c)  A financial institution making a loan using the repayment method                                        
12       established under this section shall require the borrower to certify that the entire loan                         
13       amount will be used to                                                                                            
14                 (1)  increase energy efficiency in the borrower's home or business; or                                  
15                 (2)  replace an existing appliance in the borrower's home or business                                   
16       with an appliance that consumes less energy, as determined by the Federal Trade                                   
17       Commission Appliance EnergyGuide Label rating.                                                                    
18    * Sec. 2. This Act takes effect January 1, 2013.