Council revises 2024 code adoption schedule and moves commercial energy petitions to technical advisory group

Council staff presented an updated timeline for the 2024 code adoption cycle on Jan. 24, showing compressed windows for CR‑102/CR‑103 filings and noting a delay in hiring a contractor to perform third‑party economic analysis because of a state spending freeze. Staff said that, while the timeline is constrained, tags and committees should proceed where possible to meet statutory deadlines.

As a near‑term action, the council voted to forward all finalized commercial energy petitions that have passed staff intake to the commercial energy technical advisory group so that the tag can begin deliberations and prepare proposals for the rulemaking package. The motion also clarified that petitions still undergoing completeness review would be forwarded subject to staff intake compliance.

Why it matters: Staff said the council must meet statutory and administrative deadlines to avoid slipping the adoption cycle and becoming out of step with national model codes; missing the schedule could push code adoptions a year and create statewide misalignment. The council discussed using standing committees to pre‑triage petitions but ultimately directed petitions to the technical advisory group so technical experts can begin detailed work immediately.

Schedule details and constraints: Staff showed a Gantt chart that staged group 1 and group 2 code work, petition submission windows, and proposed dates for CR‑102 preparations. Staff noted the plan assumes third‑party economic analysis will be completed by mid‑summer; if contracting delays persist, the council may be forced to compress timelines or shift actions later in the year.

Next steps: Staff will post the revised schedule and begin notifying tag members; the council asked staff to convene the commercial energy code tag for an initial meeting as soon as practical and to publicize the schedule so stakeholders can plan participation.