                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

NONDISCRIMINATORY ACCESS TO TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM (§ 56-578)

A. All distributors shall have the obligation to connect any retail customer,
including those using distributed generation, located within its service
territory to those facilities of the distributor that are used for delivery of
retail electric energy, subject to Commission rules and regulations and approved
tariff provisions relating to connection of service.

B. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, every distributor shall provide
distribution service within its service territory on a basis which is just,
reasonable, and not unduly discriminatory to suppliers of electric energy,
including distributed generation, as the Commission may determine. The
distribution services provided to each supplier of electric energy shall be
comparable in quality to those provided by the distribution utility to itself or
to any affiliate.

C. The Commission shall establish interconnection standards to ensure
transmission and distribution safety and reliability, which standards shall not
be inconsistent with nationally recognized standards acceptable to the
Commission. In adopting standards pursuant to this subsection, the Commission
shall seek to prevent barriers to new technology and shall not make compliance
unduly burdensome and expensive. The Commission shall determine questions about
the ability of specific equipment to meet interconnection standards.

D. The Commission shall consider developing expedited permitting processes for
small generation facilities of fifty megawatts or less. The Commission shall
also consider developing a standardized permitting process and interconnection
arrangements for those power systems less than 500 kilowatts which have
demonstrated approval from a nationally recognized testing laboratory acceptable
to the Commission.

E. Upon the separation and deregulation of the generation function and services
of incumbent electric utilities, the Commission shall retain jurisdiction over
utilities&#8217; electric transmission function and services, to the extent not
preempted by federal law. Nothing in this section shall impair the
Commission&#8217;s authority under &#xA7;&#xA7; 56-46.1, 56-46.2, and 56-265.2
with respect to the construction of electric transmission facilities.

HISTORY: 1999, c. 411; 2007, cc. 888, 933.