Policy Reform
One of the key strategies of RENEUER is to examine where legislative changes or clarifications are needed to help municipal utilities achieve full-cost recovery and to provide incentives for cities to reduce energy expenses.
The first step is a thorough analysis of all legal, institutional and regulatory barriers which inhibit investment in municipal infrastructure.
Each country will undertake its own policy analysis, examining where national or regional law inhibits the abilities of cities to invest in their infrastructure. RENEUER coordinators study laws that clarify the following questions:
- Does national policy call for full tariff cost-recovery for heat and electricity?
- Who receives subsidies and for how much?
- Do municipalities have the authority to increase or decrease tariffs?
- Can cities set their own budgets and raise their own revenues -- how much control is there by the local government?
- What laws specify powers of local government and what are the major provisions of these laws?
- Does the national or local government own the schools and hospitals?
- Does the electric company or do the cities own the streetlights?
- Can cities keep the energy savings from energy efficiency projects?
- What national policies exist related to the formation of homeowner associations?
- Are there laws requiring heat meters -- are they enforced?
- Do cities control district heating companies, or are they owned by the national government?
- Are concession or leasing contracts allowed, so cities can lease district-heating or water operations to a private company? Are there regulations dealing with privatization or leasing of public infrastructure?
- Are there debt limits or collateral requirements for bank loans?
- If there are debt limits, can ESCO financing not count against those limits?
- Are there any other national policies that make it difficult for cities to obtain bank loans (such as approval from the Ministry of Finance, or loan term limitations)?
The second step is to propose policy solutions to exisitng barriers, based on experience from the rest of the region and on what is appropriate for each country.