The Colorado Senate and House of Representatives have passed Senate Bill 26-182, marking a significant milestone in Colorado Springs Utilities’ efforts to meet the state’s clean energy goals while maintaining electric reliability and affordability.
It will be sent to Governor Polis, who has signaled that he will sign the bill into law. The bill gives us a three-year extension on the retirement of the coal unit at the Ray Nixon Power Plant.
A fair but firm compromise
Senate Bill 26-182 was developed through months of negotiations involving the Governor’s office, environmental stakeholders, business leaders and state energy officials.
This legislation reflects a fair but firm compromise that advances Colorado’s clean energy objectives while recognizing the operational realities of serving our community reliably and affordably.
This is a tremendous legislative accomplishment and is the culmination of over a year and a half of work with policymakers. We are extremely grateful to our bill sponsors for their hard work and leadership on this critically important issue.
Reporting our clean energy goals
In addition to the adjusted compliance timeline of Dec. 31, 2032, for Nixon’s coal retirement, the law includes:
• Annual reporting on Springs Utilities’ progress toward state clean energy goals.
• A commitment to explore feasible emissions reductions beyond 80%.
• Guardrails to ensure system reliability, safety and affordability remain protected.
We will now move forward with implementation planning and continued engagement with state and local partners to ensure compliance with the law and progress toward long-term emissions reductions.
