Substitute Bill No. 6386 - Summary

• Establishes the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection effective July 1, 2011, consolidating the former Department of Environmental Protection and Department of Public Utility Control into a single agency led by a Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection.

• Divides the new department into four bureaus: Bureau of Environmental Quality, Bureau of Natural Resources and Outdoor Recreation, Bureau of Energy, and Bureau of Public Utility Control.

• Creates a Public Utilities Control Authority within the new department, consisting of five appointed commissioners who regulate public utilities and energy matters as an internal authority rather than a separate department.

• Replaces all references throughout Connecticut General Statutes (approximately 700+ sections) to the "Commissioner of Environmental Protection," "Department of Environmental Protection," and "Department of Public Utility Control" with references to the new Commissioner and Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.

• Adds energy policy goals to the new department's jurisdiction, including reducing ratepayer costs, ensuring energy supply reliability and safety, increasing clean energy use, and creating energy-related economic development opportunities.