Senate Bill 1250 - Energy Facility Siting

• Requires a siting certificate from the Idaho energy facility siting panel for construction or expansion of electrical generating facilities with capacity exceeding 50 megawatts, or expansions increasing capacity by more than 50 megawatts, excluding facilities owned by public utilities, cooperatives, municipalities, or those within Idaho National Laboratory property boundaries.

• Creates a siting panel composed of five permanent state officials (office of energy resources administrator, environmental quality director, public utilities commission president, water resources director, and commerce director) plus one representative each from affected city councils and county commissions within a 50-mile radius of the proposed site.

• Requires applicants to submit comprehensive applications including facility design, environmental impact information, financing details, and responses to 12 statutory review criteria covering regional benefits, energy independence, environmental protection, safety, and consistency with public interest and local planning.

• Establishes a 6-month timeline for panel decision (unless applicant agrees to extension) following a 45-day initial meeting setup period and at least one public hearing with 30-day advance notice, allowing 15 days for written comment after the hearing.

• Sets a maximum $100,000 application fee based on processing costs and preserves applicants' rights to judicial review within 28 days of final panel decision, with courts retaining authority to enjoin non-compliant facility activities.