Admissions
- State Bar of Washington
Experience
Jason Keyes focuses on regulatory matters related to interconnection of distributed generation. He has participated in interconnection and net metering rulemakings at the utility commissions in twenty states, and regularly addresses the issue of whether third party ownership is permitted in a state. In addition, he assists clients with broader regulatory issues and contracts related to renewable energy project development.
Prior to his legal career, Jason managed government contracts and business development for eight years at JX Crystals Inc., a pioneer in the field of high-concentration solar energy systems. In the early 1990’s, he was a corporate planning analyst at Washington State’s largest utility, Puget Power (now Puget Sound Energy), where he managed the electric vehicle program and helped develop the utility’s integrated resource plan and demand forecast.
Representative Work
- Addressed California regulatory issues regarding the Renewable Auction Mechanism and SB 32 (feed-in tariff) for a leading solar project developer
- Testified before House and Senate Energy Committees in Illinois and Washington
- Developed structures to utilize available incentives for community solar projects in Washington State.
- Developed Engineering, Procurement and Construction agreements for utility-scale wind and solar projects in the United States and Canada
- On behalf of a leading US-based renewable energy-focused nonprofit, participated in:
Net Metering workshops and rulemakings in 15 states
Interconnection workshops and rulemakings in 9 states
Third Party ownership workshops and rulemakings in 5 states
Education
- JD, Seattle University School of Law, summa cum laude, 2005
- MA, University of Washington, Economics, 1990
- BA, Dartmouth College, English, 1986
Professional Honors and Activities
- Secretary, Board of Directors of the American Solar Energy Society, 2007 – 2012
- President, Board of Directors of Solar Washington, 2008-2010
- Member, Energy Bar Association
Publications
- A Regulator’s Guidebook: Calculating the Benefits and Costs of Distributed Solar Generation, with Karl Rábago, Oct, 2013. www.irecusa.com
- A Generalized Approach to Assessing the Rate Impacts of Net Energy Metering, Solar America Board for Codes and Standards report, with Joseph Wiedman, January 2012. www.solarabcs.org/rateimpact
- Comparison of the Four Leading Small Generator Interconnection Procedures, Solar America Board for Codes and Standards report, with Kevin Fox, October, 2008. Available at www.solarabcs.org/interconnection.
- Solar Energy With No Money Down, Jason Keyes et. al., Solar Today feature article, Oct. 2010. Available at http://www.solartoday-digital.org/solartoday/20100809#pg44.
- Net Metering and Interconnection Procedures Incorporating Best Practices, Jason Keyes et. al., Proceedings of Solar 2009 conference, American Solar Energy Society, May, 2009.
- Model Interconnection Procedures (lead drafter), Nov, 2009. Available at www.irecusa.org.
Presentations
Mr. Keyes has presented at dozens of conferences and hearings on the topics of net metering, interconnection and third party ownership, including most recently:
- “Regulations Supporting Solar,” ASES National Conference, Raleigh, NC, May, 2011
- “Washington State’s Distributed Generation Laws,” Washington House Technology Energy and Communications Committee, Olympia, WA, April, 2011
- “Utility Interconnection Issues,” Future Energy Conference, Seattle, WA, Nov. 2010
- “Successful U.S. State Policies for Supporting Renewable and Distributed Generation” 4th International Conference on Integration of Renewable and Distributed Energy Resources, Albuquerque, NM, Dec. 2010
- “Interconnecting and Net Metering Solar Energy Facilities,” U.S. Department of Energy Solar Boot Camp, Denver, CO, June, 2010
- Oregon Solar Power Conference (Seminar Group), Portland, OR, May, 2010
- “Rate Impacts of Interconnecting, Net Metering and Financing Distributed Generation,” Legal Seminars International Energy Conference, Las Vegas, NV Feb. 2010
- “Who Will Be the New Regulator for Net Metering, Interconnection & Third Party Ownership,” Solar Power International, Anaheim, CA, Oct. 2009
- “Five ‘Hot’ Topics in Solar Energy,” National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners, Washington, DC, Feb. 2009