North Carolina electric companies have to make a percentage of their total output from alternative sources of energy. A proposed bill tried to lower that percentage.

Electric companies in North Carolina must keep planning to generate more power through alternative sources and other measures after an effort to freeze those requirements failed.

The House Public Utilities Committee narrowly defeated Wednesday an effort to freeze the percentage of retail sales that utilities must create using sources like solar, wind and animal waste and through efficiency efforts at the current 6 percent. A 2007 law directs the percentage to grow at or above 10 percent later this decade.  The law also allows utilities to pass along part of the cost of compliance to their customers. The measure would have kept the cap at current levels.

The committee voted 14-16 against a motion to recommend the bill.

A 2013 proposal to phase out the law also was defeated.   

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