Utilities are currently forced to take the power the subject was discussing (power he said nobody needs at night), which he described as really just a tax.

Judge as of 2007-09-28. The claim refers to renewable (e.g., wind) power produced at night when demand is low. True: in 2007, US policies (such as PURPA must-purchase obligations, state renewable portfolio standards or feed-in or must-take rules) required utilities to buy the power whenever it was produced, including at night, with the costs passed on to ratepayers, so calling it a tax is a reasonable description. Mostly true: such obligations existed but applied only in some jurisdictions or under some contracts, and the claim generalises them slightly. Mixed: purchase mandates existed but generally did not force utilities to take power whenever it was produced (curtailment was common, for example). Mostly false: mandates were limited or indirect, and the claim substantially overstates them. False: no such forced-purchase requirements existed. The 'tax' label is opinion; judge only the factual part, that utilities were forced to take the power.

Set before the research began.

1. E1 Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (RPS): Background and Debate Over a National Requirement Congressional Research Service (via EveryCRSReport) · 6 August 2007

   “Section 210 of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA) of 1978 had guaranteed a market for the purchase of electric power produced from small renewable energy facilities. PURPA let states determine the avoided cost pricing of the electricity production from renewable energy facilities. The effectiveness of this mechanism lessened with the advent of electric industry restructuring.”

2. E2 PURPA's puzzle: FERC workshop revisits 1978 law, embattled as ever Utility Dive · 28 July 2016

   “The key provision of PURPA is Section 210, the mandatory purchase obligation, sometimes called “the PURPA put.” Section 210 obliged utilities to buy the electrical output from qualifying facilities (QFs) that met PURPA requirements in terms size and efficiency and, for CHP, thermal output.”

3. E3 Wind and Solar Energy Curtailment: Experience and Practices in the United States National Renewable Energy Laboratory (U.S. Department of Energy) · March 2014

   “Curtailments during low net load periods have been reported by several utilities and system operators, including CAISO (CAISO 2010), Hawaii, NV Energy, BPA, Alberta ISO, and ISO New England.”

4. E4 Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard (RPS): Background and Debate Over a National Requirement Congressional Research Service (via EveryCRSReport) · 6 August 2007

   “Under a renewable energy portfolio standard (RPS), retail electricity suppliers (electric utilities) must either provide a minimum amount of electricity from renewable energy resources or purchase tradable credits that represent an equivalent amount of renewable energy production.”

E2 describes PURPA Section 210 as a mandatory purchase obligation that required utilities to buy the electrical output of qualifying facilities, and E1, a CRS report from August 2007, confirms PURPA guaranteed a market for small renewable producers. E1 also says this mechanism became less effective after electric industry restructuring. Under the RPS described in E4, utilities had to supply a minimum amount of renewable power or buy credits, which is a quantity mandate rather than a duty to take power whenever it is produced. E3 shows curtailment during low-demand periods, but it is a 2014 report and the one dated source it cites is from 2010. Forced-purchase obligations did exist in 2007, but they were partial and weakening, so the claim generalises them somewhat.