By Kathiann M. Kowalski, Midwest Energy News.

As Ohio lawmakers continue to debate the state’s renewable energy standards, a pair of recent reports show the costs of complying with the laws are significantly lower than previously thought.

The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) issued its final alternative energy compliance report for the year 2013 last week on the same day that the Department of Energy announced new reports showing that renewable energy standards produced nationwide benefits worth more than seven times their costs in 2013.

The PUCO’s report “needed to be provided at an earlier date” to lawmakers, because utilities’ average costs for RECs went down significantly from 2012 to 2013, said Neil Waggoner of the Sierra Club.