Existing law prohibits a person from discharging from nonvehicular sources air contaminants or other materials that cause injury, detriment, nuisance, or annoyance to the public, or that endanger the comfort, repose, health, or safety of the public, or that cause, or have a natural tendency to cause, injury or damage to business or property, as specified. Existing law establishes maximum civil penalties for a person who violates air pollution laws from nonvehicular sources. Existing law provides that civil penalties for specified violations are to be assessed and recovered in a civil action brought by the Attorney General, by any district attorney, or by the attorney for any district in which the violation occurs.This bill: 1) allows specified civil penalties to be multiplied by a factor of not more than 3 if the violation results from an emission from a stationary source required by federal law to be included in an operating permit program established pursuant to specified provisions of the federal Clean Air Act, and the emission contains or includes one or more air contaminants, as specified, 2) defines “source” for this purpose, 3) requires, in assessing penalties, that health impacts, community disruptions, the timeliness and accuracy of the notifications from the violator, and other circumstances related to the violation be considered, as specified, and 4) also requires that civil penalties for a violation be assessed and recovered in a civil action brought by the Attorney General, by any district attorney, or by the attorney for any district in which the violation occurs.
I) Existing law provides for the creation of the South Coast Air Quality Management District in those portions of the Counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino included within the area of the South Coast Air Basin, as specified. Existing law provides that the south coast district is governed by a district board consisting of 13 members and that each member of the board shall receive compensation of $100 for each day, or portion thereof, but not to exceed $1,000 per month, while attending meetings of the board or any committee thereof or, upon authorization of the board, while on official business of the district, and the actual and necessary expenses incurred in performing the member’s official duties.This bill: 1) raises the limits of the above-described compensation each member of the board receives to up to $200 for each day, or portion thereof, but not to exceed $2,000 per month, as specified, 2) provides that the compensation of each member of the board may be increased beyond this amount by the board at an open regular meeting, as specified.II)Existing law provides for the San Diego County Air Pollution Control District to have a governing board of 11 members, including 3 public members that receive compensation of $100 for each day, or a portion thereof, but not to exceed $1,000 per month, while attending meetings of the district governing board or any committee of the district governing board or, upon authorization of the district governing board, while on official business of the San Diego County Air Pollution Control District, and the actual and necessary expenses incurred in performing the member’s official duties.This bill: 1) raises the limits of the above-described compensation to up to $200 for each day, or a portion thereof, not to exceed $2,000 per month, as specified, and requires that each member of the governing board receive the compensation, 2) provides that the compensation of each member of the district governing board may be increased beyond this amount by the district governing board at an open regular meeting, as specified.III) Existing law provides that the bay district board is the governing body of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District. Existing law requires that each member of the bay district board receive actual and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of board duties. Existing law authorizes each member to receive compensation, to be determined by the bay district board, not to exceed $100 for each meeting and not to exceed $200 per day for attending a meeting of, or any committee meeting of, the bay district board, or, upon authorization of the bay district board, attending a meeting while on official business of the bay district. Existing law prohibits the compensation from exceeding $6,000 in any one year.This bill: 5) provides that each member of the bay district board is entitled to reimbursement of actual and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of board duties, 6) raises the limits of the above-described compensation to not exceed $200 per day, not exceed $2,000 per month, and not exceed $24,000 in any one year, 7) authorizes the compensation of each member of the bay district board to be increased beyond this amount by the bay district board at an open regular meeting, as specified.IV) Existing law requires that the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District, at a minimum, be governed by a district board composed of the Board of Supervisors of the County of Sacramento. Existing law requires each member of the Sacramento district board to receive actual and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of board duties, and authorizes compensation, to be determined by the Sacramento district board, not to exceed $100 for each day attending the meetings of the district board and committee meetings thereof, or upon authorization of the district board, while on official business of the Sacramento district. Existing law prohibits the compensation from exceeding $6,000 in any one year.This bill: 8) authorizes members to receive compensation for their service, as determined by the district board at an open regular meeting, not to exceed $200 per day of attending board and committee meetings, or for conducting official business as authorized by the board, 9) prohibits the compensation from exceeding $12,000 in any one year, 10) authorizes the district board, by resolution adopted at an open regular meeting, to increase the amount of compensation provided not more than once every 12 months, as specified.V) Existing law authorizes the board of supervisors of any county, by a vote of its members, to form a unified air pollution control district with other counties, upon ratification by the boards of supervisors, with membership from each county, as specified. Existing law requires each member of the unified district board, upon adoption of a resolution, to receive the actual and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties, plus a compensation of $100 for each day attending the meetings of the unified district board or any committee of the unified district board or, upon authorization by the unified district board, while engaged in official business of the unified district. Existing law prohibits the compensation from exceeding $3,600 in any one year.This bill: 11) requires the resolution be adopted at an open regular meeting and would raise the above-described compensation limits to up to $200 for each day, 12) prohibits the compensation from exceeding $7,200 in any one year, 13) authorizes the compensation of each member of a unified district board to be increased beyond this amount by the unified district board at an open regular meeting, as specified, 13) prohibits the above-described district boards from providing for automatic future increases in compensation for their members, and 14) makes legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the boards.
Existing law defines a “fence-line monitoring system,” for purposes of specified laws requiring the monitoring of toxic air contaminants from nonvehicular sources, to mean monitoring equipment that measures and records air pollutant concentrations at or adjacent to a stationary source that may be useful for detecting or estimating emissions of pollutants from the source, including the quantity of fugitive emissions, and in supporting enforcement efforts. Existing law requires the Department of Toxic Substances Control to adopt, and revise when appropriate, standards and regulations for the management of hazardous wastes to protect against hazards to the public health, to domestic livestock, to wildlife, or to the environment, including the operation of metal shredding facilities for appliance recycling. Existing law authorizes the department to collect an annual fee from all metal shredding facilities that are subject to the requirements of the hazardous waste control laws, and to deposit those fees into a subaccount in the Hazardous Waste Control Account. Existing law makes those moneys available to the department, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to reimburse the department’s costs to implement the hazardous waste control laws applicable to metal shredding facilities. Existing law establishes the State Air Resources Board as the state agency with primary jurisdiction over the regulation of air pollution. Existing law generally designates air pollution control districts and air quality management districts with the primary responsibility for the control of air pollution from all sources other than vehicular sources.This bill: 1) requires, instead of authorize, the department to collect the above-described annual fee from all metal shredding facilities that are subject to the requirements of the hazardous waste control laws, and would require the department to set the fee schedule at a rate sufficient to also reimburse the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment for its costs to implement these provisions, as provided, 2) makes the moneys in the subaccount additionally available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the office for its costs to implement these provisions, as provided, 3) requires an air district the jurisdiction of which includes metal shredding facilities, in consultation with the department and the office, on or before January 1, 2027, to develop requirements for facilitywide fence-line air quality monitoring at metal shredding facilities, as provided, 4) requires the air district to, among other things, develop threshold levels, in consultation with the office, for airborne contaminants, as specified, and, on or before July 1, 2027, to adopt regulations to implement, interpret, or make specific the requirements of the bill, 5) authorizes the air district to be reimbursed for these costs pursuant to its fee authority, 6) requires the department to require metal shredding facilities to monitor and report to the department hazardous waste constituents requested by the department and would authorize metal shredding facilities to report the results of that monitoring to local public health departments, as provided, 7) also requires the department to collect and analyze light fibrous material at the fence lines to determine the potential for release of hazardous waste, and 8) requires the department, on or before July 1, 2027, to develop a community notification procedure, as provided.
Under existing law, the State Air Resources Board has adopted the Control Measure for Ocean-Going Vessels At Berth regulation to reduce air polluting emissions from ocean-going vessels while docked at berth at California ports. Under that regulation, operators of tanker vessels using auxiliary engines or auxiliary boilers are required to comply with specified requirements to reduce emissions from those vessels through the use of an approved emissions control strategy beginning on January 1, 2025, if visiting the ports of Los Angeles or Long Beach and January 1, 2027, if visiting any other port in the state.This bill would: 1) delay the state board’s ability to enforce those requirements with respect to tanker vessels carrying petroleum crude or petroleum products until January 1, 2027, for those vessels visiting the ports of Los Angeles or Long Beach and January 1, 2029, for those vessels visiting any other port in the state, and 2) declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law requires a refinery-related community air monitoring system to be installed near each petroleum refinery that meets certain requirements. Existing law requires the owner or operator of a petroleum refinery to develop, install, operate, and maintain a fence-line monitoring system in accordance with guidance developed by the appropriate air quality management district or air pollution control district. Existing law requires the air districts and the owners or operators of refineries to collect real-time data from those monitoring systems, maintain records of that data, and, to the extent feasible, provide to the public the data in a publicly accessible format.This bill would: 1) expand the application of these provisions to any “covered facility,” defined to include refineries that produce gasoline, diesel fuel, aviation fuel, biofuel, lubricating oil, asphalt, petrochemical feedstock, or other similar products, and to include facilities with operations related to a refinery that are located on contiguous or adjacent properties, 2) require the refinery-related community air monitoring system and the fence-line monitoring system to be updated or installed on or before January 1, 2028, after a 30-day public comment period, as specified, 3) require the appropriate air district to establish pollutants for the monitoring systems to monitor and would include certain pollutants identified by the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, 4) authorize the air district to exclude a pollutant for monitoring at those monitoring systems, as provided, 5) require air districts, on a 5-year basis, to review the list of pollutants being measured and would authorize the air districts to revise the list, as provided, 6) require the air districts and the owners and operators of covered facilities to maintain records of the data collected from those systems for at least 5 years and would require the owners and operators to post online, and to notify the public of the availability of, quarterly reports containing certain information, 7) require owners and operators of covered facilities to notify the air district and the public, as provided, as quickly as possible of any exceedances of specified pollutant thresholds, 8) require the owners or operators of covered facilities, within 24 hours of a fence-line monitoring system detecting an exceedance of those thresholds, to initiate a root cause analysis and to determine appropriate corrective action, as provided, and 9) require the owners or operators of covered facilities to conduct third-party audits of its fence-line monitoring system, as provided, to ensure the accuracy of the system. Because the bill would impose additional duties on air districts, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
I) Existing law authorizes the legislative body of a city or a county to designate a proposed enhanced infrastructure financing district to finance public capital facilities or other specified projects, with a governing body referred to as the public financing authority, by adopting a resolution of intention to establish the proposed district. Existing law requires the public financing authority of an enhanced infrastructure financing district to hold a meeting and 3 public hearings on a proposed infrastructure financing plan, as provided. Existing law requires the infrastructure financing plan, among other things, to be sent to each owner of land within the proposed district and to each affected taxing entity. Existing law establishes notice requirements for the meeting and public hearings, including requiring a written notice of each meeting or public hearing to be mailed to each landowner, each resident, and each taxing entity, as specified. Alternative to mailing the documents and notices, existing law authorizes an official designated by the city or county to, instead, comply with alternative notice procedures. Existing law requires the public financing authority to review the infrastructure financing plan at least annually and make any amendments that are necessary and appropriate. Existing law requires a public financing authority to adopt an annual report, as provided, after holding a public hearing, and complying with certain notice requirements, including that the notice be mailed by first-class mail, but may be addressed to “occupant.”This bill: 1) revises and recasts those provisions by, among other things, requiring the public financing authority to hold a meeting and 2 public hearings, as specified, 2) removes the requirement that annual report notices be mailed by first-class mail, 3) revises and recasts the alternative notice procedures by, among other things, authorizing the alternative notice procedures to be used instead of the above-described notice requirements for amendments and annual plans, 4) with respect to the alternative notice procedures, requires the notice to include specified information and requires additional notice procedures, if a public hearing is rescheduled for a later date than provided in the notice, due to unanticipated circumstances, 5) requires a notice required by these provisions to be provided in English and in all other languages spoken jointly by 20% or more of the population in the jurisdiction of the county of the proposed district that speaks English less than “very well” and jointly speaks a language other than English according to data from the most recent American Community Survey or data from an equally reliable source, except as specified.II) Existing law makes findings and declarations related to these provisions.This bill: 6) makes additional findings and declarations that, among other things, public benefits will accrue if local agencies, excluding schools, are provided a means to improve air quality, fund port and harbor infrastructure, fund projects to improve broadband internet access service, and construct facilities for nonprofit community organizations that provide health, youth, homeless, and social services.III) Existing law authorizes a city, county, city and county, special district, or a combination of any of those entities to form a climate resilience district, as described, for the purposes of raising and allocating funding for eligible projects and the operating expenses of eligible projects. Existing law deems each district to be an enhanced infrastructure financing district and requires each district to comply with existing law concerning enhanced infrastructure financing districts, except as specified. Existing law requires a district to finance only specified projects that meet the definition of an eligible project. Existing law defines “eligible project” to include projects that address sea level rise, extreme heat, extreme cold, the risk of wildfire, drought, and the risk of flooding, as specified.This bill: 7) additionally includes a project that intends to improve air quality within the definition of “eligible project”, and 8) incorporates additional changes to Sections 53398.50 and 53398.52 of the Government Code proposed by AB 1819 to be operative only if this bill and AB 1819 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.
The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 designates the State Air Resources Board as the state agency responsible for monitoring and regulating sources emitting greenhouse gases. Existing law also generally designates the State Air Resources Board as the state agency with the primary responsibility for the control of vehicular air pollution. Existing law requires the state board to adopt and implement motor vehicle emission standards, in-use performance standards, and motor vehicle fuel specifications for the control of air contaminants and sources of air pollution the state board has found to be necessary, cost effective, and technologically feasible, to carry out specified purposes, unless preempted by federal law.This bill would: 1) if the state board adopts a regulation on or after April 28, 2023, requiring a fleet owner to acquire zero-emission vehicles as part of its fleet, require the state board to authorize the rental of a zero-emission vehicle or vehicles for a cumulative total of 260 days in a calendar year to be deemed ownership of one zero-emission vehicle for purposes of meeting that obligation, and 2) provide that a fleet owner that rents a zero-emission vehicle pursuant to this authority is not precluded from including that vehicle in their fleet for purposes of calculating any zero-emission vehicle acquisition requirement.
I) Existing sales and use tax laws impose a tax on retailers measured by the gross receipts from the sale of tangible personal property sold at retail in this state, or on the storage, use, or other consumption in this state of tangible personal property purchased from a retailer for storage, use, or other consumption in this state. Those laws provide various exemptions from those taxes.This bill: 1) beginning January 1, 2025, and until January 1, 2030, would exempt from those taxes the gross receipts from the sale in this state of, and the storage, use, or other consumption in this state of, zero-emission public transportation ferries, as defined, sold to a public agency, as specified.II) Existing law requires a bill that would authorize a new tax expenditure under the Sales and Use Tax Law to identify specific goals, purposes, and objectives that the tax expenditure will achieve, and detailed performance indicators and data collection requirements for determining whether the tax expenditure achieves these goals, purposes, and objectives.The bill would: 2) provide findings and declarations relating to the goals of the exemption for zero-emission public transportation ferries.III) Existing law imposes or dedicates certain state sales and use tax rates for local funding, including through the Local Revenue Fund 2011.This bill would: 3) specify that this exemption does not apply to those state sales and use tax rates imposed or dedicated for local government funding, including those rates for which revenues are deposited into the Local Revenue Fund 2011.IV) The Bradley-Burns Uniform Local Sales and Use Tax Law authorizes counties and cities to impose local sales and use taxes in conformity with the Sales and Use Tax Law, and existing laws authorize districts, as specified, to impose transactions and use taxes in accordance with the Transactions and Use Tax Law, which generally conforms to the Sales and Use Tax Law. Amendments to the Sales and Use Tax Law are automatically incorporated into the local tax laws.This bill would: 4) specify that this exemption does not apply to local sales and use taxes or transactions and use taxes, and 5) take effect immediately as a tax levy.
I) Existing law establishes the Clean Cars 4 All Program, which is administered by the State Air Resources Board, to focus on achieving reductions in the emissions of greenhouse gases, improvements in air quality, and benefits to low-income state residents through the replacement of high-polluter motor vehicles with cleaner and more efficient motor vehicles or a mobility option. Existing law requires the implementing regulations to ensure that the program complies with certain requirements.This bill would: 1) require the implementing regulations for the Clean Cars 4 All Program to additionally ensure that, among other things, incentives provided under the program are available in all areas of the state and that, in those areas where a local air district has not elected to participate in the program, to manage the distribution of incentives within its jurisdiction, the state board manages the distribution of incentives to eligible residents of those areas, 2) make certain conforming changes in that regard, 3) require, as one of the program goals for replacement of passenger vehicles and trucks, the state board to prioritize vehicle retirement in areas of the state that meet specified criteria, including those areas with the highest percentage of people residing in disadvantaged and low-income communities, 4) also require the state board to update the guidelines for the program no later than July 1, 2026, as specified.II) Existing law requires the state board to annually post on its internet website a performance analysis of the replacement and mobility options component of the Clean Cars 4 All Program that includes an evaluation of the funding for targeted outreach in low-income or disadvantaged communities, as specified.This bill would: 5) require that analysis to additionally include an evaluation of the funding for targeted outreach in low-income or disadvantaged communities with the highest number of vehicles manufactured before 2004 or that are at least 20 years old that are driven most and have the poorest fuel economy, as specified.III) Existing law requires the state board to consider certain metrics in allocating funding under the program to local air districts participating in the program, and to the statewide program, including the number of vouchers deployed and the population in eligible program ZIP Codes.This bill would: 6) require the state board, in allocating funding to local air districts participating in the program and to the portion of the program managed by the state board, to consider additional metrics, including the total value of vouchers deployed and certain metrics for retired vehicles, and would delete the requirement to consider the population in eligible ZIP Codes, and 6) also require the state board, in coordination with local air districts and specified organizations, to establish a means-based strategy to identify potential recipients of incentives under the Clean Cars 4 All Program that meet certain criteria and, as part of that strategy, require an increased incentive to be provided under the program to those individuals.
Existing law directs the State Air Resources Board to coordinate efforts to attain and maintain ambient air quality standards. Existing law creates the Air Quality Improvement Program, administered by the state board, to fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, air quality improvement projects relating to fuel and vehicle technologies.This bill would: 1) require the state board to establish the Zero-Emission Aftermarket Conversion Project (ZACP) upon appropriation by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act or other statute or, at the discretion of the state board, using moneys available from another clean transportation program, to provide an applicant who is a California resident with a rebate for an eligible vehicle that has been converted into a zero-emission vehicle, The rebate issued pursuant to the ZACP would be limited to one per vehicle and a value of up to $4,000, 2) require the state board to establish guidelines for the ZACP that, among other things, define qualifying conversion-types for used vehicles and establish minimum eligibility criteria for an applicant to be eligible for the rebate, and 3) also require the state board’s guidelines to require that an eligible zero-emission vehicle have a range of at least 100 miles and have completed an inspection of safety systems and components by a licensee of the Bureau of Automotive Repair, as provided.
I) Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations, while local publicly owned electric utilities are under the direction of their governing boards. Existing law requires electrical corporations, in addition to other requirements to procure generating capacity from bioenergy projects, to collectively procure, by December 1, 2023, their proportionate share of 125 megawatts of cumulative rated generating capacity from bioenergy projects that commenced operations before June 1, 2013, and that use certain feedstocks.This bill: 1) extends that procurement deadline to July 1, 2025.II) Existing law requires electrical corporations, local publicly owned electric utilities, and community choice aggregators with contracts to procure electricity generated from biomass that expire on or before December 31, 2028, to seek to amend the contracts or to seek approval for new contracts that include expiration dates 5 years later than the expiration dates in the contracts that were operative in 2022. Existing law specifies that this requirement does not apply to biomass facilities located in federal severe or extreme nonattainment areas for particulate matter or ozone.This bill: 2) requires those entities to seek to amend the contracts or seek approval for new contracts to include expiration dates at least 5 years later, rather than expiration dates 5 years later, than the expiration dates in the contracts that were operative in 2022, 3) specifies that this contracting requirement applies to a biomass facility located in an area that voluntarily opts for severe or extreme nonattainment status for particulate matter or ozone but the air district has determined that the continued operation of the facility does not impede the air district’s ability to meet its applicable attainment deadline, 4) prohibits the extension of a contract between an electrical corporation, local publicly owned electric utility, or community choice aggregator and a biomass generator that is located in the Sacramento federal ozone nonattainment area unless the biomass generator first obtains a letter or certificate from the air district with jurisdiction over the biomass generator that states that the Sacramento federal ozone nonattainment area voluntarily opted to be classified in one or more federal standards in a severe or extreme nonattainment zone and that the continued operation of the facility does not impede the air district’s ability to meet its applicable requirements, 5) makes legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the Sacramento federal ozone nonattainment area, and 6) incorporates additional changes to Section 399.20.3 of the Public Utilities Code proposed by AB 2276 to be operative only if this bill and AB 2276 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.
This bill, among other things: makes appropriations for support of state government for the 2024-25 fiscal year that relate to energy and climate funding.
This bill, among other things: 1) changes appropriations to energy, air quality, and climate change related programs.
This bill, among other things: 1) makes changes to appropriations for energy efficiency, climate resiliency, and oil and gas regulatory programs.
The Budget Act of 2024 made appropriations for the support of state government for the 2024–25 fiscal year.This bill: 1) amends the Budget Act of 2024 by amending items of appropriation and making other changes, and 2) declares that it is to take effect immediately as a Budget Bill.
Among other things, this bill: I) The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 establishes the State Air Resources Board as the state agency responsible for monitoring and regulating sources emitting greenhouse gases. The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 authorizes the State Air Resources Board to include the use of market-based compliance mechanisms. Existing law requires all moneys, except for fines and penalties, collected by the State Air Resources Board from the auction or sale of allowances as part of a market-based compliance mechanism to be deposited in the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund and to be available upon appropriation by the Legislature. Existing law requires the Department of Finance, in consultation with the State Air Resources Board and any other relevant state agency, to develop, as specified, a 3-year investment plan for the moneys deposited in the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund. Existing law requires the Department of Finance, commencing with the 2016–17 fiscal year budget and every 3 years thereafter, with the release of the Governor’s budget proposal, to include updates to the investment plan following a public process, as specified.This bill: exempts the Department of Finance from including updates to the investment plan for the 2025–26 fiscal year budget.II) Existing law establishes the Clean Cars 4 All Program, which is administered by the State Air Resources Board, to focus on achieving reductions in the emissions of greenhouse gases, improvements in air quality, and benefits to low-income state residents through the replacement of high-polluter motor vehicles with cleaner and more efficient motor vehicles or a mobility option. Existing law requires the State Air Resources Board to consider certain metrics in allocating funding under the program to local air districts participating in the program. Existing law requires the State Air Resources Board to annually collect and post certain information on its internet website that includes, among other things, information regarding moneys allocated to the program and the expenditures of the program by region.This bill: 2) also requires the State Air Resources Board to consider those metrics in allocating funding under the program to the statewide program, 3) requires the State Air Resources Board, with respect to specified funds allocated by the State Air Resources Board to the program, to maintain funding for each local air district participating in the program by requiring the State Air Resources Board to reallocate funds to local air districts under certain circumstances, 4) requires the State Air Resources Board to annually report to the budget committees of both houses of the Legislature the amount of funding allocated by the State Air Resources Board to the statewide Clean Cars 4 All program and to each district Clean Cars 4 All program and detailed performance metrics for the statewide and district Clean Cars 4 All programs, as specified.III) Existing law prohibits the Geologic Energy Management Division, commencing with the 2022–23 fiscal year, from expending more than $5,000,000 in any one fiscal year from the Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Administrative Fund, and, in addition, for the 2025–26 fiscal year, authorizes the division to make an expenditure, on a one-time basis, of $7,500,000, only if there is a dedicated General Fund appropriation for the 2023–24 fiscal year for purposes of plugging and abandoning wells, decommissioning facilities, and site remediation.This bill: 5) eliminates the one-time expenditure authorization for the 2025–26 fiscal year, and authorizes the Geologic Energy Management Division to make a one-time expenditure for the 2026–27 fiscal year of $7,500,000, only if there is a dedicated appropriation from a fund other than the Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Administrative Fund for the 2026–27 fiscal year for those specified purposes.IV) Existing law requires the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection to annually provide a report to the Legislature detailing the department’s fire prevention activities, as provided.This bill: 6) revises and recasts certain definitions and the requirements of that report, including the addition of reporting on wildfire resilience activities, as defined.V) Existing law requires the Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force, on or before January 1, 2026, and every 5 years thereafter, to update the state’s “Wildfire and Forest Resilience Action Plan,” as provided. Existing law requires the task force, on or before January 1, 2023, and annually thereafter until January 1, 2048, to submit a report containing specified information, including progress made in achieving the goals and key actions identified in the action plan, to the appropriate policy and budget committees of the Legislature.This bill: 7) instead requires the task force to submit the report on or before January 1, 2023, and annually thereafter on or before March 1, until March 1, 2048. The bill would also instead require the task force, or its successor entity, to update the state’s “Wildfire and Forest Resilience Action Plan” on or before March 1, 2026, and every 5 years thereafter.VI) Existing law authorizes the Department of Water Resources to loan up to a total principal amount not to exceed $1.4 billion to the company licensed to operate the Diablo Canyon powerplant to facilitate the extension of the operating period of the Diablo Canyon powerplant, as provided. Existing law establishes the Diablo Canyon Extension Fund in the State Treasury and continuously appropriates moneys in the fund to the Department of Water Resources for purposes of making the loan.This bill: 8) requires the Department of Water Resources, in consultation with the Public Utilities Commission and the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission, to provide a biannual report, on or before February 1 and August 1 of each year until December 31, 2030, to the relevant budget and policy committees of both houses of the Legislature on the status of the above-described loan, as provided. By expanding the purposes for which money in a continuously appropriated fund may be used, the bill would make an appropriation.VII) Existing law appropriates $822,400,000 from the General Fund and the Toxic Substances Control Account to the Department of Toxic Substances Control, for allocation over the 2021–22, 2022–23, and 2023–24 fiscal years, as prescribed, for, among other things, the discovery, cleanup, and investigation of contaminated properties.This bill: 8) instead appropriates $553,900,000 from the General Fund, the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, and the Toxic Substances Control Account and would allocate that appropriation over the 2021–22, 2022–23, 2023–24, 2024–25, and 2026–27 fiscal years, as prescribed, for specified purposes, 9) bill would specify that the amount appropriated is to be available for encumbrance for 4 fiscal years after the fiscal year in which funds are released, 10) by revising the amount appropriated from the General Fund and the Toxic Substances Control Account for the 2021–22, 2022–23, and 2023–24 fiscal years and appropriating a specified amount from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund for the 2024–25 and 2026–27 fiscal years, this bill makes an appropriation, and 11) declares that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if the lead agency finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. Existing law establishes the Geologic Energy Management Division in the Department of Conservation, under the direction of the State Oil and Gas Supervisor, who is required to supervise the drilling, operation, maintenance, and abandonment of wells so as to permit the owners or operators of those wells to utilize all methods and practices known to the industry for the purpose of increasing the ultimate recovery of geothermal resources, as provided. Existing law requires the division to be the lead agency for all geothermal exploratory projects for purposes of CEQA, as specified, and authorizes the division to delegate its lead agency responsibility for geothermal exploratory projects to a county that has adopted a geothermal element for its general plan. Existing law requires the delegation to provide that the county complete its lead agency responsibility within 135 days of the receipt of the application for the project.This bill: 1) deletes the requirement of the delegation to provide that the county complete its lead agency responsibility within 135 day, 2) specifies, upon the request of an applicant of a geothermal exploratory project, that the county in which the project is located is to assume the responsibilities of a lead agency regardless of whether the county has adopted a geothermal element for its general plan, 3) requires the applicant to make the request to the county and the division. If a county assumes lead agency responsibility for a geothermal exploratory project, require the county and the division to confer regarding necessary information that should be included in the environmental review for the project to facilitate the division’s exercise of its authority as a responsible agency, 4) because the bill requires a county, upon the request of an applicant, to assume the responsibilities of a lead agency under CEQA, and would, if a county assumes lead agency responsibility, requires the county and division to confer, as specified, impose a state-mandated local program by increasing the duties of a county, 5) the California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill provides that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason, and 6) declares that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. Existing law, until January 1, 2025, exempts from CEQA residential or mixed-use housing projects, as defined, located in unincorporated areas of a county meeting certain requirements, except for residential or mixed-use housing projects if certain conditions exist, as specified. Existing law requires a lead agency, if the lead agency determines that a residential or mixed-use housing project qualifies for this exemption from CEQA and determines to approve or carry out the project, to file a notice of exemption with the Office of Planning and Research and the county clerk in the county in which the project is located.This bill: 1) extends the operation of that exemption until January 1, 2032. By extending the requirement on a lead agency to determine the applicability of the exemption and to file a notice of exemption with the office and the county clerk, this bill imposes a state-mandated local program, 2) also makes this exemption inapplicable to a residential or mixed-use housing project that may cause substantial adverse impact to tribal cultural resources, as defined.
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. CEQA, until January 1, 2030, exempts from its requirements certain transportation-related projects if specified requirements are met, including that a local agency, as defined, is carrying out the project and that the project will be completed by a skilled and trained workforce, as provided. CEQA includes within these exempt transportation-related projects a public project for the institution or increase of bus rapid transit, bus, or light rail service, which will be exclusively used by low-emission or zero-emission vehicles, on existing public rights-of-way or existing highway rights-of-way. Existing law requires the lead agency, if it determines that a transportation-related project is exempt from CEQA and determines to carry out the project, to file a notice of exemption with the Office of Planning and Research and the county clerk in which the project is located.This bill: 1) expands that exemption from CEQA to include a public project for the institution or increase of other passenger rail service, which will be exclusively used by zero-emission trains, located entirely within existing rail rights-of-way or existing highway rights-of-way.
Existing law requires project applicants and public agencies subject to the California Environmental Quality Act to pay a filing fee to the Department of Fish and Wildlife for each proposed project for the purpose of defraying the costs of managing and protecting fish and wildlife trust resources, as specified. Existing law specifies the required filing fees and provides that a filing fee is not required to be paid if specified conditions exist. Existing law also authorizes a county clerk to charge a documentary handling fee of $50 per filing in addition to the filing fee, and requires the county clerk of each county and the Office of Planning and Research to maintain a record, both electronic and in paper, of all environmental documents received, as specified.This bill: 1) instead requires the county clerk of each county and the Office of Planning and Research to maintain the record electronically and authorize the county clerk of each county and the office to maintain the record on paper.
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report (EIR) on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. CEQA establishes administrative procedures for the review and certification of the EIR for a project and judicial review procedures for any action or proceeding brought to challenge the lead agency’s decision to certify the EIR or to grant project approvals.This bill: 1) establishes streamlined procedures for the administrative and judicial review of the environmental review and approvals granted for an environmental leadership media campus project, defined by the bill as a construction or renovation project on a film and television media campus in the County of Los Angeles, under certain conditions, 2) requires a city within the County of Los Angeles that is the lead agency for an environmental leadership media campus project to certify the project for the streamlined judicial review, as specified, if the lead agency finds the project will meet those conditions, 3) requires the project applicant of the environmental leadership media campus project to take certain actions in order for those specified procedures to apply to the project, 4) requires the Judicial Council, on or before July 1, 2025, to adopt rules of court establishing procedures requiring actions or proceedings seeking judicial review of the certification of an environmental impact report for an environmental leadership media campus project or the granting of any project approval, including any appeals to the court of appeal or the Supreme Court, to be resolved, to the extent feasible, within 365 calendar days of the filing of the certified record of proceedings with the court, 5) requires the lead agency to prepare the EIR for an environmental leadership media campus project in a specified manner and would require the concurrent preparation of the record of proceedings, and 6) makes legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the County of Los Angeles.
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report (EIR) on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. CEQA authorizes the Governor to certify certain projects, including energy infrastructure projects, as defined, that meet specified requirements, including a requirement that the applicant agrees to pay the costs of preparing the record of proceedings for the project concurrent with review and consideration of the project, as specified, for streamlining benefits related to CEQA, such as the requirement that judicial actions challenging the certification of an EIR and the granting of approval by a lead agency for certified projects, including any potential appeals to the court of appeal or the Supreme Court, be resolved, to the extent feasible, within 270 days after the filing of the certified record of proceedings with the court. CEQA provides that the certification is no longer valid if the lead agency fails to approve the certified project before January 1, 2033.This bill would: 1) revise the definition of “energy infrastructure projects” to include projects that increase the storage of petroleum products at a refinery meeting certain requirements. Because the bill would impose additional duties on lead agencies in conducting the environmental review of petroleum storage projects that are certified by the Governor, including the concurrent preparation of the record of proceedings, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
I) The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report (EIR) on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. Existing law, until January 1, 2030, exempts from CEQA a university housing development project carried out by a public university on real property owned by the public university if the project meets certain requirements, including that each building within the project is certified as Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum or better by the United States Green Building Council. Existing law requires the lead agency, if the university housing development project is exempt from CEQA under the above provision, to file the LEED certificate for buildings within the project and a notice determining that the construction impacts of the project have been fully mitigated with the Office of Planning and Research and the county clerk of the county in which the project is located. Existing law requires a university housing development project carried out by the University of California, in order to be exempt from CEQA under this law, to be consistent with the most recent long-range development plan EIR certified on or after January 1, 2018, as provided.This bill: 1) extends the application of the university housing development project exemption until January 1, 2032, 2) instead requires a university housing development project carried out by the University of California, in order to be exempt from CEQA under the above-described exemption to be located on a campus site identified for housing in the most recent long-range development plan EIR or an EIR prepared for any subsequent amendment to that plan relating to housing, as specified, 3) repeals the requirement to file the LEED certificate with the county clerk of the county in which the project is located.II) Existing law requires a public university or a relevant public agency with authority to issue a certificate of occupancy for a building within an exempt university housing development project to not issue the certificate of occupancy for the building unless the lead agency receives certification of LEED Platinum or better from the United States Green Building Council for the building and the lead agency determines that the construction impacts of the project have been fully mitigated.This bill: 4) instead require a public university to obtain LEED Platinum certification for each building within a university housing development project no later than 18 months from the issuance of the building’s certificate of occupancy or an equivalent certification, or its initial usage, and would authorize a public university to obtain 2 extensions for this LEED certification compliance requirement in 6-month increments, as provided, 5) prohibits a public university that has exempted an approved university housing development project pursuant to the above-described exemption from applying that exemption to a subsequent university housing development project until the public university has obtained LEED Platinum certification for each building within the prior exempted university housing development project, except as specified, and 6) also makes other related changes.
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. Existing law requires the Office of Planning and Research to prepare, develop, and transmit to the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency for certification and adoption proposed revisions to guidelines establishing criteria, for purposes of CEQA, for determining the significance of transportation impacts of projects within transit priority areas to promote the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, the development of multimodal transportation networks, and a diversity of land uses. Existing law establishes the Department of Housing and Community Development in the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency and makes the department responsible for administering various housing programs throughout the state.This bill: 1) requires the department, in consultation with local governments and other interested parties, as specified, by January 1, 2028, and subject to an appropriation by the Legislature for this purpose, to conduct and post on its internet website a study on how vehicle miles traveled is used as a metric for measuring transportation impacts of housing projects pursuant to CEQA, 2) requires the study to include, among other things, an analysis of the differences in the availability and feasibility of mitigation measures to housing projects for vehicle miles traveled in rural, suburban, urban, and low vehicle miles traveled areas, and 3) repeals those provisions on January 1, 2029.
Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations and gas corporations. Existing law requires the commission to annually prepare and submit to the Governor and Legislature a written report that contains the commission’s recommendations for actions that can be undertaken during the succeeding 12 months to limit utility cost and rate increases consistent with the state’s energy and environmental goals, including goals for reducing emissions of greenhouse gases, and requires the commission, in preparing the report, to require certain electrical corporations and gas corporations to study and report on measures they recommend be undertaken to limit costs and rate increases.This bill: 1) requires that the report also contain recommendations that may take longer than 12 months to implement, but could lead to substantial reductions in monthly electricity and natural gas utility bills, and considerations of how the adoption of decarbonization policies, including electrification, may impact total energy costs borne by consumers, as provided.
Existing law authorizes the Public Utilities Commission to fix the rates and charges for every public utility, including electrical and gas corporations, and requires those rates and charges to be just and reasonable.This bill: 1) requires the commission, following the approval of each general rate case, to review which costs, if any, differed from the general rate case forecasts for each electrical corporation or gas corporation, and to adjust the authorized revenue requirement in the subsequent general rate case, as appropriate, based on the actual past costs the corporation records, 2) requires the commission to establish guidelines for electrical corporations and gas corporations to calculate and report annually their actual rates of return to the commission, and 3) requires the commission to adopt processes to adequately track those corporations’ actual rates of return relative to their forecasted rates of return and to require those corporations to identify the cost categories where projected costs differed from actual costs.
Existing law authorizes the Public Utilities Commission to fix the rates and charges for every public utility, and requires that those rates and charges be just and reasonable. Existing law authorizes an electrical corporation to file an application requesting the commission to issue a financing order to authorize the recovery of costs and expenses related to a catastrophic wildfire, including fire risk mitigation capital expenditures, through the issuance of bonds by the electrical corporation that are secured by a rate component, as provided.This bill would: 1) in addition to expenses related to catastrophic wildfires, authorize the use of a financing order to recover the costs of wildfire mitigation efforts, operational and maintenance expenses related to an electrical corporation’s wildfire mitigation plan, wildfire risk mitigation costs, vegetation management costs and expenses, or to recover an electrical corporation’s costs related to any federal or state declaration of a state of emergency, and 2) authorize an application for vegetation management expenses submitted by a large electrical corporation, as defined, to include the issuance of recovery bonds for vegetation management expenses, including where bond proceeds are refunded to customers, in an amount not to exceed a specified amount with an average repayment period not to exceed 15 years.
I)Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations and gas corporations.This bill: 1) requires the PUC, in consultation with the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission), to develop a framework for assessing, tracking, and analyzing total annual energy costs paid by residential households in California, as specified, 2) authorizes the PUC to use the framework for purposes of evaluating any request by an electrical corporation and gas corporation to track new spending eligible for recovery or to adjust a revenue requirement, 3) requires the PUC to submit a report to the Legislature containing the framework and certain information, and 4) requires large electrical corporations, as defined, and large gas corporations, as defined, by January 1, 2026, and each year thereafter, to publish on their internet websites and provide to the PUC a visual representation of certain cost categories included in residential electric or gas rates for the succeeding calendar year.II) Existing law requires the PUC, triennially, to submit a report to the Legislature on the energy efficiency and conservation programs it oversees.This bill instead would: 5) require the PUC to submit a report to the Legislature on the demand-side management programs it oversees or that are paid for by ratepayers of community choice aggregators, electrical corporations, or gas corporations, 6) revise the information required to be included in the report.III) Transmission CostsThis bill would: 7) require the PUC, in consultation with the Energy Commission, the California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank, and the Independent System Operator, by July 1, 2025, to submit to the Governor and the Legislature a study identifying proposals to reduce the cost to ratepayers of expanding the state’s electrical transmission grid as necessary to achieve the state’s goals, to meet the state’s requirements, and to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases, as specified in law, regulation, or executive order.
Existing law prohibits an electrical or gas corporation from terminating residential service for nonpayment of a delinquent account unless the corporation first gives notice of the delinquency and impending termination, as provided. Existing law requires the notice to include information on procedures by which the affected residential customer may initiate a complaint, request an investigation concerning the service or charges, and request amortization of the unpaid charges. Existing law requires that a residential customer who initiated a complaint, requested an investigation, or requested an extension of the payment period be given an opportunity for review of the complaint, investigation, or request by a review manager of the corporation. Existing law requires the review to include a consideration of whether the customer is to be permitted to amortize the unpaid balance of the delinquent account over a reasonable time period, not to exceed 12 months.This bill: 1) requires an electrical or gas corporation to restore service to a residential customer whose service was previously terminated for nonpayment of delinquent amounts upon the customer entering into an amortization agreement or any other arrearage payment plan determined by the Public Utilities Commission, 2) requires the restoration of service to occur by specified deadlines, to the extent authorized by commission rules, and 3) requires the commission, on or before July 1, 2025, to determine whether to direct electrical and gas corporations to take into account a customer’s ability to pay before terminating or reconnecting services, as provided.
I) Existing law requires the Public Utilities Commission to require every electrical corporation, gas corporation, water corporation, wireless telecommunications service provider, electric service provider, and telephone corporation with annual gross California revenues exceeding $25,000,000 to annually submit a detailed and verifiable plan for increasing procurement from women, minority, disabled veteran, and LGBT business enterprises (WMDVLGBT business enterprises) and an annual report to the commission regarding the implementation of programs related to procurement from WMDVLGBT business enterprises, as specified. Existing law requires the commission to require each of the above-described entities with gross annual California revenues exceeding $15,000,000, but not more than $25,000,000, to annually submit data in a simplified form to the commission on its procurement from WMDVLGBT business enterprises, as specified. Existing law requires the commission, by rule or order, to adopt criteria for verifying and determining the eligibility of women, minority, and LGBT business enterprises for procurement contracts, and to adopt the Department of General Services’ disabled veteran business enterprise certification eligibility requirements.This bill 1) requires the above-described entities with annual gross California revenues exceeding $25,000,000, and would require the above-described entities with annual gross California revenues exceeding $15,000,000, but not more than $25,000,000, to include certain information in the aggregate as part of each annual report or data submission described above, including, among other information, data regarding the diversity of contractor or subcontractor workforces and the total dollar amounts expended with in-state subcontractors, as provided, 2) requires the above-described entities with annual gross California revenues exceeding $25,000,000, and their commission-regulated subsidiaries and affiliates, to submit annually to the commission a report describing the employment of women, minority, disabled veteran, and LGBT individuals at all levels of employment within their organizations and describing the diversity, equity, and inclusion policies or activities that promote equitable recruitment and hiring, and would require those entities to furnish an annual report to the commission regarding the implementation of related programs.II) Existing law requires the commission to require each community choice aggregator with gross annual revenues exceeding $15,000,000 to annually submit a report to the commission regarding its procurement from WMDVLGBT business enterprises in all categories, including, but not limited to, renewable energy, energy storage system, and smart grid projects.This bill: 3) requires community choice aggregators to provide certain information in the aggregate as part of the above-described annual report, including, among other information, data regarding the diversity of contractor or subcontractor workforces and the total dollar amounts expended with in-state subcontractors, as provided, 4) also requires the commission to direct each community choice aggregator with gross annual revenues exceeding $15,000,000 to annually submit to the commission a report describing the employment of women, minority, disabled veteran, and LGBT individuals at all levels of employment within its organization and the diversity, equity, and inclusion policies or activities that promote equitable recruitment and hiring, and would require those entities to furnish an annual report regarding the implementation of related programs. III) Existing law requires the commission to annually report to the Legislature, by September 1 of each year, on the progress of activities undertaken in the implementation of women, minority, disabled veteran, and LGBT business enterprise development programs by electrical corporations, gas corporations, water corporations, wireless telecommunications service providers, electric service providers, telephone corporations, and community choice aggregators with gross annual California revenues exceeding $15,000,000.This bill: 5) authorizes the commission to include, as part of that report, certain information related to attracting business for contractors and subcontractors operating in California, among other information.
Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations, gas corporations, sewer system corporations, and water corporations, while local publicly owned utilities, including municipal utility districts, public utility districts, and irrigation districts, are under the direction of their governing boards.This bill: 1) for new housing construction, requires the above-described utilities, on or before January 1, 2026, to publicly post on their internet websites (A) the schedule of estimated fees for typical service connections for each housing development type, including, but not limited to, accessory dwelling unit, mixed-use, multifamily, and single-family developments, except as specified, and (B) the estimated time frames for completing typical service connections needed for each housing development type, as specified, 2) exempts from its provisions a utility with fewer than 4,000 service connections that does not establish or maintain an internet website due to a hardship, and would authorize the utility to establish that a hardship exists by annually adopting a resolution that includes detailed findings, as provided, and 3) to the extent that this bill would impose new requirements on certain local agencies, the bill imposes a state-mandated local program.
Existing law, the Ralph M. Brown Act, requires that meetings of the legislative body of a local agency, including a joint powers agency, be open and public, with specified exceptions authorizing closed sessions for specified purposes. Existing law authorizes a joint powers agency to, among other things, authorize, as specified, a designated alternate member of the legislative body of the joint powers agency who is also a member of the legislative body of a local agency member to attend closed sessions of the joint powers agency. Existing law makes certain information presented to the joint powers agency in closed session confidential, and authorizes a member of the legislative body of a local agency member to disclose certain information obtained in a closed session to legal counsel of that member local agency for specified purposes or to other members of the legislative body of that local agency in a closed session, as specified. Existing law further authorizes the Clean Power Alliance of Southern California, or its successor entity, to authorize a designated alternate member of its legislative body who is not a member of the legislative body of a local agency member to attend its closed sessions and to make similar disclosures described above, as specified. If the Clean Power Alliance of Southern California, or its successor entity, exercises this authority, existing law requires it to establish certain policies to prevent conflicts of interest and to address breaches of confidentiality. Existing law repeals these provisions relating to the Clean Power Alliance of Southern California on January 1, 2025.This bill: 1) extends that repeal date to January 1, 2030, and 2) makes legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the Clean Power Alliance of Southern California.
Existing law regulates advertising that indicates the price of motor vehicle fuel, including electricity sold as a motor vehicle fuel. Existing law requires a county sealer to enforce the advertising requirements. Existing law makes a violation of these provisions a crime. Existing law defines “correct,” for purposes of testing and verifying the accuracy of a weighing or measuring device, as a weight or measure or a weighing, measuring, or counting instrument that meets certain tolerance and specification requirements.This bill: 1) beginning January 1, 2026, authorizes a county sealer to test and verify as correct any electric vehicle charger operated by a public agency, as defined, that is located in the county in which the sealer has jurisdiction, 2) requires a county sealer, upon testing and finding that an electric vehicle charger operated by a public agency is incorrect, as defined, to cause it to be marked with the words “out of order” and require the charger to be repaired or corrected, as specified, 3) authorizes a county board of supervisors to charge an annual registration fee for the cost of inspecting and testing an electric vehicle charger operated by a public agency, as specified, 4) authorizes a county sealer to levy a civil penalty against a public agency, or a vendor or entity contracted by the public agency to provide and maintain electric vehicle charger services on behalf of the public agency, that removes or obliterates a tag or device placed on an electric vehicle charger operated by a public agency, as specified, and 5) exempts an electric vehicle charger from testing and verification by a county sealer if it is owned by a local publicly owned electric utility, as defined, and if certain requirements are met.
I) Existing law creates the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, known as “GO-Biz,” and requires GO-Biz to serve the Governor as the lead entity for economic strategy and the marketing of California on issues relating to business development, private sector investment, and economic growth. Existing law continues into existence the zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) division within GO-Biz as the Zero-Emission Vehicle Market Development Office. Existing law references GO-Biz’s Electric Vehicle Charging Station Permitting Guidebook, which recommends best practices for electric vehicle supply equipment permitting.This bill: 1) requires the office to develop a model permitting checklist, model zoning ordinances, and best practices for permit costs and permit review timelines to help local governments permit curbside charging stations as part of the office’s development of the Electric Vehicle Charging Station Permitting Guidebook or any subsequent updates, 2) also requires the office to consult with local governments, electric vehicle service providers, and utilities while developing the above-described materials.II) Existing law, the Planning and Zoning Law, authorizes the legislative body of any county or city to adopt prescribed zoning ordinances within its jurisdiction. Existing law declares that it is the policy of the state to promote and encourage the use of electric vehicle charging stations and to limit obstacles to their use. Existing law prescribes various requirements on the review and approval of applications to install electric vehicle charging stations. Existing law requires every city, county, and city and county to administratively approve an application to install electric vehicle charging stations and hydrogen-fueling stations through the issuance of a building permit or similar nondiscretionary permit and requires the review of an application to install an electric vehicle charging station or a hydrogen-fueling station to be limited to the building official’s review of whether it meets all health and safety requirements of local, state, and federal law. Existing law defines “electric vehicle charging station” or “charging station” for these purposes.This bill: 3) requires local agencies to, among other things, develop a checklist that includes all of the information required for a complete application for a permit or other authorization to install an electric vehicle charging station within the public right-of-way, as defined, 4) as part of that process, this bill requires local agencies to consider the Electric Vehicle Charging Station Permitting Guidebook from the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, 5) requires local agencies with populations of 250,000 or more to comply with these provisions by January 1, 2027, and local agencies with populations of fewer than 250,000 residents to comply with these provisions by January 1, 2029, 6) defines various terms for these purposes, 7) by imposing additional duties on local agencies, this bill imposes a state-mandated local program, and 8) includes findings that changes proposed by this bill address a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, apply to all cities, including charter cities.
Existing law, the California Clean Energy Jobs Act, expresses a goal of creating good-paying energy efficiency and clean energy jobs in California. Existing law establishes in state government the Labor and Workforce Development Agency, under the supervision of the Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development, which consists of the Office of the Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development and the California Workforce Development Board, among others. Existing law creates the position of Deputy Secretary for Climate within the agency, subject to appropriation by the Legislature, for the purpose of assisting in the oversight of California’s workforce transition to a sustainable and equitable carbon neutral economy.This bill would: 1) upon appropriation by the Legislature, establish an Electric Vehicle Economic Opportunity Zone (EVEOZ) for the County of Riverside, administered by the Labor and Workforce Development Agency, for the purpose of creating programs to make electric vehicle manufacturing jobs and education more accessible to lower income communities, 2) require the agency to collaborate with the County of Riverside in determining the geographical boundaries of the EVEOZ. By imposing additional duties on local officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program, 3) authorize the agency to partner with educational institutions, electric vehicle manufacturing businesses, and local and national financial intuitions to develop EVEOZ education, training, and investment programs, as specified, and 4) make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the County of Riverside.
Existing law provides that the Department of Food and Agriculture has general supervision of the weights and measures and weighing and measuring devices sold or used in the state, including devices used to measure electricity sold as a motor vehicle fuel. Existing law regulates the use and repair of weighing or measuring devices. Existing law authorizes a device to be placed in service only by a sealer or a service agency.This bill: 1) prohibits, until January 1, 2028, requiring electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) to be retested or placed in service by a service agency or sealer, if the EVSE has previously been placed in service by a service agency or sealer, before the EVSE is used after receiving maintenance, as specified.
Existing law prohibits persons desiring to use an electric vehicle charging station that requires payment of a fee from being required to pay a subscription fee to use the station and from being required to obtain membership in any club, association, or organization as a condition of using the station. Existing law requires the total actual charges for the use of an electric vehicle charging station, including any additional network roaming charges for nonmembers, to be disclosed to the public at the point of sale. Existing law authorizes the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to adopt interoperability billing standards for network roaming payment methods for electric vehicle charging stations if no interoperability billing standards have been adopted by a national standards organization by January 1, 2015.This bill: 1) requires the commission to apply any network roaming standards it adopts only to major electric vehicle charging network providers, as defined, and 2) requires that those network roaming standards require major electric vehicle charging network providers to accept payment for charging made by users from multiple other major electric vehicle charging network providers and automakers.
Under existing law, the State Air Resources Board has adopted the Advanced Clean Fleets Regulations, which imposes various requirements for transitioning local, state, and federal government fleets of medium- and heavy-duty trucks, other high-priority fleets of medium- and heavy-duty trucks, and drayage trucks to zero-emission vehicles, as provided.This bill would: 1) until January 1, 2030, exempt emergency telecommunications vehicles owned or purchased by emergency telecommunications providers that are used to participate in the federal Emergency Alert System, to provide access to 911 emergency services, or to provide wireless connectivity during service outages from specified requirements in the above-described regulations.
Existing law requires the State Air Resources Board to adopt and implement motor vehicle emission standards, in-use performance standards, and motor vehicle fuel specifications for the control of air contaminants and sources of air pollution that the state board has found necessary, cost effective, and technologically feasible. The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 establishes the state board as the state agency responsible for monitoring and regulating sources emitting greenhouse gases and requires the state board to adopt rules and regulations to achieve the maximum technologically feasible and cost-effective greenhouse gas emission reductions from those sources.This bill: 1) authorizes the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission), in consultation with the state board and the Public Utilities Commission, to require any weight class of battery electric vehicle to be bidirectional capable, as defined, if it determines there is a sufficiently compelling beneficial bidirectional-capable use case to the battery electric vehicle operator and electrical grid, 2) requires the Energy Commission, in its analysis, to consider vehicle readiness and duty cycles required of vehicles operated by essential service providers, and 3) defines various terms for this purpose and authorize the state board and Energy Commission to each periodically update the definitions of specified terms to ensure that the definitions align with current technologies in bidirectional charging and account for ongoing innovation.
Existing law, the Lithium Extraction Tax Law, imposes a lithium extraction excise tax upon each metric ton of lithium carbonate equivalent extracted from geothermal fluid, spodumene ore, rock, minerals, clay, or any other naturally occurring substance in this state, as specified. Existing law requires the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration to administer and collect the tax and requires all collected revenues, less refunds and reimbursement to the department for administrative expenses, to be deposited into the Lithium Extraction Excise Tax Fund and disbursed in the manner prescribed. Existing law requires 80% of the moneys in the Lithium Extraction Excise Tax Fund to be disbursed by the Controller to all counties in proportion to the amounts collected for lithium extraction within each county, as specified, and 20% of the moneys to be deposited into the Salton Sea Lithium Fund.This bill: 1) instead of depositing 20% of the moneys in the Lithium Extraction Excise Tax Fund into the Salton Sea Lithium Fund, deposits 20% of the revenues collected in the County of Imperial into the Salton Sea Lithium Fund, and disburse 20% of the revenues collected in every other county to that county for distribution to communities in that county that are the most impacted by the lithium extraction activities, 2) removes a restriction on the Lithium Extraction Excise Tax Fund, 3) changes the amount deposited into the Salton Sea Lithium Fund, both continuously appropriated funds, thereby making an appropriation, and 4) makes legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the County of Imperial.
The California Building Standards Law establishes the California Building Standards Commission within the Department of General Services. Existing law requires the commission to approve and adopt building standards and to codify those standards in the California Building Standards Code, which is required to be published once every 3 years. Existing law requires the State Fire Marshal, before the next triennial edition of the California Building Standards Code adopted after January 1, 2023, to research and develop, and authorizes the State Fire Marshal to propose to the commission, mandatory building standards for fire resistance based on occupancy risk categories in very high, high, and moderate California fire severity zones, as provided.This bill: 1) requires the State Fire Marshal, before the next triennial edition of the California Building Standards Code adopted after January 1, 2025, to propose to the commission updates to the fire standards relating to requirements for lithium-based battery systems, as provided, and 2) requires these updates to address the specific environments in which communications utilities are required to deploy the lithium-based battery systems in order to meet specified requirements relating to backup electricity for telecommunications infrastructure, as provided.
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report (EIR) on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. Existing law authorizes the Governor to certify projects meeting certain requirements as infrastructure projects and provides those certified projects with certain streamlining benefits, including requiring the lead agency to prepare the record of proceedings concurrently with the environmental review process and requiring the resolution of an action or proceeding challenging the certification of an EIR for certified projects or the granting of any project approvals, to the extent feasible, within 270 days of the filing of the record of proceedings with the court, as specified. Existing law requires the lead agency, within 10 days of the certification of an infrastructure project, to provide a public notice of the certification, as provided. If a lead agency fails to approve a project certified as an infrastructure project before January 1, 2033, existing law specifies that the certification is no longer valid.This bill: 1) includes the San Vicente Energy Storage Facility project proposed by the San Diego County Water Authority and a project for the repair, rehabilitation, or replacement of the South Bay Sewage Treatment Plant in the County of San Diego, operated by the International Boundary and Water Commission, as infrastructure projects, thereby providing the above-described streamlining benefits to those 2 projects, 2) to the extent the bill would increase the duties of a lead agency regarding projects proposed by a third party, imposes a state-mandated local program, and 3) makes legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the County of San Diego.
Existing law authorizes the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) to prescribe, by regulation, energy efficiency standards, including appliance efficiency standards. Under this authority, the Energy Commission has established building standards for the installation of photovoltaic systems meeting certain requirements for certain residential and commercial buildings. Existing law requires any building standard that has been adopted by the Energy Commission pursuant to these provisions to be submitted to the California Building Standards Commission for approval.This bill would: 1) exempt a building that is constructed in the service territory of a public utility district and that receives all of its electricity pursuant to a preference right adopted and authorized by the United States Congress, as specified, if that electricity is carbon free, from the building standards adopted by the Energy Commission, as provided, that require new residential and commercial buildings to be solar ready or to have photovoltaic and battery storage systems installed, and 2) make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the Trinity Public Utilities District.
I) Existing law, the California Coastal Act of 1976, among other things, requires anyone wishing to perform or undertake any development in the coastal zone, except as specified, in addition to obtaining any other permit required by law from any local government or from any state, regional, or local agency, to obtain a coastal development permit from the California Coastal Commission or a local government, as provided.This bill would: 1) authorize the commission to authorize blue carbon demonstration projects, as defined, in order to demonstrate and quantify the carbon sequestration potential of these projects to help inform the state’s natural and working lands and climate resilience strategies, 2) among other things, authorize the commission to require an applicant with a nonresidential project that impacts coastal wetland, subtidal, intertidal, or marine habitats or ecosystems to build or contribute to a blue carbon demonstration project, 3) require these provisions to be implemented only upon an appropriation by the Legislature for its purposes.II) Existing law establishes the Natural Resources Agency, composed of departments, boards, conservancies, and commissions responsible for the restoration, protection, and management of the state’s natural and cultural resources.This bill would: 3) commencing on January 1, 2028, authorize the Natural Resources Agency to authorize teal carbon demonstration projects, as defined, in order to demonstrate and quantify the carbon sequestration potential of these projects to help inform the state’s natural and working lands and climate resilience strategies, 4) require the Natural Resources Agency to consult with certain state and federal agencies and entities in developing a teal carbon demonstration project program, 5) among other things, require project results to be provided to the Natural Resources Agency and posted on a public portion of its internet website, and 6) require these provisions to be implemented only upon an appropriation by the Legislature for its purposes.
I) The Planning and Zoning Law requires the legislative body of a city or county to adopt a comprehensive, long-term general plan that includes various elements, including, among others, a safety element for the protection of the community from unreasonable risks associated with the effects of various geologic and seismic hazards, flooding, and wildland and urban fires.This bill: 1) requires a city or county, upon the next update of one or more of the elements included in the general plan on or after January 1, 2028, to review and update its safety element as necessary to address the hazard of extreme heat, as specified, 2) authorizes a city or county that has adopted an extreme heat action plan or other document that fulfills commensurate goals and objectives to use that information in the safety element, as specified, and, upon doing so, would require the city or county to summarize and incorporate into the safety element the other plan or document, 3) also authorizes a city or county to use or reference information in the Extreme Heat Action Plan and the State Hazard Mitigation Plan, as described, to comply with the above-described updating requirement.II) Existing law requires the planning agency to review and, if necessary, revise the safety element upon each revision of its housing element or local hazard mitigation plan, but not fewer than once every 8 years, to identify new information relating to flood and fire hazards and climate adaptation and resiliency strategies applicable to the city or county that was not available during the previous revision of the safety element.This bill: 4) requires the planning agency to also identify new information relating to extreme heat hazards applicable to the city or county that was not available during the previous revision of the safety element, and 5) includes findings that changes proposed by this bill address a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, apply to all cities, including charter cities.
I) Existing law, the Cannella Environmental Farming Act of 1995, requires the Department of Food and Agriculture to establish and oversee an environmental farming program to provide incentives to farmers whose practices promote the well-being of ecosystems, air quality, and wildlife and their habitat. The act requires the Secretary of Food and Agriculture to convene the Scientific Advisory Panel on Environmental Farming, as prescribed, for the purpose of providing advice to the secretary on the implementation of the Healthy Soils Program and the State Water Efficiency and Enhancement Program and assistance to federal, state, and local government agencies on issues relating to the impact of agricultural practices on air, water, and wildlife habitat, as specified.This bill would: 1) authorize the panel to consult with any relevant advisory bodies established by the department, including, but not limited to, the California Organic Products Advisory Committee.II) The act requires the department, in consultation with the panel, to establish and oversee a Healthy Soils Program to seek to optimize climate benefits while supporting the economic viability of California agriculture by providing incentives, including loans, grants, research, and technical assistance, and educational materials and outreach to farmers whose management practices contribute to healthy soils and result in net long-term on-farm greenhouse gas benefits. Existing law authorizes the Healthy Soils Program to also include the funding of on-farm demonstration projects that further the goals of the program.This bill would: 2) require the department to provide grants of up to 5 years for on-farm demonstration projects, upon appropriation by the Legislature, as provided, 3) require the department to authorize Healthy Soils Program grant recipients to request advance payments of their remaining awards, as specified, for incentive payments made pursuant to the program.III) The act establishes the Climate Smart Agriculture Technical Assistance Grant Program to provide funds to technical assistance providers to provide technical assistance, as defined, to applicants of the Healthy Soils Program, the Alternative Manure Management Program, and the State Water Efficiency and Enhancement Program. Existing law requires the secretary to make available not less than 5% of the funds appropriated to the department for those programs, but not more than 20% for providing technical assistance, as specified, and for supporting annual information sharing among technical assistance providers, the department, and other relevant stakeholders, as specified.This bill would: 4) expand the definition of “technical assistance” to include, among other things, training, conservation agriculture planning, and grant writing, 5) delete the provision establishing the Climate Smart Agriculture Technical Assistance Grant Program and would instead require the secretary to make available not less than 5%, but not more than 20%, of the funds appropriated to the department for the above-described programs, for providing technical assistance directly through a technical assistance grant program, or indirectly through a block grant program that includes funding for technical assistance, 6) require the department to provide funds to technical assistance providers to: (a) support farmers and ranchers in the application process for grants from those programs and the implementation of funded projects; (b) provide general planning and training for climate-smart and sustainable agriculture; and (c) lease, purchase, or repair farming, ranching, and food processing equipment that can be centrally housed with the technical assistance provider and shared regionally with producers, 7) require the department to authorize a percentage of funding to support training and capacity building within technical assistance provider organizations and coordination between organizations to improve assistance, as provided, and would require the department to support information sharing among technical assistance providers, the department, and other relevant stakeholders, as specified, and 8) require the department to allow equipment sharing, as specified, to be funded as part of the grant awards.
Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, as one of the 3 segments of public postsecondary education in this state. Existing law establishes community college districts throughout the state, and authorizes them to provide instruction to students at community college campuses. One of these districts is the Los Angeles Community College District. Existing law appropriates $5,000,000 to the Los Angeles Community College District for the development and initial operations of the California Center for Climate Change Education at the West Los Angeles College with the mission to promote climate change education at the California Community Colleges and establish opportunities for students to engage in hands-on internships and other learning opportunities.This bill would: 1) codify the establishment of the center. This bill would also establish the California Mobile Unit for Climate Change Education with a mission to assist the center in fulfilling the center’s requirement to explore and expand internships, preapprenticeships, apprenticeships, and other work-based learning opportunities in the equity, environmental justice, and green jobs sectors, and 2) on or before January 1, 2028, require the district to prepare and submit to the Assembly Committee on Higher Education, the Senate Committee on Education, and the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges a summary report that includes an evaluation of the Mobile Unit, as provided.
Existing law, the Mitigation Fee Act, imposes various requirements with respect to the establishment, increase, or imposition of a fee by a local agency as a condition of approval of a development project. Existing law requires a local agency that imposes a fee on a housing development for the purpose of mitigating vehicular traffic impacts to set the rate for the fee to reflect a lower rate of automobile trip generation if the housing development satisfies specified characteristics, including that the housing development is located within 1/2 mile of a transit station, as specified. Existing law defines transit station for these purposes to mean a rail or light-rail station, ferry terminal, bus hub, or bus transfer station.This bill: 1) instead requires, for purposes of a local agency setting the rate for a mitigating vehicular traffic impacts fee to reflect a lower rate of automobile trip generation, the housing development to be located within a transit priority area, as defined, and the major transit stop, if planned, is programmed to be completed before or within one year from the scheduled completion and occupancy of the housing development, 2) prohibits a local agency from imposing a land dedication requirement, as defined, on a housing development to widen a roadway if the land dedication requirement is for the purpose of mitigating vehicular traffic impacts, achieving an adopted traffic level of service related to vehicular traffic, or achieving a desired roadway width, 3) notwithstanding that prohibition, authorizes a local agency to, among other things, impose a land dedication requirement on a housing development if the housing development is not located in a transit priority area and the housing development has a linear street frontage of 500 feet or more, and 4) incorporates additional changes to Section 66005.1 of the Government Code proposed by AB 2553 to be operative only if this bill and AB 2553 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.
I) Existing law, the Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act, requires, on or before January 1, 2025, the State Air Resources Board to develop and adopt regulations to require a reporting entity to annually disclose to the emissions reporting organization, as defined, all of the reporting entity’s scope 1 emissions, scope 2 emissions, and scope 3 emissions, as defined. Existing law requires the state board to ensure that the regulations require a reporting entity, starting in 2027 and annually thereafter, to publicly disclose its scope 3 emissions no later than 180 days after its scope 1 emissions and scope 2 emissions are publicly disclosed to the emissions reporting organization. Existing law requires the reporting entities to pay an annual fee upon filing the disclosure. Existing law also requires the state board to contract with an emissions reporting organization to develop a reporting program to receive and make certain required disclosures publicly available, and sets forth other duties of the emissions reporting organization and the state board.This bill: 1) delays the requirement that the state board adopt regulations until July 1, 2025, and would require that the regulations adopted by the state board require, among other things, a reporting entity to make the annual disclosure to either the emissions reporting organization or the state board, and that the reporting entity publicly disclose its scope 3 emissions on a schedule specified by the state board, rather than no later than 180 days after its scope 1 emissions and scope 2 emissions are publicly disclosed, 2) authorizes reports to be consolidated at the parent company level and would delete the requirement that the annual fee be paid upon filing the disclosure 3) authorizes, rather than require, the state board to contract with an emissions reporting organization to develop a reporting program to receive and make certain required disclosures publicly available, 4) makes other related changes to the duties of the emissions reporting organization and the state board, as provided.II) Existing law requires, on or before January 1, 2026, and biennially thereafter, a covered entity, as defined to mean a corporation, partnership, limited liability company, or other business entity with total annual revenues in excess of $500,000,000, as specified, to prepare a climate-related financial risk report disclosing the entity’s climate-related financial risk and measures adopted to reduce and adapt to climate-related financial risk. Existing law requires the state board to contract with a climate reporting organization, as defined, to prepare a biennial public report on the climate-related financial risk disclosures and requires the climate reporting organization to be contracted to take other actions, including biennially preparing a public report that includes a review of the disclosure of climate-related financial risk contained in a subset of publicly available climate-related financial risk reports and monitoring federal regulatory actions, as specified. Existing law requires, on or before January 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, a covered entity to pay a fee upon filing its disclosure to the state board for the administration and implementation of these requirements. This bill: 5) authorizes, rather than require, the state board to contract with a climate reporting organization to carry out the above-described actions that the state board deems appropriate, and 6) also deletes the requirement that the entity’s fee be paid upon filing its disclosure.
The California Drought, Water, Parks, Climate, Coastal Protection, and Outdoor Access For All Act of 2018, approved by the voters as Proposition 68 at the June 5, 2018, statewide primary election, authorizes the issuance of bonds in the amount of $4,100,000,000 pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law to finance a drought, water, parks, climate, coastal protection, and outdoor access for all program. Article XVI of the California Constitution requires measures authorizing general obligation bonds to specify the single object or work to be funded by the bonds and further requires a bond act to be approved by a 2/3 vote of each house of the Legislature and a majority of the voters.This bill: 1) enacts the Safe Drinking Water, Wildfire Prevention, Drought Preparedness, and Clean Air Bond Act of 2024, which, if approved by the voters, would authorize the issuance of bonds in the amount of $10,000,000,000 pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law to finance projects for safe drinking water, drought, flood, and water resilience, wildfire and forest resilience, coastal resilience, extreme heat mitigation, biodiversity and nature-based climate solutions, climate-smart, sustainable, and resilient farms, ranches, and working lands, park creation and outdoor access, and clean air programs, and 2) declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 designates the State Air Resources Board as the state agency responsible for monitoring and regulating sources emitting greenhouse gases. The act requires the state board to prepare and approve a scoping plan for achieving the maximum technologically feasible and cost-effective reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and to update the scoping plan at least once every 5 years.This bill: 1) requires the state board, in its next update to the scoping plan, to include a discussion of industrial sources of emissions of greenhouse gases for which there are zero-emission alternatives currently technologically available and a discussion of industrial sources of emissions of greenhouse gases for which there are no zero-emission alternatives currently technologically available, and 2) makes these provisions inoperative on July 1, 2028, and would repeal them as of January 1, 2029.
I) Existing law requires the Department of Transportation to improve and maintain the state’s highways, and establishes various programs to fund the development, construction, and repair of local roads, bridges, and other critical transportation infrastructure in the state, including the state highway operation and protection program (SHOPP). Existing law requires the department, in consultation with the California Transportation Commission, to prepare a robust asset management plan to guide selection of projects for the SHOPP. Existing law requires the commission, in connection with the plan, to adopt targets and performance measures reflecting state transportation goals and objectives. Existing law requires the department to develop, in consultation with the commission, a plain language performance report to increase transparency and accountability of the SHOPP. This bill: 1) requires the targets and performance measures adopted by the commission to include targets and performance measures reflecting state transportation goals and objectives for complete streets assets that reflect the existence and conditions of bicycle, pedestrian, and transit priority facilities on the state highway system, 2) requires the department’s plain language performance report to include a description of complete streets facilities, including pedestrian, bicycle, and transit priority facilities on each project, as specified, 3) requires the department to commit to specific 4-year targets to incorporate complete streets facilities, including pedestrian and bicycle facilities, into projects funded by the SHOPP, as specified.II) Existing law creates transit districts in designated areas throughout the state and authorizes the use of various vehicles for the purpose of public and private transit. Existing law authorizes transit buses and other transit vehicles to operate on state highways. This bill: 4) require the Director of Transportation to adopt a transit policy to guide the implementation of transit priority facilities and transit stops on the state highway system, as specified, 5) requires the department to adopt, on or before July 1, 2027, guidance that defines transit performance measures and identifies the department’s responsibilities in supporting transit vehicles on the state highway system, as specified.III) Existing law requires the department to prepare a State Highway System Management Plan (SHSMP), which includes a 10-year state highway system rehabilitation plan for the rehabilitation or reconstruction by the SHOPP of all state highways and bridges, as provided. Existing law requires the SHSMP to include specific quantifiable accomplishments, goals, objectives, costs, and performance measures consistent with the asset management plan described above. Existing law requires the SHSMP to be updated every 2 years.This bill: 6) expressly requires the SHSMP to also include specific quantifiable accomplishments, goals, objectives, costs, and performance measures for complete streets facilities and transit priority facilities, as specified.IV) Existing law authorizes the department to issue encroachment permits and requires the department to either approve or deny an application from an applicant for an encroachment permit within 60 days of receiving a completed application, as provided.This bill: 7) requires the department, on or before January 1, 2027, to develop and adopt a project intake, evaluation, and encroachment permit review process for complete streets facilities that are sponsored by a local jurisdiction or a transit agency, 8) requires the department to produce a report regarding project applications submitted through this process, as specified, and 9) requires the department to designate an encroachment permit manager in each district to ensure that applications for complete streets facilities are reviewed in accordance with the process, as specified
Existing law requires the State Air Resources Board to approve and begin implementing a comprehensive strategy to reduce emissions of short-lived climate pollutants in the state and to achieve a reduction in specified emissions, including methane, as provided. Existing law requires the methane reduction goals to include a 75% reduction target from the 2014 level by 2025. Existing law requires the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, in consultation with the state board, to adopt regulations, as provided, that achieve the goals for reducing organic waste in landfills.This bill would: 1) require the department to develop procedures for local jurisdictions to request technical assistance from the department regarding organic waste and methane reduction requirements from the department, to post those procedures on its internet website, and to provide that technical assistance, as specified.
Existing law requires the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to develop contingency plans to deal with possible shortages of electricity or fuel supplies to protect public health, safety, and welfare. Existing law establishes the Clean Energy Job Creation Program for purposes of funding projects for, among other things, energy efficiency retrofits and clean energy installations, and related improvements and repairs that contribute to reduced operating costs and improved health and safety conditions, on public schools. Existing law requires certain moneys appropriated for purposes of the program to be allocated to local educational agencies, as specified. Existing law authorizes the commission to adjust the funding allocation to local educational agencies and requires the commission, in allocating grants to local educational agencies, to give priority to certain local educational agencies, as provided.This bill would: 1) require the commission to develop a Master Plan for Healthy, Sustainable, and Climate-Resilient Schools on or before March 31, 2026, 2) require the commission to consult with specified state agencies and engage with a diverse group of stakeholders and experts regarding the development of the master plan, as provided, and 3) require the master plan to include specified elements, including, but not limited to, assessments of a representative sample of the state’s public elementary and secondary school buildings and grounds, as provided, and a set of priorities, benchmarks, and milestones for health, resilience, and decarbonization of public school campuses and support facilities.
Existing law, the Buy Clean California Act, requires the Department of General Services, by January 1, 2022, to establish and publish in the State Contracting Manual, in a department management memorandum, or on the department’s internet website, a maximum acceptable global warming potential for each category of eligible materials, as defined, in accordance with specified requirements. Existing law defines “eligible materials” for those purposes to mean carbon steel rebar, flat glass, mineral wool board insulation, or structural steel. By January 1, 2025, and every 3 years thereafter, existing law requires the department to review the maximum acceptable global warming potential for each category of eligible materials, as provided.This bill: 1) revises the definition of “eligible materials” to delete mineral wool board insulation and additionally include insulation, and would make various nonsubstantive changes to the definition provisions of the act.
Existing law, the Planning and Zoning Law, requires every city, county, and city and county to administratively approve an application to install electric vehicle charging stations and hydrogen-fueling stations through the issuance of a building permit or similar nondiscretionary permit. Existing law, the Planning and Zoning Law, requires each city, county, and city and county to adopt an ordinance that creates an expedited, streamlined permitting process for electric vehicle charging stations. Existing law authorizes a city, county, or city and county developing an ordinance to refer to the recommendations contained in the most current version of the “Plug-In Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Permitting Checklist,” as specified. Existing law requires a city, county, and city and county, in developing the expedited permitting process, to adopt a checklist of all requirements with which electric vehicle charging stations must comply to be eligible for expedited review. For these purposes, existing law defines “hydrogen-fueling station” to mean the equipment used to store and dispense hydrogen fuel to vehicles according to industry codes and standards that is open to the public. Existing law requires a hydrogen-fueling station to meet certain requirements, including any rules established by the State Air Resources Board, Energy Commission, or Department of Food and Agriculture regarding safety, reliability, weights, and measures.This bill: 1) modifies the definition of “hydrogen-fueling station” to mean the equipment and structural design components necessary to ensure the safety of the fueling station, including hydrogen-refueling canopies, that are used to store and dispense hydrogen fuel to vehicles according to industry codes and standards that are open to the public, 2) modifies the requirements a hydrogen-fueling station must meet to include all applicable state laws and regulations pertaining to hydrogen fueling, including any rules established by the State Air Resources Board, Energy Commission, or Department of Food and Agriculture regarding safety, reliability, weights, and measures, 3) requires every city, county, or city and county to adopt an ordinance that creates an expedited, streamlined permitting process for certain hydrogen-fueling stations, as specified, 4) authorizes a city, county, or city and county developing an ordinance to refer to the recommendations contained in the most current version of the “Electric Vehicle Charging Station Permitting Guidebook” or the “Hydrogen Station Permitting Guidebook,” as specified, 5) requires a city, county, and city and county, in developing the expedited permitting process, to adopt a checklist of all requirements with which hydrogen-fueling stations must comply to be eligible for expedited review, 6) requires a city, county, or city and county with a population of 250,000 or more residents to comply with these provisions on or before September 30, 2025, and would require a city, county, or city and county with a population of fewer than 250,000 residents to comply with these provisions by September 30, 2028, and 7) repeals these provisions, except with regard to a city, county, or city and county being authorized to refer to the recommendations contained in the most current version of the “Electric Vehicle Charging Station Permitting Guidebook,” on January 1, 2030.
I) The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires preparation of specified documentation before a public agency approves or carries out certain projects. Existing law authorizes the Governor to certify energy infrastructure projects meeting specified requirements for streamlining benefits related to CEQA. Existing law defines “energy infrastructure project” for these purposes to include eligible renewable energy resources under the California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program, excluding resources that use biomass fuels. Existing law also expressly excludes from that definition of “energy infrastructure project” any project using hydrogen as a fuel.This bill: 1) instead excludes eligible renewable energy resources under the California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program that combust, rather than use, biomass fuels from the definition of “energy infrastructure project” for purposes of the above-described CEQA benefits, 2) includes hydrogen production facilities and associated onsite storage and processing facilities that do not derive hydrogen from a fossil fuel feedstock and that receive funding from specified state and federal programs within the definition of “energy infrastructure project”, 3)b ecause the bill would authorize the Governor to certify additional projects, thereby increasing the duties on lead agencies in conducting the environmental review of energy infrastructure projects certified by the Governor, this imposes a state-mandated local program.II) Existing law authorizes persons proposing specified electrical generation, electrical transmission, and energy storage projects to apply, on or before June 30, 2029, to the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) to certify sites and related facilities as environmental leadership development projects, as specified. Existing law makes a site and related facility certified by the Energy Commission subject to streamlining benefits related to CEQA with no further action by the applicant or the Governor. Under existing law, the Energy Commission’s certification is in lieu of any permit, certificate, or similar document required by any governmental agency and supersedes any applicable statute, ordinance, or regulation, except as specified. This bill: 4) expands the types of facilities eligible to be certified as environmental leadership development projects by the Energy Commission to include hydrogen production facilities and associated onsite storage and processing facilities that do not derive hydrogen from a fossil fuel feedstock and that receive funding from specified state and federal programs.
I) Existing law, the Planning and Zoning Law, sets forth various requirements relating to the review of development project permit applications and the issuance of development permits for specified classes of development projects.This bill: 1) beginning January 1, 2026, prescribes various statewide warehouse design and build standards for any proposed new or expanded logistics use developments, as specified, including, among other things, standards for building design and location, parking, truck loading bays, landscaping buffers, entry gates, and signage, 2) except from those design and build standards certain existing logistics use developments, proposed expansions of a logistics use development, and property currently in a local entitlement process to become a logistics use, under prescribed conditions, 3) requires a facility operator, prior to the issuance of a certificate of occupancy, to establish and submit for approval by a city, county, or city and county a truck routing plan to and from the state highway system based on the latest truck route map of the city, county, or city and county, as prescribed, 4) requires a facility operator to enforce the plan, 5) provides for the revision of the plan in specified circumstances, 6) prohibit a city, county, or city and county from approving development of a logistics use that does not meet or exceed the standards outlined in the bill, 7) require a city, county, or city and county to condition approval of a logistics use on 2-to-1 replacement of any demolished housing unit that was occupied within the last 10 years unless the housing unit was declared substandard by a building official, as specified, and payments to displaced tenants if residential dwellings are affected through purchase, as prescribed, 8) define terms for these purposes.II) The Planning and Zoning Law requires the legislative body of each county and city to adopt a comprehensive, long-term general plan for the physical development of the county or city and specified land outside its boundaries that includes, among other specified mandatory elements, a circulation element consisting of the general location and extent of existing and proposed major thoroughfares, transportation routes, terminals, any military airports and ports, and other local public utilities and facilities, all correlated with the land use element of the plan. Existing law requires, upon any substantive revision of the circulation element, that the legislative body modify the element to address specified additional issues.This bill: 9) requires a county or city, by January 1, 2028, except as provided, to update its circulation element, as prescribed, including identifying and establishing specific travel routes for the transport of goods, materials, or freight for storage, transfer, or redistribution to safely accommodate additional truck traffic and avoid residential areas and concentrations of sensitive receptors, as defined, 10) establishes specific standards for truck routes, 11) requires a county or city to provide for posting of conspicuous signage to identify truck routes and additional signage for truck parking and appropriate idling facility locations, 12) requires a county or city to make truck routes publicly available and share maps of the truck routes with warehouse operators, fleet operators, and truck drivers, 13) authorizes the Attorney General to enforce these provisions, as provided, including by imposition of a fine of up to $50,000 every 6 months if the required updates have not been made.III) Existing law provides for the creation of the South Coast Air Quality Management District in those portions of the Counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino included within the area of the South Coast Air Basin, as specified. Existing law provides that the south coast district is governed by a board consisting of 13 members and requires the district to adopt rules and regulations to carry out the south coast district air quality management plan that are not in conflict with state and federal laws and rules and regulations.This bill: 14) requires the south coast district to establish a process for receiving community input on how any penalties assessed and collected for violation of the Warehouse Indirect Source Rule are spent, as specified, 15) requires the south coast district, subject to an appropriation for this express purpose, to, beginning on January 1, 2026, and until January 1, 2032, deploy mobile air monitoring systems within the Counties of Riverside and San Bernardino to collect air pollution measurements in communities that are near operational logistics use developments, 16) requires the south coast district to use the data collected to conduct an air modeling analysis to evaluate the impact of air pollution on sensitive receptors from logistics use development operations and to submit its findings to the Legislature on or before January 1, 2033, 17) also requires the district to submit an interim report to the Legislature on or before January 1, 2028, to evaluate the impact of air pollution on sensitive receptors, as defined, from logistics use development operations in the Counties of Riverside and San Bernardino, as provided, and 18) includes findings that changes proposed by this bill address a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, apply to all cities, including charter cities.
I) By Executive Order No. N-82-20, Governor Gavin Newsom directed the Natural Resources Agency to combat the biodiversity and climate crises by, among other things, establishing the California Biodiversity Collaborative and conserving at least 30% of the state’s lands and coastal waters by 2030. Existing law provides that it is the goal of the state to conserve at least 30% of California’s lands and coastal waters by 2030, known as the 30x30 goal. Existing law requires the Natural Resources Agency to prioritize specified actions, including partnering with federal agencies to leverage strategic funding and resources in achieving the 30x30 goal.This bill: 1) also requires the agency to prioritize promoting and supporting partnering state agencies and departments that acquire and steward state land, including, but not limited to, the Department of Parks and Recreation, in the acquisition of new state land and responsible stewardship of state land, as feasible.II) Existing law requires the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency to prepare and submit, on or before March 31, 2024, and annually thereafter, a report to the Legislature on the progress made in the prior calendar year toward achieving the 30x30 goal. Existing law requires the report to include information on, among other things, (1) how and where state funding that was expended in the prior calendar year was used in furtherance of the 30x30 goal, including the amount of funding expended for land and water conservation, science and research, public outreach and engagement, and managing, monitoring, and restoring conserved lands and water and (2) the progress made in the prior year to address equity as part of the 30x30 goal, including state funding invested in specified things.This bill: 2) instead requires the portion of the report concerning state funding expended in furtherance of the 30x30 goal to include information on the amount of funding expended by each partnering state agency and department for land and water conservation, science and research, public outreach and engagement, and managing, monitoring, and restoring conserved lands and water, and 3) also requires the report to include information on state funding invested in equitable outdoor access.
Existing law authorizes various conservancies to acquire, manage, direct the management of, and conserve lands in the state. Under existing law, the Salton Sea Authority, a joint powers authority, is authorized to form an infrastructure financing district for purposes of restoring the Salton Sea. Existing law creates the Salton Sea Lithium Fund in the State Treasury and continuously appropriates moneys in the fund to the Natural Resources Agency for restoration projects developed or required pursuant to specified plans, State Water Resources Control Board orders, including Order WR 2017-0134, and grants.This bill: 1) establishes the Salton Sea Conservancy within the Natural Resources Agency for specified purposes related to the Salton Sea region, including to operate, maintain, and manage projects, as they are completed, that are planned or built under the authority of the Salton Sea Management Program to fulfill the state’s obligations as detailed in State Water Resources Control Board Order WR 2017-0134 and to acquire, hold, and manage land and property rights, including easements and water rights, within the Salton Sea Region after restoration or mitigation projects are built, 2) requires the conservancy to carry out programs, projects, and activities to further those purposes, 3) requires, by January 1, 2026, the conservancy to be governed by a board of directors composed of designated membership, including certain members appointed by certain local agencies, 4) sets forth the powers, duties, and limitations of the board of directors and the conservancy, as provided, 5) creates the Salton Sea Conservancy Fund and would state that the Legislature intends to support the fund through authorized proceeds from the sale of bonds and allocations from the Salton Sea Lithium Fund, and 6) makes its provisions operative only if the Safe Drinking Water, Wildfire Prevention, Drought Preparedness, and Clean Air Bond Act of 2024 is approved by the voters at the November 5, 2024, statewide general election. By imposing new duties on local agencies, this bill would create a state-mandated local program.
Existing law, the Joint Exercise of Powers Act, authorizes 2 or more public agencies, if authorized by their legislative or other governing bodies, to enter into an agreement to jointly exercise any power common to the contracting parties, as provided. That act requires, among other things, that the agreement state the purpose of the agreement or power to be exercised and provide for the method by which the purpose will be accomplished or the manner in which the power will be exercised.This bill: 1) authorizes a public agency with the authority to provide retail electric services to enter into a joint powers agreement with one or more public agencies with jurisdiction within the Coachella Valley Service Area, as defined, to jointly exercise the authority to provide retail electric services notwithstanding an inability of a party to the joint powers agreement to exercise that power independently, and 2) makes legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the Coachella Valley Service Area, as defined.
Existing law sets forth various health and safety requirements and prohibitions, including product safety label requirements.This bill would: 1) prohibit a person from selling, attempting to sell, or offering to sell to a consumer in this state a gas stove, as defined, that is manufactured or sold online on or after January 1, 2025, or sold in a store on or after January 1, 2026, unless the gas stove bears an adhesive label and, for online sales, unless the internet website prominently posts a warning, that sets forth a specified statement relating to air pollutants that can be released by gas stoves, as specified.
Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including gas corporations. Existing law requires every public utility to furnish and maintain adequate, efficient, just and reasonable service, instrumentalities, equipment, and facilities as are necessary to promote the safety, health, comfort, and convenience of its patrons, employees, and the public.This bill: 1) requires each gas corporation, on or before July 1, 2025, and annually thereafter, to submit to the commission a map containing certain information, including the location of all potential gas distribution line replacement projects identified in its distribution integrity management plan and other foreseeable gas distribution pipeline replacements, 2) requires the commission, on or before January 1, 2026, to designate priority neighborhood decarbonization zones considering, among other things, the concentration of gas distribution line replacement projects identified in the maps, 3) requires the commission, on or before July 1, 2026, to establish a voluntary program to facilitate the cost-effective decarbonization of priority neighborhood decarbonization zones, as defined, not to exceed 30 pilot projects across the state and affecting no more than 1% of each gas corporation’s customers within its service territory, except as provided, 4) prohibits the commission from establishing pilot projects on or after January 1, 2030, 5) requires the commission to establish various processes, criteria, methodology, and requirements in administering the pilot projects, including by establishing the criteria and methodology for determining the cost-effectiveness of zero-emission alternatives, as defined, and establishing the appropriate rate of return and recovery period that a gas corporation is eligible to receive for their costs to implement zero-emission alternatives, 6) authorizes a gas corporation to cease providing, and would require the commission to relieve the gas corporation of its obligation to provide, service in an area within the gas corporation’s service territory where a pilot project has been implemented if the commission determines that adequate substitute energy service is reasonably available to support the energy end uses of affected gas corporation customers, as provided, 7) also requires the commission to submit various reports to the relevant committees of the Legislature regarding the pilot projects, as provided, and 8) except as provided, repeals the above-described provisions on January 1, 2031.
Existing law, the California Integrated Waste Management Act of 1989, establishes the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery and requires the department to adopt rules and regulations, as necessary, to carry out the act.This bill: 1) on and after January 1, 2028, prohibits the sale or offer for sale of propane cylinders other than those propane cylinders that are reusable or refillable, as defined, and 2) requires the department to adopt regulations to implement the provisions of this bill with an effective date of January 1, 2028.
Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. Existing law requires the commission to develop a standard contract or tariff, which may include net energy metering, for eligible customer-generators, as defined, with a renewable electrical generation facility, as defined, that is a customer of a large electrical corporation. Existing law requires, in developing the standard contract or tariff for large electrical corporations, the commission to take specified actions.This bill would: 1) require, no later than July 1, 2025, the commission to ensure that any contract or tariff established by the commission pursuant to the above-described provisions for renewable electrical generation facilities configured to serve multiple customers with meters at one or more apartment buildings on a single property, or configured to serve multiple meters of a single customer on a public school property, or a set of contiguous public school properties owned, leased, or rented by the public school customer, meets certain requirements, as specified, 2) require the commission, no later than July 1, 2026, to ensure that any contract or tariff established by the commission pursuant to a specified commission decision meets specified requirements, as provided, and 3) make these provisions inoperative on July 1, 2033.
I) Existing law, commencing January 1, 2025, requires oil or gas production facilities or wells with a wellhead within a health protection zone, defined as an area within 3,200 feet of sensitive receptors, which include residences and health care facilities, to comply with specified health, safety, and environmental requirements, as provided. Existing law requires operators with a production facility or well with a wellhead in a health protection zone to submit a leak detection and response plan, as provided, to the Geologic Energy Management Division of the Department of Conservation by January 1, 2025, division approval or notice of deficiency by January 1, 2026, and implementation of the plan by January 1, 2027. Existing law requires every operator to submit a sensitive receptor inventory and map to the division by July 1, 2023. Existing law, commencing January 1, 2027, requires operators with a wellhead or other production facility or facilities in a health protection zone to provide certain information relating to leaks to the division, as provided. This bill: 1) instead requires the oil or gas production facilities and wells within a health protection zone to comply with those health, safety, and environmental requirements commencing July 1, 2026, 2) instead requires operators with a production facility or well with a wellhead in a health protection zone to submit a leak detection and response plan to the division by July 1, 2028, division approval or notice of deficiency by July 1, 2029, and implementation of the plan by July 1, 2030, 3) instead requires every operator to submit a sensitive receptor inventory and map to the division by July 1, 2025, 4) requires operators with a wellhead or other production facility or facilities in a health protection zone to provide certain information relating to leaks to the division, as provided, commencing July 1, 2030. II) Existing law requires the State Oil and Gas Supervisor, commencing July 1, 2023, and at 6-month intervals thereafter, to notify the applicable legislative budget and policy committees on progress for the leak detection and response plans, as provided. Existing law requires the division, on or before July 1, 2027, to provide a legislative report to the applicable budget and policy committees regarding the implementation of health protection zones, as provided. This bill: 5) instead requires the supervisor to notify those committees on the progress for the leak protection and response plans commencing July 1, 2026, 6) instead requires the division to provide the legislative report on or before July 1, 2030. III) Existing law authorizes the division, the State Air Resources Board, and the State Water Resources Control Board to prescribe, adopt, and enforce emergency regulations to implement, administer, and enforce its duties relating to health protection zones and authorizes those emergency regulations to remain in effect for 2 years from adoption. Existing law requires the State Air Resources Board, relevant local air districts, the State Water Resources Control Board, and relevant local water quality control boards to enter into memoranda of understanding with the division to clearly delineate respective responsibilities for implementing and enforcing health protection zones and to execute those memoranda of understanding by June 1, 2023. This bill: 7) instead authorizes the emergency regulations to remain in effect for 2 years from adoption or until July 1, 2026, whichever date is later, 8) instead requires those memoranda of understanding to be executed by June 1, 2025. IV) Existing law requires the Department of Conservation, on or before June 15 of each year, to make an estimate of the amount of money that will be required to carry out specified laws related to oil and gas conservation, as provided. Existing law requires, by June 15 each year, the department to determine the rate, or rates, for charges on operators that will produce the sums necessary to be raised to cover that estimate. Existing law provides penalties for any person who fails to pay an oil and gas assessment within the time required, as provided. This bill: 9) if the department determines between June 15, 2024, and March 1, 2025, that the estimate is insufficient for the current fiscal year, authorizes the department to assess and levy a supplemental assessment on oil and gas production to ensure funds are available for the full amount of the adjusted cost estimate, as provided, 10) prohibits the department from issuing this supplemental assessment after March 1, 2025, 11) applies the same penalties to delinquent charges under a supplemental assessment, 12) repeals these provisions on January 1, 2027, and would authorize the department to continue to pursue the collection of unpaid supplemental assessments, penalties, and interest after these provisions are repealed. V) Existing law requires specified funds collected from oil and gas operators to be deposited to the credit of the Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Administrative Fund, to be used for, among other things, the State Water Resources Control Board and the regional water quality control boards for their activities related to oil and gas operations that may affect water resources. This bill: 13) appropriates $2,646,000 from the Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Administrative Fund for the 2024–25 fiscal year to the State Water Resources Control Board to support water quality projects implementing provisions related to the above-described health protection zones, as provided, and 14) declares that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.
Existing law authorizes the Department of Toxic Substances Control to regulate the disposal of hazardous waste, including used oil, and defines “used oil” for those purposes. Existing law excludes from regulation used oil that meets specified criteria, including that the used oil is not subject to regulation as either hazardous waste or used oil under federal law.This bill would: 1) provide an alternative to that criterion for exemption from regulation for used oil that is not subject to regulation as a hazardous waste under federal law and that meets certain state testing criteria.
I) Existing law establishes the Geologic Energy Management Division in the Department of Conservation, under the direction of the State Oil and Gas Supervisor, who is required to supervise the drilling, operation, maintenance, and abandonment of oil and gas wells, as provided. A person who violates or fails, neglects, or refuses to comply with any of the oil and gas laws is guilty of a crime. Existing law requires the operator of any idle well to either (1) no later than May 1 of each year, for each idle well that was an idle well at any time in the last calendar year, file with the supervisor an annual fee according to a specified schedule of fees based on the length of time a well has been idle, applicable to wells that have been idle 3 years or longer, or (2) file a plan with the supervisor to provide for the management and elimination of all long-term idle wells, as provided. Existing law also establishes the Hazardous and Idle-Deserted Well Abatement Fund, a continuously appropriated fund, for the deposit of all fees received pursuant to these provisions.This bill: 1) revises and recast these provisions. The bill would, among other things, increase the fees for idle wells, and additionally impose fees for each idle well that has been an idle well for less than 3 years, as provided. By increasing the fees collected from operators of idle wells that are deposited into a continuously appropriated fund, the bill would make an appropriation, 2) also revises and recast the provisions of the idle well plan, 3) among other things, requires operators who do not file the above-described idle well fees to, no later than May 1 of each year, file a plan with the supervisor to provide for the management and elimination of all idle wells, instead of all long-term idle wells, 4) requires the plan to require the operator to consider specified factors when prioritizing idle wells for plunging and abandonment, 5) revises the provision requiring operators to eliminate a specified percentage of long-term idle wells by making it applicable to all idle wells and by increasing the minimum percentages of idle wells that operators would be required to eliminate each ear, as provided. By expanding the scope of crimes, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program, 6) exempts its provisions an idle well (a) for which an operator has made a diligent effort to locate and access the well and has provided documentation demonstrating that it is infeasible to locate or physically access the wellbore, subject to the approval of the division, or (b) that is the subject of a court-approved settlement agreement entered into on or before December 31, 2024, between a local governmental entity and the operator of the idle well, if that settlement agreement imposes more stringent requirements relating to the management and elimination of idle wells than the requirements imposed by this bill. II) Existing law requires the supervisor to submit to the Legislature an annual comprehensive report, as specified, on the status of idle and long-term idle wells for the preceding calendar year.This bill: 7) requires that report to also include a list of wells that the division has approved as being inaccessible, as described above.
Existing law establishes the Geologic Energy Management Division in the Department of Conservation, under the direction of the State Oil and Gas Supervisor, who is required to supervise the drilling, operation, maintenance, and abandonment of oil and gas wells, as provided. Existing law requires the operator of a well to file a written notice of intention to commence drilling with, and prohibits any drilling until approval is given by, the supervisor or district deputy. Existing law requires the operator of any idle well, as defined, to either (1) no later than May 1 of each year, for each idle well that was an idle well at any time in the last calendar year, file with the supervisor an annual fee according to a specified schedule of fees based on the length of time a well has been idle, or (2) file a plan with the supervisor to provide for the management and elimination of all long-term idle wells. A violation of these or other laws regulating oil and gas operations, as provided, is a crime.This bill: 1) requires the division, on or before March 1, 2025, to identify all low-production wells, as defined, that are located in the County of Los Angeles in an oil field that is adjacent to a state recreation area or state park and is located, in whole or in part, within the boundary of the Baldwin Hills Conservancy, and determine the length of time each of those wells has continuously been a low-production well, as provided, 2) prohibits, commencing March 1, 2026, the owners of those wells from allowing those wells to be low-production wells for more than 12 months, 3) upon a violation of that prohibition, requires the supervisor to charge an administrative penalty of $10,000 per month to the low-production well owner, until the low-production well is plugged and abandoned, as provided. Because a violation of these requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program, 4) establishes the Equitable Community Repair and Reinvestment Account, require these administrative penalties to be deposited into the account, and make the funds from the account available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the Department of Conservation for allocation to the County of Los Angeles for projects that benefit communities living within 21/2 miles of the identified low production wells, as provided, 5) requires the plugging and abandoning of all wells located in the County of Los Angeles in an oil field that is adjacent to a state recreation area or state park and is located, in whole or in part, within the boundary of the Baldwin Hills Conservancy by December 31, 2030, 6) requires the supervisor, on and after January 1, 2031, to charge the owner of a well an administrative penalty of $10,000 per month for a violation of that requirement, until the well is plugged and abandoned, to be deposited in the account, as provided, 7) authorizes the owner of an idle well or long-term idle well subject to this requirement to adjust the terms of the above-described idle well management plan to accomplish the plugging and abandoning of those covered wells by December 31, 2030. Because a violation of these requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program, and 8) states that the Legislature shall not allow the account balance to exceed specified amounts, determined as provided.
Existing law requires the State Oil and Gas Supervisor to supervise the drilling, operation, maintenance, and abandonment of wells and the operation, maintenance, and removal or abandonment of tanks and facilities attendant to oil and gas production, so as to prevent damage to life, health, property, and natural resources, as provided; to permit owners and operators of wells to utilize all known methods and practices to increase the ultimate recovery of hydrocarbons; and to perform the supervisor’s duties in a manner that encourages the wise development of oil and gas resources to best meet oil and gas needs in this state. Existing California Supreme Court case law holds that these provisions preempt certain local ordinances that ban certain oil production methods, as provided. Existing law provides that the laws relating to oil and gas regulation apply to any land or well situated within the boundaries of an incorporated city in which the drilling of oil wells is now or may hereafter be prohibited, as provided. Existing law requires the operator of a well to file a written notice of intention to commence drilling with, and prohibits any drilling until approval is given by, the supervisor or district deputy. Existing law authorizes the supervisor to require other pertinent information to supplement the notice. Existing law requires an operator proposing to perform a well stimulation treatment to apply to the supervisor or district deputy for a permit to perform the well stimulation treatment and imposes other requirements and conditions on the use of well stimulation treatments.This bill: 1) authorizes a local entity, as defined, by ordinance, to limit or prohibit oil and gas operations or development in its jurisdiction, as provided, notwithstanding any other law or any notice of intention, supplemental notice, well stimulation treatment permit, or similar authorization issued by the supervisor or district deputy, 2) authorizes these limitations or prohibitions to include, but not be limited to, limitations or prohibitions related to the methods and locations of oil and gas operations or development, 3) if a local entity limits or prohibits oil and gas operations or development of an owner or operator, requires that owner or operator to comply with existing rules related to plugging and abandoning wells, decommissioning attendant production facilities, and related measures, as provided, and 4) states that its provisions are severable.
Existing law, the California Refinery and Chemical Plant Worker Safety Act of 1990, requires the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board to adopt process safety management standards for refineries, chemical plants, and other manufacturing facilities, as prescribed. Existing law requires a petroleum refinery employer to submit an annual schedule of planned turnarounds, as defined, for all affected units for the following calendar year and to provide prescribed access onsite and to related documentation. Existing law also establishes requirements for Division of Occupational Safety and Health access to, and disclosure of, trade secrets, as defined, including information relating to planned turnarounds of petroleum refinery employers.This bill: 1) removes references in existing law to petroleum refineries and petroleum refinery employers and, instead, refer to refineries and refinery employers, 2) defines “refinery” to mean an establishment that produces gasoline, diesel fuel, aviation fuel, or biofuel, as defined, through the processing of crude oil or alternative feedstock, and 3) by January 1, 2026, requires the division to propose, and the board to consider for adoption, regulations that implement this part for refineries.
I) Existing law authorizes the State Air Resources Board to adopt and implement motor vehicle fuel specifications for the control of air contaminants and sources of air pollution. Existing law prohibits the state board from adopting any regulation that establishes a specification for motor vehicle fuel unless that regulation, and a multimedia evaluation conducted by affected agencies and coordinated by the state board, are reviewed by the California Environmental Policy Council.This bill would: 1) authorize the state board to adopt a schedule of fees, not to exceed a total amount collected of $5,000,000 over 3 years, to cover all or a portion of the state board’s reasonable costs associated with the development, implementation, and enforcement of a specification for a blend of gasoline that contains more than 10% and up to 15% ethanol by volume for use as a transportation fuel, as provided, 2) require that the revenues from those fees be deposited into the Cost of Implementation Account and be available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for purposes of carrying out these provisions, 3) require the state board to ensure that the multimedia evaluation of gasoline containing up to 15% ethanol by volume conducted pursuant to those provisions is completed, and ready for review by the council, on or before July 1, 2025.II) Existing law requires the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission, on or before January 1, 2024, and every 3 years thereafter, to submit an assessment to the Governor and the Legislature that, among other things, identifies methods to ensure a reliable supply of affordable and safe transportation fuels in California, as provided.This bill would: 4) require the commission, in consultation with the state board, to prepare and submit a report to the Legislature on or before July 1, 2025, regarding potential solutions to increase the supply of gasoline through the production enhancement strategies identified by the commission in its 2024 assessment submitted to the Legislature and the Governor, as specified, and 5) declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
The Petroleum Industry Information Reporting Act of 1980 requires operators of refineries in the state that produce gasoline meeting California specifications, within 30 days of the end of each calendar month, to submit a report to the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission that contains certain information regarding its refining activities related to the production of gasoline that month. Existing law requires the commission to post, among other things, the reported data, in aggregate, on its internet website within 45 calendar days of the end of each calendar month.This bill would: 1) additionally require the commission to post, and regularly update, a dashboard on its internet website that includes the difference in average gasoline prices in California compared to national average gasoline prices, California-specific taxes, fees, regulations, and policies that directly or indirectly contribute to higher gasoline prices within the state and their individual contribution to the difference in average gasoline prices, and any substantiated evidence of price gouging or other anticompetitive behavior within the petroleum industry and its contribution to the difference in average gasoline prices, as specified.
The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 designates the State Air Resources Board as the state agency charged with monitoring and regulating sources of emissions of greenhouse gases. The act authorizes the state board to include in its regulation of those emissions the use of market-based compliance mechanisms. Existing law requires all moneys, except for fines and penalties, collected by the state board from the auction or sale of allowances as part of a market-based compliance mechanism to be deposited in the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund. Existing law continuously appropriates 25% of the annual proceeds of the fund to the High-Speed Rail Authority for certain purposes.This bill would: 1) require the Controller to transfer the sum of $3,000,000,000, from the unencumbered moneys appropriated to the authority before January 1, 2025, from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund to the General Fund, and 2) specify that the transferred moneys, upon appropriation, are available to provide the owner of every gasoline-powered passenger vehicle, as defined, registered in the state with a $100 rebate to offset California’s high gasoline prices.
The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 establishes the State Air Resources Board as the state agency responsible for monitoring and regulating sources emitting greenhouse gases. The act requires the state board to adopt rules and regulations to achieve the maximum technologically feasible and cost-effective greenhouse gas emissions reductions to ensure that the statewide greenhouse gas emissions are reduced to at least 40% below the statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit, as defined, no later than December 31, 2030. Pursuant to the act, the state board has adopted the Low-Carbon Low Carbon Fuel Standard regulations.This bill would: 1) prohibit the state board from amending the Low-Carbon Low Carbon Fuel Standard regulations prior to January 1, 2026.
I) The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 establishes the State Air Resources Board as the state agency responsible for monitoring and regulating sources emitting greenhouse gases. The act requires the state board to approve a statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit equivalent to the statewide greenhouse gas emissions level in 1990 and to ensure the statewide greenhouse gas emissions are reduced to at least 40% below the statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit by 2030. The act authorizes the state board to include the use of market-based compliance mechanisms in its regulation of greenhouse gas emissions.This bill would: 1) specify that transportation fuels are not subject to regulations implementing a market-based compliance mechanism for greenhouse gas emissions.II) Existing law authorizes the state board to adopt and implement motor vehicle fuel specifications for the control of air contaminants and sources of air pollution. Existing law authorizes the state board to grant variances from the gasoline specifications, as provided.This bill would: 2) require the state board to grant variances from gasoline specifications, including for gasoline imported from outside the state, whenever a refinery outage or other supply interruption would result in substantial short-term price increases, as specified.III) Existing law requires the state board to establish, by regulation, maximum standards for volatility of gasoline, as provided. Pursuant to these authorities, the state board has adopted the California Reformulated Gasoline regulations, which include regulations establishing the maximum Reid vapor pressure of gasoline for various regions of the state at specified time periods.This bill would: 3) require the state board to waive the Reid vapor pressure requirement on summer-blend gasoline under the California Reformulated Gasoline regulations and to allow for the early transition to winter-blend gasoline if the state board determines that the gasoline market is experiencing a sudden and unusual increase in gasoline prices.
Existing law, the Motor Vehicle Fuel Tax Law, imposes a tax upon each gallon of motor vehicle fuel removed from a refinery or terminal rack in this state, entered into this state, or sold in this state, at a specified rate per gallon. Existing unfair competition laws establish a statutory cause of action for unfair competition, including any unlawful, unfair, or fraudulent business act or practice and unfair, deceptive, untrue, or misleading advertising and acts prohibited by false advertisement laws.This bill would: 1) suspend the imposition of the tax on motor vehicle fuels for one year, 2) require that all savings realized based on the suspension of the motor vehicle fuels tax by a person other than an end consumer, as defined, be passed on to the end consumer, and would make the violation of this requirement an unfair business practice, in violation of unfair competition laws, as provided, 3) require a seller of motor vehicle fuels to provide a receipt to a purchaser that indicates the amount of tax that would have otherwise applied to the transaction, 4) also direct the Controller to transfer a specified amount from the General Fund to the Motor Vehicle Fuel Account in the Transportation Tax Fund. By transferring General Fund moneys to a continuously appropriated account, this bill would make an appropriation, and 5) declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
I) Existing law, beginning on June 26, 2023, establishes the Independent Consumer Fuels Advisory Committee within the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) to advise the Energy Commission and the Division of Petroleum Market Oversight, as provided. Existing law prescribes the composition of the 8-member committee, including 6 specified members appointed by the Governor, one member appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly, and one member appointed by the Senate Rules Committee. Existing law prohibits a member of the committee from having been employed by, contracted with, or received direct compensation from, a company that produces, refines, distributes, trades in, markets, or sells any petroleum product in the preceding 12 months, except as provided. Existing law specifies that the schedule of meetings of the committee is to be prescribed by the Energy Commission.This bill would: 1) specify that the above prohibition does not exclude a representative of a labor organization whose membership consists of, in whole or in part, individuals employed by a company that produces, refines, distributes, trades in, markets, or sells any petroleum product, 2) require the committee to meet no less than annually.II) Existing law requires the Energy Commission, in consultation with the Labor and Workforce Development Agency and labor and industry stakeholders, to consider ways to manage necessary refinery turnarounds and maintenance that would protect the health and safety of employees and the public, and minimize the impacts of maintenance-related production losses on fuel prices. Existing law authorizes the Energy Commission, by regulation, to impose requirements governing the timing of turnaround and maintenance.This bill would: 3) requires those regulations to include a provision establishing that the health and safety of employees and the public are the primary consideration and that any harm to employees and local communities from changes to the timing of turnaround or maintenance is to be minimized, 4) criteria that are required to be met before a refinery commences a turnaround or maintenance event, as provided, 5) require the Energy Commission, in consultation with the committee, to consider the effects of refiners’ inventories of fuel and feedstocks and blending components on the price of transportation fuels in California, 6) authorize the Energy Commission, by regulation, to develop and impose requirements for refiners operating in the state to maintain minimum levels of inventories of refined transportation fuels meeting California specifications, including any feedstocks and blending components, as specified, 7) prohibit the Energy Commission from applying a minimum inventory requirement to a refiner in a manner that would be met only by the construction of additional storage infrastructure, as determined by the Energy Commission, 8) repeal these provisions on January 1, 2033, 9) impose an administrative civil penalty on a refiner or person who fails to comply with regulations adopted pursuant to the above-described authority and would authorize the Energy Commission to seek any form of injunctive or remedial relief to enforce compliance with those regulations, as provided.III) Existing law requires the Energy Commission, on or before January 1, 2024, and every 3 years thereafter, to submit an assessment to the Governor and the Legislature that, among other things, identifies methods to ensure a reliable supply of affordable and safe transportation fuels in California, as provided.This bill, beginning with the first assessment submitted after the effective date of the bill, would: 10) require that the assessment also include both an evaluation of California’s future petroleum product and crude oil import needs and identified steps that can be taken to ensure that marine infrastructure and port facilities will be adequate to accommodate the efficient movement of petroleum products to meet those needs and to evaluate ways to maximize use of existing infrastructure and minimize cumulative pollution burdens, and an evaluation of the effects on supplies of transportation fuels of state regulations that the Energy Commission identifies may be causing supply constraints, or for which the Energy Commission believes alternative compliance pathways should be considered by state agencies to mitigate potential impacts on supply.
Existing law establishes the Geologic Energy Management Division in the Department of Conservation, under the direction of the State Oil and Gas Supervisor, who is required to supervise the drilling, operation, maintenance, and abandonment of oil and gas wells, as provided.This bill would: 1) expressly state that the Governor shall appoint the supervisor and make the appointment of the supervisor subject to confirmation by the Senate.
Existing law vests the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission with jurisdiction over various energy-related matters.This bill would: 1) require the commission, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to form the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Taskforce to conduct a study on retail gasoline fueling stations and alternative fuels infrastructure, as provided, 2) require the taskforce, on or before January 1, 2027, to submit to the Legislature a report on the study with information and recommendations, and 3) repeal its provisions on January 1, 2031.
Existing law, the State Aeronautics Act, governs various matters relative to aviation in the state, and authorizes the Department of Transportation to adopt, administer, and enforce rules and regulations for the administration of the act. Under existing law, a violation of the State Aeronautics Act is a crime.This bill would: 1) prohibit an airport operator or aviation retail establishment, as defined, from selling, distributing, or otherwise making available leaded aviation gasoline to consumers on or after January 1, 2031, as provided. Because these provisions would be part of the State Aeronautics Act, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
Existing law establishes rules for how revenue from oil and gas operations on the Long Beach tidelands is divided between the City of Long Beach and the State of California. Existing law establishes the Oil Trust Fund in the State Treasury and appropriates the moneys in the fund to the State Lands Commission commencing when specified requirements are met. Existing law requires the commission to expend the moneys in the fund to finance the costs of well abandonment, pipeline removal, facility removal, remediation, and other costs associated with removal of oil and gas facilities from the Long Beach tidelands that are not the responsibility of other parties. Existing law requires the Controller to transfer certain oil-revenue-related moneys to the fund, including, on the last day of each month beginning January 31, 2023, a transfer to the fund for the amount of $2,000,000 or 50% of remaining oil revenue from the City of Long Beach, as provided, whichever is less.This bill: 1) instead requires the Controller, on the last day of each month beginning January 31, 2025, to transfer to the fund the amount of $5,000,000 or 50% of remaining oil revenue from the City of Long Beach, whichever is greater, as provided, 2) by increasing the amount of money that may be deposited into a continuously appropriated fund, this makes an appropriation, and 3) declares that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Among other things, this bill would address:I) Existing law prohibits a municipal utility district furnishing light, water, power, or heat from terminating residential service for nonpayment of a delinquent account unless the district gives notice of the delinquency and impending termination, as provided. Existing law requires the reviewing manager of a district to give a residential customer who has initiated a complaint or requested an investigation within 5 days of receiving a disputed bill, or made a request for extension of the payment period within 13 days of the mailing of the notice of delinquency and impending termination, an opportunity for review of the complaint, investigation, or request, including whether the customer is permitted to amortize the unpaid balance of the account over a reasonable period of time, not to exceed 12 months.This bill: 1) instead specifies that a reasonable period of time is generally 12 months, and authorize a district to grant a longer period of time if the district finds a longer period of time is necessary to avoid undue hardship to the customer based on the individual circumstances of the case.II) Existing law prohibits termination of the above residential utility services if a licensed physician and surgeon certifies that to do so would be life threatening to the customer and the customer is unable to pay for the service within the normal payment period and is willing to enter into an amortization agreement. Existing law requires a district to permit a customer that meets these requirements to amortize, over a period not to exceed 12 months, the unpaid balance of any bill asserted to be beyond the means of the customer to pay within the normal period for payment.This bill: 2) deletes the prohibition on the amortization period exceeding 12 months, instead specify that the normal period for payment is generally within 12 months, and authorize a district to grant a longer period if the district finds a longer period is necessary to avoid undue hardship to the customer based on the individual circumstances of the case.III) Existing law allows an individual, until January 1, 2032, to designate on their personal income tax return that a specified amount in excess of their tax liability be contributed to the California Beach and Coastal Enhancement Account under a space on the tax return titled “Protect Our Coast and Oceans Voluntary Tax Contribution Fund.” Existing law requires these moneys to be continuously appropriated and allocated to the Franchise Tax Board, the Controller, and the California Coastal Commission to support eligible programs awarded grants under the selection criteria established by the California Coastal Commission for the Whale Tail Grants Program. Existing law repeals these provisions on December 1, 2032, or on December 1 of the year that the minimum contribution amount of $250,000 is not met, as specified.This bill: 3) reduces the minimum contribution amount to $200,000.IV) Existing law appropriates $553,900,000 from the General Fund, the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, and the Toxic Substances Control Account and allocates that appropriation over the 2021–22, 2022–23, 2023–24, 2024–25, and 2026–27 fiscal years, as prescribed, for specified purposes. Existing law specifies that the amount appropriated is available for encumbrance for 4 fiscal years after the fiscal year in which funds are released. Existing law requires a state agency, before expending moneys appropriated from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, to prepare a record, as provided.This bill: 4) requires that those moneys appropriated from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund be used for the purpose of facilitating the achievement of reductions of emissions of greenhouse gases in the state or to improve climate change adaptation and resiliency, or environmental quality and public health, of California communities, with an emphasis on disadvantaged or low-income households or communities. By expanding the purposes for which the moneys appropriated from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund may be used, the bill would make an appropriation, 5) authorizes the Department of Toxic Substances Control to comply with the requirement on the preparation of the record by describing how each proposed expenditure of those moneys appropriated from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund will improve climate adaptation and resiliency, or environmental quality and public health, of disadvantaged communities or low-income households or communities, 6) authorizes the State Air Resources Board, in consultation with the department, to develop methodologies and collect metrics or other information related to the description of the proposed expenditure provided by the department.V) The Salton Sea Restoration Act establishes the Salton Sea Restoration Fund, which is administered by the Director of Fish and Wildlife, and requires that the moneys in the fund be expended, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for environmental and engineering studies related to the restoration of the Salton Sea and the protection of fish and wildlife dependent on the sea, conservation measures necessary to protect the fish and wildlife species dependent on the Salton Sea, and the preferred Salton Sea restoration alternative, including administrative, technical, and public outreach costs related to the development and selection of that alternative, as specified.This bill: 7) appropriates the sum of $3,098,000 from the Salton Sea Restoration Fund to the Department of Fish and Wildlife for the 2024–25 fiscal year to support projects at the Salton Sea, and 8) declares that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.
Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. Existing law, except as provided, requires certain uneconomic costs to be applied to each customer based on the amount of electricity purchased by that customer from an electrical corporation or alternate supplier of electricity, subject to changes in usage occurring in the normal course of business. Under existing law, changes in usage occurring in the normal course of business are those resulting from, among other things, the enhancement or increased efficiency of equipment.This bill: 1) specifies that the enhancement or increased efficiency of equipment occurring in the normal course of business includes industrial process heat recovery technology that meets prescribed requirements, 2) prohibits nonbypassable or departing load surcharges from applying to a reduction in kilowatthours of electricity that an electrical corporation customer consumes from the electrical grid in a metered interval due to industrial process heat recovery technology, up to a cap established by the commission, that meets those prescribed requirements, and 3) also requires the commission, in implementing that exemption from the surcharges, to minimize the cost impacts to all nonparticipating customers that are directly attributable to the nonbypassable or departing load charges of customers using industrial process heat recovery technology, as provided.
Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations and gas corporations. Existing law requires the commission to establish a program of assistance to low-income electricity and gas customers with annual household incomes that are no greater than 200% of the federal poverty guidelines levels, referred to as the California Alternate Rates for Energy or CARE program. Existing law establishes the Multifamily Housing Program administered by the Department of Housing and Community Development. Existing law requires that specified funds appropriated to provide housing for individuals and families who are experiencing homelessness or who are at risk of homelessness and who are inherently impacted by or at increased risk for medical diseases or conditions due to the COVID-19 pandemic or other communicable diseases be disbursed in accordance with the Multifamily Housing Program for specified uses. This disbursement scheme is referred to as Homekey.This bill: 1) requires that the CARE program include public housing authority owned or administered Homekey housing facilities where the residents of the facility substantially meet the CARE program’s income eligibility requirements, as determined by the commission, and the account is in the name of Homekey, a nonprofit funded by Homekey, or the public housing authority that owns or administers the facility, and 2) requires the commission to authorize electrical corporations and gas corporations to offer discounts to those facilities and to establish a feasible process for certifying that the assistance is used for the direct benefit of the residents of those facilities.
Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations and gas corporations. Existing law authorizes the commission to fix the rates and charges for every public utility and requires that those rates and charges be just and reasonable. Existing law, with certain exceptions, prohibits a public utility from changing any rate, except upon a showing before the commission and a finding by the commission that the new rate is justified. With certain exceptions, whenever an electrical corporation or gas corporation files an application to change any rate for the services or commodities furnished by it, existing law requires the corporation to furnish to its affected customers a notice of its application to the commission for approval of the new rate.This bill: 1) requires an electrical corporation’s or gas corporation’s application requesting authorization for or recovery of capital expenditures to include, if the commission determines these estimates are required, its best estimate of the application’s impact on its annual revenue requirement for each year that the capital expenditures described in the application are expected to remain in the application’s rate base if the application is approved or conditionally approved and the net present value of those impacts, 2) requires the commission to determine in a scoping ruling or other ruling whether an application from an electrical corporation or gas corporation requesting authorization for or recovery of capital expenditures requires these estimates, and 3) further requires the commission to require the electrical corporation or gas corporation to provide supporting work papers and calculations for these estimates.
I) Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. Existing law requires the commission to continue a program of assistance to residential customers of the state’s 3 largest electrical corporations consisting of households of 3 or more persons with total household annual gross income levels between 200% and 250% of the federal poverty guideline level, which is referred to as the Family Electric Rate Assistance (FERA) program.This bill: 1) expands eligibility for the FERA program by eliminating the requirement that a household consist of 3 or more persons, 2) requires the commission, by March 1, 2025, and each year thereafter, to require the state’s 3 largest electrical corporations to report on their efforts to enroll customers in the FERA program, 3) requires the commission, by June 1, 2025, and each year thereafter, to review each electrical corporation’s report to ensure it has made reasonable efforts to enroll eligible households in the FERA program commensurate with the proportion of households the commission determines to be eligible within the electrical corporation’s service territory, 4) if the commission, in its review of a report, determines an electrical corporation has not made reasonable efforts to enroll eligible households in the FERA program, requires the commission to require the electrical corporation to develop a strategy and plan to sufficiently enroll eligible households within 3 years of the adoption of the strategy and plan.II) Existing law requires the commission to develop a process that enables electrical and gas customers to concurrently apply, or begin to apply, to multiple low-income customer assistance programs, including the California Alternate Rates for Energy (CARE) program and the FERA program. Existing law requires that the process complement, rather than replace, other application processes.This bill: 5) expressly authorizes electrical corporations to market enrollment for the FERA program separately from the CARE program and provide a separate FERA program-only application form.
Existing law authorizes the Public Utilities Commission to adopt new, or expand existing, fixed charges, as defined, for the purpose of collecting a reasonable portion of the fixed costs of providing electrical service to residential customers. Under existing law, the commission may authorize fixed charges for any rate schedule applicable to a residential customer account. Existing law requires the commission, no later than July 1, 2024, to authorize a fixed charge for default residential rates on an income-graduated basis, as specified.This bill would: 1) require the commission, on or before January 1, 2028, but no sooner than 2 years after the adoption of the income-graduated fixed charge for residential rates, to submit a report to the relevant policy committees of both houses of the Legislature on the electrical corporations’ implementation of the fixed charge, as specified, and 2) prohibit the commission from authorizing a new residential fixed charge other than those authorized before July 1, 2024, until 30 days after the report is submitted.
I) Existing law establishes the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) and prescribes the authorities, duties, and responsibilities of the commission pertaining to energy matters. Existing law establishes an adviser position in the Energy Commission who is nominated by the Energy Commission and appointed by the Governor to ensure the full and adequate participation of interested groups and the public in the proceedings of the Energy Commission. Existing law requires the Energy Commission and other state agencies to exchange records, reports, materials, and other information related to energy resources and conservation and power facilities siting, or other areas of mutual concern, to avoid unnecessary duplication of effort.This bill: 1) renames the adviser position to be the public advisor and would make conforming changes, 2) authorizes the Energy Commission to take official notice in any proceeding of any document, record, report, material, fact, or other information submitted to, or resulting from a proceeding of, the Public Utilities Commission (PUC), as provided, 3) repeals various obsolete provisions and would make other technical changes.II) Existing law authorizes a local government to develop and administer a program to encourage the construction of buildings that use solar thermal and photovoltaic systems by recognizing owners and builders participating in the program by awarding them a “Sunny Homes Seal.” Existing law encourages the Department of Transportation to establish preferential lanes for the use of buses and 3-passenger carpool vehicles on certain state highways. Existing law requires the Energy Commission to conduct the State Solar Medallion Passive Design Competition to select outstanding designs for new single-family and multifamily residential units that incorporate passive solar and other energy-conserving design features, as provided. Existing law requires the Energy Commission to establish a grant program to provide a $0.40 per gallon production incentive for liquid fuels fermented in the state from biomass and biomass-derived resources produced in the state. Existing law authorizes the Energy Commission to assist California-based energy technology and energy conservation firms to export their technologies, products, and services to international markets.This bill: 4) repeals those provisions.III) Existing law requires the Energy Commission to biennially adopt an integrated energy policy report. Existing law requires the Energy Commission to timely incorporate firm zero-carbon resources into that report, and, for purposes of that requirement, defines “firm zero-carbon resources” as electrical resources that can individually, or in combination, deliver electricity with high availability for the expected duration of multiday extreme or atypical weather events and facilitate integration of eligible renewable energy resources into the electrical grid and the transition to a zero-carbon electrical grid.This bill: 5) clarifies that, for purposes of that requirement, “firm zero-carbon resources” are those electrical resources described above that deliver zero-carbon electricity.IV) Under existing law it is the policy of the state that eligible renewable energy resources and zero-carbon resources supply 90% of all retail sales of electricity to California end-use customers by December 31, 2035, 95% of all retail sales of electricity to California end-use customers by December 31, 2040, 100% of all retail sales of electricity to California end-use customers by December 31, 2045, and 100% of electricity procured to serve all state agencies by December 31, 2035, as specified. Existing law requires the PUC, the Energy Commission, and the State Air Resources Board to issue a joint report to the Legislature by January 1, 2021, and every 4 years thereafter, that includes specified information relating to the implementation of that state policy, and, on or before December 1, 2023, and annually thereafter, to issue a joint reliability progress report that reviews system and local reliability within the context of that state policy, as specified.This bill: 6) recodifies and reorganizes the above reporting requirement.V) Existing law requires the PUC, by February 1 of each year, to report to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee and appropriate fiscal and policy committees of the Legislature on all sources and amounts of funding and actual and proposed expenditures related to entities or programs established by the PUC, as specified.This bill: 7) requires the PUC, upon an entity described above ceasing operations, or a program described above ending, because its activities have concluded, to continue reporting on the entity or program for the subsequent 2 fiscal years, and, following those subsequent 2 fiscal years, requires the PUC to note in the report described above which entity ceased operations or which program ended and relieves the commission of future reporting obligations related to the entity or program.
I)Existing law establishes the Electricity Supply Strategic Reliability Reserve Program and requires the Department of Water Resources to implement projects, purchases, and contracts related to the procurement of electrical resources, as provided. If the department determines, on or before June 30, 2027, that resources procured through the program were used in a given month to meet a load-serving entity’s or a local publicly owned electric utility’s identified reliability need, existing law requires the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) or the Executive Director of the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) to annually assess a capacity payment on each load-serving entity or each local publicly owned electric utility, respectively, that during that same month failed to meet its system resource adequacy requirements. Existing law requires the PUC or the Energy Commission to determine a capacity payment unit cost in kilowatt per month for load-serving entities or local publicly owned electric utilities, respectively, that is based on the monthly cost of the resources procured using the moneys from the program, as provided.This bill would: 1) require the PUC and the Energy Commission, in determining the capacity payment unit cost, to consider mitigating factors.II)Existing law authorizes the department to establish a schedule and mechanism for a local publicly owned electric utility to voluntarily obtain from the department eligible energy resources to be acquired by the department through its central procurement function. Existing law requires the local publicly owned electric utility, if it voluntarily participates, to commit to the imposition of a nonbypassable charge on its ratepayers sufficient to fund its participation, as specified.This bill would: 2) additionally allow the local publicly owned electric utility to commit to an alternative mechanism to fund its voluntary participation, 3) if the local publicly owned electric utility commits to the imposition of a nonbypassable charge, prohibit the department from adding any cost in excess of the cost of participation to the nonbypassable charge.III) Existing law requires each local publicly owned electric utility serving end-use customers to prudently plan for and procure resources that are adequate to meet its planning reserve margin and peak demand and operating reserves sufficient to provide reliable electric service to its customers. Existing law requires the local publicly owned electric utility, upon request, to provide the Energy Commission with any information the Energy Commission determines necessary to evaluate the progress made by the local publicly owned electric utility in meeting that requirement.This bill would: 4) require the Energy Commission to coordinate its request with other entities seeking related information to reduce the overall response burden to the local publicly owned electric utilities.
I) Existing law requires the Independent System Operator to ensure the efficient use and reliable operation of the transmission grid, as provided.This bill: 1) authorizes the Independent System Operator to amend its tariff, as deemed necessary and subject to approval by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, to be consistent with the efficient use and reliable operation of the transmission grid.II) Existing law requires the Independent System Operator to perform a review following a major outage that affects at least 10% of customers of the entity providing the local distribution service, as provided.This bill: 2) requires the Independent System Operator, if it finds that the primary cause of the outage was the insufficiency of the available electricity supply, to post the finding and recommendations to prevent future shortfalls on its internet website and share the finding and recommendations with the Public Utilities Commission (PUC), the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission, and the Legislature.III) Existing law requires the PUC, in consultation with the Independent System Operator, to establish resource adequacy requirements for all load-serving entities and requires the PUC in establishing those requirements to ensure the reliability of electrical service in California. Existing law requires the PUC to determine and authorize the most efficient and equitable means of achieving certain objectives.This bill: 3) requires that the resource adequacy program consider mitigation measures, if the commission determines they are needed, to reduce costs to ratepayers, 4) requires the PUC to determine and authorize the most efficient and equitable means of ensuring that the resource adequacy program can reasonably maintain a standard measure of reliability and use it for planning purposes.IV) Existing law requires the PUC to ensure that load-serving entities ensure system and local reliability and require sufficient, predictable resource procurement and development to avoid unplanned energy supply shortfalls, as provided.This bill: 5) requires the PUC, as part of the integrated planning process, to assess short-term, midterm, and long-term reliability by conducting specified modeling, and 6) requires the PUC to review the results, as specified.
Existing law defines a “renewable electrical generation facility” as a facility that uses biomass, solar thermal, photovoltaic, wind, geothermal, fuel cells using renewable fuels, small hydroelectric generation of 30 megawatts or less, digester gas, municipal solid waste conversion, landfill gas, ocean wave, ocean thermal, or tidal current, and that meets other specified requirements. Existing law incorporates that definition into various programs, including the California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program, which requires the Public Utilities Commission to establish a renewables portfolio standard requiring all retail sellers, as defined, to procure a minimum quantity of electricity products from electrical generating facilities that meet the definition of “renewable electrical generation facility,” and the net energy metering program, in which residential customers, small commercial customers, and commercial, industrial, or agricultural customers of an electrical utility, who use a renewable electrical generation facility, are eligible to participate, as specified.This bill: 1) revises the definition of “renewable electrical generation facility” to include a facility that uses fuel cells or linear generators that use specified fuels.
Existing law generally requires public contracts to be awarded by competitive bidding pursuant to procedures set forth in the Public Contract Code, subject to various exceptions. Existing law authorizes certain local government agencies to use alternative contracting methods, including best value procurement and progressive design-build contracting for particular types of public projects, including, among others, certain construction projects and regional communications and related infrastructure projects. Existing law establishes requirements that apply when a public entity is required by statute or regulation to obtain an enforceable commitment that a bidder, contractor, or other entity will use a skilled and trained workforce to complete a contract or project, and imposes various duties on the Labor Commissioner with respect to those requirements.This bill: 1) authorizes the City of Long Beach to procure contracts relating to the terminal development project at the Port of Long Beach, known as Pier Wind, and to enter into an alternative project delivery method contract for that purpose, as provided. The bill would require the city to prepare, publicly advertise, and issue solicitation documents to procure and award any contract, subject to prescribed requirements, 2) for purposes of these provisions, authorizes the city to perform various duties regarding the procurement and administration of these contracts, including amending those contracts, as prescribed, 3) imposes various prohibitions and requirements on a business entity, including requiring that entity to provide payment bonds for the project and using a skilled and trained workforce to perform all construction work on the project, 4) requires the contract between the city and the business entity to comply with certain requirements, such as including errors and omissions insurance, 5) requires all documents related to the project to be subject to disclosure under the California Public Records Act, and 6) defines various terms for purposes of its provisions.The bill would state that its provisions are severable and would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the City of Long Beach.
Existing law establishes the Voluntary Offshore Wind and Coastal Resources Protection Program, which is administered by the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission for the purpose of supporting state activities that complement and are in furtherance of federal laws related to the development of offshore wind facilities. Existing law creates, and continuously appropriates moneys in, the Voluntary Offshore Wind and Coastal Resources Protection Fund for purposes of the program and the Private Donations Account, which is created in the fund. Existing law authorizes the commission to accept federal and private sector moneys for purposes of the program and requires the private sector moneys to be deposited into the donations account and the federal moneys to be deposited into the fund. Existing law requires the commission to post a report on its internet website, within 30 days of receiving a donation, about specified information regarding each donation received. Existing law authorizes the commission to allocate moneys in the fund or donations account for specified purposes, including workforce development grants.This bill would: 1) additionally authorize the commission to allocate moneys in the fund or donations account for capacity funding activities and grants within local communities and tribal communities to engage in the process of offshore wind energy development. By expanding the purposes for which continuously appropriated moneys may be allocated, the bill would make an appropriation. 2) create the Offshore Wind Community Capacity Funding Grant Account in the fund, and would continuously appropriate the moneys in this account to the commission to fund capacity funding activities and award capacity funding grants, thereby making an appropriation, as specified, 3) require an offshore wind entity, as defined, to provide financial assistance to fund those activities and grants for the 3-year period after the offshore wind entity executes an offshore wind lease, as provided, 4) make that financial assistance subject to the reporting requirement described above, 5) authorize the commission to use up to 5% of the total amount deposited into the grant account, if needed, to administer the grant account. The bill would require the commission to annually prepare and submit a report, on or before March 1 of each year, to the Legislature on the implementation and effectiveness of those activities and grants, 6) equire the commission to develop guidelines, as provided, for the use of those moneys, and would require the guidelines to be subject to review and revision every 3 years, and 7) include a change in state statute that would result in a taxpayer paying a higher tax within the meaning of Section 3 of Article XIII?A of the California Constitution, and thus would require for passage the approval of 2/3 of the membership of each house of the Legislature.
Existing law, the Leroy F. Greene State School Building Lease-Purchase Law of 1976, effectuates the declaration of the Legislature that it is in the interest of the state and its people to reconstruct, remodel, or replace existing school buildings that are educationally inadequate or that do not meet present-day structural safety requirements, and to acquire new schoolsites and buildings for the purpose of making them available to local school districts for the pupils of the public school system. “Good repair” is defined, for purposes of the Leroy F. Greene State School Building Lease-Purchase Law of 1976, to mean, among other things, with respect to mechanical systems, including heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems, maintaining interior temperatures within normally acceptable ranges.This bill would: 1) require the State Department of Education to conduct a research study on recommended indoor air temperature ranges and temperature control standards for public schools serving kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, and an inventory of heating and cooling systems, as specified, 2) require the department to submit a report on the findings and recommendations of the study to the Legislature by January 1, 2026, as provided, 3) require the department to develop policy recommendations for safe indoor air temperature standards for elementary and secondary public school facilities based on the research study findings, and additional policy recommendations that will address how to ensure that public school facilities can maintain the recommended safe indoor air temperature range, as provided, 4) require the department to submit those policies recommendations to the Legislature by January 1, 2027, and 5) repeal these provisions as of January 1, 2028.
I) Existing law defines an electric bicycle as a bicycle equipped with fully operable pedals and an electric motor of less than 750 watts, and classifies electric bicycles into 3 classes with different restrictions for various purposes, including the requirement that manufacturers and distributors of electric bicycles apply a label that is permanently affixed to each electric bicycle that contains, among other things, the classification number of the electric bicycle, as specified. Existing law defines “class 1 electric bicycle” as a bicycle equipped with a motor that provides assistance only when the rider is pedaling, and that ceases to provide assistance when the bicycle reaches the speed of 20 miles per hour, and defines “class 3 electric bicycle” as a bicycle equipped with a motor that provides assistance only when the rider is pedaling, and that ceases to provide assistance when the bicycle reaches the speed of 28 miles per hour, and equipped with a speedometer. A violation of the Vehicle Code is a crime.This bill: 1) clarifies that an electric bicycle is a bicycle equipped with fully operable pedals and an electric motor that does not exceed 750 watts of power, 2) also clarifies the definitions of “class 1 electric bicycle” and “class 3 electric bicycle” by providing that the motor on a class 1 electric bicycle is not capable of exclusively propelling the bicycle, except as specified, nor providing assistance to reach speeds greater than 20 miles per hour and the motor on a class 3 electric bicycle is not capable of exclusively propelling the bicycle, except as specified, 3) prohibits specified vehicles from being advertised, sold, offered for sale, or labeled as electric bicycles, as specified, 4) because the bill would impose new requirements for electric bicycles, the violation of which would be a crime, the bill imposes a state-mandated local program.II) Existing law establishes the Office of the State Fire Marshal in the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. Existing law requires the State Fire Marshal to, among other things, adopt and administer regulations and standards to control the servicing, charging, and testing of portable fire extinguishers and to control the sale and marketing of these devices with respect to conformance with standards of their use, capacity, and effectiveness. Existing law prohibits a person from marketing, distributing, or selling portable fire extinguishers unless it complies with the regulations and standards adopted by the State Fire Marshal.This bill: 5) commencing January 1, 2026, requires the State Fire Marshal to adopt regulations that promote the fire and electrical safety of electric bicycles, powered mobility devices, and storage batteries, as specified, 6) commencing January 1, 2026, prohibits a person from distributing, selling, leasing, or offering for sale or lease, an electric bicycle or powered mobility device, as defined, unless the storage battery for the electric bicycle or powered mobility device has been tested by an accredited testing laboratory for compliance with a specified standard, 7) commencing January 1, 2026, prohibits a person from distributing, selling, leasing, or offering for sale or lease a storage battery unless the battery meets specified requirements. Commencing January 1, 2026, the prohibit a person from distributing, selling, leasing, or offering for sale or lease, an electric bicycle, powered mobility device, or storage battery unless the logo, wordmark, label, or name of an accredited testing laboratory and the applicable test standard used to show compliance is displayed, as specified, 8) commencing January 1, 2028, prohibits a person from renting or offering for rental an electric bicycle, powered mobility device, charging system, or storage battery unless it has been tested for compliance with a specified standard, and 7) commencing January 1, 2026, requires a manufacturer, importer, distributor, or retailer of an electric bicycle, powered mobility device, charging system, or storage battery subject to testing under these provisions to provide, upon request, a true and accurate copy of the test report for the product issued by the accredited testing laboratory.
The California Water District Law provides for the establishment of water districts and authorizes a district to construct, maintain, and operate plants for the generation of hydroelectric energy and transmission lines for the conveyance of the hydroelectric energy. Existing law merged the former West Plains Water Storage District into the Westlands Water District, and provides for the operation of the Westlands Water District.This bill: 1) authorizes the Westlands Water District to provide, generate, and deliver solar photovoltaic electricity and to construct, operate, and maintain works, facilities, improvements, and property necessary or convenient for generating and delivering that electricity, 2) requires the district to use the electricity for the district’s own purposes, 3) authorizes the district to sell surplus electricity to a public or private entity engaged in the distribution or sale of electricity, 4) also authorizes the district to construct, operate, and maintain energy storage systems and electric transmission lines, and to construct, operate, and maintain works, facilities, improvements, and property necessary or convenient for the operation of the energy storage systems and electric transmission lines, within the boundaries of the district, as specified, 5) requires the district to report the amount of income, and the purposes for expenditure of that income, from electricity facilities constructed pursuant to these provisions in a specified report, 6) requires the district to establish a community benefits agreement plan for a specified electrical infrastructure development plan and related transmission and other electrical projects, as provided, and 7) makes legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the Westlands Water District.
Existing law authorizes the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to prescribe, by regulation, lighting, insulation, climate control system, and other building design and construction standards that increase efficiency in the use of energy and water for new residential and new nonresidential buildings, and energy and water conservation design standards for new residential and new nonresidential buildings. Pursuant to this authority, the commission has adopted regulations requiring solar-ready buildings and for the installation of photovoltaic systems meeting certain requirements for low-rise residential buildings built on or after January 1, 2020.This bill would: 1) until January 1, 2028, require residential construction intended to repair, restore, or replace a residential building damaged or destroyed as a result of a disaster in an area in which a state of emergency has been proclaimed by the Governor to comply only with the requirements regarding photovoltaic systems pursuant to those regulations, if any, that were in effect at the time the damaged or destroyed building was originally constructed and would prohibit that construction from being required to comply with any additional or conflicting photovoltaic system requirements in effect at the time of repair, restoration, or replacement, and 2) only apply to the construction of a building if certain conditions are met with respect to the building owner’s income and insurance coverage, and to the location and square footage of the construction.
Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. Existing law establishes the Multifamily Affordable Housing Solar Roofs Program, also known as the Solar on Multifamily Affordable Housing Program. Existing law requires the commission, as part of the program, to authorize the award of monetary incentives for qualifying solar energy systems, as defined, that are installed on qualified multifamily affordable residential properties of at least 5 rental housing units that are operated to provide deed-restricted low-income residential housing, as defined, and that meet one or more specified requirements, including, among other things, that the property is owned by a tribe, through December 31, 2032.This bill would: 1) provide that property that is owned by a tribe is not required to be deed restricted to be eligible for the program, but is required to meet the income requirements of the program, as specified, and 2) require a property that is owned by a tribe that is not deed restricted to have received public financing to fund affordable housing in order to be eligible for the program, as provided.
I) Existing law requires the Public Utilities Commission to submit amendments, revisions, or modifications of its Rules of Practice and Procedure to the Office of Administrative Law for prior review, but exempts from that requirement general orders, resolutions, or other substantive regulations.This bill: 1) clarifies that regulations and guidelines related to the California Environmental Quality Act are also exempt from that requirement.II) Existing law prohibits an electrical corporation from beginning the construction of, among other things, a line, plant, or system, or of any extension thereof, without having first obtained from the commission a certificate that the present or future public convenience and necessity require or will require that construction. Under existing law, the extension, expansion, upgrade, or other modification of an existing electrical transmission facility, including transmission lines and substations, does not require a certificate that the present or future public convenience and necessity requires or will require its construction.This bill: 2) authorizes the commission to adopt specified successor guidelines at a publicly noticed meeting to address its receipt and review of and actions on applications for the construction of electrical transmission facilities, as described, subject to its regulatory jurisdiction, as provided, 3) prohibits a cause of action arising out of an executive director disposition of a protest to a specified notice of proposed construction deemed exempt from the requirement to submit an application for a permit or certificate for electrical transmission facilities from accruing in any court to any entity or person unless the entity or person has filed an application to the commission for a rehearing within 10 days after the date of issuance of the disposition, and 4) requires the commission to issue its decision and order on rehearing within 90 days after the filing of that application.II) Existing law prohibits an electrical corporation from beginning the construction of, among other things, a line, plant, or system, or of any extension thereof, without having first obtained from the commission a certificate that the present or future public convenience and necessity require or will require that construction. Under existing law, the extension, expansion, upgrade, or other modification of an existing electrical transmission facility, including transmission lines and substations, does not require a certificate that the present or future public convenience and necessity requires or will require its construction.This bill would: 2) authorize the commission to adopt specified successor guidelines at a publicly noticed meeting to address its receipt and review of and actions on applications for the construction of electrical transmission facilities, as described, subject to its regulatory jurisdiction, as provided, 3) prohibit a cause of action arising out of an executive director disposition of a protest to a specified notice of proposed construction deemed exempt from the requirement to submit an application for a permit or certificate for electrical transmission facilities from accruing in any court to any entity or person unless the entity or person has filed an application to the commission for a rehearing within 10 days after the date of issuance of the disposition, and 4) require the commission to issue its decision and order on rehearing within 90 days after the filing of that application.
Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. The Public Utilities Act prohibits any electrical corporation from beginning the construction of a line, plant, or system, or of any extension thereof, without having first obtained from the commission a certificate that the present or future public convenience and necessity require or will require its construction, except that the extension, expansion, upgrade, or other modification of an existing electrical transmission facility, including transmission lines and substations, does not require a certificate of public convenience and necessity. Existing law requires the commission, in considering an application for a certificate of public convenience and necessity for an electric transmission facility, to consider cost?effective alternatives to transmission facilities that meet the need for an efficient, reliable, and affordable supply of electricity, including demand-side alternatives such as targeted energy efficiency, ultraclean distributed generation, as defined, and other demand reduction resources.This bill: 1) repeals the latter provision requiring the commission to consider cost-effective alternatives to transmission facilities, as specified.
Existing law establishes the Independent System Operator as a nonprofit, public benefit corporation to manage the transmission grid and related energy markets, as provided.This bill : 1) requires the Independent System Operator, upon approval of each transmission plan, to report to the Public Utilities Commission and to the relevant policy committees of each house of the Legislature any new use of any grid enhancing technology that is deemed reasonable by the Independent System Operator in that plan and the cost and efficiency savings of the deployment of that grid enhancing technology.
I) Existing law establishes the policy of the state that eligible renewable energy resources and zero-carbon resources supply 90% of all retail sales of electricity to California end-use customers by December 31, 2035, 95% of all retail sales of electricity to California end-use customers by December 31, 2040, 100% of all retail sales of electricity to California end-use customers by December 31, 2045, and 100% of electricity procured to serve all state agencies by December 31, 2035.This bill: 1) requires each transmission utility, as defined, on or before January 1, 2026, and every 2 years thereafter, to prepare a study of the feasibility of projects using grid-enhancing technologies to achieve, among other purposes, increased capacity to connect new renewable energy and zero-carbon resources, as provided, 2) requires each transmission utility, on or before January 1, 2026, and at least every 4 years thereafter, to prepare a study of which of its transmission lines can be reconductored with advanced conductors to achieve, among other purposes, increased capacity to connect new renewable energy and zero-carbon resources, as provided, 3) upon completion of those studies, requires each transmission utility to submit the studies to the Independent System Operator, as specified, and requires each transmission utility to request that the Independent System Operator review the results of the studies as part of the annual transmission planning process for economic, reliability, and policy goals, 4) upon submission to the Independent System Operator, requires the transmission utilities to make their studies publicly available, 5) specifies that information in the studies that is determined by the Independent System Operator, in consultation with the transmission utilities, to be necessary to protect the security of the electrical transmission system is to be withheld from public disclosure.II) Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest.This bill: 6) makes legislative findings to that effect.
Among other things, this bill:I) Existing law requires the Transportation Agency, subject to specified appropriations by the Legislature, to develop and administer an accountability program to govern the distribution of funds to regional transportation planning agencies under the Zero-Emission Transit Capital Program and the component of the Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program that is allocated pursuant to a specified formula. Existing law requires the Transportation Agency to adopt guidelines governing the distribution of these funding sources. Under the accountability program, existing law requires a regional transportation planning agency to submit a regional short-term financial plan to the Transportation Agency, except as specified, and transit operator data, in order to receive moneys from the funding sources governed by the accountability program during the 2023–24 and 2024–25 fiscal years, as provided.This bill: 1) expands the requirements of the accountability program to the distribution of funds appropriated to the Transportation Agency in the Budget Act from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund for purposes of the formula-based component of the Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program, 2) also requires a regional transportation planning agency to submit an updated regional short-term financial plan and updated transit operator data to the Transportation Agency in order to receive moneys governed by the accountability program in the 2025–26 fiscal year, and to submit updated transit operator data to the Transportation Agency in order to receive moneys governed by the accountability program in the 2026–27 and 2027–28 fiscal years, 3) authorizes the Transportation Agency to modify the guidelines for the distribution of those funds for each of these 3 fiscal years by specified dates.II) The State Air Resources Board, pursuant to its authority to regulate motor vehicle emissions and emissions of greenhouse gases, has adopted the Advanced Clean Fleets Regulation, which imposes various requirements for transitioning local, state, and federal government fleets of medium- and heavy-duty trucks, other high-priority fleets of medium- and heavy-duty trucks, and drayage trucks to zero-emission vehicles. Existing law, except as provided, beginning December 31, 2025, requires at least 15% of newly purchased vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating of 19,000 pounds or more purchased by the Department of General Services and other state entities for the state vehicle fleet to be zero-emission vehicles. Existing law, except as provided, requires the Department of General Services, beginning no later than the 2024–25 fiscal year, to ensure that at least 50% of the light-duty vehicles purchased for the state vehicle fleet each fiscal year are zero-emission vehicles.This bill: 4) requires the Department of Transportation to annually compile and report information to the Legislature on or before October 1 of each year, beginning in 2025, regarding the zero-emission vehicles that the department purchases, owns, or leases, 5) in each annual report, also requires the department to conduct an analysis of the duty performance of the zero-emission vehicles that it acquires and to include information on its zero-emission vehicle charging and refueling stations, as specified, 6) repeals these provisions on January 1, 2036. III) Existing law establishes the Active Transportation Program in the Department of Transportation for the purpose of encouraging increased use of active modes of transportation, such as biking and walking, with funds for the program to be appropriated to the department, for allocation by the California Transportation Commission. Under the program, existing law requires available funds to be awarded to eligible projects by the commission and metropolitan planning agencies.This bill: 7) appropriates $100,000,000 from the General Fund to the department to support the Active Transportation Program with the funds to be allocated by the commission, as specified, and 8) declares that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.
Existing law establishes the California Transportation Commission in the Transportation Agency. Existing law vests the California Transportation Commission with various powers and duties relative to the programming of transportation capital projects and allocation of funds to those projects pursuant to the state transportation improvement program and various other transportation funding programs. Under existing law, the commission consists of 13 members, including 9 members appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate, one member appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly, and one member appointed by the Senate Committee on Rules, as specified. Existing law requires the Governor, in appointing those members to the commission, to make every effort to ensure, among other things, the commission has a diverse membership with expertise in transportation issues, taking into consideration factors, including, but not limited to, socioeconomic background and professional experience, which may include experience working in, or representing, disadvantaged communities.This bill would: 1) require that at least one of those Governor-appointed members of the commission have expertise in transportation issues and professional experience that includes experience working in, or representing, disadvantaged communities.
Existing law defines an electric bicycle and classifies electric bicycles into 3 classes with different restrictions. Under existing law, a “class 2 electric bicycle” is a bicycle equipped with a motor that may be used exclusively to propel the bicycle, and that is not capable of providing assistance when the bicycle reaches the speed of 20 miles per hour. Under existing law, a “class 3 electric bicycle” is a bicycle equipped with a speedometer and a motor that provides assistance only when the rider is pedaling, and that ceases to provide assistance when the bicycle reaches the speed of 28 miles per hour. Existing law prohibits a person under 16 years of age from operating a class 3 electric bicycle. Existing law requires a person operating, or riding upon, a class 3 electric bicycle to wear a helmet, as specified.This bill: 1) establishes the Marin Electric Bicycle Safety Pilot Program that would, until January 1, 2029, authorize a local authority within the County of Marin, or the County of Marin in unincorporated areas, to adopt an ordinance or resolution that would prohibit a person under 16 years of age from operating a class 2 electric bicycle or require a person operating a class 2 electric bicycle to wear a bicycle helmet, as specified, 2) requires an ordinance or resolution that is adopted for this purpose to make a violation punishable by warning notices for the first 60 days after the prohibition comes into effect. After the 60-day period, 3) requires a violation to be an infraction punishable by a fine of $25, 4) prohibits a record of the action from being transmitted to the court and a fee from being imposed if the person who violates the ordinance or resolution delivers proof to the issuing agency within 120 days after the citation was issued that the person has completed specified requirements, 5) if an ordinance or resolution is adopted, requires the county to, by January 1, 2028, submit a report to the Legislature that includes, among other things, the total number of traffic stops initiated for violations, the results of the traffic stops, and the actions taken by peace officers during the traffic stops, as specified, and 6) requires the local authority or county to administer a public information campaign for at least 30 calendar days prior to the enactment of the ordinance or resolution, as specified.
Existing law defines an electric bicycle and classifies electric bicycles into 3 classes with different restrictions. Under existing law, a “class 1 electric bicycle” is a bicycle equipped with a motor that provides assistance only when the rider is pedaling and ceases to provide assistance when the bicycle reaches the speed of 20 miles per hour. Under existing law, a “class 2 electric bicycle” is a bicycle equipped with a motor that may be used exclusively to propel the bicycle and is not capable of providing assistance when the bicycle reaches the speed of 20 miles per hour. Under existing law, a “class 3 electric bicycle” is a bicycle equipped with a speedometer and a motor that provides assistance only when the rider is pedaling, and that ceases to provide assistance when the bicycle reaches the speed of 28 miles per hour. Existing law prohibits a person under 16 years of age from operating a class 3 electric bicycle.This bill: 1) the San Diego Electric Bicycle Safety Pilot Program, until January 1, 2029, authorizes a local authority within the County of San Diego, or the County of San Diego in unincorporated areas, to adopt an ordinance or resolution that would prohibit a person under 12 years of age from operating a class 1 or 2 electric bicycle, 2) for the first 60 days following the adoption of an ordinance or resolution for this purpose, makes a violation of the ordinance or resolution punishable by a warning notice. 3) after 60 days, makes a violation of the ordinance or resolution punishable by a fine of $25, except as specified, 4) makes a parent or legal guardian with control or custody of an unemancipated minor who violates the ordinance or resolution jointly and severally liable with the minor for the amount of the fine imposed, 5) if an ordinance or resolution is adopted, requires the county to, by January 1, 2028, submit a report to the Legislature that includes, among other things, the total number of traffic stops initiated for a violation of the ordinance or resolution, the results of those traffic stops, and the actions taken by a peace officer during a traffic stop, as specified, and 6) requires a local authority or county to administer a public information campaign for at least 30 calendar days prior to the enactment of the ordinance or resolution, as specified.
Existing state law authorizes the Department of Transportation to designate certain lanes for the exclusive use of high-occupancy vehicles (HOVs). Existing federal law authorizes, until September 30, 2025, a state to allow specified alternate fuel and plug-in electric or hybrid vehicles to use lanes designated for HOVs. Existing state law authorizes the Department of Motor Vehicles to issue decals or other identifiers to qualified vehicles, as specified. Existing state law allows a vehicle displaying a valid decal or identifier issued pursuant to these provisions to be operated in a lane designated for the exclusive use of HOVs regardless of the occupancy of the vehicle. These existing state laws, by operation of their provisions, become inoperative on the date the federal authorization expires. Existing state law also repeals these provisions on September 30, 2025.This bill: 1) extends the repeal date of these provisions until January 1, 2027.
I) Existing law establishes 4 classifications of bikeways and defines a “Class III bikeway” as a bikeway that provides a right-of-way on-street or off-street, designated by signs or permanent markings and shared with pedestrians and motorists.This bill: 1) defines “sharrow” as the pavement marking used to inform road users that bicyclists might occupy the travel lane, 2) prohibits, on and after January 1, 2025, an agency responsible for the development or operation of bikeways or highways where bicycle travel is permitted from installing a new sharrow on a highway that has a posted speed limit greater than 30 miles per hour, except as specified.II) Existing law establishes the Active Transportation Program in the Department of Transportation for the purpose of encouraging increased use of active modes of transportation, such as biking and walking, with specified available funds to be allocated to eligible projects by the California Transportation Commission and regional transportation agencies through the adoption of a program of projects. Existing law requires the commission to develop guidelines regarding, among other topics, project eligibility and project selection for the program of projects, as provided.This bill: 3) prohibits, on and after January 1, 2026, the commission from adding a project that creates a Class III bikeway or a sharrow to the program of projects, except as specified, and 4) requires the commission to make conforming changes to its guidelines regarding project eligibility and project selection for the program of projects, as specified.
I) The California Beverage Container Recycling and Litter Reduction Act, a violation of which is a crime, requires a distributor of beverage containers, as defined, to pay to the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery a monthly redemption payment for every beverage container sold or transferred, as provided. The act requires the department to deposit those amounts into the California Beverage Container Recycling Fund. The fund is continuously appropriated to, among other things, pay refund values and administrative fees to processors that receive empty beverage containers from recyclers. The act specifies that a beverage container that is a box, bladder, or pouch, or similar container, containing wine or distilled spirits has a redemption payment and refund value of $0.25.This bill would: 1) reduce the redemption payment and refund value for one of those wine or distilled spirit beverage containers, if it has a capacity of less than 24 fluid ounces, from $0.25 to $0.10, beginning January 1, 2025. By expanding the scope of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.II) The act authorizes a distributor that displays a pattern of operation in compliance with the act and regulations adopted pursuant to the act, to the satisfaction of the department, to make a single annual payment of redemption payments. The act requires a beverage manufacturer to pay to the department a specified processing fee for each beverage container sold or transferred within 40 days of the sale, as provided. The act authorizes a beverage manufacturer that displays a pattern of operation in compliance with the act and regulations adopted pursuant to the act, to the satisfaction of the department, to make a single annual payment of processing fees, if the beverage manufacturer meets certain conditions.This bill would: 2) additionally authorize a distributor who sells or transfers not more than 375,000 beverage containers annually, as specified, to make a single annual payment of redemption payments, except as provided, 3) additionally authorize a beverage manufacturer who sells or transfers not more than 375,000 beverage containers annually, as specified, to make a single annual payment of processing fees, except as provided, and 4) declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
I) The California Beverage Container Recycling and Litter Reduction Act, a violation of which is a crime, requires a distributor of beverage containers, as defined, to pay to the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery a monthly redemption payment for every beverage container sold or transferred, as provided. The act requires the department to deposit those amounts into the California Beverage Container Recycling Fund. The fund is continuously appropriated to, among other things, pay refund values and administrative fees to processors that receive empty beverage containers from recyclers. The act specifies that a beverage container that is a box, bladder, or pouch, or similar container, containing wine or distilled spirits has a redemption payment and refund value of $0.25.This bill would: 1) reduce the redemption payment and refund value for one of those wine or distilled spirit beverage containers, if it has a capacity of less than 24 fluid ounces, from $0.25 to $0.10, beginning January 1, 2025. By expanding the scope of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.II) The act authorizes a distributor that displays a pattern of operation in compliance with the act and regulations adopted pursuant to the act, to the satisfaction of the department, to make a single annual payment of redemption payments. The act requires a beverage manufacturer to pay to the department a specified processing fee for each beverage container sold or transferred within 40 days of the sale, as provided. The act authorizes a beverage manufacturer that displays a pattern of operation in compliance with the act and regulations adopted pursuant to the act, to the satisfaction of the department, to make a single annual payment of processing fees, if the beverage manufacturer meets certain conditions.This bill would: 2) additionally authorize a distributor who sells or transfers not more than 375,000 beverage containers annually, as specified, to make a single annual payment of redemption payments, except as provided, 3) additionally authorize a beverage manufacturer who sells or transfers not more than 375,000 beverage containers annually, as specified, to make a single annual payment of processing fees, except as provided, and 4) declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law requires the State Air Resources Board to complete, approve, and implement a comprehensive strategy to reduce emissions of short-lived climate pollutants in the state to reduce the statewide methane emissions by 40% below 2013 levels by 2030. Existing law requires the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, in consultation with the state board, to adopt regulations that achieve specified targets for reducing organic waste in landfills, as provided. The department’s organic waste regulations require local jurisdictions to annually procure a quantity of recovered organic waste products and to comply with their procurement targets by directly procuring recovered organic waste products for use or giveaway or by requiring, through a written agreement, that a direct service provider to the jurisdiction procure recovered organic waste products, or both. Those regulations specify the types of recovered organic waste products that a jurisdiction may procure, including compost that is produced at a compostable material handling operation or facility, or a specified digestion facility that composts onsite. Other regulations of the department require all compostable materials handling activities to obtain a facility permit from the department prior to commencing operations and meet other specified requirements, but exclude from those requirements certain activities that the regulations state do not constitute a compostable material handling operation or facility, including the composting of green material, agricultural material, food material, and vegetative food material, and the handling of compostable materials under certain conditions, as provided.This bill: 1) authorizes local jurisdictions to count towards their procurement targets compost produced and procured from specified compost operations and specified investments and expenditures related to meeting its procurement target, as provided, 2) authorizes a local jurisdiction to determine a local per capita procurement target using information from a local waste characterization study, as specified, 3) authorizes a local jurisdiction to satisfy its annual procurement obligations by procuring a quantity of recovered organic waste products that meets or exceeds a 5-year procurement target, as specified, 4) authorizes the department, in adopting and revising regulations, to consider other pathways to prioritize local use of compost, as specified, and 5) incorporates additional changes to Section 42652.5 of the Public Resources Code proposed by AB 2514 and AB 2902 to be operative only if this bill and any or all of the other bills are enacted and this bill is enacted last.
I) Existing law requires the State Air Resources Board to complete, approve, and implement a comprehensive strategy to reduce emissions of short-lived climate pollutants in the state to reduce statewide methane emissions by 40% below 2013 levels by 2030. Existing law requires methane emissions reduction goals to include specified targets to reduce the landfill disposal of organics. Existing law requires the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, in consultation with the state board, to adopt regulations that achieve those targets for reducing organic waste in landfills, as provided. The department’s organic waste regulations provide different organic waste procurement targets for local jurisdictions based on population and provide waivers and exemptions from collection and procurement requirements for rural, low-population, and high-elevation jurisdictions. Existing law provides that the exemption for rural jurisdictions is valid until December 31, 2026, as specified. The department’s organic waste regulations establish collection bin lid color requirements for waste collection services to identify the types of waste to be placed into a collection bin.This bill: 1) extends the rural jurisdiction exemption until January 1, 2037, except as provided, and would require the department to adopt regulations to establish a process to renew the exemption after that date for periods of up to 5 years, 2) requires the department to exclude residents included in department-issued low population or elevation waivers from the population in determining a local jurisdiction’s organic waste procurement target, 3) exempts bear bins from the collection bin lid color requirements.II) Existing law requires the department, in consultation with the state board, to analyze the progress made in achieving the reduction targets for the amounts of organic waste disposed of in landfills and authorizes the department to provide incentives to facilitate progress toward the reduction targets, as provided.This bill: 4) requires the department’s organic waste regulations to evaluate ways to incentivize carbon farming, and would require the department to evaluate ways to maximize the local benefits of edible food recovery programs and explore circumstances in which recovered food may be more suitable for use in local animal feed operations, 5) authorizes the department, in conjunction with the California Pollution Control Financing Authority and the California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank, to provide information to the owners and operators of landfill and composting operations that may be a potential source of methane emissions about financing that may fund facility improvements to increase the capture, or reduce the escape, of methane emissions.IV) Existing law requires at least once every 2 years, the department to review each jurisdiction’s source reduction and recycling element and household hazardous waste element for compliance with requirements for the diversion of solid waste from landfills by source reduction, recycling, and composting.This bill: 6) instead requires that review at least once every 4 years.V) Existing law requires the department, upon appropriation, to administer a grant program to provide financial assistance to promote the in-state development of infrastructure, food waste prevention, or other projects to reduce organic waste, sort and aggregate or process organic and other recyclable materials into new, value-added products, or divert items from disposal through enhanced reuse opportunities. Existing law identifies the types of projects that are eligible infrastructure projects for purposes of the program.This bill: 7) make the deployment of bear bins to minimize adverse human-and-bear interactions related to the collection and management of solid and organic waste an eligible infrastructure project, 8) incorporates additional changes to Section 42652.5 of the Public Resources Code proposed by AB 2346 and AB 2514 to be operative only if this bill and any or all of the other bills are enacted and this bill is enacted last, and 9) incorporates additional changes to Section 42999 of the Public Resources Code proposed by AB 2311 to be operative only if this bill and AB 2311 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.
Existing law requires the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, in consultation with the State Air Resources Board, to adopt regulations to achieve specified organic waste reduction goals and to analyze the progress that the waste sector, state government, and local governments have made in achieving those reduction goals, as provided. Existing law authorizes the department to include incentives or additional requirements in specified regulations to facilitate progress towards achieving the organic waste reduction goals if the department determines that significant progress has not been made. The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect, as provided. Existing regulations describe the advantages and uses of a program environmental impact report.This: 1) requires the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery to prepare and certify, by January 1, 2027, a program environmental impact report that streamlines the process with which jurisdictions can develop and site small and medium compostable material handling facilities or operations, as defined, for processing organic material, as specified.
Existing law prohibits a store, as defined, from providing a single-use carryout bag to a customer at the point of sale, with specified exceptions, including an exemption for bags used to contain unwrapped food. Existing law defines a “single-use carryout bag” as a bag made of plastic, paper, or other material that is provided by a store to a customer at the point of sale and that is not a recycled paper bag or a reusable grocery bag that meets specified requirements, including that the bag be made by a certified reusable grocery bag producer and meets specified requirements with regard to the bag’s durability, material, labeling, heavy metal content, and, with regard to reusable grocery bags made from plastic film, recycled material content. Existing law prohibits a producer of reusable grocery bags made from plastic film from selling or distributing those bags unless the producer is certified by a third-party certification entity, and provides proof of that certification and a certification fee to the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, as specified. Existing law also prohibits a store from selling or distributing a recycled paper bag at the point of sale unless the store makes that bag available for purchase for not less than $0.10. Existing law defines “recycled paper bag,” in part, as a paper carryout bag that contains a minimum of 40% postconsumer recycled materials, except as provided, and meets other requirements. Existing law allows a retail establishment to voluntarily comply with these requirements, if the retail establishment provides the department with irrevocable notice.This bill: 1) commencing January 1, 2026, revises and recast those provisions to, among other things, recast the definition of a “single-use carryout bag” to a “carryout bag,” and would revise the definition to mean a bag made of plastic, paper, or other material that is provided by a store to a customer at the point of sale for the purpose of carrying purchased goods and that is not a recycled paper bag, 2) creates a carryout bag exception to include a bag provided to a customer before the customer reaches the point of sale, that is designed to protect a purchased item from damaging or contaminating other purchased items in a checkout bag, or to contain an unwrapped food item, as specified, 3) revises the definition of “recycled paper bag” to require it be made from a minimum of 50% postconsumer recycled materials on and after January 1, 2028, without exception, 4) also prohibits a store from providing, distributing, or selling a carryout bag to a customer at the point of sale, except as provided, 5) also repeals the provisions relating to standards for and the certification of reusable grocery bags, and repeals a provision relating to certain obsolete at-store recycling program requirements, and 6) makes related legislative findings and declarations and would make related conforming changes.
Existing law authorizes the legislative body of a city or a county to establish an enhanced infrastructure financing district to finance public capital facilities or other specified projects of communitywide significance. Existing law authorizes the district’s governing board to issue, by majority vote, bonds, as specified.This bill: 1) additionally authorizes an enhanced infrastructure financing district that is at least partially in high or very high fire hazard severity zones designated by the State Fire Marshal, as specified, to finance heavy equipment to be used for vegetation clearance and firebreaks, undergrounding of local publicly owned electric utilities, as defined, against wildfires, and equipment used for fire watch, prevention, and fighting, 2) however, prohibits districts from using the proceeds of the above-described bonds for heavy equipment to be used for vegetation clearance and firebreaks and equipment used for fire watch, prevention, and fighting, and 3) incorporates additional changes to Sections 53398.50 and 53398.52 of the Government Code proposed by SB 1140 to be operative only if this bill and SB 1140 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.
Existing law establishes in the Natural Resources Agency the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, and requires the department to be responsible for, among other things, fire protection and prevention, as provided. Existing law establishes the Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force and requires the task force to develop a comprehensive implementation strategy to track and ensure the achievement of the goals and key actions identified in the state’s “Wildfire and Forest Resilience Action Plan” issued by the task force in January 2021. Existing law declares that the department has extensive technical expertise in wildland fire prevention and vegetation management on forest, range, and watershed land, and, when appropriately applied, this expertise can have significant public resource benefits, including decreasing high-intensity wildland fires, improving watershed management, and improving carbon resilience, among other benefits.This bill would: 1) require the task force, or its successor, to develop, in partnership with the agency and its member entities, an interagency funding strategy that promotes integrated, multiple benefit projects that address wildfire, watershed function, biodiversity, and climate adaptation and mitigation, to achieve landscape resilience on fire-prone lands and outcomes more aligned with an ecosystem-based approach, as defined, 2) require the agency and other relevant state entities to review and update relevant grant guidelines for certain climate change, biodiversity, conservation, fire, and watershed restoration programs to encourage multiple benefit projects, 3) require the programs to review and revise relevant grant guidelines to reinforce the program alignment to integrate conservation action with landscape restoration actions to ensure that landscapes are protected and well managed for climate, biodiversity, water security, and fire resilience, and 4) further require, to the extent feasible, investments in natural and working lands to be guided by California’s Nature-Based Solutions Climate Targets and the Natural and Working Lands Climate Smart Strategy.
Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over electrical corporations, while local publicly owned electric utilities are under the direction of their governing boards. Existing law requires each electrical corporation and local publicly owned electric utility to annually prepare and submit a wildfire mitigation plan, which includes a description of its procedures for notifying customers who may be impacted by the deenergizing of electrical lines. Existing law requires those procedures to direct notification to all affected public safety offices, critical first responders, health care facilities, and operators of telecommunications infrastructure.This bill: 1) authorizes a fire protection district, as defined, to require an electrical corporation or local publicly owned electric utility to notify the district at least 24 hours before performing a prescribed or controlled burn, except as provided.