Existing law establishes the Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation in the Governor's office for the purpose of serving the Governor and the Governor's cabinet as staff for long-range planning and research and constituting the comprehensive state planning agency. Existing law authorizes a local agency to finance infrastructure projects through various means, including by authorizing a city or county to establish an enhanced infrastructure financing district to finance public capital facilities or other specified projects of communitywide significance that provide significant benefits to the district or the surrounding community. This bill would require the office, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to establish the Infrastructure Gap-Fund Program to provide grants to local agencies for the development and construction of infrastructure projects, as defined, facing unforeseen costs after starting construction. The bill would authorize the office to provide funding for up to 20% of a project's additional projected cost, as defined, after the project has started construction, subject to specified conditions, including, among other things, that the local agency has allocated existing local tax revenue for at least 45% of the initially budgeted total cost of the infrastructure project. When applying to the program, the bill would require the local agency to demonstrate challenges with completing the project on time and on budget and how the infrastructure project helps meet state and local goals, as specified. The bill would require the office to develop guidelines to implement the program that establish the criteria by which grant applications will be evaluated and funded. The bill would make these provisions operative on January 1, 2030.
Existing law requires the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission, beginning November 1, 2003, and biennially thereafter, to adopt an integrated energy policy report that contains an overview of major energy trends and issues facing the state, presents policy recommendations based on an in-depth and integrated analysis of the most current and pressing energy issues facing the state, and includes an assessment and forecast of system reliability and the need for resource additions, efficiency, and conservation, as specified. Existing law also requires the commission, beginning November 1, 2004, and biennially thereafter, to prepare an energy policy review to update analyses from the integrated energy policy report or to raise energy issues that have emerged since the release of the integrated energy policy report, as specified. This bill would require the commission, as part of the 2027 edition of the integrated energy policy report, to include an assessment of the potential for using curtailed solar and wind generation to produce hydrogen, as provided. The bill would define curtailed solar and wind generation for this purpose and require the assessment to do specified things, including to provide an estimate of how much hydrogen could feasibly and reliably be produced using energy from curtailed solar and wind generation. The bill would repeal its provisions on January 1, 2029.
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 exempt emergency telecommunications vehicles owned or purchased by emergency telecommunications service 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 vests the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission with the exclusive jurisdiction to certify the construction of a thermal powerplant, as defined. Existing law prohibits a person from constructing a thermal powerplant unless that person obtains certification from the commission. Existing law authorizes the commission to exempt from the certification requirement a thermal powerplant with a generating capacity of up to 100 megawatts and modifications to existing generating facilities that do not add capacity in excess of 100 megawatts, if the commission finds that no substantial adverse impact on the environment or energy resources will result from the project. Existing law makes the commission the lead agency for purposes of environmental review pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) for all projects that require certification and for projects that are exempted by the commission. This bill would additionally authorize the commission to exempt from the certification requirement, only until January 1, 2030, a thermal powerplant that generates electricity using exclusively geothermal resources and is found by the commission to meet specified criteria, including that the person proposing the powerplant files an application on or before June 30, 2029, with the local governmental agency that has land use and related jurisdiction over the area in which the powerplant is located, that the local governmental agency will be the lead agency for the project and will require a discretionary permit that is subject to environmental review pursuant to CEQA, that the person proposing the powerplant certifies that specified skilled and trained workforce requirements will be followed if the exemption is granted, and that the powerplant has a net generating capacity of 50 to 150 megawatts or that modifications are being made to the powerplant to add capacity resulting in total net generating capacity of 50 to 150 megawatts, and for any plan for multiple geothermal powerplants that use at least one common infrastructure component and those powerplants, in total, have a net generating capacity of 50 or more megawatts. Upon the commission granting an exemption, the bill would require the local governmental agency to be the lead agency for purposes of CEQA to certify the site and related facility, as provided. The bill would, until January 1, 2030, make the local governmental agency that has land use and related jurisdiction over the area of the proposed site and related facility the lead agency pursuant to CEQA for any project that the commission exempts from the certification requirement and that generates electricity using geothermal resources as provided.
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 the use of market-based compliance mechanisms in regulating those emissions. The implementing regulations adopted by the state board provide for the direct allocation of greenhouse gas allowances to electrical corporations and gas corporations pursuant to a market-based compliance mechanism. Existing law, except as provided, requires revenues received by an electrical corporation as a result of the direct allocation of greenhouse gas allowances to electrical distribution utilities to be credited directly to residential, small business, and emissions-intensive trade-exposed retail customers of the electrical corporation, commonly known as the electric California Climate Credit. Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory jurisdiction over public utilities, including electrical corporations and gas corporations. Under its regulatory authority, the commission requires, except as provided, revenues received by a gas corporation as a result of the direct allowance of greenhouse gas allowances to natural gas suppliers to be credited directly to residential customers of the gas corporation, commonly known as the natural gas California Climate Credit. This bill would require that the electric California Climate Credit be provided to the residential and small business retail customers of electrical corporations on the bills of those customers for the months of August and September of each year, and to the emissions-intensive trade-exposed retail customers of electrical corporations on the bills of those customers for the month of August of each year, unless otherwise directed by the commission, as specified. The bill would require that the natural gas California Climate Credit be provided to residential customers on the bills of those customers for the month of February of each year unless otherwise directed by the commission, as specified. Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act or an order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime. Because the above provisions would be part of the act and a violation of a commission action implementing this bill's requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. 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 would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
