Summary of the 2009 legislation related to distributed generation, climate change/greenhouse gas, energy/water efficiency and rates/utilities.
Below is a partial summary of legislation introduced in 2009 related to distributed generation, climate change/greenhouse gas, energy/water efficiency and rates/utilities.
2009 California Energy Legislation
DISTRIBUTED GENERATION | CLIMATE CHANGE/GREENHOUSE GAS
ENERGY EFFICIENCY | RATES/UTILITIES
• Distributed Generation
SB 7 Wiggins This bill would require the electric distribution utility or cooperative, at the discretion of the eligible customer-generator, to either: (1) provide net surplus electricity compensation for any net surplus electricity generated in the 12-month period, or (2) allow the eligible customer-generator to apply the net surplus electricity as a credit for kilowatt-hours consumed during the following, and any subsequent, 12-month periods. It also would provide that investments for solar energy systems that exceed the electricity demand of a consumer shall be permitted, but only the capacity needed to offset part or all of the electricity demand of the consumer is eligible for ratepayer funded monetary incentives pursuant to the solar initiative programs.
SB 14 Simitian This bill would amend the California RPS by requiring the CPUC to require retail sellers to procure the following percentages of electricity from eligible renewable energy resources by the following dates: (A) Until December 31, 2012, the same percentage as actually achieved by the retail seller during 2009; (B) 20% by December 31, 2013; (C) 25% by December 31, 2016; and (D) 33% by December 31, 2020 Vetoed by governor 10-11-09
SB 32 Negrete McLeod This bill will expand the current feed-in-tariff (FIT) program to allow for renewable resources that are up to three megawatts to qualify and to require the CPUC to include the value of environmental compliance costs in the rate paid to generators under FIT. Signed into law 10-11-09
SB 412 Kehoe This bill extends the sunset date of the Self-Generation Incentive Program ( SGIP) through January 1, 2016, restricts the amount the CPUC can direct the utilities to collect, and expands the eligible resources to include all self-generation technologies PUC determines will support the state's goals for the reduction of emissions of greenhouse gases, that meet specified efficiency standards. Signed into law 10-11-09
SB 581 Leno This bill will expand a state statute relating to San Francisco which limits their ability for having electrical energy projects limited only to photovoltaic solar, by giving them the ability to have more of a variety of renewable energy projects such as ocean power, in-line hydro, small urban wind, geothermal, and large and small scale solar projects. Signed into law 10-11-09
AB 44 Blakeslee Existing law authorizes the CPUC to approve an increase of one-half of 1 percent to 1 percent in the rate of return otherwise allowed an electrical corporation for investment by the corporation in generation facilities using renewable resources. This bill would authorize the commission, after a hearing, to approve a similar increase in the rate of return for investment by a corporation in energy storage facilities, as defined, that meet any of specified requirements. The bill would require the commission to develop a time-variant tariff that establishes and maximizes incentives for the storage and dispatch of energy by an eligible facility. The bill would require an electrical corporation to develop a standard contract or tariff providing for energy storage metering that accounts separately for both the charging and discharging of energy by an energy storage system, and to make this contract available to eligible facilities upon request.
AB 45 Blakeslee This bill will re-establish a lapsed authorization for local governments to provide, by ordinance, for the installation of small wind energy systems and requires local governments that have not provided such authorization by a specified date to approve applications for small wind energy systems by right if certain conditions are met by the applicants. Signed into law 10-11-09
AB 64 Krekorian This bill would implement generation and transmission siting reforms and procurement reforms to help speed the deployment of renewable resources in California necessary to meet a new goal of having 33% of California electricity load served by renewable resources. Vetoed by governor 10-11-09
AB 920 Huffman This bill will expand the current net-metering programs for wind and solar, to allow the net-metered customers to sell any excess electricity they produce over the course of a year to their electric utility. It defines a "net surplus customer-generator" as a customer-generator that generates more electricity in a 12-month period than the customer purchases from the utility in that same period. It requires all investor owned utilities (IOUs) and publicly owned utilities (POUs) that offer net-metering to purchase all net surplus electricity produced from the customer's wind or solar generator at a rate set by the CPUC or POU. The rate shall be set to provide the customer-generator "just and reasonable" compensation for the surplus energy sales, leave all other ratepayers indifferent, and shall not result in any cost shifting to non-customer generators. It will cap the amount of net surplus electricity a utility must purchase at 2.5% of each electric utility's aggregate peak demand. It will provide that the utility shall own all of the renewable attributes or renewable energy credits (RECs) associated with any net surplus electricity it must purchase. The customer will retain REC of any renewable energy credit associated with any electricity generated by the customer that is utilized by the customer. Signed into law 10-11-09
AB 1110 Fuentes This bill will allow "advanced electrical distributed generation technologies" (ADG) that have better efficiency ratings that cogeneration facilities to qualify for some of the same benefits given to congregation facilities. Signed into law 10-11-09
•Climate Change/Greenhouse Gas
SB 31: Pavley This bill would address the revenue allocations of the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006. This bill would require that revenues collected pursuant to compliance mechanisms adopted by the state board also be deposited in the Air Pollution Control Fund. This bill would specify certain uses of the revenues collected pursuant to the fee discussed above and the compliance mechanisms.
SB 626 Kehoe This bill will require the CPUC, in consultation with the CEC, CARB, utilities and the motor vehicle industry, to evaluate policies to develop infrastructure sufficient to overcome any barriers to the widespread deployment and use of plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles and, by January 1, 2011, to adopt rules that address specified matter. Signed into law 10-11-09
AB 3: V. Manuel Perez This bill would require the CPUC, by January 1, 2011, to establish a Renewable Energy Workforce Readiness Program to ensure green collar career placement and advancement opportunities within California’s renewable energy manufacturing, construction, installation, maintenance, and operation sectors that is targeted towards specified populations. The program would award training grants, on a competitive basis, to implement and operate renewable energy worker training and education programs in the state. Vetoed by governor 10-11-09
AB 19 Ruskin This bill would enact the Carbon Labeling Act of 2009 which would require the California Air Resources Board to develop and implement a program for the voluntary assessment, verification, and standardized labelling of the carbon footprint, as defined, of consumer products sold in California.
AB 28 Jeffries Existing law generally designates the California Air Resources Board as the state agency with the primary responsibility for the control of vehicular air pollution, and 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 would prohibit air pollution control districts and air quality management districts from restricting the use of engines powered by natural gas by a city, county, or special district, including a water district, to operate water pumps.
AB 1404 De Leon This bill would require CARB, if it allows the use of market-based compliance mechanisms, to limit the use of compliance offsets that meet specific criteria to no more than 10% of the greenhouse gas emission reductions expected from market mechanisms during the compliance period. It would require CARB to apply the limit as a percentage of each regulated party’s reported emissions in a compliance period. It would require CARB to impose a an administrative fee pursuant to the fee authority described above for deposit into the fund to pay for expenses related to state board administration of the compliance offset program, upon appropriation by the Legislature. Vetoed by governor 10-11-09
• Energy/Water Efficiency
SB 279 Hancock This bill would amend the Mello-Roos Act to allow a community facilities district to finance and refinance the acquisition, installation, and improvement of energy efficiency, water conservation, and renewable energy improvements to or on real property and in buildings. It would authorize a separate procedure for establishing a community facilities district where the district initially consists solely of territory proposed for annexation to the community facilities district in the future and would provide an alternate procedure for incurring bonded indebtedness for community facility districts established in this manner. Vetoed by governor 10-11-09
AB 46: Blakeslee Existing law requires the CEC to administer the State Energy Conservation Assistance Account, a continuously appropriated account, in the General Fund, until January 1, 2011, to provide grants and loans to local governments and public institutions to maximize energy use savings. All loans outstanding as of that date are required to continue to be repaid as specified until paid in full, and all unexpended funds in the account on and after that date, except as specified, are required to revert to the General Fund. This bill would extend the operation of those provisions to January 1, 2015, and would thereby make an appropriation by extending the time during which the funds in a continuously appropriated account are made available.
AB 210 Hayashi Existing law authorizes a city or county to make changes or modifications in the requirements contained in the provisions published in the California Building Standards Code and other specified regulations. This bill will allow cities and counties to change or modify green building standards. It will allow cities and counties to establish more restrictive building standards. It will provide that the adopted and established standards include, but are not limited to, green building standards. Signed into law 10-11-09
AB 212 Saldana This bill would require the CEC to adopt, in collaboration with specified parties, building design and construction standards and energy and water conservation standards to require new residential constructions commenced on or after January 1, 2020, or on a date by which the commission determines that the use of photovoltaic technology is cost effective, whichever is later, to be zero ne t energy buildings.
AB 474 Blumenfield This bill will expand the provisions of AB 811 financing to authorize the finance of the installation of water efficiency improvements permanently fixed to real property Signed into law 10-11-09
AB 758 Skinner This bill will require the CEC, by March 1, 2010, to establish a regulatory proceeding to develop a comprehensive program to achieve greater energy savings in the state's existing residential and commercial building stock. It will require the CPUC, by March 1, 2010, to open a proceeding to investigate the ability of electrical corporations to provide energy efficiency financing options to their customers to implement the comprehensive program developed by the CEC pursuant to this act; require the CPUC, by January 1, 2011, after consultation with the CEC, to authorize utilities to provide a targeted number of low- or no-cost energy efficiency audits each calendar year. Signed into law 10-11-09
• Rates/Utilities
AB 40: Fuentes This bill would require the CPUC to review its guidelines for the plant held for future use account and determine whether it needs to open a proceeding to adjust the time period allowed for a property to be held in the account. The bill would also require the commission to consider whether it should amend the guidelines, or add a separate guideline to allow a distinct time period for real property located within a transmission corridor zone designated by the CEC.
AB 1031 Blumenfield This bill will change the eligibility for which entities can apply surplus renewable energy generation to other accounts by authorizing a “campus,” defined as an individual community college campus, University of California campus, or California State University campus, to receive a bill credit to be applied to a designated benefiting account for electricity exported to the electrical grid by an eligible renewable generating facility. Signed into law 10-11-09
SB 14: Simitian This bill would increase California’s Renewables Portfolio Standard ( RPS), to require all retail sellers of electricity and all publicly owned utilities (POUs) to procure at least 33 percent of electricity delivered to their retail customers from renewable resources by 2020. This bill is contingent on the passage an enactment of AB 64 (Krekorian) which makes changes to the programmatic parts of the RPS law. Vetoed by governor 10-11-09
SB 17 Padilla This bill will establish the smart grid policy of the state and requires the CPUC to determine the requirements for a smart grid deployment plan no later than July 1, 2011.Signed into law 10-11-09
SB 488 Pavley This bill will require publicly-owned utilities and investor-owned utilities that provide individual residential electricity or gas customers with information comparing their energy use with similar residences to report to the state on the energy savings resulting from such programs. Signed into law 10-11-09
SB 695 Kehoe This will allow the CPUC to increase the electricity charges for residential customers for existing baseline quantities or usage by those customers of up to 130% of 2001 existing baseline quantities; Authorizes the CPUC to increase the rates charged residential customers for electricity usage up to 130% of the baseline quantities by the annual percentage change in the Consumer Price Index from the prior year plus 1%, but not less than 3% and not more than 5% per year. It deletes the existing suspension of direct transactions in the Water Code that was adopted during the energy crisis of 2000–01; Requires the CPUC to authorize direct transactions subject to a reopening schedule that commences immediately and will phase in over a period of not less than 3 years and not more than 5 years, and subject to an annual maximum allowable total kWh limit established for each electrical corporation (Note: Direct Access suspension repealed over a >3 year period); Continues the suspension of direct transactions except as expressly authorized, until the Legislature, by statute, repeals the suspension or otherwise authorizes direct transactions. It prohibits the CPUC from requiring or permitting a utility to employ mandatory default time-variant pricing for residential customers prior to January 1, 2013. It prohibits mandatory or default time-variant pricing, without bill protection, for residential customers prior to January 1, 2014. It prohibits mandatory or default real-time pricing, without bill protection, for residential customers prior to January 1, 2020. It requires the CPUC to establish the CARE program to provide assistance to low-income electric and gas customers and require that the cost of the program be recovered on an equal cents-per- kWh basis from all classes of customers that were subject to the surcharge that funded the CARE program on January 1, 2008. It requires that utilities, in administering the specified energy efficiency and weatherization programs, target energy efficiency and solar programs to upper-tier and multifamily customers. Signed into law 10-11-09
