California Center for Sustainable Energy

Wrap-up of major energy-related bills signed this year

California’s 2009 legislative session ended in September after addressing a host of bills related to energy efficiency, renewable energy, energy rates and greenhouse gas emissions. By Oct. 11, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger had determined the bills he would approve, which included the five bills below that CCSE followed closely during the legislative session.

The California legislature reconvenes Jan. 4, 2010, for the start of the second year of the 2009-2010 session. For additional information, you can follow the links provided and also visit our Public Affairs website.

SB 32 (Negrete McLeod) Renewable Electric Generation Feed-in Tariffs

Mandates an expansion of the current feed-in tariff (FIT) to those facilities up to three MW in size. It also mandates the rate offered to FIT customers to reflect the environmental attributes of renewable generation facilities. FITs enable renewable energy producers to sell the renewable electricity production to their utility. The rate for the new FIT will be approved by the California Public Utilities Commission.

SB 412 (Kehoe) Self-Generation Incentive Program: Inclusion of Nonsolar Technologies

Adds ultraclean combined heat and power ( CHP) generation installations back into the Self-Generation Incentive Program ( SGIP), which is scheduled to run until 2012. CHP installations were part of the initial SGIP program, which began in 2001. They were later removed, leaving the program to provide incentives only for wind and fuel cell technologies.

SB 695 (Kehoe) Residential Time-of-Use Electricity Rates and Direct Access

Lifts rate caps for the first two tiers of residential energy service that were instituted after the 2000-2001 energy crisis. It also allows an increase in the number of direct access transactions allowable over the next three to five years.

AB 758 (Skinner) Existing Building Efficiency

Requires the California Energy Commission to establish a regulatory proceeding to develop a comprehensive energy-efficiency program for existing residential and commercial building stock. This bill can support the energy-efficiency industry, especially if mandates for point-of-sale energy-efficiency audits are enacted as a result of the proceeding.

AB 920 (Huffman) Payment for Excess Generation

Allows net-metered, renewable-energy ratepayers to receive a credit for their excess generation at the end of the customer’s 12-month net-metering cycle. The rate will be approved by the California Public Utilities Commission.

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