BILL NUMBER: AB 2249 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Buchanan
FEBRUARY 24, 2012
An act to amend Sections 2861, 2862, 2864, and 2865 of the Public
Utilities Code, relating to solar energy.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2249, as introduced, Buchanan. Solar Water Heating and
Efficiency Act of 2007.
The Solar Water Heating and Efficiency Act of 2007 makes findings
and declarations of the Legislature relating to the promotion of
solar water heating systems and other technologies that reduce
natural gas demand and define terms for purposes of the act. The act
requires the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to evaluate data
available from a specified pilot program, and, if it makes a
specified determination, to design and implement a program of
incentives for the installation of 200,000 solar water heating
systems, as defined, in homes and businesses throughout the state by
2017. The act requires the PUC, in consultation with the State Energy
Resources and Conservation Commission (Energy Commission) and
interested members of the public, to establish eligibility criteria
for the solar water heating systems receiving gas customer funded
incentives. The PUC is required to establish conditions on those
incentives. Pursuant to the act, a solar water heating system is
defined to be a solar energy device that has the primary purpose of
reducing demand for natural gas through water heating, space heating,
or other methods of capturing energy from the sun to reduce natural
gas consumption in a home, business, or any building receiving
natural gas sold or transported for consumption in this state and
that meets or exceeds the eligibility criteria. The act excludes
solar pool heating systems from the definition of a solar water
heating system.
This bill would expand the definition of a solar water heating
system to include a facility meeting the specified requirements and
would qualify the exclusion from the definition of a solar water
heating system as being limited to a single-family residential solar
pool heating system. The bill would expand the statement of
legislative intent to include schools as being sites where the
200,000 solar water heating systems may be located. The bill would
revise certain eligibility criteria as being applicable to
installation of solar water heating systems at municipal and
educational sites. The bill would make other technical,
nonsubstantive changes to the act.
The Solar Water Heating and Efficiency Act of 2007 requires the
governing body of each publicly owned utility providing gas service
to retail end-use gas customers to adopt, implement, and finance a
solar water heating system incentive program to meet certain
requirements.
By expanding the definition of a solar water heating system to
include a facility meeting the specified requirements and qualifying
the exclusion from the definition of a solar water heating system as
being limited to a single-family residential solar pool heating
system, 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.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 2861 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to
read:
2861. As used in this article, the following terms have the
following meanings:
(a) "Energy Commission" means the State Energy Resources
Conservation and Development Commission.
(b)
(a) "Gas customer" includes both "core" and "noncore"
customers, as those terms are used in Chapter 2.2 (commencing with
Section 328) of Part 1, that receive retail end-use gas service
within the service territory of a gas corporation.
(c)
(b) "kWth" means the kilowatt thermal capacity of a
solar water heating system, measured consistent with the standard
established by the SRCC.
(d)
(c) "kWhth" means kilowatthours thermal as measured by
the number of kilowatts thermal generated, or displaced, in an hour.
(e)
(d) "Low-income residential housing" means either of
the following:
(1) Residential housing financed with low-income housing tax
credits, tax-exempt mortgage revenue bonds, general obligation bonds,
or local, state, or federal loans or grants, and for which the rents
of the occupants who are lower income households, as defined in
Section 50079.5 of the Health and Safety Code, do not exceed those
prescribed by deed restrictions or regulatory agreements pursuant to
the terms of the financing or financial assistance.
(2) A residential complex in which at least 20 percent of the
total units are sold or rented to lower income households, as defined
in Section 50079.5 of the Health and Safety Code, and the housing
units targeted for lower income households are subject to a deed
restriction or affordability covenant with a public entity that
ensures that the units will be available at an affordable housing
cost meeting the requirements of Section 50052.5 of the Health and
Safety Code, or at an affordable rent meeting the requirements of
Section 50053 of the Health and Safety Code, for a period of not less
than 30 years.
(f)
(e) "New Solar Homes Partnership" means the 10-year
program, administered by the Energy Commission, encouraging solar
energy systems in new home construction.
(g)
(f) "Solar heating collector" means a device that is
used to collect or capture heat from the sun and that is generally,
but need not be, located on a roof.
(h)
(g) "Solar water heating system" means a solar energy
device that has the primary purpose of reducing demand for natural
gas through water heating, space heating, or other methods of
capturing energy from the sun to reduce natural gas consumption in a
home, business, or any building or facility receiving
natural gas that is subject to the surcharge established pursuant to
subdivision (b) of Section 2860
2863 , or exempt from the surcharge pursuant to subdivision (c)
of Section 2863, and that meets or exceeds the eligibility criteria
established pursuant to Section 2864. "Solar water heating systems"
do not include single-family residential solar pool
heating systems.
(i)
(h) "SRCC" means the Solar Rating and Certification
Corporation.
SEC. 2. Section 2862 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to
read:
2862. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) California is heavily dependent on natural gas, importing more
than 80 percent of the natural gas it consumes.
(b) Rising worldwide demand for natural gas and a shrinking supply
create rising and unstable prices that can harm California consumers
and the economy.
(c) Natural gas is a fossil fuel and a major source of global
warming pollution and the pollutants that cause air pollution,
including smog.
(d) California's growing population and economy will put a strain
on energy supplies and threaten the ability of the state to meet its
global warming goals unless specific steps are taken to reduce demand
and generate energy cleanly and efficiently.
(e) Water heating for domestic and industrial use relies almost
entirely on natural gas and accounts for a significant percentage of
the state's natural gas consumption.
(f) Solar water heating systems represent the largest untapped
natural gas saving potential remaining in California.
(g) In addition to financial and energy savings, solar water
heating systems can help protect against future gas and electricity
shortages and reduce our dependence on foreign sources of energy.
(h) Solar water heating systems can also help preserve the
environment and protect public health by reducing air pollution,
including carbon dioxide, a leading global warming gas, and nitrogen
oxide, a precursor to smog.
(i) Growing demand for these technologies will create jobs in
California as well as promote greater energy independence, protect
consumers from rising energy costs and result in cleaner air.
(j) It is in the interest of the State of California to promote
solar water heating systems and other technologies that directly
reduce demand for natural gas in homes and businesses.
(k) It is the intent of the Legislature to build a mainstream
market for solar water heating systems that directly reduces demand
for natural gas in homes, businesses, schools, and
government buildings. Toward that end, it is the goal of this article
to install at least 200,000 solar water heating systems on homes,
businesses, schools, and government buildings throughout
the state by 2017, thereby lowering prices and creating a
self-sufficient market that will sustain itself beyond the life of
this program.
(l) It is the intent of the Legislature that the solar water
heating system incentives created by the act should be a
cost-effective investment by gas customers. Gas customers will recoup
the cost of their investment through lower prices as a result of
avoiding purchases of natural gas, and benefit from additional system
stability and pollution reduction benefits.
SEC. 3. Section 2864 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to
read:
2864. (a) The commission, in consultation with the Energy
Commission and interested members of the public, shall establish
eligibility criteria for solar water heating systems receiving gas
customer funded incentives pursuant to this article. The criteria
should specify and include all of the following:
(1) Design, installation, and energy output or displacement
standards. To be eligible for rebate funding, a residential solar
water heating system shall, at a minimum, have a SRCC OG-300 Solar
Water Heating System Certification. Solar collectors used in systems
for multifamily residential, commercial, municipal, educational,
or industrial water heating shall, at a minimum, have a SRCC
OG-100 Solar Water Heating System Certification.
(2) Require that solar water heating system components are new and
unused, and have not previously been placed in service in any other
location or for any other application.
(3) Require that solar water heating collectors have a warranty of
not less than 10 years to protect against defects and undue
degradation.
(4) Require that solar water heating systems are in buildings
or facilities connected to a natural gas utility's
distribution system within the state.
(5) Require that solar water heating systems have meters or other
kWhth measuring devices in place to monitor and measure the system's
performance and the quantity of energy generated or displaced by the
system. The criteria shall require meters for systems with a capacity
for displacing over 30 kWth. The criteria may require meters for
systems with a capacity of 30 kWth or smaller.
(6) Require that solar water heating systems are installed in
conformity with the manufacturer's specifications and all applicable
codes and standards.
(b) No gas customer funded incentives shall be made for a solar
water heating system that does not meet the eligibility criteria.
SEC. 4. Section 2865 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to
read:
2865. (a) The commission shall establish conditions on gas
customer funded incentives pursuant to this article. The conditions
shall require both of the following:
(1) Appropriate siting and high-quality installation of the solar
water heating system based on installation guidelines that maximize
the performance of the system and prevent qualified systems from
being inefficiently or inappropriately installed. The conditions
shall not impact housing designs or densities presently authorized by
a city, county, or city and county. The goal of this paragraph is to
achieve efficient installation of solar water heating systems and
promote the greatest energy production or displacement per gas
customer dollar.
(2) Appropriate energy efficiency improvements in the new or
existing home or commercial structure
facility where the solar hot water
heating system is installed.
(b) The commission shall set rating standards for equipment,
components, and systems to ensure reasonable performance and shall
develop standards that provide for compliance with the minimum
ratings.
SEC. 5. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because a
local agency or school district has the authority to levy service
charges, fees, or assessments sufficient to pay for the program or
level of service mandated by this act, within the meaning of Section
17556 of the Government Code.