BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2249
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 9, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON UTILITIES AND COMMERCE
Steven Bradford, Chair
AB 2249 (Buchanan) - As Amended: April 9, 2012
SUBJECT : Solar Water Heating and Efficiency Act of 2007
SUMMARY : This bill expands the definition of a solar water
heating system and revises exclusions from the definition of a
solar water heating system. Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires investor owned gas utilities to implement a solar
water heating incentive program.
2)Prescribes criteria to qualify for the solar water heating
incentive program.
EXISTING LAW
Establishes an incentive program to support installation of
200,000 solar water heaters by 2017.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
1)According to the author, "AB 2249 will include non-residential
solar pool heating systems in the types of solar water heating
systems eligible to receive installation incentives as part of
the existing California Solar Initiative (CSI) Thermal
Program. AB 2249 will help encourage the installation of
solar hot water systems by expanding the current program to
include non-residential pools. This will remove the upfront
cost barriers that currently prevent municipalities, schools
and non-profits from using solar to heat their swimming pools.
Budget cuts have severely impacted schools and municipalities
and pool closures are becoming the norm. Solar heating systems
can significantly lower the astronomical operating costs
associated with heating swimming pools. These cash-strapped
organizations would benefit from significant savings
associated with heating their pools while also greatly
reducing their emissions of greenhouse gases and other
criteria pollutants."
AB 2249
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2)Five years ago the Legislature passed AB 1470 (Huffman), which
created the Solar Water Heating and Efficiency Act of 2007.
3) In January 2010, the California Public Utilities Commission
(PUC) formalized the program as the CSI Thermal Program and
provided for approximately $280 million in financial
incentives. The existing pot of money is not being utilized
due to a number of factors, including a lack of program
awareness. There is a current unspent balance of more than
$250 million. The program expires in 2017.
4)The CSI Thermal Program has had a slow uptake in applications
due to several factors: the PUC delayed several years
implementing the program and has not yet initiated the
marketing campaign to educate the public on the availability
of the incentives; there have been natural gas prices and gas
rate structures for commercial customers.
5)This bill will modify incentive eligibility criteria to
include non-residential solar pool heating systems in the CSI
Thermal Program to remove upfront cost barriers that currently
prevent municipalities, schools and non-profits from going
solar through this program and heating their swimming pools.
These cash-strapped organizations will benefit from
significant operating cost savings associated with heating
their pools while also greatly reducing their pollutant
emissions.
6)Solar water heating for residential pools is a well-accepted
technology because it provides cost-effective heating and
extends the pools use by warming the pool water earlier in the
year and keeping it warm later in the year.
7)Municipal pool operators generally have little or no capital
budget to make improvements to existing pools. However, the
general practice is that utility costs are paid for out of
operating budgets. Thus municipalities will either stop
heating pools or close pools to reduce gas costs rather than
expend the funds to add a solar water heating system.
8)According to the California Solar Energy Industries
Association, heated high school pools in the San Francisco,
California bay area, for example, will spend between $30,000
and $60,000 annually to heat their pools.
AB 2249
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9)The author may wish to consider amending the bill to establish
a date by which the PUC will make the revised program
available and specify that marketing programs shall commence
within 30 days of the revised program's effective date.
10)The author intends to amend the bill in Committee:
a) Include government and nonprofit water heating in PU
Code Section 2864(a) (1) to read: "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, government, nonprofit,
educational, or industrial water heating shall, at a
minimum, have a SRCC OG-100 Solar Water Heating System
Certification.")
(Note that the author's language refers to a rating system
defined in 2861 of the Public Utilities Code: SRCC is an
acronym for the Solar Rating Certification Corporation.
OG-300 is the name of a specific test procedure)
b) Direct the PUC to review whether current rebates are
enough to spur investment.
c) Direct PUC to determine appropriate division of funds
between solar water heating and solar pool heating.
d) Clarify that pools owned by non-profits are eligible for
the incentive.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Park & Recreation Society (CPRS)
California Solar Energy Industries Association (CALSEIA)
(Sponsor)
California State Association of Electrical Workers
California State Pipe Trades Council
Coalition for Adequate School Housing (C.A.S.H.)
Coalition of California Utility Employees
County School Facilities Consortium (CSFC)
Environment California
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Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E)
School Energy Coalition (SEC)
Western States Council of Sheet Metal Workers
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Susan Kateley / U. & C. / (916)
319-2083