Amended in Assembly April 4, 2013

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 278

Introduced by Assembly Member Gatto

February 11, 2013

An act to add Section 38566 to the Health and Safety Code, relating to greenhouse gases.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 278, as amended, Gatto. California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006: Low Carbon Fuel Standard.

The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 begin delete (the act) end delete , establishes the State Air Resources Board begin delete (state board) end delete as the state agency responsible for monitoring and regulating sources emitting greenhouse gases. The act requires the state board to adopt a statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit, as defined, to be achieved by 2020, equivalent to the statewide greenhouse gas emissions levels in 1990. The state board is additionally required to adopt rules and regulations in an open public process to achieve the maximum technologically feasible and cost-effective greenhouse gas emission reductions. Pursuant to the act, the state board has adopted the Low Carbon Fuel Standard regulations.

This bill would require the state board, in determining the carbon intensity of fuels under the Low Carbon Fuel Standard regulations or another scoring system, to consider specified matters. begin insert The bill would require the state board to identify, to the extent feasible, environmental laws and practices of the jurisdiction from which the fuel originates that may affect greenhouse gas emissions from the production and transportation of fuel. The bill would require the state board to solicit comments and consider and respond to evidence regarding specified significant effects caused by the Low Carbon Fuel Standard regulations. end insert

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 38566 is added to the Health and Safety
Code, to read:

38566.  

(a) For purposes of this section, “Low Carbon Fuel
Standard regulations” means those regulations adopted by the state
board in Subarticle 7 (commencing with Section 95480) of Article
4 of Subchapter 10 of Chapter 1 of Division 3 of Title 17 of the
California Code of Regulations.

(b) In determining the carbon intensity of fuels under the Low
Carbon Fuel Standard regulations or another scoring system, the
state board shall consider begin delete all of the following: end delete begin insert greenhouse gas
emissions associated with land use or other significant indirect
effects identified by the state board, including, but not limited to,
the impacts of potential or actual deforestation and the impacts
of increased food shipping caused by food crop displacement. end insert

begin delete

(1) The life-cycle carbon intensity impacts of potential or actual
deforestation.

end delete begin delete

(2)

end delete

begin insert (c) end insert  The begin insert state board shall identify, to the extent feasible, end insert
environmental laws and practices of the jurisdiction from which
the fuel originates begin insert that may affect greenhouse gas emissions from
the production and transportation of fuel end insert .

begin insert

(d) The state board shall solicit comments and consider and
respond to evidence regarding both of the following:

end insert begin delete

(3) Any disruptions or other

end delete

begin insert (1) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert Significan end insert begin insert t end insert effects upon food supply, food costs, and food
shipping begin delete that could occur as a result of California policy end delete begin insert caused
by the Low Carbon Fuel Standard regulations end insert .

begin delete

(4) Changes to

end delete

begin insert (2) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert Significant effects upon end insert the local economy, including job
loss or worker displacement begin delete , resulting from changes in the
production of a fuel end delete begin insert caused by the Low Carbon Fuel Standard
regulations end insert .