Amended in Senate August 29, 2013

Amended in Senate July 9, 2013

Amended in Senate June 25, 2013

Amended in Assembly May 6, 2013

Amended in Assembly April 1, 2013

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 792

Introduced by Assembly Member Mullin

(Principal coauthor: Senator Hill)

February 21, 2013

An act to add begin insert and repeal end insert Section 7284.5 begin delete to end delete begin insert of end insert the Revenue and Taxation Code, relating to taxation.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 792, as amended, Mullin. Utility user tax: exemption: distributed generation systems.

Existing law generally provides that the legislative body of any city and any charter city may make and enforce all ordinances and regulations with respect to municipal affairs, as provided, including, but not limited to, a utility user tax on the consumption of gas and electricity. Existing law provides that the board of supervisors of any county may levy a utility user tax on the consumption of, among other things, gas and electricity in the unincorporated area of the county.

This bill would begin insert , until January 1, 2020, end insert exempt from any utility user tax imposed by a local jurisdiction, as defined, the consumption of electricity generated by a begin delete renewable distributed generation system that is installed before January 1, 2020, end delete begin insert clean energy resource, as defined, end insert for the begin delete exclusive end delete use of a single customer begin insert or the customer’s tenants end insert .

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

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

SECTION 1.  

Section 7284.5 is added to the Revenue and
Taxation Code, to read:

7284.5.  

(a) For the purposes of this section, begin delete “local end delete begin insert the following
terms have the following meanings: end insert

begin insert (1) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert “ end insert begin insert Local end insert jurisdiction” means any city, county, city and county,
including any chartered city, county, or city and county, district,
or public or municipal corporation.

begin insert

(2) “Clean energy resource” means either of the following:

end insert begin insert

(A) A device or technology used for a renewable electrical
generation facility, as set forth in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a)
of Section 25741 of the Public Resources Code.

end insert begin insert

(B) A technology that meets all of the following requirements:

end insert begin insert

(i) The emissions standards adopted by the State Air Resources
Board pursuant to the distributed generation certification program
requirements of Article 3 (commencing with Section 94200) of
Subchapter 8 of Chapter 1 of Division 3 of Title 17 of the
California Code of Regulations.

end insert begin insert

(ii) Produces de minimis emissions of sulfur oxides and nitrogen
oxides.

end insert begin insert

(iii) The greenhouse gases emission performance standard
established by the Public Utilities Commission pursuant to Section
8341 of the Public Utilities Code.

end insert begin insert

(iv) Has a total electrical efficiency of no less than 45 percent.

end insert begin insert

(v) Is sized to meet the generator’s onsite electrical demand.

end insert begin insert

(vi) Has parallel operation to the electrical distribution grid.

end insert begin insert

(vii) Utilizes renewable or nonrenewable fuel.

end insert begin insert

(viii) Pays any applicable utility users tax for nonrenewable
fuels used in electricity generation.

end insert

(b) begin insert   end insert begin insert ( end insert begin insert 1) end insert  There is exempt from any utility user tax on the
consumption of electricity, imposed by any local jurisdiction, a
customer’s consumption of electricity generated by a begin delete renewable
distributed generation system that is installed before January 1,
2020, for the exclusive use of a single customer. end delete begin insert clean energy
resource that is located on the customer’s premises and used solely
for the customer or the customer’s tenants. end insert

begin insert

(2) This section does not exempt from any utility users tax
imposed by any local jurisdiction any electricity or gas, not
described in paragraph (1), that is provided to a customer by an
electrical corporation, publicly owned utility, electrical
cooperative, or irrigation district.

end insert begin insert

(c) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2020,
and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
is enacted before January 1, 2020, deletes or extends that date.

end insert

SEC. 2.  

The Legislature finds and declares that exempting the
consumption of electricity generated by a begin delete renewable distributed
generation system end delete begin insert clean energy resource, end insert that is installed for the
exclusive use of a single customer begin insert , or the customer’s tenants, end insert from
local utility user taxes will ensure statewide uniformity and fairness
in the overall imposition of the utility user tax. Therefore,
exempting from utility user taxes the consumption of electricity
generated by a begin delete renewable distributed generation system end delete begin insert clean
energy resource, end insert that is installed for the exclusive use of a single
customer is a matter of statewide concern, and not a municipal
affair, as that term is used in Section 5 of Article XI of the
California Constitution.