BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                  AB 834
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          ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
          AB 834 (Williams)
          As Amended  April 22, 2013
          Majority vote 

           NATURAL RESOURCES   6-3         APPROPRIATIONS      12-5        
           
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
          |Ayes:|Chesbro, Garcia,          |Ayes:|Gatto, Bocanegra,         |
          |     |Muratsuchi, Skinner,      |     |Bradford,                 |
          |     |Stone, Williams           |     |Ian Calderon, Campos,     |
          |     |                          |     |Eggman, Gomez, Hall,      |
          |     |                          |     |Rendon, Pan, Quirk, Weber |
          |     |                          |     |                          |
          |-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
          |Nays:|Grove, Bigelow, Patterson |Nays:|Harkey, Bigelow,          |
          |     |                          |     |Donnelly, Linder, Wagner  |
          |     |                          |     |                          |
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
           SUMMARY  :  Expands the California Energy Commission's (CEC)  
          administrative civil penalty enforcement authority to include  
          energy efficiency and water efficiency standards for buildings.   


           EXISTING LAW  :

          1)Requires the CEC to take specified actions to reduce the  
            wasteful, uneconomic, inefficient, or unnecessary consumption  
            of energy, including adopting energy and water efficiency  
            standards for appliances and for lighting, insulation climate  
            control systems, and other building design and construction  
            systems.   

          2)Establishes administrative civil penalties for violations of  
            the CEC's appliance efficiency standards.  Authorizes CEC to  
            assess penalties of up to $2,500 for each violation.  Requires  
            CEC to consider specified factors when assessing a penalty.  

          3)Provides that if CEC determines that a violation has occurred  
            or is threatening to occur, CEC may refer the matter to the  
            Attorney General (AG) to petition a court to enjoin the  
            violation.  Authorizes the court to grant prohibitory or  
            mandatory injunctive relief as warranted.  









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          4)Specifies that the energy and water efficiency requirements  
            for buildings be enforced by the building department of every  
            city, county, or city and county.  Specifies that where there  
            is no local building department, CEC shall enforce these  
            standards.  

           FISCAL EFFECT  :  According to the Assembly Appropriations  
          Committee, this bill has unknown, likely minor, special fund  
          enforcement costs to CEC, offset to a degree by increased  
          revenue from violations.

           COMMENTS  :  Energy efficiency is a top priority in California's  
          policies to achieve energy savings and reduce greenhouse gas  
          (GHG) emissions.  The CEC is tasked with developing the state's  
          Title 24 energy efficiency building regulations, which are  
          updated every three years and specify requirements relating to  
          lighting, insulation, windows, heating, ventilation, and air  
          conditioning (HVAC) systems, and other construction details  
          designed to reduce energy consumption and lower energy bills for  
          consumers.  The CEC also develops the state's Title 20 energy  
          efficiency appliance regulations that specify energy use  
          standards for most major household and commercial appliances  
          sold in California.  Numerous programs administered by CEC, the  
          California Public Utilities Commission, investor owned  
          utilities, publicly owned utilities, and local government  
          agencies offer consumers incentives or rebates to purchase  
          energy efficient appliances and construct or install energy  
          efficient devices or technologies in residential and commercial  
          buildings.

          In 2011, CEC launched Energy Upgrade California, a web portal  
          that provides consumers with a "one-stop-shop for home  
          improvement projects that lower your energy use, conserve water  
          and natural resources, and make your home healthier and more  
          comfortable."  The site provides information on available  
          incentives and licensed contractors.  

           Existing enforcement  .  The Contractors State License Board  
          (CSLB) is the state's lead agency for investigating complaints  
          against contractors.  Investigations may result in a warning  
          letter, disciplinary action, or referral to a local prosecutor  
          for criminal charges.  The disposition of a complaint varies by  
          county and depends on whether a contractor is licensed or not.   
          CLSB handles complaints referred by local building officials who  








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          enforce Title 24 standards.  

          In July 2010, CLSB and CEC entered into a memorandum of  
          understanding (MOU) to increase collaboration on education and  
          enforcement of building and appliance regulations.  The MOU  
          identifies specific tasks for CEC, including outreach and  
          education and training for CLSB staff.  

          The AG's Office has also encouraged the entities involved in  
          energy efficiency to work together to increase public outreach  
          and education to encourage consumers to use licensed contractors  
          and to acquire proper permits.  

          This bill would authorize CEC to enforce building standards  
          relating to energy efficiency that were adopted by CEC.   

           This bill  .  According to the author's office:  

               Our standards for building efficiency are recognized  
               as leading the nation in energy savings and serves as  
               one of the primary energy policy tools that resulted  
               in California's per capita energy use staying  
               essentially constant over the past 30 years, while the  
               rest of the United States' consumption increased  
               steadily.   However, the effectiveness of the building  
               energy efficiency standards is dependent on compliance  
               with the standards.  Violations of these standards not  
               only threaten energy savings, they also result in a  
               substantial financial loss to consumers who purchase  
               energy efficiency goods and services and represent  
               unfair competition that dramatically impacts the  
               viability of legitimate businesses.

               AB 834 is needed to ensure that reported energy  
               savings are real, consumers who purchase services for  
               home improvement are protected, and businesses that  
               provide energy efficiency services are operating on a  
               level playing field.  
                

          Analysis Prepared by  :    Elizabeth MacMillan / NAT. RES. / (916)  
          319-2092 










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