SB 418, as amended, Jackson. Energy: nuclear fission powerplants.
(1) Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission, commonly known as the PUC, has regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations, as defined. The Public Utilities Act prohibits any electrical corporation from beginning the construction of, among other things, a line, plant, or system, or of any extension thereof, without having first obtained from the PUC a certificate that the present or future public convenience and necessity require or will require that construction. A violation of the act, or an order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the PUC is a crime.
Existing federal law requires an operator of a nuclear fission thermal powerplant to obtain from thebegin delete federalend deletebegin insert
United Statesend insert Nuclear Regulatory Commission a license for the operation of the powerplant.
This bill would enact the Nuclear Energy Planning and Responsibility Act and would require the PUC to require an applicant electrical corporation applying for ratepayer funding, or reopening an existing application for ratepayer funding, for the relicensing of a nuclear fission thermal powerplant with a generation capacity of 50 megawatts or greater by thebegin delete federalend deletebegin insert United Statesend insert Nuclear Regulatory Commission, to submit a detailed study of the project needs and costs in order to assess the cost-effectiveness of the continued operation of the nuclear fission thermal powerplant.begin insert
Because a violation of this provision would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.end insert The bill would require the PUC to make the study available on its Internet Web site and to independently review the study to assess the cost-effectiveness of the continued operation of the nuclear fission thermal powerplant.begin delete Because a violation of this provision would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.end delete
(2) 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:
This act shall be known, and may be cited, as the
2Nuclear Energy Planning and Responsibility Act.
Section 1091.5 is added to the Public Utilities Code,
4to read:
(a) Upon application to the commission for ratepayer
6funding, or reopening of an existing application for ratepayer
7funding, for the relicensing of a nuclear fission thermal powerplant
8with a generation capacity of 50 megawatts or greater by thebegin delete federalend delete
9begin insert United Statesend insert Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the commission
10shall require the applicant electrical corporation operating the
11nuclear fission thermal powerplant to submit a detailed study of
12the project needs and costs in order to assess the cost-effectiveness
13of the continued operation of the nuclear fission
thermal
14powerplant.
P3 1(b) The study shall include, but is not limited to, all of the
2following areas of concern for the relicensing period:
3(1) The effect of the nuclear fission thermal powerplant on
4system reliability and the affordable supply of electricity, including
5planned provisions for emergency operations and unplanned
6shutdowns as well as the costs of replacement power.
7(2) The costs attributable to major disruptions in electrical
8generation due to aging or major seismic eventsbegin insert, including any
9uncompleted cost assessments required pursuant to paragraph (8)
10of subdivision (a) of Section 25303 of the Public Resources Code,end insert
11 that may require repair,
replacement, or retrofit in excess of fifty
12million dollars ($50,000,000) at the nuclear fission thermal
13powerplant.
14(3) The costs of responding to, or mitigatingbegin delete for, any new state begin insert forend insert requirements
15or federalend deletebegin delete that have arisen or are anticipated to begin insert,
16become enforceable during the period of the license extensionend delete
17retrofits, or modifications that may arise from the United States
18Nuclear Regulatory Commission Near Term Risk Task Force
19requirements pursuant to commission document SECY-11-0137:
20Prioritization of Recommended Actions to be Taken in Response
21
to Fukushima Lessons Learned, as that document may be
22subsequently amendedend insert.
23(4) Potential costs and impacts associated with current and
24accumulating high-level radioactive waste and its ongoing storage
25at the nuclear fission thermal powerplantbegin delete during the relicensing begin insert as necessitated by changes in the United States Nuclear
26periodend delete
27Regulatory Commission’s revised Waste Confidence policyend insert.
28(5) Potential costs associated with mitigation or alternatives to
29the use of once-through cooling at the nuclear fission thermal
30powerplant as required bybegin delete state or federal lawend deletebegin insert
revisions mandated
31by the State Water Resources Control Boardend insert.
32(6) Potential costs associated with expanding and maintaining
33emergency planning zones in compliance withbegin delete state or federal begin insert the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s
34regulationsend delete
35Near Term Task Force requirements pursuant to commission
36documents SECY-11-0137: Prioritization of Recommended Actions
37to be Taken in Response to Fukushima Lessons Learned and
38SECY-12-0025: Proposed Orders and Requests for Information
39in Response to Lessons Learned From Japan’s March 11, 2011,
P4 1Great Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami, as those documents may
2be subsequently amendedend insert.
3(7) Costs
associated with achieving compliance with
4requirements for a federal consistency certification granted by the
5California Coastal Commission to the electrical corporation,
6required for the relicensing of the nuclear fission thermal
7powerplant by thebegin delete federalend deletebegin insert United Statesend insert Nuclear Regulatory
8Commission.
9(c) The commission shall make the study publicly available on
10its Internet Web site and shall independently review the study to
11assess the cost-effectiveness of the continued operation of the
12nuclear fission thermal powerplant.
No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
14Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
15the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
16district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
17infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
18for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of
19the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within
20the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
21Constitution.
O
94