Amended in Assembly April 6, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 33


Introduced by Assembly Member Quirk

December 1, 2014


An act to addbegin delete and repeal Sectionend deletebegin insert Sectionsend insert 38561.5begin delete ofend deletebegin insert and 38561.7 toend insert the Health and Safety Code, relating to greenhouse gases.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 33, as amended, Quirk. California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006:begin delete scoping plan.end deletebegin insert Climate Change Advisory Council.end insert

The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 establishes the State Air Resources Board 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 act requires the state board to prepare and approve a scoping plan for achieving the maximum technologically feasible and cost-effective reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.begin delete The act requires the scoping plan to be updated at least once every 5 years.end delete

begin delete

This bill, until January 1, 2020, would require, for purposes of advising the update of the next scoping plan, the state board to develop specified information by July 1, 2016. The bill would require the state board on or before January 1, 2017, to submit a report to the appropriate committees of the Legislature on the specified information. The bill would provide that the specified information is intended to assist in establishing state policy and does not change any statute, regulation, or regulatory decision.

end delete
begin insert

This bill would establish the Climate Change Advisory Council in state government and would assign the council specified duties, including, among others, developing an analysis of various strategies to achieve the statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit. The bill also would require the state board to establish consistent metrics to accurately quantify reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, quantify public health benefits, and measure the cost-effectiveness of the various strategies identified by the council.

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:

P2    1

SECTION 1.  

The Legislature finds and declares all of the
2following:

3(a) Climate change is a global emissions problem.

4(b) California is responsible for approximately 1 percent of the
5world’s global greenhouse gas emissions and, thus, needs to
6address the problem of climate change with a global perspective.

7(c) Significant technological advances and major policy
8initiatives that can be deployed at scale in developed and
9developing countries will be necessary to transition away from
10fossil fuel as the primary fuel source to allow the developed and
11developing countries of the world to achieve low-carbon economic
12 growth.

13(d) It is in the best interest of the state to ensure that greenhouse
14gasbegin insert emissionsend insert reduction goals are achievable by strategies that
15other states and countries could reasonably adopt.

16(e) Demonstrating effective climate change policy can increase
17the likelihood that other states and countries will follow
18California’s lead, which is necessary for the state to have a
19significant effect on the global climate change problem.

20begin insert

begin insertSEC. 2.end insert  

end insert

begin insertSection 38561.5 is added to the end insertbegin insertHealth and Safety
21Code
end insert
begin insert, to read:end insert

begin insert
22

begin insert38561.5.end insert  

(a) The Climate Change Advisory Council is hereby
23established in state government, and it shall consist of all of the
24following:

25(1) The chair of the state board, or his or her designee.

26(2) The president of the Public Utilities Commission, or his or
27her designee.

P3    1(3) The chair of the governing board of the California
2Independent System Operator, or his or her designee.

3(4) The chair of the State Water Resources Control Board, or
4his or her designee.

5(5) The chair of the State Energy Resources Conservation and
6Development Commission, or his or her designee.

7(b) The council, as recommendations for inclusion in the scoping
8plan developed pursuant to Section 38561, shall complete all of
9the following:

10(1) Develop an analysis of various strategies to achieve the
11statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit, including, but not limited
12to, all of the following:

13(A) Strategies necessary for the energy grid to integrate a
1440-percent, a 50-percent, and a greater than 50-percent standard
15as part of the California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program
16(Article 16 (commencing with Section 399.11) of Chapter 2.3 of
17Part 1 of Division 1 of the Public Utilities Code) in order to
18minimize and eliminate over-generation and the need for
19curtailment, including, but not limited to, all of the following:

20(i) Deepening regional coordination in the western
21interconnection.

22(ii) Increasing energy storage.

23(iii) Retrofitting existing baseload electrical generation facilities
24in order that they may perform as peaking electrical generation
25facilities.

26(iv) Using renewable energy generation facilities as peaking
27electrical generation facilities.

28(v) Allowing for very low-carbon-fossil-fuel peaking electrical
29generation facilities by deploying carbon capture and storage.

30(vi) Encouraging demand response through both of the
31following:

32(I) Transitioning to time-of-use pricing for residential buildings.

33(II) Increasing customer access to real-time or near-real-time
34energy usage data.

35(B) Strategies to increase energy efficiency in both commercial
36and residential buildings, including, but not limited to, all of the
37following:

38(i) Validating existing energy efficiency programs against actual
39energy usage data.

40(ii) Optimizing heating and cooling systems.

P4    1(iii) Transitioning to the electrification of buildings.

2(C) Strategies to advance the transportation sector, including,
3but not limited to, all of the following:

4(i) Increasing the fuel economy of light-duty vehicles.

5(ii) Examining strategies for reducing emissions from heavy-duty
6vehicles, such as through the use of natural gas, biogas, and
7biodiesel.

8(iii) Increasing the market for low-carbon and very low-carbon
9fuels.

10(iv) Building electric vehicle infrastructure and low-carbon and
11very low-carbon vehicle infrastructure.

12(2) Develop an economic assessment using the best available
13economic models and data of the various greenhouse gas emissions
14reduction strategies required to achieve the statewide greenhouse
15gas emissions limit.

16(3) Develop an analysis of the benefits to the health, safety, and
17welfare of state residents, worker safety, the state’s environment
18and quality of life, and any other benefits associated with the
19various greenhouse gas emissions reduction strategies to achieve
20the statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit.

21(c) The information developed pursuant to subdivision (b) is
22intended to assist in establishing state policy and does not change
23any statute, regulation, or regulatory decision.

end insert
24begin insert

begin insertSEC. 3.end insert  

end insert

begin insertSection 38561.7 is added to the end insertbegin insertHealth and Safety
25Code
end insert
begin insert, to read:end insert

begin insert
26

begin insert38561.7.end insert  

The state board shall establish consistent metrics to
27accurately quantify reductions in greenhouse gas emissions,
28quantify public health benefits, and measure the cost-effectiveness
29of the various strategies identified by the Climate Change Advisory
30Council pursuant to Section 38561.5 in order to achieve the
31statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit.

end insert
begin delete
32

SEC. 2.  

Section 38561.5 is added to the Health and Safety
33Code
, to read:

34

38561.5.  

(a) On or before July 1, 2016, for purposes of
35advising the update of the next scoping plan pursuant to subdivision
36(h) of Section 38561, the state board shall develop a proposal
37consistent with Sections 38550 and 38551 that includes all of the
38following:

39(1) A proposed goal that further reduces greenhouse gas
40emissions by 2040.

P5    1(2) A proposed goal that further reduces greenhouse gas
2emissions beyond the 2040 goal by 2050.

3(3) A proposed goal for 2030 that includes all of the following:

4(A) An evaluation of the 2030 goal based on what policies and
5 technologies can be scaled to the rest of the country and the world.

6(B) An economic assessment using the best available economic
7models and data of the various greenhouse gas emissions-reduction
8strategies required to achieve the 2030 goal. The economic
9assessment shall include a marginal cost analysis.

10(C) An analysis of the benefits to the health, safety, and welfare
11of state residents, worker safety, the state’s environment and quality
12of life, and any other benefits associated with the various
13greenhouse gas emissions reduction strategies to achieve the 2030
14goal.

15(D) The establishment of consistent metrics to accurately
16quantify reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, quantify public
17health benefits, and measure the cost-effectiveness of various
18policies and technologies.

19(b) (1) On or before January 1, 2017, the state board shall
20submit to the appropriate committees of the Legislature the
21information developed pursuant to subdivision (a).

22(2) A report to be submitted pursuant to this subdivision shall
23be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government
24Code.

25(c) The information developed pursuant to subdivision (a) is
26intended to assist in establishing state policy and does not change
27any statute, regulation, or regulatory decision.

28(d) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2020,
29and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
30is enacted before January 1, 2020, deletes or extends that date.

end delete


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