BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1132
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Date of Hearing: May 20, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Jimmy Gomez, Chair
AB
1132 (Ting) - As Amended May 4, 2015
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill requires the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to
submit an annual report to the Legislature on distributed
generation (DG), including an evaluation of the current use of
green workforce training programs related to DG. This bill
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requires the report to be developed in consultation with the
California Workforce Investment Board (CWIB) and the Employment
Training Panel (ETP), and include the following:
1)An evaluation of the current use of, and opportunities for
green workforce training programs relating to the deployment
of distributed energy resources.
2)Data regarding DG employment disaggregated by technology and
region within California including, but not limited to:
a) The number of full-time and part-time employees and the
number of contract personnel.
b) The number of direct and indirect jobs.
c) The inventory of distributed generation training
programs in California.
d) The number of students enrolled in training programs and
the employment rate for graduates.
FISCAL EFFECT:
1)Increased annual costs of approximately $225,000 (Utilities
Reimbursement Account) for PUC to expand the scope of the
existing DG report and produce it annually.
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2)Onetime increased costs of $350,000 (GF or special fund) for
CWIB and ETP to develop the required data sets. Ongoing
annual costs of $200,000 (GF or special fund).
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose. According to the author, as the state works to
advance greater renewable portfolio standards (RPS) goals,
increasing the amount of renewable DG will be an important
part of this strategy. It is also critical to ensure our
workforce is adequately trained to install and maintain this
new clean energy infrastructure.
The PUC currently publishes a biennial report on the impacts
of DG on the state's distribution and transmission grid but
does not include job and job training information.
According to the author, by requiring work force data to be
annually collected and published annually, this bill will help
inform public policy decisions and ensure green training
programs are helping to meet our needs.
2)Background. The Legislature enacted AB 327 (Perea, Chapter
611, Statutes of 2013) to require electrical corporations
regulated by the PUC are to file distribution resource plans
by July 1, 2015, and identify optimal locations for the
deployment of distributed resources. The PUC is required to
review and modify or approve the plans in a manner that
minimizes overall system cost, and maximizes ratepayer benefit
from investments in distributed resources. The PUC is then
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authorized to approve proposed spending if it concludes that
ratepayers would realize net benefits and the associated costs
are just and reasonable.
The PUC currently has an open proceeding to implement the
provisions of AB 327.
Analysis Prepared by:Jennifer Galehouse / APPR. / (916)
319-2081