Amended in Assembly May 27, 2016

Amended in Assembly April 11, 2016

Amended in Assembly March 28, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2223

Introduced by Assembly Member Gray

February 18, 2016

An act to add Section 412 to the Food and Agricultural Code, relating to begin delete greenhouse gases. end delete begin insert dairy methane reduction, and making an appropriation therefor. end insert

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2223, as amended, Gray. begin delete Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund: dairy digesters. end delete begin insert Dairy methane reduction. end insert

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The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 designates the State Air Resources Board as the state agency charged with monitoring and regulating sources of emissions of greenhouse gases. The act authorizes the state board to include the use of market-based compliance mechanisms. Existing law requires all moneys, except for fines and penalties, collected by the state board as part of a market-based compliance mechanism to be deposited in the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund and to be available upon appropriation by the Legislature.

end delete begin insert

Existing law establishes the Department of Food and Agriculture under the administration of the Secretary of Food and Agriculture to promote and protect the agricultural industry of the state.

end insert

This bill would begin delete provide that up to $100,000,000 shall be made available, upon appropriation, from the fund end delete begin insert appropriate $10,000,000 from the General Fund end insert to the Department of Food and Agriculture to provide begin delete incentives end delete begin insert loans end insert for the implementation of dairy digesters and other dairy methane reduction projects and management practices.

Vote:  begin delete majority end delete begin insert ²⁄₃ end insert . Appropriation:  begin delete no end delete begin insert yes end insert . Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

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

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SECTION 1.  

The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:

(a) The State Air Resources Board has embarked on an
ambitious strategy to reduce dairy methane emissions. These
voluntary reductions cannot begin to be achieved unless the state
provides a substantial and ongoing financial commitment to offset
the costs of achieving these reductions.

(b) Dairy methane reduction projects are among the most
cost-effective investments the state can make to reduce greenhouse
gas emissions.

(c) Investments in dairy digesters and other methane reduction
projects on dairies in the state will provide significant greenhouse
gas and short-lived climate pollutant emissions reductions, as well
as all of the following:

(1) Significant benefits to disadvantaged communities, as
identified pursuant to Section 39711 of the Health and Safety Code,
including criteria pollutant reductions, water quality improvements,
and nuisance and odor control.

(2) Help in achieving a 50 percent reduction in petroleum use
by replacing diesel with renewable natural gas.

(3) Furtherance of the California Sustainable Freight Action
Plan.

(4) Substantial clean energy production, including renewable
electricity, renewable natural gas, and renewable carbon-negative
transportation fuel.

(5) Increased decarbonization of the state’s natural gas system.

(6) Job creation and economic development in
high-unemployment rural communities.

(7) Significant greenhouse gas emissions offsets and credit
production pursuant to the Low Carbon Fuel Standard regulation
(Subarticle 7 (commencing with Section 95480) of Article 4 of
Subchapter 10 of Chapter 1 of Division 3 of Title 17 of the
California Code of Regulations).

(8) Significant water quality benefits from advancements in
manure management.

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begin delete SEC. 2. end delete

begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

Section 412 is added to the Food and Agricultural
Code, to read:

412.  

begin delete Up to one hundred end delete begin insert (a) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert Ten end insert million dollars begin delete ($100,000,000)
from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, created pursuant to
Section 16428.8 of the Government Code, shall be available, upon
appropriation by the Legislature, end delete begin insert ($10,000,000) is hereby
appropriated end insert to the department to provide begin delete incentives end delete begin insert loans end insert for the
implementation of dairy digesters and other dairy methane
reduction projects and management practices.

begin insert

(b) Loans issued by the department for the purposes specified
in subdivision (a) shall be repaid within 10 years, and the payments
shall be deposited into the General Fund.

end insert