BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2293
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Date of Hearing: April 4, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES
Das Williams, Chair
AB 2293
(Cristina Garcia) - As Amended March 29, 2016
SUBJECT: Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund: Green Assistance
Program
SUMMARY: Creates the Green Assistance Program (GAP) within the
California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA) to provide
assistance to small businesses and non-profits.
EXISTING LAW under the California Global Warming Solutions Act
of 2006 [AB 32 (Nunez), Chapter 488, Statutes of 2006]:
1)Requires the Air Resources Board (ARB) to adopt a statewide
GHG emissions limit equivalent to 1990 levels by 2020 and
adopt regulations to achieve maximum technologically feasible
and cost-effective GHG emission reductions.
2)Establishes the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF); requires
that all funds, except for fines and penalties, collected
pursuant to a market-based mechanism be deposited in the fund;
and requires the Department of Finance, in consultation with
ARB and any other relevant state agency, to develop a
three-year investment plan for the GGRF.
3)Requires that the GGRF be used to facilitate the achievement
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of GHG emissions reductions in the state consistent with AB 32
and the investment plan.
4)Requires the investment plan to allocate a minimum of 25% of
the funds to projects that benefit disadvantaged communities
and to allocate 10% of the funds to projects located within
disadvantaged communities.
5)Requires ARB, in consultation with CalEPA, to develop funding
guidelines for administering agencies receiving allocations of
the GGRF that include a component for how agencies should
maximize benefits to disadvantaged communities.
THIS BILL:
1)Establishes the GAP within CalEPA to:
a) Provide technical assistance, including the development
of grant proposals, to small businesses and small nonprofit
organizations when they apply for GGRF money;
b) Assist small businesses applying for funding for energy
efficiency upgrades to meet and exceed the state's GHG
emission reduction goals;
c) Assist small businesses in complying with all applicable
federal, state, and local air quality laws;
d) Identify state agencies with appropriate grant programs;
and,
e) Coordinate with existing local programs to reduce GHG
emissions with new programs receiving moneys from the GGRF.
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FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown
COMMENTS:
1)Existing GGRF funding and programs. The 2014-15 Budget Act
allocated GGRF revenues for the 2014-15 fiscal year and
established a long-term plan for the allocation of GGRF
revenues beginning in fiscal year 2015-16. Thirty-five
percent of GGRF is continuously appropriated for investments
in transit, affordable housing, and sustainable communities.
Twenty-five percent is continuously appropriated to continue
the construction of the high-speed rail project. The
remaining 40% is subject to annual appropriation by the
Legislature for investments in programs that include
low-carbon transportation, energy efficiency and renewable
energy, and natural resources and waste diversion. An
expenditure plan for the 40% was not included in the 2015-16
Budget Act, with the exception of $227 million appropriated to
continue funding for specified existing programs. The
remaining 2015-16 revenues, along with 2016-17 revenues, are
available for appropriation this year.
The 2016 Annual Report of Cap and Trade Auction Proceeds
includes an analysis of funds spent within and benefiting
disadvantaged communities, excluding high speed rail spending.
According to the report, 39% of expenditures were for
projects located within disadvantaged communities and 51% of
the overall funding benefited disadvantaged communities.
Listed below are the major GGRF program areas, administering
agency, and funding to date:
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a) Transportation and Sustainable Communities
i) High Speed Rail, High Speed Rail Authority
(Authority), $750 million
ii) Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program,
Transportation Agency, $225 million
iii) Low Carbon Transit Operations Program, Department of
Transportation (Caltrans), $125 million
iv) Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities
Program, Strategic Growth Council (SGC), $530 million
v) Low Carbon Transportation, ARB, $325 million
b) Clean Energy and Energy Efficiency
i) Low-Income Weatherization Program, Community
Services and Development (CSD), $154 million
ii) Energy Efficiency in Public Buildings, California
Energy Commission (CEC), $20 million
iii) Agricultural Energy and Operational Efficiency,
Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA), $75 million
iv) Water-Energy Efficiency, Department of Water
Resources (DWR), $75 million
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c) Natural Resources and Waste Diversion
i) Wetlands and Watershed Restoration, Department of
Fish and Wildlife (DFW), $27 million
ii) Urban Forestry, Forest Health Restoration, and
Reforestation, Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
(CalFIRE), $42 million
iii) Waste Diversion, Department of Resources Recycling
and Recovery (CalRecycle), $31 million
The Governor's 2016-17 Budget proposes just under $3.1 billion
in expenditures:
d) Continuous Appropriations
i) High Speed Rail, Authority, $500 million
ii) Low Carbon Transit Operations, State Transit
Assistance, $100 million
iii) Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program,
Transportation Agency, $200 million
iv) Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities
Program, SGC, $400 million
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e) Fifty Percent Reduction in Petroleum Use
i) Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program,
Transportation Agency, $400 million
ii) Low Carbon Road Program, Caltrans, $100 million
iii) Low Carbon Transportation and Fuels, ARB, $500
million
iv) Biofuel Facility Investments, CEC, $25 million
f) Local Climate Action
i) Transformative Climate Communities, SGC, $100
million
g) Short-Lived Climate Pollutants
i) Black Carbon Woodsmoke and Refrigerants, ARB, $60
million
ii) Waste Diversion, CalRecycle, $100 million
iii) Climate Smart Agriculture - Healthy Soils and Dairy
Digesters, CDFA, $55 million
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h) Safeguarding California/Water Action Plan
i) Water and Energy Efficiency, CDFA and DWR, $30
million
ii) Drought Executive Order, CEC, $60 million
iii) Wetlands and Watershed Restoration/CalEcoRestore,
DFW, $60 million
i) Safeguarding California/Carbon Sequestration
i) Healthy Forests and Urban Forestry, CalFIRE, $180
million
ii) Urban Greening, Natural Resources Agency, $20
million
j) Energy Efficiency/Renewable Energy
i) Energy Efficiency for Public Buildings, Department
of General Services, $30 million
ii) California Lending for Energy and Environmental
Needs Center, I Bank, $20 million
iii) Energy Corps, Conservation Corps, $15 million
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iv) Energy Efficiency Upgrades/Weatherization,
Department of Community Services and Development, $75
million
v) Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Projects,
University of California, California State University,
$60 million
2)Author's statement:
While cap and trade proceeds are starting to make their way
into some of the disadvantaged communities, it has become
apparent there are barriers that prevent the funding from
getting into many of the places it is needed. Small
businesses and small non-profits lack the resources of the
larger counterparts. They can lack the staffing and
expertise necessary to take advantage of grant
opportunities. AB 2293 will help level the playing field by
providing technical assistance necessary to compete for cap
and trade grants.
The benefits of the California's cap and trade program
should be accessible to all parts of the state, no matter
how small they are. The ability to access these funds
should not depend on upon the ability the pay for the staff
to go after it.
3)Disadvantaged communities. In October 2014, CalEPA released
its list of disadvantaged communities based on the California
Communities Environmental Health Screening Tool
(CalEnviroScreen), a tool that assesses all census tracts in
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California to identify the areas disproportionately burdened
by and vulnerable to multiple sources of pollution. Each of
the programs administering funds from the GGRF have separate
guidelines and grant proposal request documents on their
respective websites. Eligibility criteria and application
processes vary, as do recommendations about working with the
administering agency to develop proposals or applications.
For those small organizations lacking experience in this area,
assistance such as that proposed by this bill may help them
successfully apply for and utilize available funding.
4)Suggested amendment. This bill includes "assisting" small
businesses with complying with federal, state, and local air
quality laws. The committee may wish to amend the bill to
authorize the GAP to instead "advise" small businesses in
complying with existing laws.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
California Greenworks
Opposition
None on file
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Analysis Prepared by:Elizabeth MacMillan / NAT. RES. / (916)
319-2092