BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON ENERGY, UTILITIES AND COMMUNICATIONS
Senator Ben Hueso, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: SB 1207 Hearing Date: 3/29/2016
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|Author: |Hueso |
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|Version: |2/18/2016 As Introduced |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
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|Consultant:|Jay Dickenson |
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SUBJECT: Energy: conservation: financial assistance
DIGEST: This bill extends by ten years the sunset on Energy
Conservation Assistance Account (ECAA) program.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law establishes the ECAA loan programs to fund energy
efficiency improvements at facilities used by local governments.
Sunsets the program as of January 1, 2018, and requires that
unexpended funds in ECAA as of January 1, 2018, and thereafter
revert to the General Fund. (Public Resources Code § 25410 et
seq)
This bill extends the sunset date on the ECAA program from January
1, 2018, to January 1, 2028.
Background
ECAA program loans to local governments for energy efficiency.
The ECAA program, which sunsets in 2018, was established more than
30 years ago by the Energy Conservation Assistance Act of 1979.
It is one of the oldest of California's many programs designed to
reduce statewide energy consumption through energy efficiency
measures. The program makes low-interest loans to cover up to 100
percent of a project with a maximum repayment term of 15 years. A
loan repayment amount cannot exceed the estimated energy savings
from a funded project.
Funding for ECAA loans has been from a variety of sources over the
years, including the General Fund and tax-exempt revenue bonds.
SB 1207 (Hueso) Page 2 of ?
In 2009, American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) provided
$25 million to California Energy Commission (CEC) for ECAA loans
to supplement about $34 million in ARRA funds that the CEC awarded
grants to 279 small cities and counties for energy efficiency
projects. SB 679 (Pavley, Chapter 597, Statutes of 2011)
appropriated an additional $25 million to CEC for ECAA loans that
originated as ratepayer funds deposited into the Renewable
Resource Trust Fund (RRTF). The $25 million was part of the $50
million transferred by SB 77 (Pavley, Chapter 15, Statutes of
2010) from the RRTF to the California Alternative Energy and
Advanced Transportation Financing Authority (CAEATFA) within the
State Treasurer's Office for a Property Assessed Clean Energy
(PACE) loan program that has since been put on hold for
residential energy efficiency loans. More recently, the
Proposition 39 - Clean Energy Jobs Act program has provided
funding to the ECAA program for zero-percent-interest loans for
public schools.
According to the CEC, since 1979 the CEC has lent more than $383
million to various local agencies throughout the state to fund
energy efficiency improvements. Those loans have gone to more
than 840 recipients, as follows, based on total loan amounts:
about 58 percent to local governments, 23 percent to K-12 public
schools, 10 percent to public colleges, 7 percent to public care
facilities and hospitals, and 2 percent to special districts.
ECAA has received five legislative extensions since its enactment
in 1979. The most recent sunset extension was SB 1268 (Pavley,
Chapter 615, Statutes of 2012).
The CEC reports that, despite this long record of lending, the
ECAA program has never experienced a default on loan repayment.
Prior/Related Legislation
SB 1268 (Pavley, Chapter 615, Statutes of 2012) extended the ECAA
program sunset from January 2013 to January 2018.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: Yes Fiscal Com.:
Yes Local: No
SUPPORT:
None received
SB 1207 (Hueso) Page 3 of ?
OPPOSITION:
None received
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: According to the author, this bill will
extend ECAA until January 1, 2028, thereby ensuring that these
beneficial programs can continue to help California meet its
energy usage goals and save taxpayer funds.
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