BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 1414
Page 1
Date of Hearing: August 10, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Lorena Gonzalez, Chair
SB 1414
(Wolk) - As Amended August 3, 2016
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|Policy |Utilities and Commerce |Vote:|10 - 4 |
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill directs the California Energy Commission (CEC), in
consultation with the Contractors' State License Board CSLB),
local building officials and other stakeholders to approve a
plan to promote compliance with energy efficient building
standards for the installation of central air conditioning and
heat pumps by January 1, 2019. Prior to approving the plan,
this bill requires CEC to:
1)Evaluate the best available technological and economic
information to ensure its use is feasible and cost-effective
as specified.
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2)Consider the impact of the plan on property owners, the
heating, ventilation, and air conditioning industry (HVAC),
local governments, building officials, and the CSLB.
3)Provide the opportunity for public review and comment.
This bill also allows CEC to adopt regulations to increase
compliance with permitting and inspection for central air
conditioning and heat pumps and associated activities,
consistent with the plan.
Additionally, this bill:
1)Requires energy efficient rebate or incentives from a public
utility to be provided only if a recipient certifies the
improvement complied with the California Building Standards
Code, the contractor (if applicable) held the appropriate
license, and the recipient provides proof of permit closure.
2)Clarifies the California Public Utilities Commission's (PUC)
statutory authority for supervising cost-effective energy
efficiency programs.
FISCAL EFFECT:
1)Increased CEC costs of approximately $650,000 for the first
two years, then annual costs of approximately $400,000 per
year to prepare and implement the plan (special fund).
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2)Increased PUC costs of approximately $150,000 per year
(special fund).
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose. According to the author, this bill supports
statewide energy efficiency goals to increase compliance to
90% by 2020 and ensures that ratepayer dollars are spent on
projects that meet required local government permitting
requirements.
2)Background. According to the he California Energy Efficient
Strategic Plan, jointly prepared by CEC and the PUC, as of
2008, fewer than 10% of HVAC systems obtained legally required
pre-installation local building permits. Between 30-50% of new
central air conditioning systems were not being properly
installed, leading to a 20-30% increase in the peak energy
needed to provide consumers with cooling on hot summer days
and an estimated 30% increase in carbon emissions.
Currently, the PUC is conducting a HVAC Market Assessment to
determine compliance with building standard and permitting
requirements. According to preliminary findings provided in a
staff white paper released in April 2016, 35% of HVAC
replacements were permitted. Additionally, code requirements
were met 79% of the time for permitted installations and 60%
of the time for unpermitted installations. These preliminary
findings suggest that although more HVAC systems are permitted
than were in 2008, unpermitted HVAC systems are installed
incorrectly at a higher rate than those with proper
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permitting.
This bill is intended to increase compliance and ensure
publicly funded incentives for HVAC installations are properly
permitted.
3)Prior Legislation. AB 802 (Williams), Chapter 590, Statutes
of 2015, allows the Energy Efficiency Program Administrators,
as specified by the PUC, to provide incentives and receive
credit for projects to bring existing buildings up to the
CEC's energy efficiency standards, including credit for energy
savings associated with code compliance.
AB 1918 (Williams) of 2014 would have required the CEC, along
with stakeholders, to identify and implement methods to
simplify processes and procedures related to compliance with
Title 24 energy efficiency building standards. It also would
have required PUC to design an enforcement program to provide
technical and financial assistance to local governments to
improve HVAC compliance with the permitting process. This
bill was held in the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Analysis Prepared by:Jennifer Galehouse / APPR. / (916)
319-2081