BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 42|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 42
Author: Blakeslee (R)
Amended: 6/23/09 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE ENERGY, U.&C. COMMITTEE : 11-0, 7/7/09
AYES: Padilla, Benoit, Calderon, Corbett, Cox, Kehoe,
Lowenthal, Simitian, Strickland, Wiggins, Wright
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 75-0, 6/3/09 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Electricity: Pacific Gas and Electric Company:
seismic
safety
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill requires Pacific Gas and Electric
Company to conduct seismic fault studies or surveys in
areas at or near the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant in
order to maintain reliable operation of the electrical grid
and mitigate impacts to customer rates that could result
from a seismic event.
ANALYSIS : The state's two operating nuclear plants,
Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E)-owned Diablo Canyon and
Southern California Edison-owned San Onofre Nuclear
Generating Station (SONGS), account for 12 percent of the
CONTINUED
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state's electricity supply. Each plant faces uncertain
amount of damages due to earthquakes erupting directly
below the plants, or ground motion resulting from a nearby
earthquake rupture.
AB 1632 (Blakeslee), Chapter 722, Statutes of 2006,
directed the California Energy Commission (CEC) to
determine the potential vulnerability of the state's
largest generating plants due to aging or a major seismic
event, assess the impacts that such a disruption would have
on system reliability, public safety, and the economy, and
evaluate other major issues related to the future role of
these plants in the state's energy portfolio in order to be
ready should a disruption occur. CEC recommended that a
high quality three-dimensional geophysical seismic
reflection mapping should be conducted.
This bill:
1. Requires PG&E to, in furtherance of the specific
recommendations made by CEC, to conduct seismic fault
studies or surveys, including three-dimensional
geophysical seismic reflection mapping, in areas at or
near the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant.
2. Provides the reason for the study is to maintain
reliable operation of the electrical grid and mitigate
impacts to customer rates that could result from a
seismic event.
3. Authorizes CEC, in consultation with the California
Geologic Survey and the Seismic Safety Commission, to
participate in development of the study or survey
designs, and requires CEC, in conjunction with those
other entities, to conduct or facilitate a peer review
of the studies or surveys with 120 days of receipt from
PG&E.
4. Requires CEC to include the study or survey findings and
recommendations in its integrated energy policy report.
5. Requires PG&E to be responsible for funding all costs
associated with a peer review of any studies or surveys
conducted pursuant to 1) above.
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6. Requires the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to
expedite issuance of its decision approving the recovery
of costs so that the decision is made within 120 days of
filing the application, and requires PUC to allow PG&E
to fully recover in rates all reasonable costs
associated with the studies or surveys and peer review.
Comments
On November 21, 2008, PG&E announced that it had discovered
an additional earthquake fault several miles offshore from
their Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant. Another known
fault resides just about a half a mile offshore from Diablo
Canyon. The discovery of the second fault raises new
questions about the seismic risks of Diablo Canyon, in
particular the plant's vulnerability to a major disruption
in electricity generation due to an earthquake, which could
impact the reliability of the state's energy supply and
greatly increase costs to ratepayers.
PG&E believes the three-dimensional geophysical seismic
reflection mapping is not necessary given the
two-dimensional mapping it is currently doing. This bill
does not compel PG&E to do such mapping, but instead
requires PG&E to conduct those studies or surveys necessary
to maintain reliable operation of the electrical grid and
mitigate impacts to customer rates that could result from a
seismic event.
The Seismic Vulnerability Advisory Team, comprised of
experts from CEC, California Geologic Survey, and Seismic
Safety Commission, provided technical review and input
during the development of the AB 1632 report. This bill
permits those parties to participate in the development of
the study and conduct or facilitate a peer review of the
study or survey.
Diablo Canyon and SONGS have been operating for roughly
half of their 40-year initial license periods. PG&E sought
$16.8 million in ratepayer funds (which included $5 million
for legal and technical staff to counter public
intervention against extending the operating license) to
explore the feasibility of extending its licenses for
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another 20 years until the early to mid-2040s. (Diablo
Canyon's operating licenses expire in 2024 and 2025, while
SONGS operating licenses expire in 2022). This bill
requires PG&E to seek funding for the studies or surveys in
its application to the PUC to extend the Nuclear Power
Plants' operating license for the following 20 years.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
SUPPORT : (Verified 7/22/09)
Alliance for Nuclear Responsibility
California Church IMPACT
California League of Conservation Voters
City of Morro Bay
Clean Power Campaign
County of San Luis Obispo
Environment California
Sierra Club California
Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Adams, Ammiano, Anderson, Arambula, Beall, Bill
Berryhill, Tom Berryhill, Blakeslee, Blumenfield,
Brownley, Buchanan, Caballero, Carter, Chesbro, Conway,
Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De Leon, DeVore, Duvall, Eng,
Evans, Feuer, Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes, Fuller, Furutani,
Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick, Gilmore, Hagman, Hall, Harkey,
Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill, Huber, Huffman, Jeffries,
Jones, Knight, Krekorian, Lieu, Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal,
Ma, Mendoza, Miller, Monning, Nava, Nestande, Niello,
Nielsen, John A. Perez, V. Manuel Perez, Portantino,
Price, Ruskin, Salas, Saldana, Silva, Skinner, Smyth,
Solorio, Audra Strickland, Swanson, Torlakson, Torres,
Torrico, Tran, Villines, Bass
NO VOTE RECORDED: Block, Charles Calderon, Cook, Emmerson,
Yamada
DLW:mw 7/24/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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