BILL ANALYSIS
AB 758
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 758 (Skinner)
As Amended April 14, 2009
Majority vote
UTILITIES & COMMERCE 11-4
APPROPRIATIONS 12-5
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|Ayes:|Fuentes, Blakeslee, De La |Ayes:|De Leon, Ammiano, Charles |
| |Torre, Carter, Fong, | |Calderon, Davis, Fuentes, |
| |Furutani, Huffman, | |Hall, John A. Perez, |
| |Krekorian, Skinner, | |Price, Skinner, Solorio, |
| |Swanson, Torrico | |Torlakson, Krekorian |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+---------------------------|
|Nays:|Duvall, Tom Berryhill, |Nays:|Nielsen, Duvall, Harkey, |
| |Fuller, Smyth | |Miller, |
| | | | Audra Strickland |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Requires the California Energy Commission (CEC) to
develop an energy efficiency program for existing residential
and commercial buildings. Specifically, this bill requires :
1)CEC to establish a regulatory proceeding to develop and
implement a comprehensive program to achieve energy savings in
existing residential and commercial building stock that fall
significantly below the current Title 24 building standards.
2)CEC to coordinate with the California Public Utilities
Commission (PUC) and consult with the Department of Real
Estate, the Department of Housing and Community Development,
investor-owned and publicly owned utilities, and other groups
CEC deems appropriate to develop and implement the program.
3)CEC to consider various items when developing the program,
including a method to inform and educate the public about the
need for an energy efficiency program, and the most effective
way to report the audit results to the building owner.
4)The program developed to ensure that energy efficiency audits
or improvements do not unreasonably affect the home purchasing
process, and stipulates that a transfer of property subject to
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the program shall not be invalidated for failure to comply
with a provision of the program.
5)PUC to open a proceeding to investigate the ability of
electrical corporations to provide various energy efficiency
financing options to their customers for the comprehensive
energy efficiency program.
6)PUC, after specified conditions, to authorize each electrical
corporation to provide a number of low- or no-cost energy
efficiency audits, and requires PUC to provide an annual
report to the Legislature and CEC.
7)Local publicly owned electric utilities to implement an energy
efficiency program and report annually to its customers and
CEC specified information about the program.
FISCAL EFFECT :
1)CEC estimates a need for 10 positions at a cost of about $1
million, plus $500,000 in contracts annually for five years,
to develop and implement the energy efficiency requirements.
Sixty % of these resources would be for the commercial
application and 40% for the residential application. [Energy
Resources Programs Account] The comprehensive program would
include a broad range of energy audits, building benchmarking
or energy ratings, cost effective energy efficiency
improvements, public and private sector energy efficiency
financing options, public outreach and education, and expanded
utility energy efficiency programs.
2)PUC would incur one-time costs of about $100,000 for the
proceeding and ongoing costs of about $314,000 for one
analyst-to coordinate with the CEC, assist with the
proceeding, and oversee the audit program-and consulting
contracts to evaluate the utilities' audit programs. [Public
Utilities Reimbursement Account]
COMMENTS : State energy policy prioritizes energy efficiency to
reduce energy usage, which diminishes the need for new power
plants and transmission lines. Energy efficiency measures are
an inexpensive alternative to investment in infrastructure, and
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reduce the proliferation of greenhouse gas emissions.
To reduce energy usage in existing buildings, CEC and most of
the utilities provide information on energy-efficiency
do-it-yourself audits. CEC issued a booklet directed at
homebuyers that provides information about home energy audits
and rating programs and markets this information through home
warranty company Web sites. Many of the recommendations require
nominal expenses that render large savings. Some low-cost
examples include replacing incandescent light bulbs with compact
fluorescent ones, using motion sensor controls for exterior
lighting, and caulking, sealing, or applying weatherstrip to
seams, cracks, and openings to the outside around windows and
doors.
Current law requires the CEC to develop a statewide estimate of
all potentially achievable cost-effective electricity and
natural gas efficiency savings and establish statewide annual
targets for energy efficiency savings and demand reduction over
10 years. In its Integrated Energy Policy Report, the CEC
strongly supports capturing all cost-effective efficiency
savings potential and recommends pursuing legislation that would
require energy audits and cost-effective levels of efficiency
improvements at the time of sale of a building. In addition,
CEC's Report on Energy Efficiency in Existing Buildings
recommends "Time of Sale Information Disclosure" where
California should begin requiring the disclosure of home energy
ratings when a house is sold. Both recommendations are based on
CEC evaluation of the potential savings achieved if
cost-effective energy efficiency measures were applied to
existing buildings: 9% of statewide electricity consumption,
11% of peak demand, and 5% of natural gas consumption.
Analysis Prepared by : Gina Adams / U. & C. / (916) 319-2083
FN: 0001180