BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2329
Page 1
REPLACE - 06/02/2010 Technical change (Member name)
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 2329 (Ruskin and Chesbro)
As Amended April 26, 2010
Majority vote
NATURAL RESOURCES 6-3 APPROPRIATIONS 12-5
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|Ayes:|Chesbro, Brownley, De |Ayes:|Fuentes, Ammiano, |
| |Leon, Hill, Huffman, | |Bradford, |
| |Skinner | |Charles Calderon, Coto, |
| | | |Davis, |
| | | |Monning, Ruskin, Skinner, |
| | | |Solorio, |
| | | |Torlakson, Torrico |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Gilmore, Knight, Logue |Nays:|Conway, Harkey, Miller, |
| | | |Nielsen, Norby |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Codifies the Climate Action Team (CAT), which would be
responsible for coordinating the state's climate change policy
under the direction of the Secretary for Environmental
Protection (Secretary). Specifically, this bill :
1)Creates the CAT consisting of the:
a) Secretary, who serves as chair and is required to
coordinated oversight of the efforts to meet the AB 32 GHG
targets.
b) Secretary of Natural Resources Agency;
c) Chairperson of the Air Resources Board (ARB);
d) Chair of the California Energy Commission;
e) President of the Public Utilities Commission;
f) Secretary of Business, Transportation and Housing;
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g) Secretary of Food and Agriculture;
h) Secretary of State and Consumer Services;
i) Secretary of Health and Human Services;
j) Director of the Office of Planning and Research;
aa)Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development; and,
bb)Ex-officio representatives of other departments as
necessary.
2)Provides that multi-agency staff may be formed by the CAT to
provide technical support in the following sectors:
agriculture, biodiversity and habitat, forestry, energy, land
use, coastal and delta resources, regional and international
policy development, state operations, water, and climate
research.
3)Requires the CAT to coordinate state climate policy to achieve
the following goals:
a) The maximum feasible and cost-effective reduction of
GHGs through implementation of AB 32;
b) The promotion of economic and job growth;
c) The identification of unavoidable climate change
impacts;
d) The development and implementation of mitigation and
adaptation plans to protect state natural resources,
natural resources, and economy;
e) The coordination of climate change policies with other
states, the federal government, and other nations to
identify the most effective climate change strategies and
research efforts that can be done at the regional,
national, and international levels; and,
f) The coordination and efficient use of existing state
resources, programs, and funds.
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4)Requires the CAT to identify and review activities, funding
programs, recommend policies, investment strategies, and
provide information to local government to achieve the above
goals.
5)Authorizes each member of the CAT to appoint a designee and
requires each designee to act as the member in his or her
place and stead.
6)Authorizes the CAT to hold duly noticed public meetings to
solicit comments from the public and requires that those
meetings be subject to the Bagley-Keene Open Meetings Act.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires, pursuant to the California Global Warming Solutions
Act (AB 32), ARB to adopt a statewide GHG emissions limit
equivalent to 1990 levels by 2020 and to adopt rules and
regulations to achieve maximum technologically feasible and
cost-effective greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions
2)Creates, under Executive Orders (EO) S-3-05 and S-20-06, the
CAT to engage in AB 32-related activities and overall climate
policy; directs the California Environmental Protection Agency
(CalEPA) to coordinate multi-agency efforts to meet GHG
emission reduction targets; and requires each agency to
annually prepare and submit GHG-related information to CalEPA.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, Cal EPA indicates that existing staff currently
supports CAT activity. Because this bill does not require CAT
to do anything it does not currently do, Cal EPA contends it has
no costs. However, the CAT currently operates consistent with
EO, not statute. Should this bill become law, the cost for CAT
administration, while not new, would be attributable to this
bill. Therefore, this bill would result in annual cost of an
unknown amount but, based on passed budget requests, likely
around $1 million a year (mainly special funds).
COMMENTS : Effective coordination of existing programs and
funding by the state is required to help the state meet its
robust greenhouse gas emission targets. In the absence of AB
2329, there is nothing in law that requires the state's climate
change policy activities to be coordinated across state
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agencies. AB 2329 ensures that the state has multi-sector
climate policy coordination and a plan to address climate change
impacts.
State agencies are currently required to report on their GHG
emissions and actions taken to reduce emissions through an
annual CAT report. So far the CAT has been responsible for
coordinating overall climate policy for state agencies, as well
as to consider and implement strategies to reduce their GHG
emissions. According to the authors, more effective
coordination of existing programs and funding resources in
California can improve the achievement of California GHG
emission reductions while protecting the state's infrastructure,
communities, and natural resources from climate change impacts.
The authors also add that more effective coordination of these
factors may provide economic growth. Since the CAT was created
by an executive order, it may be terminated at the end of the
Schwarzenegger administration unless it becomes codified.
According to the authors, "effective coordination of existing
programs and funding by the state is required to help the state
meet its robust greenhouse gas emission targets. In the absence
of AB 2329, there is nothing in law that requires the state's
climate change policy activities to be coordinated across state
agencies."
Codification of the CAT has been attempted previously. Most
recently in 2009, SB 721 (Steinberg) attempted to codify the CAT
under the CalEPA Secretary. However, SB 721 did not include
representatives of some state departments that were currently
included within the CAT and was held in the Senate
Appropriations Committee. SB 1760 (Perata) formalized the
structure and duties of the CAT to coordinate climate policy and
expenditure of state funds. SB 1760 passed the Legislature in
2008, but was vetoed by the Governor. SB 721 also differed from
SB 1760 in that in included deployment and adaptation actions as
a part of the CAT's responsibilities. While this bill (AB 2329)
does not explicitly mention "deployment," it does mention that
the CAT must work to coordinate the "development and
implementation of mitigation and adaptation plans to protect the
natural resources, public health and welfare, and economy of
California." Similarly, in 2008, SB 660 (Perata) attempted to
establish the Strategic Research Investment Council which would
be required to prepare a research, development and demonstration
(RD&D) plan for state agency expenditures for clean technology,
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environmental protection, and public interest energy research
and present the plan to the Legislature. SB 660 was vetoed by
the governor with the rationale that creating yet another
substantial layer of administration would hinder the current
Administration coordination (the CAT) on climate change RD&D,
and would remove the necessary flexibility needed to continue to
react to topical issues and rapidly changing technologies.
Analysis Prepared by : Jessica Westbrook / NAT. RES. / (916)
319-2092
FN: 0004714