BILL ANALYSIS �
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 2564|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 2564
Author: Ma (D)
Amended: 8/31/12 in Senate
Vote: 27 - Urgency
SENATE ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY COMMITTEE : 4-1, 8/30/12
AYES: Simitian, Strickland, Blakeslee, Lowenthal
NOES: Kehoe
NO VOTE RECORDED: Hancock, Pavley
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 71-0, 8/23/12 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Environmental quality: pipelines: project
applicants
SOURCE : Sempra Energy Utilities
DIGEST : This bill expands the application of an existing
California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) exemption for
pipeline projects less than one mile in length. Sunsets on
January 1, 2018.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Requires lead agencies with the principal responsibility
for carrying out or approving a proposed project to
prepare a negative declaration, mitigated negative
declaration, or environmental impact report for this
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action, unless the project is exempt from CEQA (CEQA
includes various statutory exemptions, as well as
categorical exemptions in the CEQA Guidelines).
2. Provides that CEQA does not apply to a pipeline project
less than one mile in length within a public street or
highway or any other public right-of-way for the
installation of a new pipeline or the maintenance,
repair, restoration, reconditioning, relocation,
replacement, removal, or demolition of an existing
pipeline. Excludes any surface facility related to the
operation of the underground pipeline.
3. Requires the CEQA Guidelines to include a list of
classes of projects that have been determined by the
Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency to not to have
a significant effect on the environment and that shall
be exempt from CEQA. Included in this list of
"categorical exemptions" are:
A. Repair and maintenance of existing public or
private facilities, involving negligible or no
expansion of use, including existing facilities of
both investor and publicly owned utilities used to
provide electric power, natural gas, sewerage, or
other public utility services. (Guidelines Section
15301); and,
B. Replacement or reconstruction of existing
facilities on the same site with the same purpose and
capacity, including existing utility systems and/or
facilities involving negligible or no expansion of
capacity. (Guidelines Section 15302).
4. Requires each gas utility to prepare and submit to the
Public Utilities Commission (PUC) a proposed
comprehensive pressure testing implementation plan and
implementation timeline for all intrastate transmission
lines to either pressure test those lines or to replace
all segments of intrastate transmission lines that were
not pressure tested or that lack sufficient details
related to performance of pressure testing.
This bill:
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1. Requires a "resource agency," in determining whether a
"natural gas pipeline safety enhancement activity" is
eligible for the one-mile exemption, to consider only
the length of pipeline that is within the agency's legal
jurisdiction.
2. Revises the definition of "pipeline" to include surface
accessories or appurtenances to a pipeline (all surface
facilities are currently excluded).
3. Defines "resource agency" as the State Lands Commission,
Coastal Commission, Department of Fish and Game, State
Water Resources Control Board, regional water quality
control boards, and local or regional agencies with
coastal permitting authority.
4. Defines "natural gas pipeline safety enhancement
activity" as an activity undertaken by a public utility
as part of a program to enhance the safety of intrastate
natural gas pipelines in accordance with a decision,
rule, or regulation adopted by the PUC.
5. Authorizes public agencies to allow the applicant for a
natural gas pipeline safety enhancement activity to pay
for a contract with a third party to assist the public
agency in reviewing the project.
6. Contains findings regarding natural gas pipeline safety,
including statutory and PUC requirements for pressure
testing and replacement established in response to the
September 9, 2010, pipeline rupture, explosion and fire
in San Bruno.
Related Legislation
AB 2559 (Buchanan) amends the Permit Streamlining Act to
(1) require a city or county to act on an application by a
gas corporation that is a public utility for a ministerial
pipeline project permit within a public street, highway, or
any other public right-of-way within 10 business days of
determining that an application for the pipeline project is
complete; (2) require the city or county to provide the gas
corporation with a written timeline indicating the time by
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which the city or county will, as soon as possible, act on
the application if the city or county cannot act on the
application within the above 10-business-day period; and
(3) define certain terms (e.g., "pipeline integrity
management plan," "pipeline project"). The bill was
approved by the Senate Environmental Quality Committee
(7-0) on July 2, 2012, and the Senate (37-0) on August 23,
2012. The Assembly concurred in Senate amendments on
August 28, 2012.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, minor
absorbable state costs to consider applicability of the
exemption to a pipeline enhancement safety project and
potential costs of an unknown amount, but likely no more
than tens of thousands of dollars, to a state agency that
elects to establish a process to allow an applicant for a
natural gas pipeline safety enhancement project to
voluntarily pay fees to be used by the agency for a
third-party contract to determine whether to approve the
project (various funds).
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/30/12) (per Senate Environmental
Quality Committee)
Sempra Energy Utilities (source)
American Council of Engineering Companies
Burn Institute
California Chamber of Commerce
California Council for Environmental and Economic Balance
California Fire Chiefs Association
Carlsbad Fire Department
Chino Valley Fire District
El Monte/South El Monte Chamber of Commerce
Glendale Fire Department
Greater Bakersfield Chamber of Commerce
Kings County Fire Department
Montclair Fire Department
Pacific Gas and Electric Company
Public Utilities Commission
San Diego County Fire Chiefs Association
San Diego Gas & Electric Company
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Southern California Gas Company
Tulare County Fire Department
Visalia Fire Department
OPPOSITION : (Verified 8/30/12) (per Senate
Environmental Quality Committee)
California Native Plant Society
Central Valley Air Quality Coalition
Clean Water Action
Planning and Conservation League
Sierra Club California
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The author intends this bill to
allow public utilities to quickly make safety enhancements
to natural gas pipelines, in keeping with an order of the
PUC. The author describes the bill as a response to the
explosion of a Pacific Gas and Electric natural gas
pipeline in the City of San Bruno in 2010, which resulted
in eight deaths and millions in property damage. This bill
is supported by the state's major gas corporations, local
fire authorities and many other who seek the quick
implementation of safety enhancements of the state's
natural gas pipelines.
ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION : Previous versions of this bill
were opposed by the Planning and Conservation League,
Sierra Club California and other organizations who are
concerned about the potential environmental and public
health effects of projects subject to the CEQA exemption
provided by this bill. It is not clear if the proposed
amendments remove this opposition.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 71-0, 8/23/12
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Atkins, Beall, Bill
Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford,
Brownley, Buchanan, Charles Calderon, Campos, Carter,
Cedillo, Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Davis, Dickinson, Eng,
Feuer, Fletcher, Fuentes, Furutani, Beth Gaines,
Galgiani, Garrick, Gatto, Gordon, Gorell, Grove, Hagman,
Halderman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Hill, Huber, Hueso,
Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Knight, Lara, Logue, Ma,
Mansoor, Mendoza, Miller, Mitchell, Monning, Morrell,
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Nestande, Nielsen, Norby, Olsen, Pan, Perea, V. Manuel
P�rez, Portantino, Silva, Smyth, Solorio, Swanson,
Torres, Valadao, Wagner, Williams, John A. P�rez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Ammiano, Butler, Donnelly, Fong, Roger
Hern�ndez, Bonnie Lowenthal, Skinner, Wieckowski, Yamada
DLW:m 8/31/12 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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