AB 2137, as amended, Quirk. Energy efficiency programs: information available for small businesses.
Existing law creates the Office of Small Business Advocate within the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development. Existing law establishes the duties and functions of the advocate, which include advisory participation in the consideration of all legislation and administrative regulations that affect small businesses. Existing law also requires the office to post specified information on its Internet Web site, including information about emergency preparedness, responses, and recovery strategies for small businesses and information regarding programs administered through the statewide network of small business financial development corporations.
This bill would require the office to develop and maintain on its Internet Web site a section dedicated to all of the demandside energy management programs that are available to small businesses within the state.
Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations and gas corporations, as defined. The Public Utilities Act requires the Public Utilities Commission to review and accept, modify, or reject a procurement plan for each electrical corporation in accordance with specified elements, incentive mechanisms, and objectives. The act requires that an electrical corporation’s proposed procurement plan include certain elements, including a showing that the electrical corporation will first meet its unmet needs through all available energy efficiency and demand reduction resources that are cost effective, reliable, and feasible. Existing law requires the Public Utilities Commission, in consultation with the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission, to identify all potentially achievable cost-effective electricity efficiency savings and to establish efficiency targets for electrical corporations to achieve pursuant to their procurement plan. The Public Utilities Act additionally requires the Public Utilities Commission, in consultation with the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission, to identify all potentially achievable cost-effective natural gas efficiency savings and to establish efficiency targets for gas corporations to achieve and requires that a gas corporation first meet its unmet resource needs through all available gas efficiency and demand reduction resources that are cost effective, reliable, and feasible. Under their existing authorities, the Public Utilities Commission and the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission, in collaborating with various entities, have developed the Energy Upgrade California program to promote and finance energy efficiency and renewable energy projects for homes and businesses, reduce energy use, and help train contractors and building professionals.
This bill would require the Public Utilities Commissionbegin delete and the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to jointlyend deletebegin insert toend insert ensure that the Internet Web site for the Energy Upgrade California program be revised to include information related to demandside management programsbegin delete for nonresidential customers, with emphasis on small businesses.end deletebegin insert for small business customers.end insert
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
The Legislature finds and declares all the
2following:
3(a) Helping small businesses better manage their energy use
4can help California reduce energy consumption and thereby help
5in reducing emissions of greenhouse gases throughout the state.
6(b) Small businesses are the backbone of California’s economic
7prosperity.
8(c) Maximizing the demandside energy management programs
9the state, electrical corporations, gas corporations, and local
10publicly owned electric and gas utilities offer can help small
11businesses
become more productive and assist in reducing electrical
12demand during peak demand periods.
13(d) To better serve the public, and to benefit the state, the state
14shall promote and facilitate the fullest possible participation of
15small businesses to benefit from demandside energy management
16programs run by the state, as well as any programs of an electrical
17corporation, gas corporation, or local publicly owned electric or
18gas utility.
Section 12098.9 is added to the Government Code, to
20read:
(a) For purposes of this section, the following terms
22have the following meanings:
23(1) “Demandside energy management programs” mean all
24energy efficiency, demandside response, clean distributed
25generation, energy conservation, energy savings, or weatherization
26programs of the state or a local government, electrical corporations,
27gas corporations, or a local publicly owned electric or gas utility.
28(2) “Electrical corporation,” “gas corporation,” and “local
29publicly owned electric utility” have the same meanings as
30respectively defined in Sections 218, 222, and 224.3 of the Public
31Utilities Code.
“Local publicly owned gas utility” includes the gas
32departments of the City of Long Beach and the City of Palo Alto.
33(3) “Small business” has the same meaning as defined in Section
3414837.
P4 1(b) In order to educate small business owners of the availability
2of various programs promoting the efficient use of energy, the
3office shall develop and maintain on its Internet Web site a section
4dedicated to all of the demandside energy management programs
5that are available to small businesses within the state. The office
6shall consult with the Public Utilities Commission, the State Energy
7Resources Conservation and Development Commission, and local
8publicly owned electric and gas utilities in developing the
9information to include on its Internet Web
site.
Section 323.5 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to
11read:
(a) For the purposes of this section, “demandside energy
13management programs” and “small business” have the same
14meanings as set forth in Section 12098.9 of the Government Code.
15(b) The commissionbegin delete and the Energy Commissionend delete shallbegin delete jointlyend delete
16 ensure that the Internet Web site for the Energy Upgrade California
17program be revised to include information related to demandside
18energy management programsbegin delete for nonresidential customers, with begin insert
for small business customers.end insert
19emphasis on small businesses.end delete
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