BILL NUMBER: AB 2702	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 18, 2016

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Atkins

                        FEBRUARY 19, 2016

   An act  to add Section 39733 to the Health and Safety Code,
  relating to climate change.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 2702, as amended, Atkins.  Climate change. 
 Greenhouse gases: study. 
   The Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 designates the State Air
Resources Board as the state agency charged with monitoring and
regulating sources of emissions of greenhouse gases. The state board
is required to adopt a statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit
equivalent to the statewide greenhouse gas emissions level in 1990 to
be achieved by 2020 and to adopt rules and regulations in an open
public process to achieve the maximum, technologically feasible, and
cost-effective greenhouse gas emissions reductions.  Existing
law establishes the Integrated Climate Adaptation and Resiliency
Program, which is administered by the Office of Planning and
Research, to coordinate regional and local efforts with state climate
adaptation strategies to adapt to the impacts of climate change, as
specified. Existing law requires the California Environmental
Protection Agency to update the state's climate adaptation strategy
to identify vulnerabilities to climate change.  
   This bill would state the intent of the Legislature to enact
legislation that would continue the work with local governments,
state agencies, and others to meet the goals set forth in Governor
Brown's Under 2 MOU, which brings together subnational governments
willing to commit to either reducing the emissions of greenhouse
gases 80% to 95% below 1990 levels by 2050 or achieving a per capita
annual emissions target of less than 2 metric tons of carbon dioxide
equivalent by 2050.  
   This bill would require the state board to conduct a study that
outlines best practices and policies for meeting state goals to
reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The bill also would authorize the
state board to collaborate with air pollution control and air quality
management districts. 
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  no
  yes  . State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.   (a)    The
Legislature finds and declares all of the following: 
   (1) 
    (a)  California has been a leader on climate change for
more than a decade through the enactment of landmark 
legislation   legislation,  such as the California
Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (Division 25.5 (commencing with
Section 38500) of the Health and Safety Code) and the Clean Energy
and Pollution Reduction Act of 2015 (Chapter 547 of the Statutes of
 2015)   2015),  and through policies and
practices that allow for Californians to be innovators and early
adapters for new  technologies   technologies,
 like those related to renewable energy and clean fuels.

   (2) 
    (b)  In May of 2015, Governor  Brown, 
 Edmund G. Brown Jr.,  along with leaders from 11 other
states and provinces from seven countries, entered into the "Under 2
MOU" committing the signatories to either reducing the emissions of
greenhouse gases 80 to 95 percent below 1990 levels by 2050 or
achieving a per capita annual emissions target of less than 2 metric
tons of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2050. 
   (3) 
    (c)  As of January of 2016, a total of 127 jurisdictions
representing 27 countries and 6 continents have signed or endorsed
the Under 2 MOU. 
   (4) 
    (d)  In December of 2015, 195 counties from around the
globe adopted the Paris Agreement to the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change (FCCC/CP/2015/L.9/Rev.1) at the United
Nations Climate Conference (COP21) in Paris, France, signaling a
commitment to limit the effects of climate change and further
reducing the emissions of greenhouse gases. 
   (5) 
    (e)  California's leadership and vision on climate
change helped open the door to the historic Paris Agreement. 

   (6) 
    (f)  The achievements made in COP21, the Under 2 MOU,
and recent legislative efforts in California are by no means the end
in the state's effort to combat climate change. In California, we
know the serious damage climate change can cause to everything from
our supply of food and clean water to the health of the forests and
from neighborhood public safety to our national security. We need to
continue to work together to create and implement innovative policies
that move us forward in our efforts to address the impacts of
climate change. 
   (b) It is the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation that
would continue the work with local governments, state agencies, and
others to meet the goals set forth in Governor Brown's Under 2 MOU,
which brings together subnational governments willing to commit to
either reducing the emissions of greenhouse gases 80 to 95 percent
below 1990 levels by 2050 or achieving a per capita annual emissions
target of less than 2 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent by
2050. 
   SEC. 2.    Section 39733 is added to the  
Health and Safety Code   , to read:  
   39733.  No later than July 1, 2018, the state board shall conduct
a study that outlines best practices and policies for meeting state
goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. In conducting the study,
the state board may collaborate with districts.