Bill Text: CA AB1359 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session | Amended

California Assembly Bill 1359

Bill Title: California Environmental Quality Act: geothermal exploratory projects: lead agency.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Engrossed) 2024-07-03 - From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (July 3). Re-referred to Com. on APPR. [AB1359 Detail]

Download: California-2023-AB1359-Amended.html

Amended IN Senate June 20, 2024

Amended IN Senate May 29, 2024

Amended IN Senate June 26, 2023

Amended IN Assembly April 19, 2023

Amended IN Assembly March 16, 2023

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 1359

Introduced by Assembly Member Papan
(Coauthor: Assembly Member Garcia)

February 17, 2023

An act to repeal Section 3715.5 of the Public Resources Code, relating to environmental quality, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 1359, as amended, Papan. California Environmental Quality Act: geothermal exploratory projects: lead agency.

The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if the lead agency finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment.

Existing law establishes the Geologic Energy Management Division in the Department of Conservation, under the direction of the State Oil and Gas Supervisor, who is required to supervise the drilling, operation, maintenance, and abandonment of wells so as to permit the owners or operators of those wells to utilize all methods and practices known to the industry for the purpose of increasing the ultimate recovery of geothermal resources, as provided. Existing law requires the division to be the lead agency for all geothermal exploratory projects for purposes of CEQA, as specified.

This bill would repeal the requirement that the division be the lead agency for all geothermal exploratory projects for purposes of CEQA.

This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

Vote: 2/3 Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Section 3715.5 of the Public Resources Code is repealed.

SEC. 2.

This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the meaning of Article IV of the California Constitution and shall go into immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:

In order to accelerate progress toward meeting the state’s ambitious climate goals in a timely manner through the deployment of ~~advanced~~ next-generation geothermal energy, it is necessary for this act to take effect immediately.