Bill Text: CA AB2238 | 2021-2022 | Regular Session | Introduced

California Assembly Bill 2238 (Prior Session Legislation)

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

Bill Title: Extreme heat: statewide extreme heat ranking system.

Spectrum: Strong Partisan Bill (Democrat 13-1)

Status: (Passed) 2022-09-09 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 264, Statutes of 2022. [AB2238 Detail]

Download: California-2021-AB2238-Introduced.html

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 2238

Introduced by Assembly Members Luz Rivas and Eduardo Garcia
(Principal coauthors: Senators Hertzberg and Stern)
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Arambula, Bryan, and Lackey)
(Coauthor: Senator Eggman)

February 16, 2022

An act to add Part 5.5 (commencing with Section 71410) to Division 34 of the Public Resources Code, relating to extreme heat.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 2238, as introduced, Luz Rivas. Extreme heat: statewide extreme heat ranking system.

Existing law establishes the California Environmental Protection Agency under the supervision of the Secretary for Environmental Protection, and vests the agency with authority over various environmental matters. Existing law requires the agency to address heat and heat reduction by, among other things, identifying the extent and severity of the urban heat island effect for cities to set quantifiable goals for heat reduction.

Existing law establishes the Office of Planning and Research in state government in the Governor’s office. Existing law establishes the Integrated Climate Adaptation and Resiliency Program (ICARP) to be administered by the office to coordinate regional and local efforts with state climate adaptation strategies to adapt to the impacts of climate change, as prescribed.

Existing law creates the Department of Insurance, headed by the Insurance Commissioner, and prescribes the commissioner’s powers and duties. Existing law requires the commissioner to convene a working group to identify, assess, and recommend risk transfer market mechanisms that, among other things, promote investment in natural infrastructure to reduce the risks of climate change related to catastrophic events.

This bill would require the agency, by January 1, 2024, to develop a statewide extreme heat ranking system in coordination with ICARP and the Department of Insurance, as provided. The bill would also require the department, by January 1, 2024, to submit a study of the insured and uninsured costs related to past extreme heat events to the appropriate legislative policy and budget committees, the agency, and ICARP. The bill would require ICARP to develop a public communication plan for the statewide extreme heat ranking system, recommend partnerships with, and develop statewide guidance for, local and tribal governments in the preparation and planning for extreme heat events, and recommend heat adaptation measures, as specified. The bill would also make findings and declarations related to extreme heat.

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO

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

SECTION 1.

The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:

(a) Pursuant to Section 71400 of the Public Resources Code, the California Environmental Protection Agency has developed heat reduction strategies and tools, including developing an urban heat island index, released in 2015, to give cities quantifiable goals for heat reduction.

(b) The latest California Climate Change Assessment projects hotter, longer, and more frequent heat events. Heat waves and extreme heat are responsible for more deaths than all other extreme weather events, and disproportionately impact communities of color, persons with disabilities, seniors, and low-income communities.

(c) California has experienced record-setting temperatures in the last two years, demonstrating the urgency of addressing climate-intensified extreme heat impacts. In 2020, temperatures in Los Angeles County reached as high as 121 degrees Fahrenheit, the highest temperature ever recorded in Los Angeles County, causing an increase of 10 times the normal number of emergency room visits. Additionally, in 2021, the Coachella Valley had its hottest year ever, with temperatures reaching 123 degrees Fahrenheit.

(d) A statewide ranking system for extreme heat is one of the recommendations from the California Climate Insurance Working Group, which was convened by Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara and pursuant to Senate Bill 30 (Chapter 614 of the Statutes of 2018). The California Climate Insurance Working Group made extreme heat an area of emphasis, focusing on recommendations to close the protection gap and better protect vulnerable communities.

(e) Existing advance warnings of disasters from other perils save lives and provide a window of opportunity for protecting property, avoiding harm, and saving lives. For example, California’s “red flag” warnings for wildfire conditions, the United States Environmental Protection Agency Air Quality App, the naming system for tropical storms and hurricanes by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and air quality alerts embedded in smart phone weather applications that allow those with respiratory conditions to find shelter in advance from dirty air could serve as templates for ranking extreme heat events.

SEC. 2.

Part 5.5 (commencing with Section 71410) is added to Division 34 of the Public Resources Code, to read:

PART 5.5. Extreme Heat

71410.

(a) For purposes of this part, the following definitions apply:

(1) “Agency” means the California Environmental Protection Agency.

(2) “Extreme heat” means a period of unusual and uncomfortable hot weather that could result in a heat wave or other heat health event.

(3) “ICARP” means the Integrated Climate Adaptation and Resiliency Program, established pursuant to Section 71354, at the Office of Planning and Research.

(b) On or before January 1, 2024, the agency, in coordination with the ICARP and the Department of Insurance, shall develop a statewide extreme heat ranking system to be based upon, but not limited to, all of the following:

(1) Available meteorological data from government and academic sources, including maximum temperature, minimum temperature, and duration of extreme heat events.

(2) Information and data on health impacts of heat established through best available science or data from past heat and extreme heat events.

(3) Measures of extreme heat severity.

(4) Locally relevant information, such as urban heat island effects, or cooling effects from urban tree canopies

(c) The statewide extreme heat ranking system shall include recommendations on thresholds or triggers for public policies that reduce the risk of extreme heat impacts, and consider information reported by the Department of Insurance, including the results of the study pursuant to subdivision (e).

(d) After the statewide extreme heat ranking system is finalized, ICARP shall do all of the following:

(1) Develop, in consultation with the Office of Emergency Services and other state agencies, and with input from local governments, tribal organizations, labor organizations, environmental organizations, and community groups from vulnerable communities, a public communication plan for the statewide extreme heat ranking system with a focus on strategies that target communications to populations that are most at-risk of public health and emergency impacts from extreme heat events.

(2) Recommend partnerships with local and tribal governments, and develop statewide guidance for local and tribal governments in the preparation and planning for extreme heat events.

(3) Recommend specific heat adaptation measures that could be triggered by the statewide extreme heat ranking system and identify how the statewide extreme heat ranking system aligns with additional extreme heat adaptation policies pursuant to Section 71354.

(e) On or before January 1, 2024, the Department of Insurance shall study insured and uninsured costs related to past extreme heat events with different duration, maximum temperature, and measurable health impacts. The results of this study shall be transmitted to the appropriate legislative policy and budget committees, the agency, and ICARP.

(f) The requirement for submitting a study imposed under subdivision (e) is inoperative on January 1, 2028, pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code.