Bill Text: CA AB2316 | 2021-2022 | Regular Session | Amended

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

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Bill Title: Public Utilities Commission: customer renewable energy subscription programs and the community renewable energy program.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Passed) 2022-09-16 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 350, Statutes of 2022. [AB2316 Detail]

Download: California-2021-AB2316-Amended.html

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Amended  IN  Senate  June 13, 2022

Amended  IN  Assembly  May 19, 2022

Amended  IN  Assembly  May 02, 2022

Amended  IN  Assembly  March 28, 2022

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 2316

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Introduced by Assembly Member Ward

February 16, 2022

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An act to add Section 2827.2 to, and to add and repeal Section 913.15 of, the Public Utilities Code, relating to electricity.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 2316, as amended, Ward. Public Utilities Commission: community renewable energy program.

Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. Existing law requires every electric utility, defined to include electrical corporations, local publicly owned electric utilities, and electrical cooperatives, to develop a standard contract or tariff for net energy metering, as defined, for generation by a renewable electrical generation facility, as defined, and to make this contract or tariff available to eligible customer-generators, as defined, upon request on a first-come-first-served basis until the time that the total rated generating capacity used by eligible customer generators exceeds 5% of the electric utility’s aggregate customer peak demand. For a large electrical corporation, as defined, existing law requires the commission to have developed a 2nd standard contract or tariff to provide net energy metering to additional eligible customer-generators in the electrical corporation’s service territory and imposes no limitation on the number of new eligible customer-generators entitled to receive service pursuant to this 2nd standard contract or tariff. Existing law requires the commission to ensure that the 2nd standard contract or tariff made available to eligible customer-generators by large electrical corporations ensures that customer-sited renewable distributed generation continues to grow sustainably. Existing law requires the commission, in developing this standard contract or tariff, to include specific alternatives designed for growth among residential customers in disadvantaged communities.

This bill would require the commission, on or before March 31, 2023, to open a proceeding to establish a community renewable energy program, program on or before December 31, 2023, and require that the program program, among other things, comply with specified photovoltaic onsite solar electric generation or battery storage requirements, ensure at least 51% of its subscribers are low-income customers or low-income service organizations, minimize impacts to nonsubscriber ratepayers, and provide bill credits to subscribers, as specified. The bill would require the commission to evaluate customer renewable energy subscription programs to determine if those programs meet those criteria, efficiently serve distinct customer groups, minimize duplicative offerings, and promote robust participation by low-income customers, the economic viability of community renewable energy facilities and the availability of bill credits for subscribers, the redundancy of customer renewable energy subscription programs, and whether the community renewable energy program is likely to provide equitable access to distributed energy resource options commensurate with other customer generation programs. The bill would require the commission to authorize the termination or modification of those programs that are duplicative or do not meet those criteria. The bill would require the commission, on or before December 31, 2023, to report to the Legislature the results of its evaluation and its justification for terminating, modifying, or retaining those programs.

Existing law imposes various requirements on public works projects, as defined, including a requirement that, at minimum, all workers employed on a public works project be paid the general prevailing rate of per diem wages for work of a similar character in the locality in which a public work is performed, as specified.

This bill would subject the construction of community renewable energy facilities pursuant to the program to those prevailing wage requirements.

This bill would require the commission, within 24 months of adopting a decision implementing the program, and annually thereafter for 4 years, to report to the Legislature on the facilities deployed, and customers subscribed, pursuant to the program, including an analysis of low-income customer participation.

Under existing law, a violation of an order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime.

Because a violation of a commission action implementing this bill’s requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Digest Key

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

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Bill Text

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

SECTION 1.

 (a) The Legislature finds and declares that existing community renewable programs have failed to achieve the scale needed to serve Californians at an equitable scale or have failed to yield projects entirely.

(a)

(b) It is the intent of the Legislature to create a community renewable energy program so that all Californians, especially those unable to host a rooftop solar system, realize the benefits of distributed generation through a cost-effective program that provides benefits to all ratepayers.

(b)

(c) The Legislature further intends to facilitate community renewable energy options that can help the state cost effectively meet the energy efficiency mandates in the California Building Standards Code.

(c)

(d) The Legislature further intends to support robust low-income customer participation in the community renewable energy program established pursuant to Section 2827.2 of the Public Utilities Code.

SEC. 2.

 Section 913.15 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to read:

913.15.

 (a) Within 24 months of adopting a decision implementing a community renewable energy program pursuant to Section 2827.2, and annually thereafter for 4 years, the commission shall submit a report to the Legislature on the facilities deployed, and customers subscribed, pursuant to that program, including an analysis of low-income customer participation.

(b) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2033, and as of that date is repealed.

SEC. 3.

 Section 2827.2 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to read:

2827.2.

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

(1) “Community renewable energy facility ” means a renewable energy facility connected to the electrical distribution grid and located in the service territory of a large electrical corporation.

(1)

(2) “Large electrical corporation” has the same meaning as defined in Section 2827.

(2)

(3) “Low-income customer” means either of the following:

(A) An individual or household who qualifies for one or more of the following programs:

(i) The California Alternate Rates for Energy (CARE) program described in Section 739.1.

(ii) The Family Electric Rate Assistance (FERA) program described in Section 739.12.

(iii) The CalFresh program established pursuant to Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 18900) of Part 6 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

(iv) The federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) (Chapter 51 (commencing with Section 2011) of Title 7 of the United States Code).

(v) The Low-income Heating Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) (42 U.S.C. Sec. 8621).

(vi) The federal Head Start Program (42 U.S.C. Sec. 9801 et seq.).

(B) An individual or household who resides within an underserved community, as defined in Section 1601.

(3)

(4) “Low-income service organization” means an organization or nonprofit whose primary function is to provide services, assistance, or housing to low-income customers, and may include, but is not limited to, a local or central tribal government or a tribally designated housing entity.

(4)

(5) “Subscriber” means a distribution customer of a large electrical corporation who owns one or more subscriptions of a community renewable energy facility. A subscriber shall be located in the same large electrical corporation service territory where the community renewable energy facility to which the subscriber is subscribed is located.

(6) “Subscriber organization ” means a for-profit or nonprofit entity that owns or operates one or more community renewable energy facilities. A subscriber organization shall not be considered an electrical corporation, load-serving entity, or otherwise a utility solely as a result of its ownership or operation of a community renewable energy facility.

(7) “Subscription” means a contract between a subscriber and a subscriber organization.

(b) On or before March 31, 2023, the commission shall open a proceeding to establish a new tariff or program, or modify an existing tariff or program, to establish establish, on or before December 31, 2023, in coordination with the Energy Commission, a community renewable energy program.

(c) The community renewable energy program shall do all of the following:

(1) Comply with the photovoltaic requirements for low-rise residential buildings set forth in Section 150.1(c)(14) community shared solar electric generation system or community shared battery storage system compliance option for onsite solar electric generation or battery storage requirements of Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations.

(2) Ensure at least 51 percent of subscribers are low-income customers or low-income service organizations.

(3) Minimize impacts to nonsubscriber ratepayers. If the commission determines financial incentives are necessary to generate participation in the community renewable energy program, the commission shall ensure those incentives exclusively support subscriptions by low-income customers or low-income service organizations. Qualifying funds for those incentives shall only be available either through an appropriation by the Legislature or select ratepayer funds for programs for which distributed solar, battery storage, or wind resources are otherwise eligible.

(4) Notwithstanding paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 1720 of the Labor Code, subject construction of community renewable energy facilities to prevailing wage for purposes of Article 2 (commencing with Section 1770) of Chapter 1 of Part 7 of Division 2 of the Labor Code.

(5) Provide bill credits to subscribers based on the avoided costs of the community renewable energy facility, as determined by the commission’s methods for calculating the full set of benefits of distributed energy resources.

(6) Ensure that renewable energy credits from generation by the community renewable energy facility are retired on behalf of the subscribers.

(7) Require all subscriber organizations to register with the commission before subscribing residential customers.

(d) (1) As part of the proceeding, the commission shall evaluate customer each of the following:

(A) Customer renewable energy subscription programs to determine if those programs meet the criteria described in subdivision (c), efficiently serve distinct customer groups, minimize duplicative offerings, and promote robust participation by low-income customers. If

(B) The economic viability of community renewable energy facilities and the availability of bill credits for subscribers under customer renewable energy subscription programs and under the new or modified tariff or program.

(C) The redundancy of customer renewable energy subscription programs.

(D) Whether the community renewable energy program is likely to provide equitable access to distributed energy resource options commensurate with other customer generation programs.

(2) If a duplicative customer renewable energy subscription program exists, or if a customer renewable energy subscription program does not meet the criteria described in subdivision (c), the commission shall authorize the termination or modification of that program. Any consolidation or elimination of those programs shall not prematurely terminate commitments made to eligible renewable energy resources or restrict eligible renewable energy resources from being able to serve customers for the duration of their contract.

(2)

(3) (A) On or before December 31, 2023, the commission shall report to the Legislature the results of its evaluation and its justification for terminating, modifying, or retaining each customer renewable energy subscription program.

(B) The requirement for submitting a report imposed under subparagraph (A) is inoperative on December 31, 2027, pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code.

(C) A report to be submitted pursuant to subparagraph (A) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.

SEC. 4.

 No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.