Bill Text: CA AB2441 | 2013-2014 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Electricity: distributed generation.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2014-08-21 - Read second time. Ordered to third reading. Re-referred to Com. on RLS. pursuant to Senate Rule 29.10(c). [AB2441 Detail]
Download: California-2013-AB2441-Amended.html
BILL NUMBER: AB 2441 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 20, 2014
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 11, 2014
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Mullin
FEBRUARY 21, 2014
An act to amend Section 5403 of the Business and
Professions Code, relating to outdoor advertising. add
Section 354 to the Public Utilities Code, relating to electricity.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2441, as amended, Mullin. Outdoor advertising.
Electricity: distributed generation.
Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory
authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations,
as defined. Existing law authorizes the commission to fix the rates
and charges for every public utility, and requires that those rates
and charges be just and reasonable. Existing law requires the
commission to require each electrical corporation under the
operational control of the Independent System Operator as of January
1, 2001, to modify tariffs so that all customers that install new
distributed energy resources, as defined, in accordance with
specified criteria are served under rates, rules, and requirements
identical to those of a customer within the same rate schedule that
does not use distributed energy resources, and to withdraw any
provisions in otherwise applicable tariffs that activate other
tariffs, rates, or rules if a customer uses distributed energy
resources. Existing law provides, notwithstanding these requirements,
that a customer that installs new distributed energy resources not
be exempted from (1) reasonable interconnection charges, (2) charges
imposed pursuant to the Reliable Electric Service Investment Act, and
(3) charges imposed to repay the Department of Water Resources for
electricity procurement expenses incurred in response to the
electricity crisis of 2000-01. Existing law requires the commission,
in establishing the rates applicable to customers that install new
distributed energy resources, to create a firewall that segregates
distribution cost recovery so that any net costs, taking into account
the actual costs and benefits of distributed energy resources,
proportional to each customer class, as determined by the commission,
resulting from the tariff modifications granted to members of each
customer class may be recovered only from that class.
This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to
clean onsite electricity generation and nonbypassable charges. The
bill would, to the extent authorized by federal law, require the
commission, by July 1, 2015, to establish a pilot program to do both
of the following for those electrical corporation customers that have
operational clean distributed energy resources, as defined: (1)
require each electrical corporation to collect all applicable
nonbypassable charges fixed or imposed by the commission based only
on the actual metered consumption of electricity delivered to the
customer through the electrical corporation's transmission or
distribution system, and (2) calculate a reservation capacity for
standby service, if applicable, based on the capacity needed by an
electrical corporation to serve a customer's electrical demand during
an outage of the clean distributed energy resource providing
electric service for that customer. The bill would require the
commission to suspend the eligibility of additional customers to
participate in the pilot program when 500 megawatts of nameplate
generating capacity from clean distributed energy resources has
become operational statewide pursuant to the pilot program. The bill
would require the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development
Commission to report to the Legislature on the impact of the pilot
program upon specified matter by July 1, 2020, or when 450 megawatts
of nameplate generating capacity from clean distributed energy
resources has become operational pursuant to the pilot program,
whichever comes sooner.
Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act or any
order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the
commission is a crime.
Because the provisions of this bill would be a part of the act and
because a violation of an order or decision of the commission
implementing its requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose
a state-mandated local program by creating a new crime.
The Outdoor Advertising Act provides for the regulation of
advertising displays visible from highways and prohibits, among
others, advertising displays visible from a highway that simulate or
imitate a directional, warning, danger, or informational sign, as
specified. A violation of the act is a crime.
This bill would, except as specified, prohibit an advertising
display visible from a highway that appears to be an official public
agency changeable message sign. Because a violation of this
prohibition 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.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all
of the following:
(a) Clean onsite generation of electricity yields multiple
benefits, including increased electrical reliability, reduced
emissions of greenhouse gases and oxides of nitrogen (NOx), and
electrical grid resiliency.
(b) Increased deployment of clean onsite electricity generation
reduces the need for generation that emits higher levels of
greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change and higher levels
of NOx that contribute to smog formation.
(c) Several types of clean onsite electrical generation
technologies currently exist and others are being developed, with
many being manufactured and developed in California.
(d) Nonbypassable charges applied by electrical corporations to
electricity produced and consumed onsite are a major impediment to
broader deployment of clean onsite generation technologies.
Residential, commercial, and industrial customers are willing to
invest their own capital to install clean onsite generation
technologies. However, nonbypassable charges applied to electricity
produced and consumed onsite create an economic barrier to these
investments.
(e) California is the only state that allows electrical
corporations to apply nonbypassable charges to electricity produced
and consumed onsite among those states with similarly high energy
prices and environmental goals, including New York, New Jersey,
Maryland, Vermont, Connecticut, and Hawaii.
(f) A recent study shows that all ratepayers would see a net cost
savings from increased deployment of onsite electricity generation at
customer sites that pay nonbypassable charges only on their
electricity purchases from the grid. This ratepayer savings arises
because onsite electricity generation reduces demand on the
electrical grid, which reduces market electricity prices, and avoids
transmission and distribution costs and energy losses. On average,
all ratepayers in electrical corporation service areas would see an
energy rate savings of between seventeen cents ($0.17) and
thirty-seven cents ($0.37) per megawatt hour, which translates to an
average household savings of between nine cents ($0.09) and eighteen
cents ($0.18) per month.
(g) Other cost-saving benefits to all ratepayers from clean onsite
electrical generation include reductions in future generating
capacity requirements, reductions in electrical grid congestion
prices, reductions in emissions of greenhouse gases and criteria air
pollutants, and increases in electrical grid resiliency and security.
(h) Nonbypassable charges create an economic barrier to the
installation of clean onsite electrical generation and, as a result,
prevent cost savings for all ratepayers and environmental benefits
for all Californians.
SEC. 2. Section 354 is added to the
Public Utilities Code , to read:
354. (a) As used in this section, "clean distributed energy
resource" means a generating facility that is located on the customer'
s premises and generates electricity, or electricity and useful heat,
where the electricity generated is used for a purpose described in
paragraph (1) or (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 218, and that
meets either of the following requirements:
(1) It meets all of the following criteria:
(A) Produces emissions of greenhouse gases at a rate per
megawatthour, accounting for waste heat recovery, where applicable,
and savings on transmission and distribution losses, that is less
than an emissions rate determined by the Energy Commission by January
30, 2015, that represents the emissions of greenhouse gases from the
marginal generating unit dispatched to meet the demand on the
electrical grid that is avoided by the electricity generated by the
clean distributed energy resource.
(B) Has an oxide of nitrogen (NOx) emissions rate, including
credit for waste heat recovery, when applicable, that is no greater
than 0.07 pounds per megawatthour, or a lower NOx emissions rate that
the State Air Resources Board determines reflects the best
performance achieved in practice by existing electrical generation
technologies pursuant to Section 41514.9 of the Health and Safety
Code.
(C) Has a nameplate-rated generation capacity of 20 megawatts or
less.
(D) Is sized to meet the electrical demand of, or use the
available waste heat of, the customer that will be served by the
generating facility.
(2) It is an "eligible renewable energy resource" pursuant to the
California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program (Article 16
(commencing with Section 399.11)), has a nameplate-rated generation
capacity of 20 megawatts or less, is sized to meet the electrical
demand of the customer that will be served by the generating
facility, and will not otherwise be addressed in the commission's
implementation of Sections 769 or 2827.1.
(b) To the extent authorized by federal law, by July 1, 2015, the
commission shall establish a pilot program to do both of the
following for those electrical corporation customers served by clean
distributed energy resources installed after July 1, 2015:
(1) Require each electrical corporation to collect all applicable
nonbypassable charges fixed or imposed by the commission based only
on the actual metered consumption of electricity delivered to the
customer through the electrical corporation's transmission or
distribution system. All charges shall be at the same rate per
kilowatthour as paid by other customers that do not employ a clean
distributed energy resource under the electrical corporation's
applicable rate schedule.
(2) (A) Calculate a reservation capacity for standby service, if
applicable, based on the capacity needed by an electrical corporation
to serve a customer's electrical demand during an outage of the
clean distributed energy resource providing electric service for that
customer.
(B) Initial reservation capacity shall be established by the
customer for a minimum of 12 months based on the clean distributed
energy resource generation technology's historical operation, the
number, size, and outage diversity of the clean distributed energy
resource, and the annual average reduction of customer load that
could occur during an outage.
(C) If after the initial 12-month period, the electrical
corporation reasonably determines that the reservation capacity does
not reflect the customer's actual standby demand, averaged over the
previous 12 months, the electrical corporation shall modify the
reservation capacity once every 12 months to reflect the customer's
actual average annual reservation capacity based on the same criteria
used to establish the initial reservation capacity. Calculation of
actual average annual reservation capacity shall exclude the customer'
s electrical demand served by the electrical corporation within 24
hours following an outage of the clean distributed energy resource
resulting from any event on the electrical corporation's transmission
or distribution grid that is outside of the customer's control that
requires the customer to reduce onsite generation.
(c) The commission shall suspend the eligibility of additional
customers to participate in the pilot program established pursuant to
subdivision (b) when 500 megawatts of nameplate generating capacity
from clean distributed energy resources has become operational
statewide pursuant to the pilot program.
(d) (1) By July 1, 2020, or when 450 megawatts of nameplate
generating capacity from clean distributed energy resources has
become operational pursuant to the pilot program established pursuant
to subdivision (b), whichever occurs first, the Energy Commission,
in consultation with the commission, shall report to the Legislature,
which report shall be made publically available, examining the
impact of the pilot program on all of the following:
(A) Avoided transmission and distribution costs.
(B) Avoided energy losses.
(C) Wholesale electricity market prices.
(D) Electricity costs to ratepayers.
(E) Air quality.
(F) Emissions of greenhouse gases.
(G) Job creation.
(H) Energy reliability.
(I) The extent to which the incentives provided by the pilot
program contribute to achieving the state's distributed generation
and combined heat and power goals.
(2) The report to be submitted pursuant to this subdivision shall
be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
(3) The requirement for submitting a report pursuant to this
subdivision is inoperative on July 1, 2024, pursuant to Section
10231.5 of the Government Code.
SEC. 3. 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.
SECTION 1. Section 5403 of the Business and
Professions Code is amended to read:
5403. No advertising display shall be placed or maintained in any
of the following locations or positions or under any of the
following conditions or if the advertising structure or sign is of
the following nature:
(a) If within the right-of-way of any highway.
(b) If visible from any highway and simulating or imitating any
directional, warning, danger, or information sign permitted under the
provisions of this chapter, or if likely to be mistaken for any
permitted sign, or if intended or likely to be construed as giving
warning to traffic, by, for example, the use of the words "stop" or
"slow down."
(c) (1) If visible from any highway and appearing to be an
official public agency changeable message sign.
(2) This subdivision shall not apply to prohibit an advertising
display that utilizes changeable messages authorized pursuant to
subdivision (f) of Section 5272.
(d) If within any stream or drainage channel or below the
floodwater level of any stream or drainage channel where the
advertising display might be deluged by flood waters and swept under
any highway structure crossing the stream or drainage channel or
against the supports of the highway structure.
(e) If not maintained in safe condition.
(f) If visible from any highway and displaying any red or blinking
or intermittent light likely to be mistaken for a warning or danger
signal.
(g) If visible from any highway that is a part of the interstate
or primary systems, and is placed upon trees, or painted or drawn
upon rocks or other natural features.
(h) If any illumination shall impair the vision of travelers on
adjacent highways. Illuminations shall be considered vision impairing
when its brilliance exceeds the values set forth in Section 21466.5
of the Vehicle Code.
(i) If visible from a state regulated highway displaying any
flashing, intermittent, or moving light or lights.
(j) If, in order to enhance the display's visibility, the owner of
the display or anyone acting on the owner's behalf removes, cuts,
cuts down, injures, or destroys any tree, shrub, plant, or flower
growing on property owned by the department that is visible from the
highway without a permit issued pursuant to Section 670 of the
Streets and Highways Code.
SEC. 2. 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.
