Bill Text: CA AB935 | 2019-2020 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Oil and gas: facilities and operations: monitoring and reporting.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)
Status: (Failed) 2020-02-03 - From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56. [AB935 Detail]
Download: California-2019-AB935-Amended.html
|
Amended
IN
Assembly
March 21, 2019 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION
| Assembly Bill | No. 935 |
| Introduced by Assembly Member Robert Rivas |
February 20, 2019 |
An act to add Article 11 (commencing with Section 65610) to Chapter 3 of Division 1 of Title 7 of the Government Code, and to amend Section 3010 of, and to add Section 3270.7 to, the Public Resources Code, relating to oil and gas.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 935, as amended, Robert Rivas.
Oil and gas: facilities and operations: monitoring and reporting.
Under
(1) Under existing law, the Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Resources in the Department of Conservation regulates the drilling, operation, maintenance, and abandonment of oil and gas wells in the state. Existing law defines various terms for those purposes, including “production facility.”
This bill would express the intent of the Legislature to enact subsequent legislation that would ensure the public health and safety of all communities, especially economically disadvantaged communities, and that would ensure that these communities are not disproportionately impacted by the drilling, operation, maintenance, or abandonment of oil and gas wells in California by ensuring adherence to the highest standards of safety, technology, and practice, including, but not limited to, the continuous monitoring of oil and gas operations and public reporting of that data.
This bill would define the term “sensitive production facility” for those purposes to mean a production facility that is located within certain areas, including, among others, an area containing a building intended for human occupancy that is located within 2,500 feet of the production facility. The bill would require the division, on or before January 1, 2021, to review and evaluate, and update as appropriate, its existing regulations regarding sensitive production facilities, as specified.
(2) Existing law generally designates air pollution control and air quality management districts (air districts) with the primary responsibility for the control of air pollution from all sources other than vehicular sources. Existing law requires a refinery-related community air monitoring system, as defined, to be installed on or before January 1, 2020, as specified, and requires an air district to design, develop,
install, operate, and maintain the refinery-related community air monitoring system or to contract with a 3rd party to provide those services. Existing law requires an owner or operator of a petroleum refinery to develop, install, operate, and maintain a fence-line monitoring system, as defined, on or before January 1, 2020, as specified.
Existing law requires the State Air Resources Board, by October 1, 2018, to prepare a monitoring plan regarding technologies for monitoring criteria air pollutants and toxic air contaminants and the need for and benefits of additional community air monitoring systems, as defined. Existing law requires the state board, based on the monitoring plan, to select the highest priority locations in the state for the deployment of community air monitoring systems, and requires an air district containing a selected location to deploy a
community air monitoring system in the selected location by July 1, 2019. Existing law requires air districts to provide to the state board the air quality data produced by the community air monitoring systems, and requires the state board to publish that air quality data on its internet website.
The Planning and Zoning Law, among other things, requires the legislative body of each county and city to adopt a comprehensive, long-term general plan for the physical development of the county or city and of any land outside its boundaries that relates to its planning, and provides for the adoption and administration of zoning laws, ordinances, rules, and regulations by counties and cities.
This bill would authorize a city or county, as part of its authority over land use permitting and after consultation with the relevant
air districts, to (A) develop and adopt air monitoring plans, (B) require, after the adoption of an air monitoring plan, the installation of continuous and periodic monitoring systems for hydrocarbon emissions from nonrefinery stationary sources, and (C) impose reasonable charges on nonrefinery sources of hydrocarbon emissions within the city’s or county’s respective jurisdiction as necessary to cover the cost of developing, adopting, implementing, and enforcing those air monitoring plans, including the installation of continuous and periodic monitoring systems for hydrocarbon emissions from nonrefinery stationary sources.
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee:Bill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
(a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:(1) Public agencies, including cities and counties, have an interest in protecting the health, safety, and welfare of California residents.
(2) Oil and gas production located in California has the potential to emit gases that contribute to climate change, erode air quality, cause and contribute to local public health impacts, and undermine public safety.
(3) The availability of low-cost, highly accurate emissions detection and quantification equipment and practices can yield transparent data to provide evidence of proper and improper oil and gas production and handling operations.
(b) Therefore, it is the intent of the Legislature to ensure that cities and counties, upon consultation with relevant air pollution control and air quality management districts, have the authority to establish air monitoring requirements at nonrefinery sources of hydrocarbon emissions within their respective jurisdiction.
SEC. 2.
Article 11 (commencing with Section 65610) is added to Chapter 3 of Division 1 of Title 7 of the Government Code, to read:Article 11. Air Monitoring Plans
65610.
(a) A city or county, as part of its authority over land use permitting and after consultation with the relevant air pollution control and air quality management districts, may develop and adopt air monitoring plans. After the adoption of an air monitoring plan, the city or county may require the installation of continuous and periodic monitoring systems for hydrocarbon emissions from nonrefinery stationary sources.(b) A city or county may impose reasonable charges on nonrefinery stationary sources of hydrocarbon emissions within its respective jurisdiction as necessary to cover the cost of developing, adopting, implementing, and enforcing the air monitoring plans, including the installation of continuous and periodic monitoring systems
for hydrocarbon emissions from nonrefinery stationary sources pursuant to subdivision (a).
(c) The charges adopted pursuant to this section shall be adopted in compliance with Article XIII C of the California Constitution.
(d) This section shall not be construed to limit any other authority of a city or county to impose air monitoring requirements for hydrocarbon emissions from nonrefinery stationary sources within its respective jurisdiction.
SEC. 3.
Section 3010 of the Public Resources Code is amended to read:3010.
(a) “Production facility” means any equipment attendant to oil and gas production or injection operations including, but not limited to, tanks, flowlines, headers, gathering lines, wellheads, heater treaters, pumps, valves, compressors, injection equipment, and pipelines that are not under the jurisdiction of the State Fire Marshal pursuant to Section 51010 of the Government Code.(b) “Sensitive production facility” means a
production facility that is located within any of the following:
(1) An area containing a building intended for human occupancy, such as a residence, school, hospital, or business, that is located within 2,500 feet of the production facility.
(2) An area determined by the supervisor to present significant potential threat to life, health, property, or natural resources in the event of a leak from the production facility.
(3) An area determined by the supervisor to have an active production facility that has a history of excess emissions, leaks, mechanical failures, or other safety violations.
SEC. 4.
Section 3270.7 is added to the Public Resources Code, immediately following Section 3270.6, to read:3270.7.
(a) (1) On or before January 1, 2021, the division shall review and evaluate, and update as appropriate, its existing regulations that apply to a sensitive production facility, as defined in Section 3010, and shall prioritize actions needed to do both of the following:(A) Reduce emissions of volatile organic compounds, toxic air contaminants, and total organic compounds, as well as of methane and particulate matter, from the operation and maintenance of wellheads, well cellars, and the handling of produced gas at oil and gas production facilities to assist in reducing regional ozone levels and to prevent public nuisance and the possible detriment to public health caused by exposure to those emissions.
(B) Ensure environmental justice goals are achieved to ensure the fair treatment and meaningful engagement of people of all races, cultures, and incomes with respect to the development, adoption, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies under the division’s jurisdiction.
(2) The division shall make a written finding of its review and evaluation of the existing regulations that apply to a sensitive production facility pursuant to paragraph (1).
(b) The regulations shall ensure the integrity and operation of sensitive production facilities pursuant to Sections 3106 and 3270.
(c) This section does not limit the authority of the supervisor pursuant to Section 3106, 3270, or any other section of this code, or any
regulation implementing those sections.
It is the intent of the Legislature to enact subsequent legislation that would ensure the public health and safety of all communities, especially economically disadvantaged communities, and that would ensure that these communities are not disproportionately impacted by the drilling, operation, maintenance, or abandonment of oil and gas wells in California by ensuring adherence to the highest standards of safety, technology, and practice, including, but not limited to, the continuous monitoring of oil and gas operations and public reporting of that data.
