Bill Text: CA ACA17 | 2019-2020 | Regular Session | Introduced

California Assembly Constitutional Amendment 17 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: Energy: hydroelectric generation facilities.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-07-10 - From printer. May be heard in committee August 9. [ACA17 Detail]

Download: California-2019-ACA17-Introduced.html

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Constitutional Amendment

No. 17

Introduced by Assembly Member Gray

July 09, 2019

A resolution to propose to the people of the State of California an amendment to the Constitution of the State, by amending Section 9 of, and by adding Section 10 to, Article XII thereof, relating to energy.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

ACA 17, as introduced, Gray. Energy: hydroelectric generation facilities.

The California Constitution establishes the Public Utilities Commission with jurisdiction over all public utilities, subject to control by the Legislature. Existing statutory law establishes various programs to encourage the deployment of renewable energy and zero-carbon resources, as defined. One of these programs, the California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program, requires most retail sellers of electricity to procure a minimum quantity of their electricity products from eligible renewable energy resources, as defined.

This measure would require that the state’s programs relating to renewable energy and climate change include hydroelectric generation facilities as renewable electrical generation facilities, eligible renewable energy resources, and zero-carbon resources, and would require that those programs not differentiate between the electricity generated by hydroelectric facilities and the electricity generated by other renewable electrical generation facilities, eligible renewable energy resources, and zero-carbon resources. The measure would require that hydroelectric generation facilities be considered renewable electrical generation facilities, eligible renewable energy resources, and zero-carbon resources for licensing and certification purposes.

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

Resolved by the Assembly, the Senate concurring, That the Legislature of the State of California at its 2019–20 Regular Session commencing on the third day of December 2018, two-thirds of the membership of each house concurring, hereby proposes to the people of the State of California, that the Constitution of the State be amended as follows:

First—

That Section 9 of Article XII thereof is amended to read:

SEC. 9.

~~The provisions~~ Sections 1 to 8, inclusive, of this article restate all related provisions of the Constitution in effect immediately ~~prior to the effective date of this amendment~~ before November 5, 1974, and make no substantive change.

Second—

That Section 10 is added to Article XII thereof, to read:

SEC. 10.

(a) It is the intent of the people that hydroelectric generation facilities be treated as the most environmentally protective and carbon-neutral electrical energy resources for purposes of all state-supported programs and electrical program-related laws.

(b) The State’s programs relating to renewable energy and climate change shall include hydroelectric generation facilities as renewable electrical generation facilities, eligible renewable energy resources, and zero-carbon resources, and shall not differentiate between the electricity generated by hydroelectric facilities and the electricity generated by other renewable electrical generation facilities, eligible renewable energy resources, and zero-carbon resources.

(c) All hydroelectric generation facilities shall be considered renewable electrical generation facilities for licensing and certification purposes.

(d) All hydroelectric generation facilities shall be considered eligible renewable energy resources for licensing and certification purposes.

(e) All hydroelectric generation facilities shall be considered zero-carbon resources for licensing and certification purposes.

(f) The terms “renewable electrical generation facilities,” “eligible renewable energy resources,” and “zero-carbon resources” shall be construed as those terms are used by the Public Utilities Commission in the programs that it administers and are in operation as of January 1, 2019, and in subsequent modifications to those programs and new programs to the extent the use of those terms by the commission remains consistent with the purposes of this section.