Bill Text: CA SB155 | 2019-2020 | Regular Session | Amended
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program: integrated resource plans.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2019-10-02 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 401, Statutes of 2019. [SB155 Detail]
Download: California-2019-SB155-Amended.html
NOYES
Local Program:
NO
to and shall ensure that load-serving entities do the following:SECTION 1.
Bill Title: California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program: integrated resource plans.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2019-10-02 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 401, Statutes of 2019. [SB155 Detail]
Download: California-2019-SB155-Amended.html
|
Amended
IN
Senate
March 27, 2019 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION
| Senate Bill | No. 155 |
| Introduced by Senator Bradford |
January 23, 2019 |
An act relating to the regulation of public utilities. to amend Sections 399.15, 454.52, and 454.54 of the Public Utilities Code, relating to energy.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 155, as amended, Bradford.
Public utilities: regulation. California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program: integrated resource plans.
Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory authority over public utilities. utilities, including electrical corporations. The California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program requires the Public Utilities Commission to establish a renewables portfolio standard requiring all retail sellers, defined as including electrical corporations, electric service providers, and community choice aggregators, to procure a minimum quantity of electricity products from eligible renewable energy resources, as defined, so that the total kilowatthours of those products sold to their retail end-use customers achieves 25% of retail sales by December 31, 2016, 33% by December 31, 2020, 44% by December 31, 2024, 52% by
December 31, 2027, and 60% by December 31, 2030.
This bill would state the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation reforming the regulation of public utilities. authorize the commission to audit any retail seller to assess its compliance with the program’s renewables portfolio standard procurement requirements for the current or any prior compliance period and to issue mandates and recommendations to ensure sufficient corrective action is taken to achieve full compliance with those procurement requirements.
Existing law requires the commission to adopt a process for each load-serving entity, defined as an electrical
corporation, electric service provider, or community choice aggregator serving end-use customers in the state, to file an integrated resource plan and a schedule for periodic updates to the plan to ensure that load-serving entities accomplish specified objectives. Existing law requires each load-serving entity to prepare and file an integrated resource plan consistent with those objectives on a time schedule directed by the commission and subject to commission review. Existing law additionally requires that the integrated resource plan of each load-serving entity contribute to a diverse and balanced portfolio of resources needed to ensure a reliable electricity supply that provides optimal integration of renewable energy resources in a cost-effective manner, meets the emissions reduction targets for greenhouse gases established by the State Air Resources Board for the electricity sector, and prevents cost shifting among load-serving entities.
This bill would expressly require the commission to ensure that load-serving entities do what is required to be done by their integrated resource plans, and to enforce, as if it were a requirement in the plan, a requirement that at least 65% of the procurement that a retail seller counts toward the renewables portfolio standard requirement of each compliance period be from contracts of 10 years or more in duration or from its ownership or ownership agreements from eligible renewable energy resources.
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee:Bill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 399.15 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to read:399.15.
(a) In order to fulfill unmet long-term resource needs, the commission shall establish a renewables portfolio standard requiring all retail sellers to procure a minimum quantity of electricity products from eligible renewable energy resources as a specified percentage of total kilowatthours sold to their retail end-use customers each compliance period to achieve the targets established under this article. For any retail seller procuring at least 14 percent of retail sales from eligible renewable energy resources in 2010, the deficits associated with any previous renewables portfolio standard shall not be added to any procurement requirement pursuant to this article.(b) The commission shall implement renewables portfolio standard procurement requirements only
as follows:
(1) Each retail seller shall procure a minimum quantity of eligible renewable energy resources for each of the following compliance periods:
(A) January 1, 2011, to December 31, 2013, inclusive.
(B) January 1, 2014, to December 31, 2016, inclusive.
(C) January 1, 2017, to December 31, 2020, inclusive.
(D) January 1, 2021, to December 31, 2024, inclusive.
(E) January 1, 2025, to December 31, 2027, inclusive.
(F) January 1, 2028, to December 31, 2030, inclusive.
(2) (A) No later than January 1, 2017, the commission shall establish the quantity of electricity products from eligible renewable energy resources to be procured by the retail seller for each compliance period. These quantities shall be established in the same manner for all retail sellers and result in the same percentages used to establish compliance period quantities for all retail sellers.
(B) In establishing quantities for the compliance period from January 1, 2011, to December 31, 2013, inclusive, the commission shall require procurement for each retail seller equal to an average of 20 percent of retail sales. For the following compliance periods, the quantities shall reflect reasonable progress in each of the intervening years sufficient to ensure that the procurement of electricity products from eligible renewable energy resources achieves 25 percent of retail sales by December 31, 2016, 33 percent by December 31, 2020, 44
percent by December 31, 2024, 52 percent by December 31, 2027, and 60 percent by December 31, 2030. The commission shall establish appropriate three-year compliance periods for all subsequent years that require retail sellers to procure not less than 60 percent of retail sales of electricity products from eligible renewable energy resources.
(C) Retail sellers shall be obligated to procure no less than the quantities associated with all intervening years by the end of each compliance period. Retail sellers shall not be required to demonstrate a specific quantity of procurement for any individual intervening year.
(3) The commission may require the procurement of eligible renewable energy resources in excess of the quantities specified in paragraph (2).
(4) Only for purposes of establishing the renewables portfolio
standard procurement requirements of paragraph (1) and determining the quantities pursuant to paragraph (2), the commission shall include all electricity sold to retail customers by the Department of Water Resources pursuant to Division 27 (commencing with Section 80000) of the Water Code in the calculation of retail sales by an electrical corporation.
(5) The commission shall waive enforcement of this section if it finds that the retail seller has demonstrated any of the following conditions are beyond the control of the retail seller and will prevent compliance:
(A) There is inadequate transmission capacity to allow for sufficient electricity to be delivered from proposed eligible renewable energy resource projects using the current operational protocols of the Independent System Operator. In making its findings relative to the existence of this condition with respect to a
retail seller that owns transmission lines, the commission shall consider both of the following:
(i) Whether the retail seller has undertaken, in a timely fashion, reasonable measures under its control and consistent with its obligations under local, state, and federal laws and regulations, to develop and construct new transmission lines or upgrades to existing lines intended to transmit electricity generated by eligible renewable energy resources. In determining the reasonableness of a retail seller’s actions, the commission shall consider the retail seller’s expectations for full-cost recovery for these transmission lines and upgrades.
(ii) Whether the retail seller has taken all reasonable operational measures to maximize cost-effective deliveries of electricity from eligible renewable energy resources in advance of transmission availability.
(B) Permitting, interconnection, or other circumstances that delay procured eligible renewable energy resource projects, or there is an insufficient supply of eligible renewable energy resources available to the retail seller. In making a finding that this condition prevents timely compliance, the commission shall consider whether the retail seller has done all of the following:
(i) Prudently managed portfolio risks, including relying on a sufficient number of viable projects.
(ii) Sought to develop one of the following: its own eligible renewable energy resources, transmission to interconnect to eligible renewable energy resources, or energy storage used to integrate eligible renewable energy resources. This clause shall not require an electrical corporation to pursue development of eligible renewable energy resources
pursuant to Section 399.14.
(iii) Procured an appropriate minimum margin of procurement above the minimum procurement level necessary to comply with the renewables portfolio standard to compensate for foreseeable delays or insufficient supply.
(iv) Taken reasonable measures, under the control of the retail seller, to procure cost-effective distributed generation and allowable unbundled renewable energy credits.
(C) Unanticipated curtailment of eligible renewable energy resources if the waiver would not result in an increase in greenhouse gas emissions.
(D) Unanticipated increase in retail sales due to transportation electrification. In making a finding that this condition prevents timely compliance, the commission shall consider both of the
following:
(i) Whether transportation electrification significantly exceeded forecasts in that retail seller’s service territory based on the best and most recently available information filed with the State Air Resources Board, the Energy Commission, or another state agency.
(ii) Whether the retail seller has taken reasonable measures to procure sufficient resources to account for unanticipated increases in retail sales due to transportation electrification.
(6) If the commission waives the compliance requirements of this section, the commission shall establish additional reporting requirements on the retail seller to demonstrate that all reasonable actions under the control of the retail seller are taken in each of the intervening years sufficient to satisfy future procurement requirements.
(7) The commission shall not waive enforcement pursuant to this section, unless the retail seller demonstrates that it has taken all reasonable actions under its control, as set forth in paragraph (5), to achieve full compliance.
(8) If a retail seller fails to procure sufficient eligible renewable energy resources to comply with a procurement requirement pursuant to paragraphs (1) and (2) and fails to obtain an order from the commission waiving enforcement pursuant to paragraph (5), the commission shall assess penalties for noncompliance. A schedule of penalties shall be adopted by the commission that shall be comparable for electrical corporations and other retail sellers. For electrical corporations, the cost of any penalties shall not be collected in rates. Any penalties collected under this article shall be deposited into the Electric Program Investment Charge Fund and used for
the purposes described in Chapter 8.1 (commencing with Section 25710) of Division 15 of the Public Resources Code.
(9) Deficits associated with the compliance period shall not be added to a future compliance period.
(10) The commission may audit any retail seller to assess its compliance with the renewables portfolio standard procurement requirements of this chapter for the current or any prior compliance period. The commission may issue mandates and recommendations to ensure sufficient corrective action is taken to achieve full compliance with the renewables portfolio standard procurement requirements.
(c) The commission shall establish a limitation for each electrical corporation on the procurement
expenditures for all eligible renewable energy resources used to comply with the renewables portfolio standard. This limitation shall be set at a level that prevents disproportionate rate impacts.
(d) If the cost limitation for an electrical corporation is insufficient to support the projected costs of meeting the renewables portfolio standard procurement requirements, the electrical corporation may refrain from entering into new contracts or constructing facilities beyond the quantity that can be procured within the limitation, unless eligible renewable energy resources can be procured without exceeding a de minimis increase in rates, consistent with the long-term procurement plan established for the electrical corporation pursuant to Section 454.5.
(e) (1) The commission shall monitor the status of the cost limitation for each electrical corporation in
order to ensure compliance with this article.
(2) If the commission determines that an electrical corporation may exceed its cost limitation prior to achieving the renewables portfolio standard procurement requirements, the commission shall do both of the following within 60 days of making that determination:
(A) Investigate and identify the reasons why the electrical corporation may exceed its annual cost limitation.
(B) Notify the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature that the electrical corporation may exceed its cost limitation, and include the reasons why the electrical corporation may exceed its cost limitation.
(f) The establishment of a renewables portfolio standard shall not constitute implementation by the commission of
the federal Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (Public Law 95-617).
SEC. 2.
Section 454.52 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to read:454.52.
(a) (1) Beginning in 2017, and to be updated regularly thereafter, the commission shall adopt a process for each load-serving entity, as defined in Section 380, to file an integrated resource plan, and a schedule for periodic updates to the plan,(A) Meet the greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets established by the State Air Resources Board, in coordination with the commission and the Energy Commission, for the electricity sector and each load-serving entity that reflect the
electricity sector’s percentage in achieving the economywide greenhouse gas emissions reductions of 40 percent from 1990 levels by 2030.
(B) Procure at least 50 60 percent eligible renewable energy resources by December 31, 2030, consistent with Article 16 (commencing with Section 399.11) of Chapter 2.3.
(C) Enable each electrical corporation to fulfill its obligation to serve its customers at just and reasonable rates.
(D) Minimize impacts on ratepayers’ bills.
(E) Ensure system and local reliability.
reliability on both a near-term and long-term basis, including meeting the near-term and forecast long-term resource adequacy requirements of Section 380.
(F) Strengthen the diversity, sustainability, and resilience of the bulk transmission and distribution systems, and local communities.
(G) Enhance distribution systems and demand-side energy management.
(H) Minimize localized air pollutants and other greenhouse gas emissions, with early priority on disadvantaged communities identified pursuant to Section 39711 of the Health and Safety Code.
(2) (A) The commission may authorize all source procurement for electrical corporations that includes various resource types including demand-side
resources, supply side resources, and resources that may be either demand-side resources or supply side resources, taking into account the differing electrical corporations’ geographic service areas, to ensure that each load-serving entity meets the goals set forth in paragraph (1).
(B) The commission may approve procurement of resource types that will reduce overall greenhouse gas emissions from the electricity sector and meet the other goals specified in paragraph (1), but due to the nature of the technology or fuel source may not compete favorably in price against other resources over the time period of the integrated resource plan.
(3) In furtherance of the requirements of paragraph (1), the commission shall consider the role of existing renewable generation, grid operational efficiencies, energy storage, and distributed energy resources, including energy efficiency, in
helping to ensure each load-serving entity meets energy needs and reliability needs in hours to encompass the hour of peak demand of electricity, excluding demand met by variable renewable generation directly connected to a California balancing authority, as defined in Section 399.12, while reducing the need for new electricity generation resources and new transmission resources in achieving the state’s energy goals at the least cost to ratepayers.
(b) (1) Each load-serving entity shall prepare and file an integrated resource plan consistent with paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) on a time schedule directed by the commission and subject to commission review.
(2) Each electrical corporation’s plan shall follow the provisions of Section 454.5.
(3) The plan of a community choice aggregator shall be
submitted to its governing board for approval and provided to the commission for certification, consistent with paragraph (5) of subdivision (a) of Section 366.2, and shall achieve the following:
(A) Economic, reliability, environmental, security, and other benefits and performance characteristics that are consistent with the goals set forth in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a).
(B) A diversified procurement portfolio consisting of both short-term and long-term electricity and electricity-related and demand reduction products.
(C) The resource adequacy requirements established pursuant to Section 380.
(4) The plan of an electric service provider shall achieve the goals set forth in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) through a diversified portfolio
consisting of both short-term and long-term electricity, electricity-related, and demand reduction products.
(c) To the extent that additional procurement is authorized for the electrical corporation in the integrated resource plan or the procurement process authorized pursuant to Section 454.5, the commission shall ensure that the costs are allocated in a fair and equitable manner to all customers consistent with Section 454.51, that there is no cost shifting among customers of load-serving entities, and that community choice aggregators may self-provide renewable integration resources consistent with Section 454.51.
(d) To eliminate redundancy and increase efficiency, the process adopted pursuant to subdivision (a) shall incorporate, and not duplicate, any other planning processes of the commission.
(e) This
section applies to an electrical cooperative, as defined in Section 2776, only if the electrical cooperative has an annual electrical demand exceeding 700 gigawatthours, as determined based on a three-year average commencing with January 1, 2013.
SEC. 3.
Section 454.54 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to read:454.54.
In addition to the requirements of Section 454.52, the commission shall enforce the requirement, that the integrated resource plan of each load-serving entity shall contribute to a diverse and balanced portfolio of resources needed to ensure a reliable electricity supply that provides optimal integration of renewable energy resources in a cost-effective manner, meets the emissions reduction targets for greenhouse gases described in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 454.52, and prevents cost shifting among load-serving entities. The commission shall also enforce, as if part of the plan of each load-serving entity for those purposes, compliance with subdivision (b) of Section 399.13.It is the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation reforming the regulation of public utilities.
