Bill Text: CA SB535 | 2019-2020 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Greenhouse gases: wildfires and forest fires: air emissions.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2019-08-30 - August 30 hearing: Held in committee and under submission. [SB535 Detail]
Download: California-2019-SB535-Amended.html
|
Amended
IN
Senate
April 29, 2019 |
| Senate Bill | No. 535 |
| Introduced by Senator Moorlach |
February 21, 2019 |
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 designates the State Air Resources Board as the state agency charged with monitoring and regulating sources of emissions of greenhouse gases. The state board is required to approve a statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit equivalent to the statewide greenhouse gas emissions level in 1990 to be achieved by 2020 and to ensure that statewide greenhouse gas emissions are reduced to at least 40% below the 1990 level by 2030.
The act requires the state board to prepare and approve a scoping plan for achieving the maximum technologically feasible and cost-effective reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and to update the scoping plan at least once every 5 years.
This bill would require the state board to include greenhouse gas emissions from wildfires and
forest fires, as specified, in the scoping plan.
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NOBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 39736 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:39736.
(a) No later than May 1, 2020, and annually thereafter, the state board, in consultation with the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, shall submit a report to the Legislature that contains, but is not limited to, the following information:(a)On or before January 1, 2009, the state board shall prepare and approve a scoping plan, as that term is understood by the state board, for achieving the maximum technologically feasible and cost-effective reductions in greenhouse gas emissions from sources or categories of sources of greenhouse gases by 2020 under this division. The state board shall consult with all state agencies with jurisdiction over sources of greenhouse gases, including the Public Utilities Commission and the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission, on all elements of its plan that pertain to energy-related matters including, but not limited to, electrical generation, load based-standards or requirements, the provision of reliable and affordable electrical service, petroleum refining, and statewide fuel supplies to ensure the
greenhouse gas emissions reduction activities to be adopted and implemented by the state board are complementary, nonduplicative, and can be implemented in an efficient and cost-effective manner.
(b)(1)The plan shall identify and make recommendations on direct emissions reduction measures, alternative compliance mechanisms, market-based compliance mechanisms, and potential monetary and nonmonetary incentives for sources and categories of sources that the state board finds are necessary or desirable to facilitate the achievement of the maximum feasible and cost-effective reductions of greenhouse gas emissions by 2020.
(2)The state board shall include in the plan greenhouse gas emissions from wildfires and forest fires, including, but not limited to, all of the following:
(A)Fires that occurred as a result of an act of nature.
(B)Fires that were permitted or prescribed by law, such as tree thinning, agricultural burning, and right-of-way maintenance.
(C)Fires that were not permitted by law but were caused by humans intentionally, such as arson.
(D)Fires that occurred incidentally, such as sparks from a motor vehicle or an arcing power line.
(c)In making the determinations required by subdivision (b), the state board shall consider all relevant
information pertaining to greenhouse gas emissions reduction programs in other states, localities, and nations, including the northeastern states of the United States, Canada, and the European Union.
(d)The state board shall evaluate the total potential costs and total potential economic and noneconomic benefits of the plan for reducing greenhouse gases to California’s economy, environment, and public health, using the best available economic models, emission estimation techniques, and other scientific methods.
(e)In developing its plan, the state board shall take into account the relative contribution of each source or source category to statewide greenhouse gas emissions, and the potential for adverse effects on small businesses, and shall recommend a de minimis threshold of greenhouse gas emissions below which emissions reduction requirements will not apply.
(f)In developing its plan, the state board shall identify opportunities for emissions reduction measures from all verifiable and enforceable voluntary actions, including, but not limited to, carbon sequestration projects and best management practices.
(g)The state board shall conduct a series of public workshops to give interested parties an opportunity to comment on the plan. The state board shall conduct a portion of these workshops in regions of the state that have the most significant exposure to air pollutants, including, but not limited to, communities with minority populations, communities with low-income populations, or both.
(h)The state board shall update its plan for achieving the maximum technologically feasible and cost-effective reductions of greenhouse gas emissions at least once every five
years.
