Bill Text: CA SB843 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Energy: electrical corporations: City of Davis PVUSA

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2012-08-30 - Re-referred to Com. on U. & C. pursuant to Assembly Rule 77.2. Joint Rule 62(a) file notice suspended. (Page 6685.) Set, first hearing. Failed passage in committee. Reconsideration granted. [SB843 Detail]

Download: California-2011-SB843-Amended.html

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BILL NUMBER: SB 843	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  MARCH 24, 2011

INTRODUCED BY   Senator Wolk

                        FEBRUARY 18, 2011

   An act to amend  Section 2830 of the Public Utilities
Code, relating to electricity.   Sections 1010 and 1011
of the Military and Veterans Code, relating to veterans. 


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 843, as amended, Wolk.  Local government renewable
energy self-generation program.   Veterans' Home of
California.  
   Existing law provides for the establishment and operation of the
Veterans' Home of California at various sites, and for an
administrator for each home or homesite. Existing law defines
"administrator" to mean the Administrator of the Veterans' Home of
California, Yountville, and the Administrator of the Veterans' Home
of California, Barstow.  
   This bill would update that definition to include the
Administrators of the Veterans' Home of California, Chula Vista, the
Veterans' Home of California, Ventura, the Veterans' Home of
California, Lancaster, and the Veterans' Home of California, West Los
Angeles.  
   Existing law declares that there is in the Department of Veterans
Affairs a Veterans' Home of California, Yountville, authorizes the
department to construct a second and additional homes and declares
that the second home is a new state function.  
   This bill would update that provision to declare that additionally
there are in the department a Veterans' Home of California, Barstow,
a Veterans' Home of California, Chula Vista, a Veterans' Home of
California, Lancaster, a Veterans' Home of California, Ventura, and a
Veterans' Home of California, West Los Angeles. This bill would also
declare that all homes are a new state function.  
   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. The local government renewable
energy self-generation program authorizes a local government, as
defined, to receive a bill credit, as defined, to be applied to a
designated benefiting account for electricity exported to the
electrical grid by an eligible renewable generating facility, as
defined, and requires the commission to adopt a rate tariff for the
benefiting account. The program requires that a benefiting account be
mutually agreed upon by the local government or campus and the
electrical corporation.  
   This bill would authorize the local government or campus to
designate the benefiting account.  
   The existing program requires that the benefiting account receives
service under a time-of-use rate schedule and requires that a bill
credit is to be calculated based upon the time-of-use electricity
generation component of the electricity usage charge of the
generating account, multiplied by the quantities of electricity
generated by an eligible renewable generating facility that are
exported to the grid during the corresponding time period. 

   This bill would delete the requirement that the benefiting account
receive service under a time-of-use rate schedule and require that
the bill credit be calculated based upon the bundled electricity rate
charged the benefiting account, with differing calculations
depending upon whether the benefiting account receives service
pursuant to a time-of-use rate schedule, a single bundled rate, or
fixed rates with different rates charged for different tiers of
usage.  
   The existing program limits the generating capacity of an eligible
renewable generating facility to no more than one megawatt and
requires that the facility be owned by, operated by, or be located on
property under the control of the local government or campus.
 
   This bill would limit the generating capacity of an eligible
renewable generating facility to no more than 20 megawatts. The bill
would delete the requirement that the eligible renewable generating
facility be owned by, operated by, or be located on, property under
the control of the local government or campus.  
   The existing program provides that an electrical corporation is
not obligated to provide a bill credit to a benefiting account that
is not designated prior to the point in time that the combined
statewide cumulative rated generating capacity of all eligible
renewable generating facilities within the service territories of the
state's 3 largest electrical corporations reaches 250 megawatts.
 
   This bill would delete this 250 megawatts limitation upon the
obligation of an electrical corporation to provide a bill credit.

   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  yes
  no  . State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   SECT   ION 1.    Section 1010 of the 
 Military and Veterans Code   is amended to read: 
   1010.  As used in this chapter:
   (a) "Home" means the Veterans' Home of California, Yountville, and
the Veterans' Home of California, Barstow.
   (b) "Administrator" means the Administrator of the Veterans' Home
of California, Yountville, and the Administrator of each site of the
southern California Veterans' Home, including, but not limited to,
the Veterans' Home of California, Barstow  , the Veterans' Home
of California, Chula Vista, the Veterans' Home of California,
Ventura, the Veterans' Home of California, Lancaster, and the
Veterans' Home of California, West Los Angeles  .
   (c) "Department" means the Department of Veterans Affairs.
   (d) "Director" means the Director of Veterans Affairs.
   (e) "Veteran" means a member of the home.
   SEC. 2.    Section 1011 of the   Military
and Veterans Code   is amended to read: 
   1011.  (a) There is in the department a Veterans' Home of
California, Yountville, situated at Veterans' Home, Napa County.

   (b) (1) The department may establish and construct a second home
that shall be situated in the County of Imperial, Los Angeles,
Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, or Ventura. The home
may be located on one or more sites. The department shall operate the
second home concurrently with the first home.  
   (2) The initial site is the Veterans' Home of California, Barstow,
situated in Barstow, San Bernardino County. That site may provide
skilled nursing care for up to 250 residents.  
   (3) When completed, the second site shall be the Veterans' Home of
California, Chula Vista, situated in Chula Vista, San Diego County,
pursuant to the recommendations made by the commission established
pursuant to former Section 1011.5.  
   (4) When completed, the third site shall be the Veterans' Home of
California, Lancaster, situated in Lancaster, Los Angeles County,
pursuant to the recommendations made by the commission established
pursuant to former Section 1011.5.  
   (5) When completed, the fourth site shall be the Veterans' Home of
California, Ventura, situated in the community of Saticoy, Ventura
County.  
   (6) There shall be an administrator for, and located at, each site
of the southern California home.  
   (7) The department may complete any preapplication process
necessary with the United States Department of Veterans Affairs for
construction of the second home.  
   (b) There is in the department a Veterans' Home of California,
Barstow, situated in San Bernardino County.  
   (c) There is in the department a Veterans' Home of California,
Chula Vista, situated in San Diego County.  
   (d) There is in the department a Veterans' Home of California,
Lancaster, situated in Los Angeles County.  
   (e) There is in the department a Veterans' Home of California,
Ventura, situated in Ventura County.  
   (f) There is in the department a Veterans' Home of California,
West Los Angeles, situated in Los Angeles County.  
   (c) 
    (g)  The Legislature hereby finds and declares that the
 second home is   homes are  a new state
function. The department may perform any or all work in operating the
 second home   homes  by independent
contractors, except the overall administration and management of the
 home   homes  . Any and all actions of the
department taken before September 17, 1996, that are consistent with
this subdivision are hereby ratified and confirmed, it having at all
times been the intent of the Legislature that the department be so
authorized. 
   (d) 
    (h)  There shall be an administrator for each home or
homesite, who shall be recommended by the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs and appointed by the Governor, and shall be located at that
home or homesite. The salary for each administrator shall be subject
to the approval of the Department of Personnel Administration.

  SECTION 1.    Section 2830 of the Public Utilities
Code is amended to read:
   2830.  (a) As used in this section, the following terms have the
following meanings:
   (1) "Benefiting account" means an electricity account, or more
than one account, located within the geographical boundaries of a
local government or, for a campus, within the geographical boundary
of the city, county, or city and county in which the campus is
located, that is designated by the local government or campus.
   (2) "Bill credit" means an amount of money credited to a
benefiting account that is calculated based upon the bundled
electricity rate charged the benefiting account by the electrical
corporation.
   (A) If the benefiting account receives service pursuant to a
time-of-use rate, the amount of the bill credit is to be calculated
by measuring the amount of electricity exported to the electrical
grid by an eligible renewable generating facility multiplied by the
corresponding time-of-use electricity rate of the benefiting account.

   (B) If the benefiting account receives service pursuant to a fixed
single rate, the credit shall be calculated by measuring the amount
of electricity exported to the electrical grid by an eligible
renewable generating facility multiplied by that rate.
   (C) If the benefiting account receives service pursuant to fixed
rates, with different rates charged for different tiers of usage, the
bill credit will be at the first tier or baseline usage rate for
electricity exported to the electrical grid by an eligible renewable
generating facility, up to the baseline quantity of electricity for
that benefiting account. The bill credit for electricity exported to
the grid by an eligible renewable generating facility that is above
the baseline amount shall be calculated based upon the next lowest
tiered rate, up to that tier of usage, and then upon the next lowest
tiered rate, up to that tier of usage, until the bill credit reaches
100 percent of the bill to the benefiting account.
   (D) Electricity is exported to the grid if it is generated by an
eligible renewable generating facility, is not utilized onsite by the
local government or campus, and the electricity flows through the
meter site and on to the electrical corporation's distribution or
transmission infrastructure.
   (3) "Campus" means an individual community college campus,
individual California State University campus, or individual
University of California campus.
   (4) "Eligible renewable generating facility" means a generation
facility that meets all of the following requirements:
   (A) Has a generating capacity of no more than 20 megawatts.
   (B) Is an eligible renewable energy resource, as defined in
Article 16 (commencing with Section 399.11) of Part 1.
   (C) Is located within the geographical boundary of the local
government or, for a campus, within the geographical boundary of the
city or city and county, if the campus is located in an incorporated
area, or county, if the campus is located in an unincorporated area.
   (D) Is sized to offset all or part of the electrical load of the
benefiting account.
   (5) "Generating account" means the time-of-use electric service
account of the local government or campus where the eligible
renewable generating facility is located.
   (6) "Local government" means a city, county, whether general law
or chartered, city and county, special district, school district,
political subdivision, or other local public agency, but shall not
mean a joint powers authority, the state or any agency or department
of the state, other than an individual campus of the University of
California or the California State University.
   (b) Subject to the limitation in subdivision (h), a local
government may elect to receive electric service pursuant to this
section, if all of the following conditions are met:
   (1) The local government designates one or more benefiting
accounts to receive a bill credit.
   (2) The benefiting account is the responsibility of, and serves
property that is owned, operated, or on property under the control of
the local government or campus.
   (3) The electrical output of the eligible renewable generating
facility is metered for time of use to allow calculation of the bill
credit based upon when the electricity is exported to the grid.
   (4) All costs associated with the metering requirements of
paragraphs (2) and (4) are the responsibility of the local
government.
   (5) All costs associated with interconnection are the
responsibility of the holder of the benefiting account. For purposes
of this paragraph, "interconnection" has the same meaning as defined
in Section 2803, except that it applies to the interconnection of an
eligible renewable generating facility rather than the energy source
of a private energy producer.
   (6) The owner of the eligible renewable generating facility does
not sell electricity exported to the electrical grid to a third
party.
   (7) All electricity exported to the grid by the eligible renewable
generating facility becomes the property of the electrical
corporation to which the facility is interconnected, but shall not be
counted toward the electrical corporation's total retail sales for
purposes of Article 16 (commencing with Section 399.11) of Chapter
2.3 of Part 1. Ownership of the renewable energy credits, as defined
in Section 399.12, shall be the same as the ownership of the
renewable energy credits associated with electricity that is net
metered pursuant to Section 2827.
   (c) (1) A benefiting account shall be billed for all electricity
usage, and for each bill component, at the rate schedule applicable
to the benefiting account, including any cost-responsibility
surcharge or other cost recovery mechanism, as determined by the
commission, to reimburse the Department of Water Resources for
purchases of electricity, pursuant to Division 27 (commencing with
Section 80000) of the Water Code.
   (2) The bill shall then credit the designated benefiting account
by the amount of the bill credit. The generation component credited
to the benefiting account may not include the cost-responsibility
surcharge or other cost recovery mechanism, as determined by the
commission, to reimburse the Department of Water Resources for
purchases of electricity, pursuant to Division 27 (commencing with
Section 80000) of the Water Code. The electrical corporation shall
ensure that the local government receives the full bill credit.
   (3) If, during the billing cycle, the electricity usage charges
exceeds the bill credit, the benefiting account shall be billed for
the difference.
   (4) If, during the billing cycle, the bill credit applied pursuant
to paragraph (2) exceeds the electricity usage charges, the
difference shall be carried forward as a financial credit to the next
billing cycle.
   (5) After the electricity usage charge pursuant to paragraph (1)
and the credit pursuant to paragraph (2) are determined for the last
billing cycle of a 12-month period, any remaining bill credit
resulting from the application of this section shall be reset to
zero, and the owner of the eligible renewable generating facility may
elect to receive compensation pursuant to Section 399.20, for any
electricity exported to the electrical grid that is not credited to a
benefiting account.
   (d) The commission shall ensure that the transfer of a bill credit
to a benefiting account does not result in a shifting of costs to
bundled service subscribers. The costs associated with the transfer
of a bill credit shall include all billing-related expenses.
   (e) Not more frequently than once per year, and upon providing the
electrical corporation with a minimum of 60 days' notice, the local
government or campus may elect to change a benefiting account. Any
credit resulting from the application of this section earned prior to
the change in a benefiting account that has not been used as of the
date of the change in the benefiting account, shall be applied, and
may only be applied, to a benefiting account as changed.
   (f) A local government or campus shall provide the electrical
corporation to which the eligible renewable generating facility will
be interconnected with not less than 60 days' notice prior to the
eligible renewable generating facility becoming operational. The
electrical corporation shall file an advice letter with the
commission, that complies with this section, not later than 30 days
after receipt of the notice, proposing a rate tariff for a benefiting
account. The commission, within 30 days of the date of filing, shall
approve the proposed tariff, or specify conforming changes to be
made by the electrical corporation to be filed in a new advice
letter.
   (g) The local government or campus may terminate its election
pursuant to subdivision (b), upon providing the electrical
corporation with a minimum of 60 days' notice. Should the electricity
generated by the eligible renewable generating facility be sold to a
third party, no further bill credit pursuant to paragraph (3) of
subdivision (b) may be earned. Only credit earned prior to that date
shall be made to a benefiting account.