Skip to main content
Donate

Legislative Wrapup: Jerry Brown Signs 19 Clean Energy Bills

By Chris Clarke
October 5, 2012
Support Provided By
Jerry-brown-10-5-12-thumb-600x407-37466

California Governor Jerry Brown in 2010 | Photo: Jerry Brown 2010 campaign/Flickr/

Calling an end to the 2012 legislative session, California Governor Jerry Brown signed 19 bills relating to renewable energy and energy efficiency, vetoing a few that he felt the state couldn't afford. The Governor's deadline for signing or vetoing bills passed by the Legislature during the past session was September 30.

Among the bills signed by Governor Brown were Senator Mark Leno's SB 1222, which caps fees for rooftop solar construction permits statewide, and AB 1255 by Assemblymember Manuel Pérez, which streamlines the permitting process for extracting lithium and other valuable minerals from geothermal waste water.

Brown vetoed SB 1537 by Senator Christine Kehoe (D-San Diego), which would have regulated utility fees for net metering customers, and AB 796 by Assemblymember Robert Blumenfield (D-Van Nuys) which would have created a clean energy jobs incentive program.

In a move sure to cheer fans of decentralized renewable energy, Brown also vetoed AB 976 by Assemblymember Isadore Hall III, which would have enacted extremely strict conflict-of-interest laws over companies that provided consulting services to Community Choice Aggregation programs. Opponents of the bill said that it unfairly interfered in the ability of newly established Community Choice Aggregation programs -- which they pretty much all are, in California -- to buy power from renewable energy providers. Those opponents had been urging Brown to veto the bill for the last month. In his veto message, Brown said

This goes too far -- local governments already have plenty of laws on conflicts of interest and transparent decision making. Adding the restriction in this bill would serve only to impede efforts to establish community choice energy programs.

Brown signed one law that will increase the state's bioenergy program by requiring the California Public Utilities Commission 9CPUC) to add 250 megawatts of biomass power to the state's feed-in tariff program. In signing the bill, SB1122 by Senator Michael Rubio (D-Bakersfield), Brown urged the CPUC and local governments to consult over potential harm to air quality from biomass-fueled power plants.

Additonal bills signed by the Governor last week, from a list provided by the Governor's office:

"¢ AB 693 by Assemblymember Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael) - Local government: Sonoma County Regional Climate Protection Authority.
"¢ AB 1124 by Assemblymember Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) - Landlord and tenant.
"¢ AB 1900 by Assemblymember Mike Gatto (D-Burbank) - Renewable energy resources: biomethane.
"¢ AB 2165 by Assemblymember Jerry Hill (D-South San Francisco) - Net energy metering: eligible fuel cell customer-generators.
"¢ AB 2187 by Assemblymember Steven Bradford (D-Inglewood) - Renewable energy resources.
"¢ AB 2196 by Assemblymember Wesley Chesbro (D-Eureka) - Renewable energy resources.
"¢ AB 2227 by Assemblymember Steven Bradford (D-Inglewood) - Local publicly owned electric utilities: State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission: reporting.
"¢ AB 2249 by Assemblymember Joan Buchanan (D-San Ramon) - Solar Water Heating and Efficiency Act of 2007.
"¢ AB 2339 by Assemblymember Das Williams (D-Santa Barbara) - Energy: geothermal technologies.
"¢ AB 2514 by Assemblymember Steven Bradford (D-Inglewood) - Net energy metering.
"¢ SB 594 by Senator Lois Wolk (D-Davis) - Energy: net energy metering.
"¢ SB 1066 by Senator Ted Lieu (D-Torrance) - Coastal resources: climate change.
"¢ SB 1207 by Senator Jean Fuller (R-Bakersfield) - California Alternate Rates for Energy program.
"¢ SB 1268 by Senator Fran Pavley (D-Agoura Hills) - Energy: energy conservation assistance.
"¢ SB 1332 by Senator Gloria Negrete McLeod (D-Chino) - Renewable energy resources: electric utilities.

ReWire is dedicated to covering renewable energy in California. Keep in touch by liking us on Facebook, and help shape our editorial direction by taking this quick survey here.

Support Provided By
Read More
Gray industrial towers and stacks rise up from behind the pitched roofs of warehouse buildings against a gray-blue sky, with a row of yellow-gold barrels with black lids lined up in the foreground to the right of a portable toilet.

California Isn't on Track To Meet Its Climate Change Mandates. It's Not Even Close.

According to the annual California Green Innovation Index released by Next 10 last week, California is off track from meeting its climate goals for the year 2030, as well as reaching carbon neutrality by 2045.
By Alejandro Lazo, CalMatters
A row of cows stands in individual cages along a line of light-colored enclosures, placed along a dirt path under a blue sky dotted with white puffy clouds.

A Battle Is Underway Over California’s Lucrative Dairy Biogas Market

California is considering changes to a program that has incentivized dairy biogas, to transform methane emissions into a source of natural gas. Neighbors are pushing for an end to the subsidies because of its impact on air quality and possible water pollution.
By Emma Foehringer Merchant, Inside Climate News
A Black woman with long, black brains wears a black Chicago Bulls windbreaker jacket with red and white stripes as she stands at the top of a short staircase in a housing complex and rests her left hand on the metal railing. She smiles slightly while looking directly at the camera.

Los Angeles County Is Testing AI's Ability To Prevent Homelessness

In order to prevent people from becoming homeless before it happens, Los Angeles County officials are using artificial intelligence (AI) technology to predict who in the county is most likely to lose their housing. They would then step in to help those people with their rent, utility bills, car payments and more so they don't become unhoused.
By Marisa Kendall, CalMatters