California Senate Bill SB1153 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: SB 1153AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 5, 2010 INTRODUCED BY Senator Hancock FEBRUARY 18, 2010  An act relating to global warming.   An act to add Chapter 6.1 (commencing with Section 25545) to Division 15 of the Public Resources Code, relating to energy.  LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 1153, as amended, Hancock.  Global warming: renewable energy projects: agricultural land.   Energy: sustainable energy zone.   Existing law authorizes the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) to designate transmission corridors and establishes various procedures for the designation.   This bill would authorize the Energy Commission to designate an area as a sustainable energy zone suitable for the construction or operation of renewable energy projects, as defined, and would require the Energy Commission to identify zones where projects can be built that are consistent with the strategic plan for the state's electric transmission grid. The bill would require the Energy Commission, by January 1, 2012, to report to the Legislature regarding the designation of sustainable energy zones.   The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 requires the State Air Resources Board to adopt regulations to require the reporting and verification of emissions of greenhouse gases and to monitor and enforce compliance with the reporting and verification program, and requires the state board to adopt a statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit, equivalent to the statewide greenhouse gas emissions level in 1990, to be achieved by 2020. The state board is required by January 1, 2011, to adopt greenhouse gas emissions limits and emission reduction measures by regulation to achieve the prescribed emission reductions.   This bill would express the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation to address the serious threat of global warming to the economic well-being, public health, natural resources, and the environment of the state by coordinating permit approvals and providing incentives for renewable energy projects with multiple environmental and economic benefits to agricultural land.  Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  no   yes  . State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:  SECTION 1.   Chapter 6.1 (commencing with Section 25545) is added to Division 15 of the   Public Resources Code   , to read:   CHAPTER 6.1. SUSTAINABLE ENERGY ZONES 25545. For the purposes of this chapter, the following terms mean the following: (a) "Renewable energy project" means a project for the construction of a solar nonthermal, wind, or other renewable energy nonthermal powerplant with a generating capacity equal to or more than 50 megawatts, or transmission lines connecting these powerplants to the interconnected electrical transmission grid. (b) "Sustainable energy zone" means a geographically defined area that is environmentally and economically suitable for the construction and operation of one or more types of renewable energy projects taking into account economic, environmental, legal, social, agricultural, and technological factors, including, the achievement of the state's renewable energy goals and goals of the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (Division 35.5 (commencing with Section 38500) of the Health and Safety Code). 25545.1. (a) The commission may designate a sustainable energy zone to expedite renewable energy development. (b) The commission may contract for needed biologists to collect data on land proposed to be designated as a sustainable energy zone. 25545.2. (a) In designating a sustainable energy zone, the commission shall identify zones where one or more future renewable energy projects can be built that are consistent with the state's needs and objectives as set forth in the strategic plan adopted pursuant to Section 25324. (b) The designation of a sustainable energy zone is subject to the California Environmental Quality Act (Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000)). The commission shall be the lead agency, as provided in Section 21165, for all sustainable energy zones proposed for designation pursuant to this chapter. 25545.3. (a) By January 1, 2012, the commission shall report to the Legislature regarding the designation of sustainable energy zones. (b) (1) A report submitted pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code. (2) Pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, this section is repealed on January 1, 2016.   SECTION 1.   It is the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation to address the serious threat of global warming to the economic well-being, public health, natural resources, and the environment of the state by coordinating permit approvals and providing incentives for renewable energy projects with multiple environmental and economic benefits to agricultural land.