California Assembly Bill AB719 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: AB 719AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 16, 2013 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Roger Hernndez FEBRUARY 21, 2013 An act to add Section 384.5 to the Public Utilities Code, relating to energy. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 719, as amended, Roger Hernndez. Energy: energy efficiency. Under the Public Utilities Act  (the act),   , or the act,  the Public Utilities Commission  (PUC)   , or the PUC,  has regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. The act requires the commission to review and adopt a procurement plan for each electrical corporation in accordance with specified elements, incentive mechanisms, and objectives. The act requires that an electrical corporation's proposed procurement plan include certain elements, including a showing that the electrical corporation will first meet its unmet needs through all available energy efficiency and demand-reduction resources that are cost effective, reliable, and feasible. Existing law requires the PUC, in consultation with the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission, to identify all potentially achievable cost-effective electricity efficiency savings and establish efficiency targets. A violation of the act is a crime. This bill would require  an electrical corporation as part of the above-described energy efficiency targets to replace low-efficiency light bulbs with high-efficiency light bulbs in street light poles that the electrical corporation owns, at the same rate as the city, county, or city and county in which any of the electrical corporation's street light poles are located or at the highest rate of an adjacent city or county if the street light poles are located in a city or county that does not own any street light poles   the commission, on or before March 1, 2014, to order electrical corporations to submit a tariff to be used, at the discretion of local governments, to fund energy efficiency improvements in street light poles ow   ned by the electrical corporations  . This bill would state the intent of the Legislature that  this program be funded through existing collection mechanisms, and that the implementation of this program not result in an increase in any amount collected   utility-owned street light poles, whose electricity use is paid by local governments, be converted to use cost-effective technology that reduces electricity consumption to achieve lower utility bills  . The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 384.5 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to read: 384.5. (a) It is the intent of the Legislature that  the program created by this section be funded through existing collection mechanisms for the purposes of achieving cost-effective electricity savings and establishing energy efficiency targets, and that the implementation of this program not result in an increase in any amount collected for these purposes.   electrical-corporation-owned street light poles, whose electricity use is paid by local governments, be converted to use cost-effective technology that reduces electricity consumption so that a city, county, or city and county may achieve   lower utility bills for the electricity used by these street light poles.   (b) As part of the energy efficiency targets created pursuant to Section 454.55, an electrical corporation shall, for street light poles the electrical corporation owns, implement a program targeting the replacement of low-efficiency light bulbs with high-efficiency light bulbs.   (c) (1) For street light poles owned by an electrical corporation, the electrical corporation shall install high-efficiency light bulbs in those street light poles at the same rate that the city, county, or city and county in which those street light poles are located has installed high-efficiency light bulbs.   (2) For street light poles located in a city, county, or city and county that do not own any street lighting infrastructure, the electrical corporation shall install high-efficiency light bulbs in those street light poles owned by the electrical corporation at the rate of installation of an adjacent city or county with the highest rate of installation.   (b) On or before March 1, 2014, the commission shall order electrical corporations to submit a tariff to be used, at the discretion of local governments, to fund energy efficiency improvements in street light poles owned by the electrical corporations to ensure reduced energy consumption and lower electricity bills for local governments who are streetlight customers covered by these tariffs.   (c) The tariff shall be designed to allow local governments to remit the cost of the improvement through the tariff over time, resulting in lower energy consumption and lower energy bills, without shifting costs to nonparticipating ratepayers.   (d) Notwithstanding subdivision (c), the conversion performed pursuant to the tariff submitted under subdivision (b) shall be eligible for any rebate or incentives available through ratepayer-funded programs intended to increase energy efficiency.   (d)   (e)  For the purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings: (1) "Electrical corporation" means an electrical corporation, as defined in Section 218, with at least 100,000 service connections in California. (2) "Street light pole" means a pole, arm, or fixture used primarily for street, pedestrian, or security lighting. SEC. 2. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.