California Senate Bill SB968 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: SB 968AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 28, 2016 AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 31, 2016 AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 31, 2016 AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 14, 2016 INTRODUCED BY Senator Monning (Coauthor: Senator Jackson) (Coauthor: Assembly Member Achadjian) FEBRUARY 8, 2016 An act to add Section 712.5 to the Public Utilities Code, relating to electricity. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 968, as amended, Monning. Diablo Canyon Units 1 and 2 powerplant. Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. The Diablo Canyon nuclear powerplant, composed of reactor Units 1 and 2, is operated by the Pacific Gas and Electric Company in the County of San Luis Obispo. Existing law requires the commission to convene, or continue, until August 26, 2025, an independent peer review panel to conduct an independent review of enhanced seismic studies and surveys of the Diablo Canyon Units 1 and 2 powerplant, including the surrounding areas of the facility and areas of nuclear waste storage. This bill would require the commission to cause an assessment to be completed by no later than July 1, 2018, conducted by an independent 3rd party, selected as specified, of the adverse and beneficial economic impacts, and net economic effects, that could occur, and of potential ways for the state and local jurisdictions to mitigate the adverse economic impact, if the Diablo Canyon Units 1 and 2 powerplant were to temporarily or permanently shut down before the powerplant's current operating licenses expire or if the Pacific Gas and Electric Company were to decide not to pursue license renewal. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the Pacific Gas and Electric Company. Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 712.5 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to read: 712.5. (a) (1) The commission shall cause an assessment to be completed by no later than July 1, 2018, of the adverse and beneficial economic  impacts   impacts, and the net economic effects,  for the  region surrounding the  County of San Luis  Obispo, and the net economic effects on that region,   Obispo and the surrounding   regions,  that could occur if the Diablo Canyon Units 1 and 2 powerplant were to temporarily or permanently shut down before the powerplant's current operating licenses from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission expire or if the Pacific Gas and Electric Company were to decide not to pursue license renewal. The assessment shall include a review, as described in paragraph (4) of subdivision (b), of potential actions for the state and local jurisdictions to consider in order to mitigate the adverse economic impact of a shutdown. (2) The assessment shall be conducted by an independent third party, selected in accordance with paragraph (1) of subdivision (c). (b) The assessment shall consist of, but not be limited to, all of the following: (1) Estimates of any changes in local tax revenues, changes in workforce populations, changes in indirect or induced economies, and potential impacts to ratepayers from a shutdown. (2) A review of the economic impacts that affected the region surrounding the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station after it was decommissioned by the Southern California Edison Company and of the relevant decommissioning plans of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station. (3) A review of regions in the United States similar to  the region surrounding  the County of San Luis Obispo  and the surrounding regions  that have experienced the decommissioning of a nuclear powerplant and of the resulting economic impacts of the decommissioning on those regions. (4) Identification of any contingency plans that could mitigate the adverse economic impact of a shutdown to state and local jurisdictions, the local workforce, and entities receiving enhanced tax revenue. (c) (1) The commission shall issue a request for proposal for the independent third party that will ensure that the selected party is able to make an independent review and analysis of the data described in subdivision (b). (2) The independent third party shall consult with the Board of Supervisors of the County of San Luis Obispo, the governing board of the San Luis Coastal Unified School District, the Center for Labor Research and Education at the University of California at Berkeley, the regional economic development group of the County of San Luis Obispo, and other relevant governmental entities or community-based organizations to assist in an accurate assessment of the economic and workforce impacts of a shutdown. (d) The commission shall make the assessment publicly available on its Internet Web site and place it as an item on the agenda at the next commission meeting after the assessment is made publicly available for purposes of collecting and recording public comment. SEC. 2. The Legislature finds and declares that a special law is necessary and that a general law cannot be made applicable within the meaning of Section 16 of Article IV of the California Constitution because, currently, the Diablo Canyon Units 1 and 2 powerplant, owned and operated by the Pacific Gas and Electric Company, is the last operating nuclear powerplant in California and its continued operation is uncertain as Diablo Canyon Units 1 and 2 are only authorized to operate until 2024 and 2025, respectively. Local communities were ill-prepared and given no notice after the sudden closure of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station was announced on June 7, 2013, and the state is still responding, at significant cost, to the sudden, permanent, and unexpected loss of baseline electricity. Therefore, an assessment is needed on the economic impact specific to a shutdown of the Diablo Canyon Units 1 and 2 powerplant to provide the state, and local communities, with valuable and necessary information to plan and prepare for that  circumstance, if needed.  circumstance.