Amended IN Assembly March 28, 2025 CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE 20252026 REGULAR SESSION Assembly Bill No. 706Introduced by Assembly Member Aguiar-CurryFebruary 14, 2025 An act to amend Section 21650 of the Public Utilities Code, relating to aviation. add Article 12 (commencing with Section 4773) to Chapter 10 of Part 2 of Division 4 of the Public Resources Code, relating to forestry, and making an appropriation therefor.LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGESTAB 706, as amended, Aguiar-Curry. Aviation: nonpublic-use airports. Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act.Existing law establishes in the Natural Resources Agency the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), and requires CAL FIRE to be responsible for, among other things, fire protection and prevention, as provided. Existing law establishes the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection in CAL FIRE to represent the states interest in the acquisition and management of state forests and requires the board to maintain an adequate forest policy. The former Governor, Edmund G. Brown, Jr., issued Executive Order No. B-52-18 that, among other things, established a Forest Management Task Force, now known as the Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force, involving specified state agencies to create the action plan for wildfire and forest resilience. The executive order also established a Joint Institute for Wood Products Innovation, to be located within the state board.Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. The California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program requires every electrical corporation to file with the PUC a standard tariff for electricity generated by an electric generation facility, as defined, that qualifies for the tariff, is owned and operated by a retail customer of the electrical corporation, and is located within the service territory of, and developed to sell electricity to, the electrical corporation. The PUC refers to this requirement as the renewable feed-in tariff. The renewable feed-in tariff law, in part, requires the PUC to direct the electrical corporations, collectively, to procure at least 250 megawatts of cumulative rated generating capacity from developers of bioenergy projects that commence operation on or after June 1, 2013. Pursuant to this requirement, the PUC has established and revised the Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff (BioMAT) program. On March 18, 2016, the PUC issued Resolution E-4770 to order investor-owned utilities to each hold a solicitation for contract with facilities that can use biofuel from high hazard zones to address an Emergency Proclamation using the Bioenergy Renewable Auction Mechanism (BioRAM) program.This bill would establish the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund in the State Treasury, and would continuously appropriate the fund to the Natural Resources Agency to reduce organic fuel sources that increase fire risk by providing funding for the fire fuel reduction procurement program, which the bill would also establish, to support sufficient biomass procurement that reduces fuel for wildfires, as specified. By continuously appropriating moneys in the fund to the agency, the bill would make an appropriation. The bill would require the fire fuel reduction program to grant procurement priority to BioRAM, as defined, and BioMAT, as defined, fleets, in existence on or before January 1, 2026.Existing law requires an airport that is not open to the general public to be marked, as required by the Department of Transportation, with letters or symbols selected by the department to designate that the airport is not open to the general public.This bill would make a nonsubstantive change to the provision defining airport for that purpose.Digest Key Vote: MAJORITY2/3 Appropriation: NOYES Fiscal Committee: NOYES Local Program: NO Bill TextThe people of the State of California do enact as follows:SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:(a) Forest waste has accumulated dramatically across California over the last many years. The State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission estimates California has 47,000,000 bone dry tons of biomass resource potential.(b) Since Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr., issued Executive Order No. B-52-18 on May 10, 2018, all partners, including federal, state, tribal entities, and nongovernmental organizations, have worked diligently to attempt to treat 1,000,000 acres annually to ameliorate the wildfire crisis.(c) The Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force reports that as of at least 2023, the state has not yet met that goal, indicating that 727,269 acres are treated across the state.(d) Wildfire impacts of the last several years require California to make forest recovery efforts for millions of acres of forest.(e) According to the research of the State Air Resources Board and the United States Forest Service, wildfires release vast amounts of carbon dioxide, methane, and black carbon into the atmosphere that negate the benefits of renewable energy adoption and emissions regulations.(f) The destruction of millions of acres of forest lands depletes natural carbon sinks, reducing the states ability to sequester future emissions.(g) Without proactive forest management strategies, including fuel reduction and biomass utilization, wildfires will continue to erode Californias climate gains.(h) The Joint Institute for Wood Products Innovation, an advisory committee to the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, reports that meeting the 1,000,000-acre treatment goal will require removal and subsequent disposal of an estimated 5,000,000 to 15,000,000 dry tons of dead forest biomass waste annually from a range of vegetation management projects for forest restoration and identifies a conservative estimate that since 2018, at least 1,000,000 tons of material is stored on the landscape, with a significant amount of that accumulation accessible for removal and disposal.(i) A report published by Bain and Company in collaboration with The Nature Conservancy, entitled Accelerating Forest Restoration: Stimulating a Forest-Restoration Economy and Rebuilding Resilience in Californias Fire-Adapted Forests concluded that the expanded use of existing technologies, including bioenergy and sawmills, offers the most promising means of accelerating forest restoration, in addition to forest waste materials that need to be disposed of from wildfire scars to support resiliency.(j) The current Bioenergy Renewable Auction Mechanism (BioRAM) procurement, as stated by the Public Utilities Commission, is currently allocated to all customers given that there are broad social benefits that are realized from supporting wildfire mitigation and the limited energy procurement standards of the program have been or are nearly fully subscribed.(k) The Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff (BioMAT) program mandates the development of 250 megawatts (MW) of small-scale bioenergy projects using organic waste, with allocations of 110 MW from diverted organic waste, 90 MW from agricultural and dairy waste, and 50 MW from forest waste removed for wildfire mitigation or restoration. Of these targets, only 50 MW have been procured, with just 15 MW currently in operation. Despite this shortfall, the Public Utilities Commission has set a program end date of December 31, 2025, stalling the development of new projects.(l) To meet the 1,000,000-acre-per-year goal would require California to remove 5,000,000 to 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest biomass waste annually, enough for the procurement of between 625 MW to 1875 MW of bioenergy annually.(m) Given that only 135 MW of BioRAM and BioMAT plants are operational, California must procure an additional 1,740 MW of bioenergy to get to the point of 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest waste removal annually.(n) Biomass is primarily managed through open pile burning that produces significantly more emissions than biomass energy facilities. Processing biomass in a cogeneration facility reduces particulate matter emissions by as much as 98 percent, nitrous oxide (NOx) emissions by as much as 54 percent, and carbon monoxide (CO) emissions by as much as 97 percent.(o) A study entitled Up in smoke: Californias greenhouse gas reductions could be wiped out by 2020 wildfires found that wildfires in 2020 negated 18 years of greenhouse gas emissions reductions.(p) Oversight of biomass plant emissions in California is conducted by local air pollution control districts and the United States Environmental Protection Agency, which reserve issuing authority for plant operating permits known as Title V Operating Permits as part of the 1990 amendments to the federal Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 7661 et seq.), which requires continuous emissions monitoring for ozone, CO, and NOx.(q) Continuously monitoring these critical parameters ensures for consistent and efficient combustion in the boilers and safe air quality levels.SEC. 2. Article 12 (commencing with Section 4773) is added to Chapter 10 of Part 2 of Division 4 of the Public Resources Code, to read: Article 12. Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act4773. This article shall be known, and may be cited, as the Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act, or the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act.4773.1. For purposes of this article, the following definitions apply:(a) Biomass means the materials described in subdivision (a) of Section 40106.(b) BioMAT means the Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff or Bioenergy Feed-In Tariff Program created pursuant to Section 399.20 of the Public Utilities Code.(c) BioRAM means the Bioenergy Renewable Auction Mechanism program established in Public Utilities Commission Resolution E-4770 (March 18, 2016), Commission Motion Authorizing Procurement from Forest Fuelstock Bioenergy Facilities supplied from High Hazard Zones for wildfires and falling trees pursuant to the Governors Emergency Proclamation.(d) Organic waste has the same meaning as Section 42649.8.4773.2. (a) The FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund is established in the State Treasury, and notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, is continuously appropriated to the Natural Resources Agency for the purpose identified in subdivision (b).(b) The purpose of the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund is to reduce organic fuel sources that increase fire risk by providing funding for the fire fuel reduction procurement program established pursuant to Section 4773.3.4773.3. (a) The fire fuel reduction procurement program is established to support sufficient biomass procurement that reduces fuel for wildfires by up to 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest biomass organic waste per year.(b) Procurement priority shall be granted to BioRAM and BioMAT fleets, in existence on or before January 1, 2026.(c) Projects shall use only nonliving organic waste.SECTION 1.Section 21650 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to read:21650.Airport for the purposes of this article means an airport that is not open to the general public.
Amended IN Assembly March 28, 2025 CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE 20252026 REGULAR SESSION Assembly Bill No. 706Introduced by Assembly Member Aguiar-CurryFebruary 14, 2025 An act to amend Section 21650 of the Public Utilities Code, relating to aviation. add Article 12 (commencing with Section 4773) to Chapter 10 of Part 2 of Division 4 of the Public Resources Code, relating to forestry, and making an appropriation therefor.LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGESTAB 706, as amended, Aguiar-Curry. Aviation: nonpublic-use airports. Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act.Existing law establishes in the Natural Resources Agency the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), and requires CAL FIRE to be responsible for, among other things, fire protection and prevention, as provided. Existing law establishes the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection in CAL FIRE to represent the states interest in the acquisition and management of state forests and requires the board to maintain an adequate forest policy. The former Governor, Edmund G. Brown, Jr., issued Executive Order No. B-52-18 that, among other things, established a Forest Management Task Force, now known as the Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force, involving specified state agencies to create the action plan for wildfire and forest resilience. The executive order also established a Joint Institute for Wood Products Innovation, to be located within the state board.Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. The California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program requires every electrical corporation to file with the PUC a standard tariff for electricity generated by an electric generation facility, as defined, that qualifies for the tariff, is owned and operated by a retail customer of the electrical corporation, and is located within the service territory of, and developed to sell electricity to, the electrical corporation. The PUC refers to this requirement as the renewable feed-in tariff. The renewable feed-in tariff law, in part, requires the PUC to direct the electrical corporations, collectively, to procure at least 250 megawatts of cumulative rated generating capacity from developers of bioenergy projects that commence operation on or after June 1, 2013. Pursuant to this requirement, the PUC has established and revised the Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff (BioMAT) program. On March 18, 2016, the PUC issued Resolution E-4770 to order investor-owned utilities to each hold a solicitation for contract with facilities that can use biofuel from high hazard zones to address an Emergency Proclamation using the Bioenergy Renewable Auction Mechanism (BioRAM) program.This bill would establish the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund in the State Treasury, and would continuously appropriate the fund to the Natural Resources Agency to reduce organic fuel sources that increase fire risk by providing funding for the fire fuel reduction procurement program, which the bill would also establish, to support sufficient biomass procurement that reduces fuel for wildfires, as specified. By continuously appropriating moneys in the fund to the agency, the bill would make an appropriation. The bill would require the fire fuel reduction program to grant procurement priority to BioRAM, as defined, and BioMAT, as defined, fleets, in existence on or before January 1, 2026.Existing law requires an airport that is not open to the general public to be marked, as required by the Department of Transportation, with letters or symbols selected by the department to designate that the airport is not open to the general public.This bill would make a nonsubstantive change to the provision defining airport for that purpose.Digest Key Vote: MAJORITY2/3 Appropriation: NOYES Fiscal Committee: NOYES Local Program: NO
Amended IN Assembly March 28, 2025
Amended IN Assembly March 28, 2025
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE 20252026 REGULAR SESSION
Assembly Bill
No. 706
Introduced by Assembly Member Aguiar-CurryFebruary 14, 2025
Introduced by Assembly Member Aguiar-Curry
February 14, 2025
An act to amend Section 21650 of the Public Utilities Code, relating to aviation. add Article 12 (commencing with Section 4773) to Chapter 10 of Part 2 of Division 4 of the Public Resources Code, relating to forestry, and making an appropriation therefor.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
## LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 706, as amended, Aguiar-Curry. Aviation: nonpublic-use airports. Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act.
Existing law establishes in the Natural Resources Agency the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), and requires CAL FIRE to be responsible for, among other things, fire protection and prevention, as provided. Existing law establishes the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection in CAL FIRE to represent the states interest in the acquisition and management of state forests and requires the board to maintain an adequate forest policy. The former Governor, Edmund G. Brown, Jr., issued Executive Order No. B-52-18 that, among other things, established a Forest Management Task Force, now known as the Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force, involving specified state agencies to create the action plan for wildfire and forest resilience. The executive order also established a Joint Institute for Wood Products Innovation, to be located within the state board.Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. The California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program requires every electrical corporation to file with the PUC a standard tariff for electricity generated by an electric generation facility, as defined, that qualifies for the tariff, is owned and operated by a retail customer of the electrical corporation, and is located within the service territory of, and developed to sell electricity to, the electrical corporation. The PUC refers to this requirement as the renewable feed-in tariff. The renewable feed-in tariff law, in part, requires the PUC to direct the electrical corporations, collectively, to procure at least 250 megawatts of cumulative rated generating capacity from developers of bioenergy projects that commence operation on or after June 1, 2013. Pursuant to this requirement, the PUC has established and revised the Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff (BioMAT) program. On March 18, 2016, the PUC issued Resolution E-4770 to order investor-owned utilities to each hold a solicitation for contract with facilities that can use biofuel from high hazard zones to address an Emergency Proclamation using the Bioenergy Renewable Auction Mechanism (BioRAM) program.This bill would establish the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund in the State Treasury, and would continuously appropriate the fund to the Natural Resources Agency to reduce organic fuel sources that increase fire risk by providing funding for the fire fuel reduction procurement program, which the bill would also establish, to support sufficient biomass procurement that reduces fuel for wildfires, as specified. By continuously appropriating moneys in the fund to the agency, the bill would make an appropriation. The bill would require the fire fuel reduction program to grant procurement priority to BioRAM, as defined, and BioMAT, as defined, fleets, in existence on or before January 1, 2026.Existing law requires an airport that is not open to the general public to be marked, as required by the Department of Transportation, with letters or symbols selected by the department to designate that the airport is not open to the general public.This bill would make a nonsubstantive change to the provision defining airport for that purpose.
Existing law establishes in the Natural Resources Agency the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), and requires CAL FIRE to be responsible for, among other things, fire protection and prevention, as provided. Existing law establishes the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection in CAL FIRE to represent the states interest in the acquisition and management of state forests and requires the board to maintain an adequate forest policy. The former Governor, Edmund G. Brown, Jr., issued Executive Order No. B-52-18 that, among other things, established a Forest Management Task Force, now known as the Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force, involving specified state agencies to create the action plan for wildfire and forest resilience. The executive order also established a Joint Institute for Wood Products Innovation, to be located within the state board.
Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. The California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program requires every electrical corporation to file with the PUC a standard tariff for electricity generated by an electric generation facility, as defined, that qualifies for the tariff, is owned and operated by a retail customer of the electrical corporation, and is located within the service territory of, and developed to sell electricity to, the electrical corporation. The PUC refers to this requirement as the renewable feed-in tariff. The renewable feed-in tariff law, in part, requires the PUC to direct the electrical corporations, collectively, to procure at least 250 megawatts of cumulative rated generating capacity from developers of bioenergy projects that commence operation on or after June 1, 2013. Pursuant to this requirement, the PUC has established and revised the Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff (BioMAT) program. On March 18, 2016, the PUC issued Resolution E-4770 to order investor-owned utilities to each hold a solicitation for contract with facilities that can use biofuel from high hazard zones to address an Emergency Proclamation using the Bioenergy Renewable Auction Mechanism (BioRAM) program.
This bill would establish the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund in the State Treasury, and would continuously appropriate the fund to the Natural Resources Agency to reduce organic fuel sources that increase fire risk by providing funding for the fire fuel reduction procurement program, which the bill would also establish, to support sufficient biomass procurement that reduces fuel for wildfires, as specified. By continuously appropriating moneys in the fund to the agency, the bill would make an appropriation. The bill would require the fire fuel reduction program to grant procurement priority to BioRAM, as defined, and BioMAT, as defined, fleets, in existence on or before January 1, 2026.
Existing law requires an airport that is not open to the general public to be marked, as required by the Department of Transportation, with letters or symbols selected by the department to designate that the airport is not open to the general public.
This bill would make a nonsubstantive change to the provision defining airport for that purpose.
## Digest Key
## Bill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:(a) Forest waste has accumulated dramatically across California over the last many years. The State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission estimates California has 47,000,000 bone dry tons of biomass resource potential.(b) Since Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr., issued Executive Order No. B-52-18 on May 10, 2018, all partners, including federal, state, tribal entities, and nongovernmental organizations, have worked diligently to attempt to treat 1,000,000 acres annually to ameliorate the wildfire crisis.(c) The Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force reports that as of at least 2023, the state has not yet met that goal, indicating that 727,269 acres are treated across the state.(d) Wildfire impacts of the last several years require California to make forest recovery efforts for millions of acres of forest.(e) According to the research of the State Air Resources Board and the United States Forest Service, wildfires release vast amounts of carbon dioxide, methane, and black carbon into the atmosphere that negate the benefits of renewable energy adoption and emissions regulations.(f) The destruction of millions of acres of forest lands depletes natural carbon sinks, reducing the states ability to sequester future emissions.(g) Without proactive forest management strategies, including fuel reduction and biomass utilization, wildfires will continue to erode Californias climate gains.(h) The Joint Institute for Wood Products Innovation, an advisory committee to the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, reports that meeting the 1,000,000-acre treatment goal will require removal and subsequent disposal of an estimated 5,000,000 to 15,000,000 dry tons of dead forest biomass waste annually from a range of vegetation management projects for forest restoration and identifies a conservative estimate that since 2018, at least 1,000,000 tons of material is stored on the landscape, with a significant amount of that accumulation accessible for removal and disposal.(i) A report published by Bain and Company in collaboration with The Nature Conservancy, entitled Accelerating Forest Restoration: Stimulating a Forest-Restoration Economy and Rebuilding Resilience in Californias Fire-Adapted Forests concluded that the expanded use of existing technologies, including bioenergy and sawmills, offers the most promising means of accelerating forest restoration, in addition to forest waste materials that need to be disposed of from wildfire scars to support resiliency.(j) The current Bioenergy Renewable Auction Mechanism (BioRAM) procurement, as stated by the Public Utilities Commission, is currently allocated to all customers given that there are broad social benefits that are realized from supporting wildfire mitigation and the limited energy procurement standards of the program have been or are nearly fully subscribed.(k) The Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff (BioMAT) program mandates the development of 250 megawatts (MW) of small-scale bioenergy projects using organic waste, with allocations of 110 MW from diverted organic waste, 90 MW from agricultural and dairy waste, and 50 MW from forest waste removed for wildfire mitigation or restoration. Of these targets, only 50 MW have been procured, with just 15 MW currently in operation. Despite this shortfall, the Public Utilities Commission has set a program end date of December 31, 2025, stalling the development of new projects.(l) To meet the 1,000,000-acre-per-year goal would require California to remove 5,000,000 to 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest biomass waste annually, enough for the procurement of between 625 MW to 1875 MW of bioenergy annually.(m) Given that only 135 MW of BioRAM and BioMAT plants are operational, California must procure an additional 1,740 MW of bioenergy to get to the point of 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest waste removal annually.(n) Biomass is primarily managed through open pile burning that produces significantly more emissions than biomass energy facilities. Processing biomass in a cogeneration facility reduces particulate matter emissions by as much as 98 percent, nitrous oxide (NOx) emissions by as much as 54 percent, and carbon monoxide (CO) emissions by as much as 97 percent.(o) A study entitled Up in smoke: Californias greenhouse gas reductions could be wiped out by 2020 wildfires found that wildfires in 2020 negated 18 years of greenhouse gas emissions reductions.(p) Oversight of biomass plant emissions in California is conducted by local air pollution control districts and the United States Environmental Protection Agency, which reserve issuing authority for plant operating permits known as Title V Operating Permits as part of the 1990 amendments to the federal Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 7661 et seq.), which requires continuous emissions monitoring for ozone, CO, and NOx.(q) Continuously monitoring these critical parameters ensures for consistent and efficient combustion in the boilers and safe air quality levels.SEC. 2. Article 12 (commencing with Section 4773) is added to Chapter 10 of Part 2 of Division 4 of the Public Resources Code, to read: Article 12. Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act4773. This article shall be known, and may be cited, as the Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act, or the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act.4773.1. For purposes of this article, the following definitions apply:(a) Biomass means the materials described in subdivision (a) of Section 40106.(b) BioMAT means the Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff or Bioenergy Feed-In Tariff Program created pursuant to Section 399.20 of the Public Utilities Code.(c) BioRAM means the Bioenergy Renewable Auction Mechanism program established in Public Utilities Commission Resolution E-4770 (March 18, 2016), Commission Motion Authorizing Procurement from Forest Fuelstock Bioenergy Facilities supplied from High Hazard Zones for wildfires and falling trees pursuant to the Governors Emergency Proclamation.(d) Organic waste has the same meaning as Section 42649.8.4773.2. (a) The FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund is established in the State Treasury, and notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, is continuously appropriated to the Natural Resources Agency for the purpose identified in subdivision (b).(b) The purpose of the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund is to reduce organic fuel sources that increase fire risk by providing funding for the fire fuel reduction procurement program established pursuant to Section 4773.3.4773.3. (a) The fire fuel reduction procurement program is established to support sufficient biomass procurement that reduces fuel for wildfires by up to 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest biomass organic waste per year.(b) Procurement priority shall be granted to BioRAM and BioMAT fleets, in existence on or before January 1, 2026.(c) Projects shall use only nonliving organic waste.SECTION 1.Section 21650 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to read:21650.Airport for the purposes of this article means an airport that is not open to the general public.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
## The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:(a) Forest waste has accumulated dramatically across California over the last many years. The State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission estimates California has 47,000,000 bone dry tons of biomass resource potential.(b) Since Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr., issued Executive Order No. B-52-18 on May 10, 2018, all partners, including federal, state, tribal entities, and nongovernmental organizations, have worked diligently to attempt to treat 1,000,000 acres annually to ameliorate the wildfire crisis.(c) The Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force reports that as of at least 2023, the state has not yet met that goal, indicating that 727,269 acres are treated across the state.(d) Wildfire impacts of the last several years require California to make forest recovery efforts for millions of acres of forest.(e) According to the research of the State Air Resources Board and the United States Forest Service, wildfires release vast amounts of carbon dioxide, methane, and black carbon into the atmosphere that negate the benefits of renewable energy adoption and emissions regulations.(f) The destruction of millions of acres of forest lands depletes natural carbon sinks, reducing the states ability to sequester future emissions.(g) Without proactive forest management strategies, including fuel reduction and biomass utilization, wildfires will continue to erode Californias climate gains.(h) The Joint Institute for Wood Products Innovation, an advisory committee to the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, reports that meeting the 1,000,000-acre treatment goal will require removal and subsequent disposal of an estimated 5,000,000 to 15,000,000 dry tons of dead forest biomass waste annually from a range of vegetation management projects for forest restoration and identifies a conservative estimate that since 2018, at least 1,000,000 tons of material is stored on the landscape, with a significant amount of that accumulation accessible for removal and disposal.(i) A report published by Bain and Company in collaboration with The Nature Conservancy, entitled Accelerating Forest Restoration: Stimulating a Forest-Restoration Economy and Rebuilding Resilience in Californias Fire-Adapted Forests concluded that the expanded use of existing technologies, including bioenergy and sawmills, offers the most promising means of accelerating forest restoration, in addition to forest waste materials that need to be disposed of from wildfire scars to support resiliency.(j) The current Bioenergy Renewable Auction Mechanism (BioRAM) procurement, as stated by the Public Utilities Commission, is currently allocated to all customers given that there are broad social benefits that are realized from supporting wildfire mitigation and the limited energy procurement standards of the program have been or are nearly fully subscribed.(k) The Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff (BioMAT) program mandates the development of 250 megawatts (MW) of small-scale bioenergy projects using organic waste, with allocations of 110 MW from diverted organic waste, 90 MW from agricultural and dairy waste, and 50 MW from forest waste removed for wildfire mitigation or restoration. Of these targets, only 50 MW have been procured, with just 15 MW currently in operation. Despite this shortfall, the Public Utilities Commission has set a program end date of December 31, 2025, stalling the development of new projects.(l) To meet the 1,000,000-acre-per-year goal would require California to remove 5,000,000 to 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest biomass waste annually, enough for the procurement of between 625 MW to 1875 MW of bioenergy annually.(m) Given that only 135 MW of BioRAM and BioMAT plants are operational, California must procure an additional 1,740 MW of bioenergy to get to the point of 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest waste removal annually.(n) Biomass is primarily managed through open pile burning that produces significantly more emissions than biomass energy facilities. Processing biomass in a cogeneration facility reduces particulate matter emissions by as much as 98 percent, nitrous oxide (NOx) emissions by as much as 54 percent, and carbon monoxide (CO) emissions by as much as 97 percent.(o) A study entitled Up in smoke: Californias greenhouse gas reductions could be wiped out by 2020 wildfires found that wildfires in 2020 negated 18 years of greenhouse gas emissions reductions.(p) Oversight of biomass plant emissions in California is conducted by local air pollution control districts and the United States Environmental Protection Agency, which reserve issuing authority for plant operating permits known as Title V Operating Permits as part of the 1990 amendments to the federal Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 7661 et seq.), which requires continuous emissions monitoring for ozone, CO, and NOx.(q) Continuously monitoring these critical parameters ensures for consistent and efficient combustion in the boilers and safe air quality levels.
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:(a) Forest waste has accumulated dramatically across California over the last many years. The State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission estimates California has 47,000,000 bone dry tons of biomass resource potential.(b) Since Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr., issued Executive Order No. B-52-18 on May 10, 2018, all partners, including federal, state, tribal entities, and nongovernmental organizations, have worked diligently to attempt to treat 1,000,000 acres annually to ameliorate the wildfire crisis.(c) The Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force reports that as of at least 2023, the state has not yet met that goal, indicating that 727,269 acres are treated across the state.(d) Wildfire impacts of the last several years require California to make forest recovery efforts for millions of acres of forest.(e) According to the research of the State Air Resources Board and the United States Forest Service, wildfires release vast amounts of carbon dioxide, methane, and black carbon into the atmosphere that negate the benefits of renewable energy adoption and emissions regulations.(f) The destruction of millions of acres of forest lands depletes natural carbon sinks, reducing the states ability to sequester future emissions.(g) Without proactive forest management strategies, including fuel reduction and biomass utilization, wildfires will continue to erode Californias climate gains.(h) The Joint Institute for Wood Products Innovation, an advisory committee to the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, reports that meeting the 1,000,000-acre treatment goal will require removal and subsequent disposal of an estimated 5,000,000 to 15,000,000 dry tons of dead forest biomass waste annually from a range of vegetation management projects for forest restoration and identifies a conservative estimate that since 2018, at least 1,000,000 tons of material is stored on the landscape, with a significant amount of that accumulation accessible for removal and disposal.(i) A report published by Bain and Company in collaboration with The Nature Conservancy, entitled Accelerating Forest Restoration: Stimulating a Forest-Restoration Economy and Rebuilding Resilience in Californias Fire-Adapted Forests concluded that the expanded use of existing technologies, including bioenergy and sawmills, offers the most promising means of accelerating forest restoration, in addition to forest waste materials that need to be disposed of from wildfire scars to support resiliency.(j) The current Bioenergy Renewable Auction Mechanism (BioRAM) procurement, as stated by the Public Utilities Commission, is currently allocated to all customers given that there are broad social benefits that are realized from supporting wildfire mitigation and the limited energy procurement standards of the program have been or are nearly fully subscribed.(k) The Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff (BioMAT) program mandates the development of 250 megawatts (MW) of small-scale bioenergy projects using organic waste, with allocations of 110 MW from diverted organic waste, 90 MW from agricultural and dairy waste, and 50 MW from forest waste removed for wildfire mitigation or restoration. Of these targets, only 50 MW have been procured, with just 15 MW currently in operation. Despite this shortfall, the Public Utilities Commission has set a program end date of December 31, 2025, stalling the development of new projects.(l) To meet the 1,000,000-acre-per-year goal would require California to remove 5,000,000 to 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest biomass waste annually, enough for the procurement of between 625 MW to 1875 MW of bioenergy annually.(m) Given that only 135 MW of BioRAM and BioMAT plants are operational, California must procure an additional 1,740 MW of bioenergy to get to the point of 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest waste removal annually.(n) Biomass is primarily managed through open pile burning that produces significantly more emissions than biomass energy facilities. Processing biomass in a cogeneration facility reduces particulate matter emissions by as much as 98 percent, nitrous oxide (NOx) emissions by as much as 54 percent, and carbon monoxide (CO) emissions by as much as 97 percent.(o) A study entitled Up in smoke: Californias greenhouse gas reductions could be wiped out by 2020 wildfires found that wildfires in 2020 negated 18 years of greenhouse gas emissions reductions.(p) Oversight of biomass plant emissions in California is conducted by local air pollution control districts and the United States Environmental Protection Agency, which reserve issuing authority for plant operating permits known as Title V Operating Permits as part of the 1990 amendments to the federal Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 7661 et seq.), which requires continuous emissions monitoring for ozone, CO, and NOx.(q) Continuously monitoring these critical parameters ensures for consistent and efficient combustion in the boilers and safe air quality levels.
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
### SECTION 1.
(a) Forest waste has accumulated dramatically across California over the last many years. The State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission estimates California has 47,000,000 bone dry tons of biomass resource potential.
(b) Since Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr., issued Executive Order No. B-52-18 on May 10, 2018, all partners, including federal, state, tribal entities, and nongovernmental organizations, have worked diligently to attempt to treat 1,000,000 acres annually to ameliorate the wildfire crisis.
(c) The Wildfire and Forest Resilience Task Force reports that as of at least 2023, the state has not yet met that goal, indicating that 727,269 acres are treated across the state.
(d) Wildfire impacts of the last several years require California to make forest recovery efforts for millions of acres of forest.
(e) According to the research of the State Air Resources Board and the United States Forest Service, wildfires release vast amounts of carbon dioxide, methane, and black carbon into the atmosphere that negate the benefits of renewable energy adoption and emissions regulations.
(f) The destruction of millions of acres of forest lands depletes natural carbon sinks, reducing the states ability to sequester future emissions.
(g) Without proactive forest management strategies, including fuel reduction and biomass utilization, wildfires will continue to erode Californias climate gains.
(h) The Joint Institute for Wood Products Innovation, an advisory committee to the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection, reports that meeting the 1,000,000-acre treatment goal will require removal and subsequent disposal of an estimated 5,000,000 to 15,000,000 dry tons of dead forest biomass waste annually from a range of vegetation management projects for forest restoration and identifies a conservative estimate that since 2018, at least 1,000,000 tons of material is stored on the landscape, with a significant amount of that accumulation accessible for removal and disposal.
(i) A report published by Bain and Company in collaboration with The Nature Conservancy, entitled Accelerating Forest Restoration: Stimulating a Forest-Restoration Economy and Rebuilding Resilience in Californias Fire-Adapted Forests concluded that the expanded use of existing technologies, including bioenergy and sawmills, offers the most promising means of accelerating forest restoration, in addition to forest waste materials that need to be disposed of from wildfire scars to support resiliency.
(j) The current Bioenergy Renewable Auction Mechanism (BioRAM) procurement, as stated by the Public Utilities Commission, is currently allocated to all customers given that there are broad social benefits that are realized from supporting wildfire mitigation and the limited energy procurement standards of the program have been or are nearly fully subscribed.
(k) The Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff (BioMAT) program mandates the development of 250 megawatts (MW) of small-scale bioenergy projects using organic waste, with allocations of 110 MW from diverted organic waste, 90 MW from agricultural and dairy waste, and 50 MW from forest waste removed for wildfire mitigation or restoration. Of these targets, only 50 MW have been procured, with just 15 MW currently in operation. Despite this shortfall, the Public Utilities Commission has set a program end date of December 31, 2025, stalling the development of new projects.
(l) To meet the 1,000,000-acre-per-year goal would require California to remove 5,000,000 to 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest biomass waste annually, enough for the procurement of between 625 MW to 1875 MW of bioenergy annually.
(m) Given that only 135 MW of BioRAM and BioMAT plants are operational, California must procure an additional 1,740 MW of bioenergy to get to the point of 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest waste removal annually.
(n) Biomass is primarily managed through open pile burning that produces significantly more emissions than biomass energy facilities. Processing biomass in a cogeneration facility reduces particulate matter emissions by as much as 98 percent, nitrous oxide (NOx) emissions by as much as 54 percent, and carbon monoxide (CO) emissions by as much as 97 percent.
(o) A study entitled Up in smoke: Californias greenhouse gas reductions could be wiped out by 2020 wildfires found that wildfires in 2020 negated 18 years of greenhouse gas emissions reductions.
(p) Oversight of biomass plant emissions in California is conducted by local air pollution control districts and the United States Environmental Protection Agency, which reserve issuing authority for plant operating permits known as Title V Operating Permits as part of the 1990 amendments to the federal Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 7661 et seq.), which requires continuous emissions monitoring for ozone, CO, and NOx.
(q) Continuously monitoring these critical parameters ensures for consistent and efficient combustion in the boilers and safe air quality levels.
SEC. 2. Article 12 (commencing with Section 4773) is added to Chapter 10 of Part 2 of Division 4 of the Public Resources Code, to read: Article 12. Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act4773. This article shall be known, and may be cited, as the Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act, or the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act.4773.1. For purposes of this article, the following definitions apply:(a) Biomass means the materials described in subdivision (a) of Section 40106.(b) BioMAT means the Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff or Bioenergy Feed-In Tariff Program created pursuant to Section 399.20 of the Public Utilities Code.(c) BioRAM means the Bioenergy Renewable Auction Mechanism program established in Public Utilities Commission Resolution E-4770 (March 18, 2016), Commission Motion Authorizing Procurement from Forest Fuelstock Bioenergy Facilities supplied from High Hazard Zones for wildfires and falling trees pursuant to the Governors Emergency Proclamation.(d) Organic waste has the same meaning as Section 42649.8.4773.2. (a) The FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund is established in the State Treasury, and notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, is continuously appropriated to the Natural Resources Agency for the purpose identified in subdivision (b).(b) The purpose of the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund is to reduce organic fuel sources that increase fire risk by providing funding for the fire fuel reduction procurement program established pursuant to Section 4773.3.4773.3. (a) The fire fuel reduction procurement program is established to support sufficient biomass procurement that reduces fuel for wildfires by up to 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest biomass organic waste per year.(b) Procurement priority shall be granted to BioRAM and BioMAT fleets, in existence on or before January 1, 2026.(c) Projects shall use only nonliving organic waste.
SEC. 2. Article 12 (commencing with Section 4773) is added to Chapter 10 of Part 2 of Division 4 of the Public Resources Code, to read:
### SEC. 2.
Article 12. Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act4773. This article shall be known, and may be cited, as the Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act, or the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act.4773.1. For purposes of this article, the following definitions apply:(a) Biomass means the materials described in subdivision (a) of Section 40106.(b) BioMAT means the Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff or Bioenergy Feed-In Tariff Program created pursuant to Section 399.20 of the Public Utilities Code.(c) BioRAM means the Bioenergy Renewable Auction Mechanism program established in Public Utilities Commission Resolution E-4770 (March 18, 2016), Commission Motion Authorizing Procurement from Forest Fuelstock Bioenergy Facilities supplied from High Hazard Zones for wildfires and falling trees pursuant to the Governors Emergency Proclamation.(d) Organic waste has the same meaning as Section 42649.8.4773.2. (a) The FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund is established in the State Treasury, and notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, is continuously appropriated to the Natural Resources Agency for the purpose identified in subdivision (b).(b) The purpose of the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund is to reduce organic fuel sources that increase fire risk by providing funding for the fire fuel reduction procurement program established pursuant to Section 4773.3.4773.3. (a) The fire fuel reduction procurement program is established to support sufficient biomass procurement that reduces fuel for wildfires by up to 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest biomass organic waste per year.(b) Procurement priority shall be granted to BioRAM and BioMAT fleets, in existence on or before January 1, 2026.(c) Projects shall use only nonliving organic waste.
Article 12. Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act4773. This article shall be known, and may be cited, as the Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act, or the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act.4773.1. For purposes of this article, the following definitions apply:(a) Biomass means the materials described in subdivision (a) of Section 40106.(b) BioMAT means the Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff or Bioenergy Feed-In Tariff Program created pursuant to Section 399.20 of the Public Utilities Code.(c) BioRAM means the Bioenergy Renewable Auction Mechanism program established in Public Utilities Commission Resolution E-4770 (March 18, 2016), Commission Motion Authorizing Procurement from Forest Fuelstock Bioenergy Facilities supplied from High Hazard Zones for wildfires and falling trees pursuant to the Governors Emergency Proclamation.(d) Organic waste has the same meaning as Section 42649.8.4773.2. (a) The FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund is established in the State Treasury, and notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, is continuously appropriated to the Natural Resources Agency for the purpose identified in subdivision (b).(b) The purpose of the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund is to reduce organic fuel sources that increase fire risk by providing funding for the fire fuel reduction procurement program established pursuant to Section 4773.3.4773.3. (a) The fire fuel reduction procurement program is established to support sufficient biomass procurement that reduces fuel for wildfires by up to 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest biomass organic waste per year.(b) Procurement priority shall be granted to BioRAM and BioMAT fleets, in existence on or before January 1, 2026.(c) Projects shall use only nonliving organic waste.
Article 12. Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act
Article 12. Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act
4773. This article shall be known, and may be cited, as the Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act, or the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act.
4773. This article shall be known, and may be cited, as the Forest Organic Residue, Energy, and Safety Transformation and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act, or the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund Act.
4773.1. For purposes of this article, the following definitions apply:(a) Biomass means the materials described in subdivision (a) of Section 40106.(b) BioMAT means the Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff or Bioenergy Feed-In Tariff Program created pursuant to Section 399.20 of the Public Utilities Code.(c) BioRAM means the Bioenergy Renewable Auction Mechanism program established in Public Utilities Commission Resolution E-4770 (March 18, 2016), Commission Motion Authorizing Procurement from Forest Fuelstock Bioenergy Facilities supplied from High Hazard Zones for wildfires and falling trees pursuant to the Governors Emergency Proclamation.(d) Organic waste has the same meaning as Section 42649.8.
4773.1. For purposes of this article, the following definitions apply:
(a) Biomass means the materials described in subdivision (a) of Section 40106.
(b) BioMAT means the Bioenergy Market Adjusting Tariff or Bioenergy Feed-In Tariff Program created pursuant to Section 399.20 of the Public Utilities Code.
(c) BioRAM means the Bioenergy Renewable Auction Mechanism program established in Public Utilities Commission Resolution E-4770 (March 18, 2016), Commission Motion Authorizing Procurement from Forest Fuelstock Bioenergy Facilities supplied from High Hazard Zones for wildfires and falling trees pursuant to the Governors Emergency Proclamation.
(d) Organic waste has the same meaning as Section 42649.8.
4773.2. (a) The FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund is established in the State Treasury, and notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, is continuously appropriated to the Natural Resources Agency for the purpose identified in subdivision (b).(b) The purpose of the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund is to reduce organic fuel sources that increase fire risk by providing funding for the fire fuel reduction procurement program established pursuant to Section 4773.3.
4773.2. (a) The FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund is established in the State Treasury, and notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, is continuously appropriated to the Natural Resources Agency for the purpose identified in subdivision (b).
(b) The purpose of the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund is to reduce organic fuel sources that increase fire risk by providing funding for the fire fuel reduction procurement program established pursuant to Section 4773.3.
4773.3. (a) The fire fuel reduction procurement program is established to support sufficient biomass procurement that reduces fuel for wildfires by up to 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest biomass organic waste per year.(b) Procurement priority shall be granted to BioRAM and BioMAT fleets, in existence on or before January 1, 2026.(c) Projects shall use only nonliving organic waste.
4773.3. (a) The fire fuel reduction procurement program is established to support sufficient biomass procurement that reduces fuel for wildfires by up to 15,000,000 bone dry tons of forest biomass organic waste per year.
(b) Procurement priority shall be granted to BioRAM and BioMAT fleets, in existence on or before January 1, 2026.
(c) Projects shall use only nonliving organic waste.
Airport for the purposes of this article means an airport that is not open to the general public.