25233.5.
(a) For the purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:(1) “Local government” means a city, including a charter city, or county.
(2) “Low-to-moderate-income property owners” means those with annual household incomes of 130 percent or less of the area median income, as published by the Department of Housing and Community Development pursuant to Section 50093 of the Health and Safety Code, for the jurisdiction in which the requirement would apply.
(b) To help building owners to decarbonize buildings and add energy storage or electric vehicle charging capacity to buildings, the commission, in coordination with the Public
Utilities Commission, the Department of Housing and Community Development, the California Building Standards Commission, and other relevant state agencies, shall, by July 1, 2023, gather or develop, and publish on the commission’s internet website, and update annually, guidance and best practices to help building owners, the construction industry, and local governments overcome barriers to electrification of buildings and installation of electric vehicle charging equipment that include all of the following topics:
(1) Availability of electrical equipment for replacement of the common fossil-fuel-powered equipment within buildings, including high-efficiency options that can minimize electrical service capacity requirements.
(2) Approaches for energy budgeting to fit electrical replacements and vehicle-charging equipment within the existing electrical service capacity of the
building whenever possible, including guidance on how to maximize the use of the nonconcurrent electrical load that is allowed under the California Electrical Code (Part 3 (commencing with Section 89.101.1) of Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations).
(3) Technologies that allow the noncoincidental sharing of electrical circuits.
(4) The development of whole building electrification plans to help building owners prepare for future additions of electrical equipment, even if only a portion of equipment will be replaced, or energy storage or vehicle charging added, during an initial project. The plan may include wiring changes and energy planning to reduce the need for rework and help correctly size distributed energy and energy storage systems to anticipated future needs.
(5) Model permit applications, an
eligibility checklist for expedited permitting, and a concise inspection list for the most common building electrification, energy storage, or vehicle charging installation projects that would be suitable for adoption by local governments seeking to streamline and standardize permitting and inspections.
(6) Ways in which local governments may assess the number of skilled installers of all electric appliances that operate within the local government’s jurisdiction.
(7) Ways in which local governments may ensure that permitting and inspection of structures in the local jurisdiction adequately accommodate the need for 24-hour emergency replacement of new all electric space or water heating appliances.
(8) Ways in which local governments can establish incentives to assist low-to-moderate-income property owners in
offsetting the first cost and installation of an equivalent all electric space or water heating appliance.
(9) Ways in which local governments can consider and implement limited exemptions for certain facilities, such as hospitals, acute care facilities, or other commercial facilities, particularly where any interruption in facility operations caused by an electrical outage could jeopardize public health and safety.
(10) Other topics deemed appropriate by the commission.
(c) (1) (A) When adopting an ordinance to require that a fossil-fuel-powered appliance be replaced with an electric appliance upon the alteration or retrofit of a residential or nonresidential building, a local government shall consider any guidance published by the commission pursuant to subdivision (b). A
local government shall not be required to update its ordinance when the commission updates its guidance.
(B) Upon request of a local government considering the adoption of an ordinance described in subparagraph (A), the commission shall provide technical assistance to the local government.
(2) Within 60 days of adopting an ordinance described in paragraph (1), the local government shall submit to the commission a copy of the ordinance, a copy of the final staff report, supplemental documents, a copy of any cost-effectiveness study relied upon, and any other materials the local government deems relevant.
(3) Upon receipt of the materials described in paragraph (2), the commission shall publish and make publicly available the submitted material on the commission’s internet website.
(4) Within 30 days after the local government’s submission, the commission shall provide written comments on the ordinance based upon the commission’s guidance described in subdivision (b) that is published at the time of the adoption of the ordinance. The commission shall make its written findings publicly available.
(5) Upon If the commission determines that the local government did not consider the guidance pursuant to paragraph (4), upon receiving the commission’s written comments, the local government shall have 180 days to consider the written comments,
guidance or the portion of the guidance that the commission determines the local government did not consider,
make any modification to its ordinance as it deems necessary, and resubmit the ordinance and other materials pursuant to paragraph (2). The local government shall have no further obligation under this section if the commission determines that the local government considered the guidance pursuant to paragraph (4).
(6) (A) This subdivision shall not apply to local government until on July 1, 2023, or on the date following the adoption of the initial guidance described in subdivision (b), whichever is later.
(B) The commission shall post on its internet website the date of the adoption of the initial guidance.
(d) This section does not prevent an ordinance described in
subdivision (c) from taking effect or from being enforced.
(e) The commission shall implement the changes made to this section by Senate Bill 1393 of the 2021–22 Regular Session upon appropriation by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act or another statute for its purposes.