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AB-983 Transportation electrification.(2019-2020)

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Date Published: 02/21/2019 09:00 PM
AB983:v99#DOCUMENT


CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 983

Introduced by Assembly Member Boerner Horvath
(Coauthor: Assembly Member Gloria)

February 21, 2019

An act to add Section 740.16 to the Public Utilities Code, relating to transportation electrification.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 983, as introduced, Boerner Horvath. Transportation electrification.
Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. Existing law, enacted as part of the Clean Energy and Pollution Reduction Act of 2015, requires the PUC, in consultation with the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission and the State Air Resources Board, to direct electrical corporations to file applications for programs and investments to accelerate widespread transportation electrification to reduce dependence on petroleum, meet air quality standards, achieve the goals set forth in the Charge Ahead California Initiative, and reduce emissions of greenhouse gases to 40% below 1990 levels by 2030 and to 80% below 1990 levels by 2050. That law requires that the programs proposed by electrical corporations seek to minimize overall costs and maximize overall benefits. The commission is required to approve, or modify and approve, programs and investments in transportation electrification, including those that deploy charging infrastructure, through a reasonable cost recovery mechanism, if they are consistent with the above-described purposes, do not unfairly compete with nonutility enterprises, include performance accountability measures, and are in the interests of ratepayers.
This bill would require an electrical corporation to work with local agencies or regional planning agencies in its service territory with responsibility for planning electric vehicle deployment to determine where to install new electrical charging stations along local transit corridors. The bill would authorize an electrical corporation to file an application with the PUC by December 31, 2020, with the support of the local or regional planning agency, for the infrastructure investments required to support electrical charging stations at transit corridor entry and exit points or other locations. The bill would require the application to prioritize the installment of charging stations in disadvantaged communities, as defined. The bill would require the PUC to review, modify, if appropriate, and decide whether to approve an application filed by an electrical corporation and supported by the local or regional planning agency. The bill would authorize an electrical corporation to propose a cost allocation methodology that allocates costs in a reasonable manner and would require the PUC to approve the cost allocation methodology if the commission finds that the application would minimize overall costs and maximize overall benefits and is in the interests of ratepayers. The bill would require that the charging stations be installed by the utility workforce, or by workers who are paid the prevailing wage for all program-related work.
Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act or any order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime.
Because the provisions of this bill would be a part of the act and because a violation of an order or decision of the commission implementing its requirements would therefore be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program by creating a new crime.
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   Local Program: YES  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 Section 740.16 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to read:

740.16.
 (a) (1) An electrical corporation shall work with local agencies or regional planning agencies in its service territory with primary responsibility for planning electric vehicle deployment to determine where to install new electrical charging stations along local transit corridors.
(2) In determining where to install new electrical charging stations along local transit corridors, an electrical corporation and a local agency shall use existing data, or collect new data if existing data is insufficient, to determine which transit corridors show high traffic volumes and where increases in traffic volumes are likely to occur due to projected population growth.
(3) An electrical corporation and a local or regional agency shall consider data collected by the Energy Commission on zero-emission vehicles in their analyses of local charging infrastructure needs.
(b) By December 31, 2020, an electrical corporation, with the support of the local or regional planning agency, may file an application with the commission for the infrastructure investments required to support electrical charging stations at transit corridor entry and exit points or other locations. The commission shall review, modify, if appropriate, and decide whether to approve an application filed by an electrical corporation and supported by the local or regional planning agency pursuant to this section.
(c) Notwithstanding subdivision (e) of Section 740.13 and subdivision (b) of Section 740.14, an electrical corporation may, subject to commission approval, propose a cost allocation methodology that allocates costs in a reasonable manner, including, but not limited to, allocating costs to ratepayers where it can be demonstrated that the electrical charging stations will be operated in a manner that is designed to create overall electrical system benefits.
(d) The commission shall approve the cost allocation methodology if the commission finds that the application would do both of the following:
(1) Minimize overall costs and maximize overall benefits.
(2) Be in the interests of ratepayers, as defined in Section 740.8.
(e) Charging stations installed pursuant to this section shall be installed by the utility workforce, or by workers who are paid the prevailing wage for all program-related work.
(f) An electrical corporation shall prioritize in its application the installment of charging stations in disadvantaged communities identified pursuant to Section 39711 of the Health and Safety Code.

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.