BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE LOCAL GOVERNMENT COMMITTEE
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
BILL NO: SB 1059 HEARING: 4/20/05
AUTHOR: Escutia FISCAL: Yes
VERSION: 4/18/05 CONSULTANT: Detwiler
ELECTRIC TRANSMISSION LINE SITING
Background and Existing Law
Delivering electricity to California's expanding population
requires a complex system of generating stations,
high-voltage transmission lines, and interconnections. To
serve customers, both municipal utilities and investor
owned public utilities need transmission lines to reach
sources of renewable energy, to tap out-of-state sources,
to avoid congestion, and to promote system reliability.
State energy policy makers and utilities worry that, as
development spreads out, they may lose opportunities to
locate transmission lines.
The Warren-Alquist Act requires the California Energy
Commission to adopt a biennial Integrated Energy Policy
Report (IEPR). The IEPR must assess electricity
infrastructure needs and recommend state energy policies
(SB 1389, Bowen, 2002). By November 1, 2005, the
California Energy Commission must adopt a strategic plan
for the state's electric transmission grid (SB 1565, Bowen,
2004).
Before an investor owned public utility can build a
transmission line, the California Public Utilities
Commission must issue a Certificate of Public Convenience
and Necessity. If necessary, a public utility can use
eminent domain to acquire the right-of-way for the
transmission line. Although municipal utilities are not
subject to the California Public Utilities Commission, they
have eminent domain powers to acquire their own
rights-of-way.
The California Energy Commission says there's a gap between
its policy documents and the utilities' construction of
high-voltage transmission lines. The Commission says that
no one is identifying the corridors needed for future
transmission lines, nor is anyone protecting these pathways
from encroachment by development. Without realistic
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planning, land use conflicts will make it hard for the
utilities to serve their future customers.
Proposed Law
Senate Bill 1059 allows the California Energy Commission to
designate "transmission corridor zones" to accommodate
high-voltage electric transmission lines that are
consistent with the Commission's strategic plan. SB 1059
contains findings and declarations to support its
provisions.
The Commission must identify the transmission corridor
zones in its subsequent strategic plans and review the
designations at least once every six years. SB 1059
declares that the California Environmental Quality Act
(CEQA) applies to the designation of the transmission
corridor zones and that the Commission is the lead agency.
When designating transmission corridor zones, the
Commission must confer with cities, counties, federal
agencies, and California Native American tribal governments
to identify appropriate areas by conferring. The
Commission cannot designate a transmission corridor zone
within a California Native American tribal government's
jurisdiction without its approval.
The Commission can designate a transmission corridor zone
either on its own motion or at the request of a person who
wants to build a high-voltage electric transmission line.
SB 1059 requires the Commission to publicize the
application and ask for comments on its suitability. The
bill allows the Commission to use current law to charge an
application fee and use the resulting revenues to pay for
these review costs. The Commission must hold public
informational hearings on the application. After the
Commission designates a transmission corridor zone, it must
send a copy of its decision and a description of the zone
to the affected cities, counties, state agencies, and
federal agencies.
SB 1059 requires the cities and counties where designated
transmission corridor zones are located to integrate the
designations into their general plans and specific plans.
Cities and counties must comply during their next regular
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general plan revision, but not later than five years after
receiving the Commission's decision.
The bill allows cities and counties to permit development
within a designated transportation corridor zone with the
Commission's approval.
Comments
1. Plan to grow . The California Energy Commission has
identified a gap in logic between its long-term strategic
planning and the physical construction of high-voltage
electric transmission lines. There is no intermediate
process or document to identify the routes that utilities
will need in the future. Further, there's no way to
protect those increasingly scarce routes from encroachment
by incompatible development. Once buildings go up and
people move in, an area is no longer suitable for
high-voltage lines. SB 1059 fills that gap by requiring
state officials to identify transmission corridor zones and
by requiring counties and cities to integrate those assets
into usual land use planning and development decisions.
Losing the pathways loses the opportunities for economic
growth.
2. State intrusion . Few dispute the need to identify
swaths of undeveloped land that utilities can use for
future high-voltage lines. But SB 1059 is another example
of the state government's intrusion into local land use
decisions. State law requires counties and cities to adopt
comprehensive general plans, and then requires local
officials to follow their own plans when zoning property,
subdividing land, building public works, and regulating
land uses. SB 1059 goes beyond that scheme by giving the
California Energy Commission direct permit authority over
land use decisions inside the new transmission corridor
zones. The Committee may wish to consider alternative ways
to protect those pathways without preempting local land use
permits.
3. Precedents and alternatives . The state has taken land
use permit powers away from local officials in three
regions to protect natural resources with statewide
importance: the San Francisco Bay Conservation Development
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Commission, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, and the
California Coastal Commission. But four statutes protect
valuable state resources without directly preempting local
land use decisions. The Committee may wish to consider
amending SB 1059 by adapting these precedents to the need
to protect corridors for high-voltage lines:
Delta Protection Commission. The Delta Protection
Commission must adopt a resource management plan. The
underlying counties and cities must propose amendments to
conform their general plans to the Commission's plan. The
Commission reviews and approves the proposed general plan
amendments. Counties and cities then amend their general
plans to conform to the Commission's plan. Following
existing law, local land use decisions must be consistent
with the amended general plans.
Airport Land Use Commissions. Airport Land Use
Commissions adopt an airport land use compatibility plan
for each public use airport. These plans protect the
airports from encroachment by incompatible land uses and
protect adjacent properties from noise and safety hazards.
The underlying counties and cities must send their general
plans to the Commission for consistency reviews. Local
officials can overrule the Commission, but only after
making stringent findings and on a 2/3-vote. Following
existing law, local land use decisions must be consistent
with the amended general plans.
Alquist-Priolo Act. The State Geologist maps
earthquake fault zones, sends the maps to the affected
counties and cities for review, considers local comments,
and sends final maps to the counties and cities. If local
officials want to permit developments in an earthquake
fault zone, they must require geologic reports. The
Natural Hazards Disclosure Act requires sellers to tell
prospective buyers if residential property is within a
mapped earthquake fault zone.
Surface Mining and Reclamation Act. The State
Geologist maps areas that have statewide and regionally
significant mineral deposits. The underlying counties and
cities must amend these designations into their general
plans. Following existing law, local land use decisions
must be consistent with the amended general plans. Before
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allowing a land use that threatens the potential to mine
the mapped resource, local officials must evaluate the
project and send the results to the State Geologist.
4. Charter cities and municipal affairs . The California
Constitution allows charter cities to control their own
"municipal affairs," free of legislative interference. But
charter cities must follow state laws when it comes to
topics of statewide concern. The 1962 Modesto Irrigation
District v. City of Modesto decision said "that the
placement, construction and maintenance of power lines is a
matter of state concern." SB 1059 declares that the
orderly planning and development of high-voltage lines by
designating transmission corridor zones is an issue of
statewide concern. Although the final interpretation of
this constitutional principle is up to the courts, SB 1059
clearly intends that charter cities follow its
requirements.
5. It's in the details . SB 1059 imperfectly grafts the
Alquist-Priolo Act to the Planning and Zoning Law.
Detailed amendments are needed to make the new statute work
properly. For example, the statutory schedule for the
California Energy Commission to consider and act on
applications to designate transportation corridor zones
should fit the deadlines in the existing Permit
Streamlining Act. The mandate to "integrate" the
Commission's designated corridors into local general plans
should reflect a more realistic procedure for amendments.
The bill's requirement for the Commission to approve local
development decisions does not describe the procedures for
referral, public notice, public hearing, and appeals. The
Committee may wish to amend SB 1059 to avoid these
problems.
6. Second reference . The Senate Rules Committee referred
SB 1059 first to the Senate Energy, Utilities and
Communications Committee, and then to the Senate Local
Government Committee. On April 5, the Energy Committee
passed the bill on a 10-0 vote.
Support and Opposition (4/14/05)
Support : California Energy Commission, California Chamber
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of Commerce, Pacific Gas and Electric Company, Sempra
Energy.
Opposition : League of California Cities, California State
Association of Counties, Regional Council of Rural
Counties, Southern California Edison, Cities of Costa Mesa
and Murrieta.