BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1059|
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UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Bill No: SB 1059
Author: Escutia (D) and Morrow (R)
Amended: 8/21/06
Vote: 21
SEN. ENERGY, UTIL. & COMMUNICATIONS COMM. : 10-0, 4/5/05
AYES: Escutia, Alarcon, Battin,Bowen, Campbell, Cox, Dunn,
Kehoe, Murray, Simitian
SENATE LOCAL GOVERNMENT COMMITTEE : 9-0, 4/20/05
AYES: Kehoe, Cox, Ackerman, Kuehl, Machado, McClintock,
Perata, Soto, Torlakson
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 13-0, 5/26/05
AYES: Migden, Aanestad, Alarcon, Alquist, Ashburn, Battin,
Dutton, Escutia, Florez, Murray, Ortiz, Poochigian,
Romero
SENATE FLOOR : 34-1, 6/1/05
AYES: Aanestad, Ackerman, Alarcon, Alquist, Ashburn,
Battin, Bowen, Campbell, Cedillo, Cox, Denham, Ducheny,
Dunn, Dutton, Escutia, Figueroa, Florez, Kehoe, Kuehl,
Lowenthal, Maldonado, Margett, Migden, Morrow, Murray,
Perata, Poochigian, Romero, Scott, Simitian, Soto,
Speier, Torlakson, Vincent
NOES: Hollingsworth
NO VOTE RECORDED: Chesbro, Machado, McClintock, Ortiz,
Runner
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 76-0, 8/28/06 - See last page for vote
CONTINUED
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SUBJECT : Electric transmission corridors
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill authorizes the California Energy
Commission to designate electric transmission corridor
zones, according to a specified process, in which
high-voltage electric transmission lines may be built in
the future.
Assembly Amendments make the following procedural changes
(1) the bill no longer requires a city or county to adjust
their general plan to be consistent with a transmission
corridor zone designated by the California Energy
Commission, but requires them to consider the designation
when making discussions about proposed land use changes,
and (2) the bill now requires the California Energy
Commission to review the necessity of designated
transmission corridor zones every 10 years instead of every
six years. The amendments also make clarifying, technical
changes.
ANALYSIS : Under current law, cities and counties are
required to adopt general plans for land use.
Existing law also provides that the construction of
transmission lines is subject to certification, by the
Public Utilities Commission (PUC), of public convenience
and necessity. The certification process includes such
things as environmental review, and confers eminent domain
authority for the project.
Existing law, SB 1565 (Bowen), Chapter 692, Statutes of
2004, requires the California Energy Commission (CEC) to
include in its biennial Integrated Energy Policy Report
(IEPR) a strategic plan for the state's electric
transmission grid. The next IEPR is due November 1, 2005.
This bill, in order to identify and reserve for future use
land that is suitable for high-voltage transmission lines,
authorizes the CEC to designate electric "transmission
corridor zones", according to a specified process in which
high-voltage electric transmission lines may be built in
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the future.
This bill also:
1.Specifies the CEC may designate a transmission corridor
zone on its own motion or in response to an application
from a person seeking a transmission corridor zone
designation based on its future plans to construct a
high-voltage electric transmission line.
2.Requires the CEC to charge an applicant for all costs
associated with reviewing the application. For a
designation proposed by the CEC, the CEC's costs are to
be covered by revenues from the existing energy resources
surcharge (for which the CEC is funded through the Energy
Resources Programs Account).
3.Makes the CEC the lead agency, for purposes of the
California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), for the
designation of any transmission corridor zone.
4.Requires the CEC to notify affected cities, counties,
state and federal agencies, and Native American tribes of
a proposed transmission corridor zone and requests that
these entities review and provide comments regarding the
application.
5.Authorizes a city or county, upon receiving a request per
#4 above, to request a fee form the CEC to cover the
city's or county's costs to review a proposed
designation.
6.Requires the affected city or county, upon CEC
designation of a transmission corridor zone, to consider
the designation when making a land use change within or
adjacent to the transmission corridor zone.
7.Requires an affected city or county, within 10 days of
accepting as complete an application for a development
project that could threaten the potential construction of
a high-voltage line within a transmission corridor zone,
to notify the CEC of the proposed project.
8.Authorizes the CEC, upon notification per #7 above, to
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recommend revisions to the project to eliminate the
threat, and requires the city or county to consider the
CEC's recommendation and provide written comments.
Comments
Purpose . According to the author's office, the purpose of
this bill is to provide direction on electric transmission
infrastructure and to coordinate planning and permitting
for transmission projects, which is currently divided
between a multitude of federal, state, and local agencies,
as well as private corporations, who either own or manage
pieces of the transmission grid.
Background . The CEC's 2003 Integrated Energy Policy Report
claims that the state's bulk transmission system needs
major upgrades and improvements. The CEC says there is a
gap between its policy documents and the construction of
high-voltage transmission lines. The CEC claims no one is
identifying the corridors needed for future transmission
lines, nor is anyone protecting these pathways from
encroachment by development.
In response to the fact that no specific state agency was
charged with planning for the future of the transmission
system as a whole, SB 2565 (Bowen), Chapter 962, Statutes
of 2004, was enacted to require the CEC to develop a
strategic transmission plan that recommends actions
required to implement investments needed to ensure
reliability, relieve congestion, and to meet future growth
in load and generation. The strategic plan was required to
be included in the IEPR adopted on November 1, 2005. As
part of the SB 1565 process, the CEC identified and
evaluated potential transmission corridors to accommodate
future siting and construction of needed transmission
lines. The CEC transmission plan is only a recommendation
and does not possess the authority to formally designate
such corridors to ensure that they will be available when
needed.
Opposition . Just as a local zoning ordinance does not
approve specific developments, the designation of a
transmission corridor zone pursuant to the bill would not
constitute approval in whole or in part of any specific
transmission project, nor would a transmission corridor
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zone designation substitute for any of the federal, state
or local permits required to construct a transmission line
itself. Similarly, the designation of a transmission
corridor zone would not give eminent domain authority to a
project proponent, or justify condemnation of specific
properties necessary to accommodate the construction of a
transmission line. Those procedures follow an application
to construct a transmission line with the relevant
permitting agencies, like the Public Utilities Commission
and others, and not the CEC.
The PUC is opposed to this bill because currently the PUC
is the lead agency in the siting of all transmission lines
and substations for applications submitted by the
investor-owned utilities. The PUC is concerned that this
bill would confuse and complicate this arrangement by
turning aspects of the siting of transmission lines over to
the CEC by allowing applicants to apply directly to the CEC
for transmission corridor designation, and by requiring the
CED to be the lead CEQA agency. The bill creates a new
planning tool which doesn't currently exist and doesn't
conflict with any existing authority.
In response, the author's office indicates that designation
of transmission corridors is intended as an optional
up-front planning process, to identify areas suitable for
future transmission lines, and that will precede the
permitting process for any particular line. The PUC will
continue as the permitting agency for the investor-owned
utilities that are subject to its jurisdiction. Among its
decision-making responsibilities for investor-owned utility
transmission applications, the PUC will also remain the
CEQA lead agency.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/29/06)
California Energy Commission
California Chamber of Commerce
Department of Finance
Imperial Irrigation District Energy
Office of the Governor
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Pacific Gas and Electric Company
Sempra Energy
OPPOSITION : (Verified 8/29/06)
Public Utilities Commission
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Aghazarian, Arambula, Baca, Bass, Benoit, Berg,
Bermudez, Blakeslee, Bogh, Calderon, Canciamilla, Chan,
Chavez, Chu, Cogdill, Cohn, Coto, Daucher, De La Torre,
DeVore, Dymally, Emmerson, Evans, Frommer, Garcia,
Haynes, Jerome Horton, Shirley Horton, Houston, Huff,
Jones, Karnette, Keene, Klehs, Koretz, La Malfa, La Suer,
Laird, Leno, Leslie, Levine, Lieber, Lieu, Liu, Matthews,
Maze, McCarthy, Montanez, Mountjoy, Nakanishi, Nation,
Nava, Negrete McLeod, Niello, Oropeza, Parra, Pavley,
Plescia, Richman, Ridley-Thomas, Sharon Runner, Ruskin,
Saldana, Salinas, Spitzer, Strickland, Torrico, Tran,
Umberg, Vargas, Villines, Walters, Wolk, Wyland, Yee,
Nunez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Goldberg, Hancock, Mullin, Vacancy
NC:cm 8/29/06 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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