Amended  IN  Assembly  May 01, 2023
Amended  IN  Assembly  March 20, 2023

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 1482

Introduced by Assembly Member Gabriel

February 17, 2023

An act to add Section 44272.9 to the Health and Safety Code, and to add Chapter 8.5 (commencing with Section 2848) to Part 2 of Division 1 of the Public Utilities Code, relating to transportation electrification.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 1482, as amended, Gabriel. Electric vehicle charging infrastructure: local publicly owned electric utilities.
Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) with regulatory jurisdiction over public utilities, including electrical corporations, while local publicly owned electric utilities are under the direction of their governing board. Under its existing regulatory authority, the PUC adopted a resolution establishing, for electrical corporations, an average service energization time for electric vehicle charging infrastructure of 125 business days, except as provided, and requiring electrical corporations to provide certain information to the PUC regarding service energization time for electric vehicle infrastructure projects.
This bill would require each electrical corporation, consistent with the commission resolution, to achieve a 125-business-day average service energization target starting from when a customer submits an application for service to the energization of an electric vehicle charging infrastructure project, except as provided. The bill would establish, for local publicly owned electric utilities, an average service energization time for electric vehicle charging infrastructure of 125 business days, and would require local publicly owned electric utilities to annually report certain information to the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) regarding the service energization time for electric vehicle charging infrastructure projects. The bill would require the PUC and the Energy Commission, in consultation with electrical corporations and local publicly owned electric utilities, to jointly host an annual public workshop to review and evaluate the information submitted by electrical corporations under the PUC’s resolution and the information submitted by local publicly owned electric utilities, as required by the bill, and to revise, if needed, the average service energization time for electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
Existing law establishes the Clean Transportation Program, which is administered by the Energy Commission, to provide competitive grants, revolving loans, loan guarantees, loans, or other appropriate funding measures to develop and deploy innovative technologies and alternative and renewable fuels in the marketplace. Existing law specifies that alternative and renewable fuel infrastructure, fueling stations, and equipment are eligible for funding under the program.
This bill would require the Energy Commission, in providing financial assistance under the Clean Transportation Program or other programs for the installation of electric vehicle charging infrastructure, to give preference to projects that receive permits from a local jurisdiction that has established expedited electric vehicle charging permitting processes.
By imposing additional duties on local publicly owned electric utilities, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
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 44272.9 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:

44272.9.
 (a) It is the intent of the Legislature that the state rapidly deploy a complete, equitable, cost-effective, and future-proof electric vehicle charging infrastructure network to support the state’s climate change and transportation electrification goals.
(b) To advance the state policies set forth in Section 2848 of the Public Utilities Code, in providing financial assistance under the Clean Transportation Program or other programs for the installation of electric vehicle charging infrastructure, the commission shall give preference to electric vehicle charging projects that have received permits from a local jurisdiction that has established expedited electric vehicle charging permitting processes pursuant to Sections 65850.7 and 65850.71 of the Government Code.

SEC. 2.

 Chapter 8.5 (commencing with Section 2848) is added to Part 2 of Division 1 of the Public Utilities Code, to read:
CHAPTER  8.5. Transportation Electrification

2848.
 (a) It is the policy of the state for electrical corporations and local publicly owned electric utilities to do both of the following:
(1) Expedite service energization of electric vehicle charging infrastructure to support the state’s transportation electrification goals.
(2) Achieve an average service energization time of no more than 125 business days for projects installing electric vehicle charging infrastructure, as set forth in commission Resolution E-5247 (December 15, 2022), or the average service energization time established pursuant to subdivision (d).

(b)Consistent with commission Resolution E-5247, each local publicly owned electric utility shall do all of the following:

(1)(A)

(b) (1) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), paragraph (2) and consistent with commission Resolution E-5247, each electrical corporation and local publicly owned electric utility shall achieve a 125-business days 125-business-day average service energization target starting from when a customer submits an application for service to the energization of an electric vehicle charging infrastructure project.

(B)Subparagraph (A)

(2) Paragraph (1) does not apply to any of the following:

(i)

(A) A project with an installed capacity of greater than 2 megawatts.

(ii)

(B) A project that requires a substantial upstream capacity upgrade in addition to the electrical distribution infrastructure on the electrical corporation’s or the local publicly owned electric utility’s side of the customer’s meter, including poles, vaults, service drops, transformers, mounting pads, trenching, conduit, wire, cable, meters, other equipment as necessary, and associated engineering and civil construction work.

(iii)

(C) A project that requires a substation upgrade.
(c) Consistent with commission Resolution E-5247, each local publicly owned electric utility shall do all of the following:

(2)

(1) List all projects that exceed the 125-business days 125-business-day service energization target, the reasons for the delay for each project, and the number of days each project exceeded that target.

(3)

(2) List all projects that met the 125-business days 125-business-day service energization target, the service energization time for each project, and the reasons and best practices that allowed each project to meet the target.

(4)

(3) List all projects specified in subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) and the service energization time for each project.

(c)

(d) On or before December 31, 2024, and annually thereafter, each local publicly owned electric utility shall provide to the Energy Commission the information specified in paragraphs (2) to (4), inclusive, of subdivision (b). subdivision (c).

(d)

(e) On or before June 30, 2025, and annually thereafter, the commission and the Energy Commission, in consultation with electrical corporations and local publicly owned electric utilities, shall jointly host a public workshop to review and evaluate the information submitted under commission Resolution E-5247 or subdivision (b) (c) and revise or establish, if needed, the average service energization time for projects, including projects specified in subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) (2) of subdivision (b), to support the state’s transportation electrification goals.

SEC. 3.

 No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because a local agency or school district has the authority to levy service charges, fees, or assessments sufficient to pay for the program or level of service mandated by this act, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code.