Amended  IN  Assembly  May 18, 2023
Amended  IN  Assembly  March 30, 2023

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 1569

Introduced by Assembly Member Garcia
(Principal coauthor: Senator Padilla)

February 17, 2023

An act to add Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 25250) to Division 15 of the Public Resources Code, relating to energy.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 1569, as amended, Garcia. Salton Sea geothermal resource area: Lithium Valley Office of Development.
The Warren-Alquist State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Act establishes the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) in the Natural Resources Agency. Existing law requires the Energy Commission to undertake a continuing assessment of trends in the consumption of electrical energy and other forms of energy and to analyze the social, economic, and environmental consequences of these trends, and to carry out, or cause to be carried out, under contract or other arrangements, research and development into alternative sources of energy, improvements in energy generation, transmission, and siting, fuel substitution, and other topics related to energy supply, demand, public safety, ecology, and conservation that are of particular statewide importance.
This bill would establish establish, upon appropriation by the Legislature, the Lithium Valley Office of Development in the Energy Commission. The bill would require the office, in consultation with relevant state and local agencies, to coordinate activities related to funding, economic development, construction, manufacturing, technical development, and reclamation of lithium located in the Salton Sea geothermal resource area.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

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


SECTION 1.

 The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) As California transitions to a decarbonized economy, the state’s heavy reliance on importing lithium from foreign countries robs the state of the opportunity to pair climate change and transportation goals with the creation of high-quality, green jobs.
(b) With ambitious goals to meet, and the majority of automakers producing electric vehicles by 2035, the demand for lithium is expected to grow exponentially over the next decade.
(c) According to industry experts, the Salton Sea geothermal resource area, known as “Lithium Valley,” can potentially satisfy more than one-third of global lithium demand.

SEC. 2.

 Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 25250) is added to Division 15 of the Public Resources Code, to read:
CHAPTER  3.5 Lithium Valley Office of Development

25250.
 The Subject to an appropriation of funds by the Legislature for this purpose, the Lithium Valley Office of Development is hereby established in the commission. The office shall, in consultation with relevant state and local agencies, coordinate activities related to funding, economic development, construction, manufacturing, technical development, and reclamation of lithium located in the Salton Sea geothermal resource area.