Amended  IN  Senate  March 20, 2023

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill
No. 605

Introduced by Senator Padilla

February 15, 2023

An act to add Chapter 18 (commencing with Section 25996) to Division 15 of the Public Resources Code, and to amend Section 454.53 of the Public Utilities Code, relating to energy.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SB 605, as amended, Padilla. Wave and tidal energy.
Existing law requires the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) to undertake various actions in furtherance of meeting the state’s clean energy and pollution reduction objectives, including actions related to energy infrastructure.

This bill would state the intent of the Legislature to enact future legislation relating to the commission and wave and tidal energy, as specified.

This bill would require the Energy Commission and the Ocean Protection Council, on or before February 1, 2024, to commence a comprehensive, collaborative study to evaluate the feasibility and benefits of using wave energy and tidal energy, as specified. The bill would require the Energy Commission and the council, on or before January 1, 2025, to develop a strategic plan for the deployment of wave energy and tidal energy technologies, infrastructure, and facilities. The bill would require the strategic plan to include wave energy generation goals and tidal energy generation goals, as provided. The bill would require the Energy Commission and the council to submit a written report to the Governor and the Legislature on or before January 1, 2025, that includes, among other things, the strategic plan and findings from the study. The bill would require the commission to solicit applications for, and consider approving, wave energy and tidal energy pilot projects for purposes of the study and, after the study ends, to solicit applications for, and consider approving, the continuation of those projects and for new wave energy and tidal energy projects, as provided.
Under existing law, it is the policy of the state that eligible renewable energy resources and zero-carbon resources supply 90% of all retail sales of electricity to California end-use customers by December 31, 2035, 95% of all retail sales of electricity to California end-use customers by December 31, 2040, 100% of all retail sales of electricity to California end-use customers by December 31, 2045, and 100% of electricity procured to serve all state agencies by December 31, 2035. Existing law requires the Public Utilities Commission, Energy Commission, and State Air Resources Board to issue a joint report to the Legislature by January 1, 2021, and at least every 4 years thereafter, that includes, among other things, a review of this policy and the barriers to, and benefits of, achieving the policy.
This bill would require the Public Utilities Commission, Energy Commission, and State Air Resources Board to include the wave energy and tidal energy strategic plan in the first joint report issued after January 1, 2024.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: NOYES   Local Program: NO  

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


SECTION 1.

 Chapter 18 (commencing with Section 25996) is added to Division 15 of the Public Resources Code, to read:
CHAPTER  18. Wave Energy and Tidal Energy

25996.
 The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) If developed and deployed at scale, offshore wave and tidal energy can provide economic and environmental benefits to the state and the nation.
(b) Ocean energy represents the third largest source of renewable energy and the largest source of underutilized renewable energy. Ocean energy primarily comes in two forms: (1) wave energy, harnessed by waves; and (2) tidal energy, harnessed by tides.
(c) California may need to build at least 48 gigawatts of new renewable energy and energy storage developments by 2030 and at least 145 gigawatts of new renewable energy and energy storage developments by 2045 to achieve the goals set forth in Section 454.53 of the Public Utilities Code.
(d) California has set ambitious clean energy targets on the path to carbon neutrality by 2045, but the need for more clean energy is immediate. Wave and tidal energy, or hydrokinetic energy, has the potential to provide that energy in a more expedited fashion as blue economy innovators in California are now looking to bring the technology to scale.
(e) Wave and tidal energy development presents an opportunity to attract investment capital and to realize community economic-development and workforce-development benefits in California, including the development and preservation of a skilled and trained workforce to carry out projects, long-term job creation, and deployment of an offshore wave and tidal energy supply chain.
(f) Wave and tidal energy can contribute to a diverse, secure, reliable, and affordable renewable energy resource portfolio to serve the electricity needs of California ratepayers and improve air quality, particularly in disadvantaged communities.
(g) Wave and tidal energy can add resource and technology diversity to the state’s clean, renewable energy portfolio. Diversity in energy resources and technologies lowers overall costs.
(h) In its 2021 report on marine energy opportunities for the United States Department of Energy, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory concluded that “even if only a small portion of the technical resource potential is captured, marine energy technologies would make significant contributions to our nation’s energy needs.”
(i) Furthermore, the report found that wave power has the technical feasible resource potential to meet 30 percent of the country’s electricity demand.
(j) The Biden Administration is counting on wave and tidal energy to help the United States reach its goal of carbon neutrality by 2050 and has allocated tens of millions of dollars to advance the technology.
(k) By promoting and facilitating growth in the emerging wave and tidal energy sectors and incorporating ambitious but achievable wave and tidal energy generation goals, California can position itself as a nationwide leader in ocean energy, while facilitating the development of high-quality jobs and technological advancements in this burgeoning industry.
(l) Investment in onshore and offshore wave and tidal energy development can offer career pathways and workforce training in clean energy development by providing sustainable blue economy employment opportunities, supporting apprenticeship opportunities for a diverse labor pool, and providing those opportunities to local communities experiencing high unemployment through prioritization of local hiring first.
(m) Onshore and offshore wave and tidal energy should be developed in a manner that protects coastal and marine ecosystems. The state should use its authority under state programs and policies to ensure avoidance, minimization, and mitigation of significant adverse impacts and monitoring and adaptive management for offshore wave and tidal energy projects and their associated infrastructure.
(n) Onshore and offshore wave and tidal energy development can provide clean air benefits to inland communities that experience increased impacts from poor air quality.

25996.1.
 (a) On or before February 1, 2024, the commission and the Ocean Protection Council, in consultation with other appropriate state agencies, shall commence a comprehensive, collaborative study to evaluate the feasibility and benefits of using wave energy and tidal energy as forms of clean energy in the state.
(b) For purposes of the study, the commission and the Ocean Protection Council shall do all of the following:
(1) Evaluate factors that would affect the increased use of wave energy and tidal energy in the state.
(2) Authorize wave energy and tidal energy pilot projects in the state.
(3) Evaluate the need for transmission planning and possible permitting changes to facilitate wave energy and tidal energy projects.
(4) Evaluate whether economic and workforce development is necessary to bring wave energy and tidal energy technology to scale.
(5) Identify near-term actions, particularly related to investments and the workforce for wave energy and tidal energy projects, to accommodate the probable immediate need for jobs and economic development.
(c) (1) The commission, in coordination with the California Coastal Commission, Department of Fish and Wildlife, Ocean Protection Council, and State Lands Commission, shall work with other state, local, and federal agencies, the offshore wave energy and tidal energy industry, and other stakeholders to identify suitable sea space for offshore wave energy and tidal energy projects in state and federal waters that are sufficient to meet the wave energy generation goals and tidal energy generation goals included in the strategic plan pursuant to Section 25996.2.
(2) For purposes of identifying suitable sea space, the commission shall consider all of the following:
(A) Existing data and information on offshore wave energy and tidal energy resource potential and commercial viability.
(B) Existing transmission facilities and infrastructure, and necessary additional transmission facilities and infrastructure.
(C) Protection of cultural and biological resources with the goal of prioritizing ocean areas that pose the least conflict to those resources.
(3) For purposes of this subdivision, the commission shall incorporate the information developed by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management California Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force.
(4) The commission, in coordination with the California Coastal Commission, Department of Fish and Wildlife, Ocean Protection Council, State Lands Commission, other state, local, and federal agencies, the offshore wind energy industry, and other stakeholders, shall make recommendations for the avoidance, minimization, and mitigation of significant adverse impacts and use conflicts, and for monitoring and adaptive management for offshore wave energy and tidal energy projects, consistent with California’s long-term goals relating to renewable energy, reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, and biodiversity.
(5) Nothing in this subdivision modifies the authority of any state agency over project-specific siting and permitting.

25996.2.
 (a) On or before January 1, 2025, the commission and the Ocean Protection Council shall develop a strategic plan for the deployment of wave energy and tidal energy technologies, infrastructure, and facilities in the state.
(b) (1) The strategic plan shall identify specific wave energy generation goals and tidal energy generation goals, in megawatts, that the state will endeavor to meet by 2030, 2040, and 2050 to ensure the timely and effective deployment of wave energy and tidal energy technologies and the sufficient incorporation of wave energy and tidal energy into the state’s energy portfolio.
(2) The strategic plan shall identify workforce development necessary to bring wave energy and tidal energy technology to scale. For purposes of this paragraph, the commission and the Ocean Protection Council shall consult with representatives of appropriate labor organizations and apprenticeship programs that would be involved in dispatching and training the construction workforce for wave energy and tidal energy projects.
(c) Before finalizing the strategic plan, the commission and the Ocean Protection Council shall provide an opportunity for public review and comment on a draft version of the strategic plan.

25996.3.
 (a) On or before January 1, 2025, the commission and the Ocean Protection Council shall cooperatively prepare and submit a written report to the Governor and the Legislature that includes all of the following:
(1) Findings from the study described in Section 25996.1.
(2) Recommendations for legislative, executive, and other actions to facilitate, encourage, and promote the development and increased use of wave energy and tidal energy technologies, infrastructure, and facilities in the state.
(3) The strategic plan described in Section 25996.2.
(4) Data and findings from the wave energy and tidal energy pilot projects described in Section 25996.4.
(b) (1) The report described in this section shall be submitted to the Legislature pursuant to Section 9795 of the Government Code.
(2) Pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, this section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2029, and as of that date is repealed.

25996.4.
 (a) The commission shall solicit applications for, and consider approving, wave energy and tidal energy pilot projects in the state as part of the study described in Section 25996.1. The commission may take other appropriate action to facilitate wave energy and tidal energy pilot projects for purposes of the study.
(b) Based on the recommendations included in the report described in Section 25996.3, the commission shall solicit applications for, and consider approving, the continuation of pilot projects commenced pursuant to subdivision (a) and for new wave energy and tidal energy projects that will result in net positive economic and environmental benefits for the state. The commission may take other appropriate action to facilitate wave energy and tidal energy projects, including through the use of financial or other incentives.
(c) The commission shall coordinate with the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management in the United States Department of the Interior to facilitate the leasing or permitting of offshore areas under federal jurisdiction for wave energy and tidal energy projects. The commission shall also coordinate with the Ocean Protection Council, the California Coastal Commission, and other appropriate state agencies to facilitate the leasing or permitting of coastal or onshore areas under state jurisdiction for wave energy and tidal energy projects.

SEC. 2.

 Section 454.53 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to read:

454.53.
 (a) It is the policy of the state that eligible renewable energy resources and zero-carbon resources supply 90 percent of all retail sales of electricity to California end-use customers by December 31, 2035, 95 percent of all retail sales of electricity to California end-use customers by December 31, 2040, 100 percent of all retail sales of electricity to California end-use customers by December 31, 2045, and 100 percent of electricity procured to serve all state agencies by December 31, 2035. The achievement of this policy for California shall not increase carbon emissions elsewhere in the western grid and shall not allow resource shuffling. The commission and Energy Commission, in consultation with the State Air Resources Board, shall take steps to ensure that a transition to a zero-carbon electric system for the State of California does not cause or contribute to greenhouse gas emissions increases elsewhere in the western grid, and is undertaken in a manner consistent with clause 3 of Section 8 of Article I of the United States Constitution. The commission, the Energy Commission, the State Air Resources Board, and all other state agencies shall incorporate this policy into all relevant planning.
(b) The commission, Energy Commission, State Air Resources Board, and all other state agencies shall ensure that actions taken in furtherance of subdivision (a) do all of the following:
(1) Maintain and protect the safety, reliable operation, and balancing of the electric system.
(2) Prevent unreasonable impacts to electricity, gas, and water customer rates and bills resulting from implementation of this section, taking into full consideration the economic and environmental costs and benefits of renewable energy and zero-carbon resources.
(3) To the extent feasible and authorized under law, lead to the adoption of policies and taking of actions in other sectors to obtain greenhouse gas emission reductions that ensure equity between other sectors and the electricity sector.
(4) Not affect in any manner the rules and requirements for the oversight of, and enforcement against, retail sellers and local publicly owned electric utilities pursuant to the California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program (Article 16 (commencing with Section 399.11) of Chapter 2.3) and Sections 454.51, 454.52, 9621, and 9622.
(c) Nothing in this section shall affect a retail seller’s obligation to comply with the federal Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. Sec. 2601 et seq.).
(d) The commission, Energy Commission, and State Air Resources Board shall do all of the following:
(1) Use programs authorized under existing statutes to achieve the policy described in subdivision (a).
(2) In consultation with all California balancing authorities, as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 399.12, as part of a public process, issue a joint report to the Legislature by January 1, 2021, and at least every four years thereafter. The joint report shall include all of the following:
(A) A review of the policy described in subdivision (a) focused on technologies, forecasts, then-existing transmission, and maintaining safety, environmental and public safety protection, affordability, and system and local reliability.
(B) An evaluation identifying the potential benefits and impacts on system and local reliability associated with achieving the policy described in subdivision (a).
(C) An evaluation identifying the nature of any anticipated financial costs and benefits to electric, gas, and water utilities, including customer rate impacts and benefits.
(D) The barriers to, and benefits of, achieving the policy described in subdivision (a).
(E) Alternative scenarios in which the policy described in subdivision (a) can be achieved and the estimated costs and benefits of each scenario.
(3) On or before December 1, 2023, and annually thereafter, in consultation with California balancing authorities, as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 399.12, and as part of, or an interim addendum to, the quadrennial joint report required by paragraph (2), as applicable, issue a joint reliability progress report that reviews system and local reliability within the context of the policy described in subdivision (a), with a particular focus on summer reliability. The joint reliability progress report shall identify challenges and gaps, if any, to achieving system and local reliability and identify the amount and cause of any delays to achieving compliance with all energy and capacity procurement requirements set by the commission.
(4) In the first quadrennial joint report required by paragraph (2) that is issued after January 1, 2024, the commission, Energy Commission, and State Air Resources Board shall include the wave energy and tidal energy strategic plan described in Section 25996.2 of the Public Resources Code and the wave energy generation goals and tidal energy generation goals identified in the strategic plan.
(e) Nothing in this section authorizes the commission to establish any requirements on a nonmobile self-cogeneration or cogeneration facility that served onsite load, or that served load pursuant to an over-the-fence arrangement if that arrangement existed on or before December 20, 1995.
(f) This section does not limit any entity, including local governments, from accelerating their achievement of the state’s electric sector decarbonization targets.

SECTION 1.

(a)For purposes of this section, “Energy Commission” means the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission.

(b)It is the intent of the Legislature to enact future legislation to do all of the following:

(1)Require a study of the ocean’s wave energy potential in the state, which would further provide for the state’s clean energy plans, including the joint report issued pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (d) of Section 454.53 of the Public Utilities Code, and goals to be updated to incorporate new goals related to the generation of wave and tidal energy, which are both forms of clean energy that are derived from untapped and inexhaustible ocean resources.

(2)(A)Require the Energy Commission, the Department of Fish and Wildlife, and other appropriate governmental agencies, within 30 days after this act’s effective date, to commence a comprehensive, collaborative study to evaluate the feasibility and benefits of using wave and tidal energy as forms of clean energy in the state.

(B)Require the Energy Commission and the Department of Fish and Wildlife, in conducting the study, to do both of the following:

(i)Evaluate various factors related to the increased use of wave and tidal energy in the state.

(ii)Authorize individuals and entities to engage in pilot wave and tidal energy projects in the state.

(3)Require the Chair of the Energy Commission and the Director of Fish and Wildlife, not more than 12 months after this act’s effective date, to cooperatively prepare and submit a written report to the Governor and the Legislature that identifies the findings from the wave and tidal energy study described in paragraph (2) and provides recommendations for legislative, executive, and other actions that can be taken to facilitate, encourage, and promote the development and increased use of wave and tidal energy technologies, infrastructure, and facilities in the state. Among other things, the report would be required to include a strategic plan for the deployment of wave and tidal energy technologies, infrastructure, and facilities in the state, which would identify, at minimum, specific wave energy generation goals, tidal energy generation goals, or both, in megawatts, that the state should endeavor to meet by 2030, 2040, and 2050, in order to ensure the timely and effective deployment of wave and tidal energy technologies and the sufficient incorporation of wave and tidal energy into the state’s energy portfolio.

(4)Require the Energy Commission, in its next edition of the joint report issued pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (d) of Section 454.53 of the Public Utilities Code following this act’s effective date, to incorporate into the report information regarding the wave and tidal energy strategic plan described in paragraph (3) and, to the extent practical, the wave and tidal energy generation goals recommended by the strategic plan.

(5)Require the Energy Commission to solicit and approve applications for, and to take appropriate action to facilitate, the initiation of pilot wave and tidal energy projects in the state as part of the wave and tidal energy study described in paragraph (2), with data from the pilot projects to be included in the study and in the report described in paragraph (3).

(6)Require the Energy Commission, acting in accordance with the recommendations set forth in the report described in paragraph (3), to solicit and approve applications for, and to take other appropriate action to facilitate, through the use of financial or nonfinancial incentives, the continuation of pilot projects commenced under the study described in paragraph (2) and the initiation of new wave and tidal energy projects that will result in a positive net economic and environmental benefit to the state.

(7)Require the Energy Commission to take certain other affirmative agency actions to facilitate the development of the wave and tidal energy sectors in this state.

(8)Require the Energy Commission to coordinate with the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management in the United States Department of the Interior to facilitate the leasing or permitting of offshore areas, under federal jurisdiction, for wave or tidal energy projects, and to coordinate with the Department of Fish and Wildlife and other permitting agencies to facilitate the leasing or permitting of coastal or onshore areas under state jurisdiction for that purpose.