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SB-1486 Natural gas: Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility: reliability.(2021-2022)

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Date Published: 05/20/2022 01:36 PM
SB1486:v96#DOCUMENT

Amended  IN  Senate  May 19, 2022
Amended  IN  Senate  May 04, 2022
Amended  IN  Senate  April 07, 2022

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill
No. 1486

Introduced by Senator Stern
(Coauthors: Senators Allen and Hertzberg)

February 18, 2022

An act to add Section 3186.5 to the Public Resources Code, and to add Section Sections 714 and 9619 to the Public Utilities Code, relating to energy.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SB 1486, as amended, Stern. Natural gas: Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility: reliability.
Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical and gas corporations, while local publicly owned electric utilities are under the direction of their governing boards. Existing law, until January 1, 2021, required the commission, no later than July 1, 2017, to open a proceeding to determine the feasibility of minimizing or eliminating use of the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility located in the County of Los Angeles while still maintaining energy and electric reliability for the region. As part of that ongoing proceeding, the commission has declined to eliminate the use of the Aliso Canyon facility. Under existing law, the commission, in the November 2, 2017, Aliso Canyon Withdrawal Protocol, authorized the Southern California Gas Company to withdraw gas from the Aliso Canyon facility when all other alternatives have been exhausted, as specified.
This bill would require that the Aliso Canyon Withdrawal Protocol remain in effect until the commission, no later than an unspecified date in 2027, closes all natural gas operations at the Aliso Canyon facility pursuant to the ongoing proceeding. The bill would prohibit using the Aliso Canyon facility for purposes of a well or geologic storage, except as provided in the Aliso Canyon Withdrawal Protocol, and would prohibit additional use of the Playa del Rey natural gas storage facility located in the County of Los Angeles as a result of a moratorium on natural gas operations at, or the closure of, the Aliso Canyon facility. the commission, as part of that proceeding, to continue to consider minimizing or closing the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility while maintaining reliability and affordability for customers, and to annually submit a report on its findings and any efforts to reduce customer energy demand in the Los Angeles Basin through investments in clean hydrogen projects to the relevant policy committees of the Legislature. The bill would require the commission to undertake an analysis of potential alternatives to the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility that includes using multiple planning horizons and determining if each potential alternative would satisfy specified objectives, as provided.
Existing law requires a local publicly owned electric utility providing electric service to 250,000 or more customers within the Los Angeles Basin to maximize the use of demand response, renewable energy resources, and energy efficiency to reduce demand in the area where electrical reliability has been impacted as a result of reductions in gas storage capacity and gas deliverability resulting from the well failure at the Aliso Canyon facility. Existing law requires each local publicly owned electric utility serving end-use customers to prudently plan for and procure resources that are adequate to meet its planning reserve margin and peak demand and operating reserves, sufficient to provide reliable electric service to its customers.
This bill would require the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, a local publicly owned electric utility, to establish a local reliability plan, taking into consideration 2- to 3-day extreme weather events, to provide modeling, scenarios, and analysis to evaluate the minimum local reliability needs to maintain electrical service to the customers it serves, and, serves. The bill would authorize the department, working with the Independent System Operator, to use resource sharing, building electrification programs, and firm zero-carbon energy resources in the Los Angeles Basin to achieve local reliability. To the extent this bill would mandate that the department provide a new program or higher level of service, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act or any order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime.
Because certain of the above provisions would be a part of the act and because a violation of a commission action implementing its requirements would be a crime, the 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 specified reasons.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: YES  

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


SECTION 1.

 This act shall be known, and may be cited, as the Clean Energy Jobs, Coordination, and Community Safety Through Aliso Canyon Closure Act of 2022.

SEC. 2.

 (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:

(a)

(1) On October 23, 2015, a gas leak started from well SS-25 at Southern California Gas Company’s Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility, becoming the largest known leak of methane in our country’s history by the time the well was controlled in February 2016.

(b)

(2) More than 100,000 metric tons of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, and accompanying toxic and noxious chemical species were emitted to the atmosphere from this industrial incident.

(c)

(3) Thousands of people in the surrounding communities had to temporarily move to protect their health from this pollution. Some people were ultimately forced to permanently relocate due to ongoing health issues associated with the incident.

(d)

(4) In response to the public health crisis and climate impacts caused by the leak, Senate Bill 380 (Chapter 14 of the Statutes of 2016) was enacted, among other things, to require the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to open a proceeding to “determine the feasibility of minimizing or eliminating use of the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility.”

(e)

(5) Due to the leak, the Los Angeles City Council, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, the Los Angeles Unified School District, United States Senator Dianne Feinstein, United States Senator Alex Padilla, Congressman Brad Sherman, and environmental and community groups have called for the facility’s closure.

(f)

(6) On November 18, 2019, Governor Newsom issued a letter to the President of the PUC requesting additional action to expedite planning for the permanent closure of the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility.

(g)

(7) The PUC is now in its fifth year of the proceeding required under SB 380 and the second year of the expedited closure planning called for by the Governor.

(h)

(8) On November 4, 2021, the PUC voted to increase by 20 percent the level of natural gas stored at the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility as an interim solution to address the immediate needs of gas reliability and potential rate impacts on both electricity and gas.

(i)

(9) Since the leak, the effects of climate change have worsened. California continues to be assailed with catastrophic wildfires, extreme drought, and extreme weather events resulting in the need to accelerate the achievement of the state’s climate goals and increase the procurement of clean energy resources.

(j)

(10) Over the past five years, the PUC and the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission have taken actions that have led to the development of over 10,000 megawatts of new clean energy resources.

(k)

(11) The PUC recently adopted 11.5 gigawatts of additional clean energy resources to be fully developed by 2026 in the territory overseen by the Independent System Operator.
(12) In PUC Investigation 17-02-022 (February 9, 2017), Order Instituting Investigation Pursuant to Senate Bill 380 to Determine the Feasibility of Minimizing or Eliminating the Use of the Aliso Canyon Natural Gas Storage Facility Located in the County of Los Angeles While Still Maintaining Energy and Electric Reliability for the Region, the PUC has independently analyzed portfolios of activities to replace the services provided by the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility and found that a diverse combination of resources, including renewable energy, storage, demand response and reduction, and energy efficiency, can feasibly replace the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility, but the PUC will need ongoing support and collaboration from multiple federal, state, and local agencies and to consider new technologies, including green hydrogen and building decarbonziation, to support that transition.

(l)

(13) The Los Angeles City Council recently approved the LA100 Plan, a plan that will result in the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power transitioning to 100 percent clean energy by 2035.

(m)

(14) It remains critically important to increase clean energy resources through accelerated efforts to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases that include new building standards and replacing appliances with cleaner alternatives.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature that this act ensure that the citizens of the state continue to receive safe, reliable, affordable, and environmentally sustainable electric service.
SEC. 3.Section 3186.5 is added to the Public Resources Code, to read:
3186.5.

(a)The moratorium on natural gas operations at the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility in effect in 2017 pursuant to the Public Utilities Commission’s November 2, 2017, Aliso Canyon Withdrawal Protocol shall remain in effect until the Public Utilities Commission, no later than 2027, closes all natural gas operations pursuant to its Investigation 17-02-002 (February 17, 2017), Order Instituting Investigation Pursuant to Senate Bill 380 to Determine the Feasibility of Minimizing or Eliminating the Use of the Aliso Canyon Natural Gas Storage Facility Located in the County of Los Angeles While Still Maintaining Energy and Electric Reliability for the Region.

(b)Except as provided in the Public Utilities Commission’s November 2, 2017, Aliso Canyon Withdrawal Protocol, the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility shall not be used for purposes of a well or geologic storage.

(c)The moratorium on natural gas operations at, and the closure of, the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility shall not result in any additional use of the Playa del Rey natural gas storage facility located in the County of Los Angeles.

SEC. 3.

 Section 714 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to read:

714.
 (a) (1) As part of the commission proceeding opened pursuant to Investigation 17-02-002 (February 17, 2017), Order Instituting Investigation Pursuant to Senate Bill 380 to Determine the Feasibility of Minimizing or Eliminating the Use of the Aliso Canyon Natural Gas Storage Facility Located in the County of Los Angeles While Still Maintaining Energy and Electric Reliability for the Region, the commission shall continue to consider minimizing or closing the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility while maintaining reliability and affordability for customers and shall annually submit a report on its findings to the relevant policy committees of the Legislature.
(2) The report submitted pursuant to paragraph (1) shall also consider any efforts to reduce customer energy demand in the Los Angeles Basin through investments in clean hydrogen projects, as defined in Section 16166 of Title 42 of the United States Code.
(b) The commission, in consultation with the Independent System Operator and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, shall, as part of the proceeding described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) or a new proceeding, undertake an analysis of potential alternatives to the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility that includes using multiple planning horizons, including, but not limited to, the years of 2027, 2035, and 2045, and determining if each potential alternative would do all of the following:
(1) Maintain energy reliability for the region.
(2) Replace the capabilities currently provided by the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility.
(3) Provide customers with benefits equivalent to those currently provided by the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility.

SEC. 4.

 Section 9619 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to read:

9619.
 (a) The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power shall establish a local reliability plan, taking into consideration two- to three-day, inclusive, extreme weather events, to provide modeling, scenarios, and analysis to evaluate the minimum local reliability needs to maintain electric service to the customers it serves.
(b) The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, working with the Independent System Operator, shall may use resource sharing, building electrification programs, and firm zero-carbon energy resources in the Los Angeles Basin, as defined in Section 9618, to achieve local reliability.

SEC. 5.

 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 or because costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.