California Air Resources Board

Summary

This bill codifies parts of the Governor’s Executive Order N-12-23 (EO N-12-23) addressing the use and regulation of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) tools by State agencies. The bill tasks specified agencies to update the EO N-12-23 mandated report on the benefits and risks of GenAI. State agencies shall also consider procuring GenAI tools to improve efficiency, effectiveness, accessibility, and equity of government operations.

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Governor’s Signing Message

To the Members of the California State Senate:
I am signing Senate Bill 896, known as the Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) Accountability Act, which requires the California Department of Technology (CDT) and the California Office of Emergency Services (CalOES) to update specified reports called for in Executive Order N-12-23.

On September 6, 2023, I signed an Executive Order (EO) that underscores California's commitment to developing a deliberative and responsible process for the evaluation and deployment of AI within state government. Over the last year, my Administration has worked tirelessly to study the development, use and risks of AI, including potential threats to, and vulnerabilities of, California's critical infrastructure, including those that could lead to mass casualty events.

SB 896 codifies several important aspects of this EO, including direction to CalOES to perform risk analyses on potential threats posed by the use of GenAI to California's critical infrastructure. Under this direction, CalOES has been working with frontier model companies to analyze energy infrastructure risks and convened power sector providers to share threats and security strategies. Building on this work, and in signing this bill, I am further directing CalOES to undertake the same risk assessment with water infrastructure providers in the coming year, and the communications sector shortly thereafter.

Sincerely,

Gavin Newsom

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Summary

Allows local air districts, in support of Tribal sovereignty, to enter into written agreements with federally recognized California Native American Tribes to allow cultural burning in their ancestral territories without undergoing the permitting, regulatory, or administrative requirements for prescribed burning. In the event of a disagreement between a local air district and a tribe in developing or implementing an agreement, the Secretary for Environmental Protection must assist in resolving the disagreement. The bill authorizes the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency to enter into written agreements with federally recognized California Native American tribes in support of tribal sovereignty with respect to cultural burning in their ancestral territories. The Secretary may agree in the written agreement that compliance with specified permitting or regulatory requirements is not required.

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Summary

Removes the statutorily established caps in the Pilot Boat Surcharge Account established by AB 2056 (Grayson, Chapter 769, Statutes of 2022) to allow the San Francisco Bar Pilots to access more funds dedicated to the purchase of new pilot boats and providing design and engineering modifications for the purpose of extending the service life of existing pilot boats.

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Summary

Authorizes the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency (CNRA Secretary) to enter into agreements with federally recognized California Native American tribes in support of tribal sovereignty with respect to cultural burning. The bill provides that, in deference to tribal sovereignty, the CNRA Secretary may agree, with regard to cultural burning, that compliance with State permitting or regulatory requirements is not required. The CNRA Secretary may enter into the agreement with such tribes related to the State Smoke Management Program only with concurrence of the Secretary of Environmental Protection. The bill does not provide authorization to enter or burn property without the permission of the landowner. In order to support these agreements, the bill also requires the CNRA Secretary to convene a cultural burn working group consisting of State agencies, California Native American tribes, local air districts, and local governments, with the goal of determining a framework to enable conditions conducive to cultural burning, including consideration of the role of a local air pollution control district in supporting the effort of cultural burning. The bill requires the working group to report its findings to the Legislature on or before January 1, 2025. The bill repeals these provisions on January 1, 2029. Was not heard in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

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Summary

Authorizes the extension of operating the Diablo Canyon Nuclear power plant (DCPP) beyond the current expiration dates (2024 for Unit 1 and 2025 for Unit 2), to up to five additional years (no later than 2029 and 2030, respectively), under specified conditions. This bill also authorizes a loan of $1.4 billion from the State to Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E), the operator of DCPP, to facilitate the extension of the plant. This bill appropriates $600 million and requires future Legislative action for the remaining funding. This bill also provides expedited permitting to facilitate relicensing of DCPP, including:  limiting State agency review of applications related to the DCPP extension to 180 days, exempting DCPP from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), and explicitly authorizing collections from electric ratepayers (both customers of PG&E and those of other electricity providers) for ongoing costs. The California Energy Commission, in consultation with CARB, must develop a Clean Energy Reliability Investment Plan, due to the Legislature by March 1, 2023, that supports programs and projects that accelerate the deployment of clean energy resources, support demand response, assist ratepayers, and increase energy reliability.

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Summary

Would have established a program for planning and projects to make California’s transportation more resilient to the impacts of climate change. Was not heard in the Assembly Transportation Committee.

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Summary

Would have required the California Energy Commission to develop and implement a grant program for local governments to develop “community energy resilience plans” and expedite permit review of distributed energy resources by local governments. Held on suspense in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

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Summary

Would have required a local air district without a specified rule on emergency backup generators as of January 1, 2021, that adopted such a rule to include in the rule provisions that would have allowed the operator of a critical facility, as defined, to use a permitted emergency backup generator in exceedance of the applicable runtime and testing and maintenance limits if specified conditions are met.  The bill would have required a critical facility allowed to exceed applicable limits under the rule adopted pursuant to Senate Bill 1099 to attest to and provide evidence of having taken demonstrable steps toward implementing the use of backup power technologies that meet or exceed emission standards set by CARB.  Was not heard in the Assembly Natural Resources Committee.

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Summary

Would have required the Advisory Environmental Farming Act Science Advisory Panel (Panel) to assist government agencies to incorporate the conservation of natural resources and ecosystem services practices into agricultural programs.  The bill would have required the California Department of Food and Agriculture, with advice from the Panel, to establish and administer the California Environmental Farming Incentive Program (Program), subject to an appropriation by the Legislature.  The bill would have required the Program to support on-farm practices seeking to optimize environmental benefits while supporting the economic viability of California agriculture.  The bill would have also required the Program to provide incentives to farmers or ranchers who want to pursue adopting management practices that contribute to wildlife habitat and result in on-farm activities that provide multiple conservation benefits.  Was not heard in the Senate Agriculture Committee.

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