California Air Resources Board

Summary

Would have clarified that electric water heaters and appliances can be installed outside of mobile homes and other related provisions. This bill was sponsored by the Bay Area Air Quality Management District to alleviate opinions from the Department of Housing and Community Development on the installation of these appliances. Held on suspense in the Senate Appropriations Committee.

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Summary

Would have authorized a State agency to enter into forward contracts to purchase low-carbon cement or concrete products up to 10 years in advance to facilitate the commercialization of these products. Held on suspense in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

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Summary

Would have required the Department of Conservation (DOC), in consultation with CARB and others, to develop the Biomass Technology Transition Program to support the conversion of biomass generation facilities using traditional combustion technologies to newer advanced bioenergy technology facilities that result in reductions in the emissions of criteria pollutants, toxic air contaminants, and greenhouse gases. Held on suspense in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

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Summary

Would have dedicated all revenue from the sale of any greenhouse gas allowances allocated to a natural gas investor-owned utility (IOU) directly to the IOU’s residential customers. Specifically, this bill would have required the California Public Utilities Commission annually to direct each natural gas IOU to distribute the California Climate Credit to residential customers of the gas IOU. Held on suspense in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

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Summary

Would have made eligible a facility that uses renewable hydrogen, as defined, as a renewable electrical generation facility under the California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program. Moved to the Senate Inactive File.

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Summary

Would have required all electric vehicle traction batteries, as defined, sold with motor vehicles in the State to be recovered and reused, repurposed, remanufactured, or recycled at the end of their useful life in a motor vehicle or any other application. The bill would have also required a vehicle manufacturer, dealer, automobile dismantler, automotive repair dealer, and nonvehicle secondary user to be responsible for ensuring the responsible end-of-life management of an electric vehicle traction battery once it is removed from a vehicle or other application to which the electric vehicle traction battery has been used. CARB’s interest was conformity with technical specifications used in CARB’s regulations.

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Governor’s Veto Message

To the Members of the California State Senate:

I am returning Senate Bill 615 without my signature.

This bill would require that all electric vehicle (EV) batteries in the state be reused, repaired, repurposed, or remanufactured, and eventually recycled at the end of their useful life. The Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) would be responsible for adopting regulations to implement and enforce the bill's requirements, and for establishing a method for EV battery suppliers, secondary users, secondary handlers, and qualified facilities to report EV battery transactions.

I agree with the intent of this bill and the need to responsibly manufacture, recycle, and reuse EV batteries. As California continues to lead the revolution toward a zero-emission transportation future, with a requirement that all new vehicles sold in the state be zero-emission by 2035, responsibly tracking the sale, use, and reuse of these vehicle batteries will be critical. Effective EV battery stewardship also presents an exciting opportunity to develop new innovative industries that use repurposed or recycled batteries.

California has successfully implemented many reuse and recycling systems. These market-based solutions significantly reduce waste and create jobs by turning a challenging product into a resource. However, this legislation places a significant burden on DTSC to implement the policy, instead of building on the success of existing producer responsibility models. I encourage the author to continue working with stakeholders to explore if a producer responsibility organization would yield more equilibrium among public agencies and industry in sharing the administrative burden required by this policy.

For these reasons, I cannot sign this bill.

Sincerely,

Gavin Newsom

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Summary

Would have required the California Energy Commission (CEC), working with CARB and the California Public Utilities Commission, to prepare a statewide assessment of the supply needs for transmission and distribution infrastructure and equipment that is necessary to achieve carbon neutrality by 2045, as specified. The bill would have also required the CEC to update the assessment at least once every 3 years, and to submit the assessment to the Legislature on or before January 1, 2025, and on or before January 1 every 3 years thereafter. Was not heard in the Senate Energy, Utilities and Communications Committee.

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Summary

Would have required CARB, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to establish a program to install and maintain electric vehicle service equipment at safety roadside rests, with the goal of serving at least one-half of the parking spaces, excluding those parking spaces designed for use by a tractor-trailer, at each safety roadside rest in California. The bill also would have required that the electric vehicle service equipment installed pursuant to the program be available to the public at no charge and be the fastest type that is reasonably commercially available. Was amended to deal with transit issues in San Francisco. Was not heard in the Senate Transportation Committee.

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Summary

Would have required the California Energy Commission (CEC), in consultation with CARB and the California Public Utilities Commission, on or before June 30, 2024, to convene a stakeholder workgroup to examine challenges and opportunities associated with using a battery electric vehicle and bidirectional electric vehicle service equipment as a mobile battery to power a home or building to provide electricity to the electrical grid, and requires the CEC, in consultation with the stakeholder workgroup, on or before January 1, 2026, to submit a report to the Governor and Legislature that includes specified information related to the bidirectional capability of battery electric vehicles and electric vehicle service equipment, as specified. The bill would have also authorized CARB to require any weight class of battery electric vehicle to be bidirectional capable if it determines there is a sufficiently compelling beneficial bidirectional-capable use case to the battery electric vehicle operator and electrical grid. Was amended to deal with an abortion issue.

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Summary

Authorizes the California Energy Commission (CEC), in consultation with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and CARB, to require any weight class of battery electric vehicle (BEV) to be bidirectional-capable if the CEC determines there is a sufficiently compelling beneficial bidirectional-capable use case to the BEV operator and electrical grid. Authorizes the CEC and CARB to periodically update definitions related to BEVs and service equipment. SB 233 (Skinner) was the original version of this bill that gutted and amended to address an abortion issue.

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Governor’s Signing Message

To the Members of the California State Senate:

I am signing Senate Bill 59, which would authorize the California Energy Commission (CEC), in consultation with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and the California Air Resources Board (CARB), to require any weight class of battery electric vehicle (BEV) to be bidirectional-capable if it determines there is a sufficiently compelling beneficial bidirectional-capable use case to the BEV operator and electric grid.

Bidirectional capabilities in BEVs have the potential to improve customer energy reliability, resiliency and demand management during electric grid stress events, while supporting our state's transition to zero-emission transportation. Achieving these outcomes requires close technical alignment between the BEV and bidirectional charging equipment that must also factor in vehicle standards generally, as well as electric rates and potential electric grid effects.

Given the technical complexities of bidirectional charging with BEVs, and the relationship between such standards and vehicle standards already set by CARB, I am directing the CEC to lean on the experience of the CPUC and CARB should it promulgate regulations pursuant to this bill to advance bidirectional-capable BEVs.

Sincerely,

Gavin Newsom

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