The Barbed Wire - March 25, 2022

March 25, 2022
RCRC Requests Changes to CPUC’s Broadband Funding Methodology Using Federal Funds
Bill of the Week: Assembly Bill 2252 (Aguiar-Curry) - Broadband Infrastructure: Disasters: Reports
RCRC Sponsored Hazardous Waste Management Bill Clears Policy Committee
CEQA Exemption for Drinking Water Well Projects Moves Forward in Legislature
Bill to Extend Sunset Date of Construction Manager At-Risk Contracting Advances
California State Auditor Reviews State Oversight of Wildfire Mitigation Improvements
Dam in Merced County to Receive $100 Million from Bureau of Reclamation
House Democrats Outline Priorities on Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Broadband Implementation 
Earmark Requests for FY 2023 and the President’s Budget
RCRC AFFILATE ENTITIES
BULLETIN BOARD
IN THE NEWS
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

RCRC Requests Changes to CPUC’s Broadband Funding Methodology Using Federal Funds

On Tuesday, March 22nd, RCRC submitted comments requesting changes to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) draft decision that would adopt Federal Funding Account rules to deploy last-mile broadband services. Primarily, RCRC advocated to remove barriers to local government applicants consistent with the Legislature’s intent as well as federal rules, in order to ensure local jurisdictions have a fair opportunity to receive grant funding through the program. Specifically, RCRC requested public agencies be exempt from obtaining a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) or Letter-of-Credit in order to apply for funding, and instead allow local government to demonstrate fiscal sustainability and reliability through alternative means. Further, RCRC comments suggested that applicants be allowed to leverage multiple sources of state and federal funding and that the CPUC establish a Public Right of First Refusal process for local governments in priority areas. Municipal broadband should be placed on equal footing as existing internet service providers to deploy robust broadband solutions, especially in low-income and/or underserved communities. The CPUC is expected to consider the Proposed Decision at its April 7th meeting. 

RCRC’s comments can be viewed in full here. For more information, please contact RCRC Senior Policy Advocate, Tracy Rhine

Bill of the Week: Assembly Bill 2252 (Aguiar-Curry) - Broadband Infrastructure: Disasters: Reports

This week in the Assembly Committee on Communications and Conveyance, RCRC testified in support of Assembly Bill 2252, authored by Assemblymember Aguiar-Curry (D-Davis), which would require the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to collect and publish information regarding the restoration of broadband services after a state or local declared disaster. Specifically, the bill would require the CPUC to collect information about the extent of the damage to infrastructure, the type of infrastructure used to restore service and any obstacles encountered by the service provider in repairing or replacing infrastructure after the disaster. 

Last year the counties of Alpine and Mono suffered with the lack of internet connectivity restoration after the Tamarack fire swept through their respective communities. Frontier Communications, the broadband provider in the area, took over a month to restore all telecommunication services after the fire knocked out infrastructure. As catastrophic and destructive wildfires become more common place throughout the state, data regarding service restoration becomes increasingly more important to policy makers. AB 2252 ensures that both the telecommunication regulator (CPUC) and the public have access to this essential information. For more information, please contact RCRC Senior Policy Advocate, Tracy Rhine

RCRC and CSAC’s support letter can be found here.  

 

RCRC Sponsored Hazardous Waste Management Bill Clears Policy Committee

On Tuesday, March 22nd, the Assembly Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials Committee passed Assembly Bill 2481 (Smith, R-Hesperia), which now goes to the Assembly Appropriations Committee for consideration.

RCRC is sponsoring AB 2481 to reduce administrative and financial burdens on local governments that administer household hazardous waste collection facilities (HHWCFs); provide flexibility for operation of local HHWCFs; and facilitate proper disposal of hazardous waste.

RCRC has been working closely with the Department of Toxic Substances Control, local enforcement agencies, and local programs to develop common sense proposals to improve the existing hazardous waste management system.

RCRC’s letter of support can be found here.  For more information, please contact RCRC Policy Advocate, John Kennedy

CEQA Exemption for Drinking Water Well Projects Moves Forward in Legislature

Assembly Bill 1642 (Salas, D-Bakersfield) passed out of Assembly Natural Resources Committee on Monday, March 21st.

RCRC was an early supporter of AB 1642, which creates a new statutory CEQA exemption for projects to prevent or mitigate failure of a well that would leave residents without an adequate supply of drinking water. This exemption only applies to those wells in areas designated by the State Water Resources Control Board as being at high risk or medium risk in the state’s annual Drinking Water Needs Assessment.

The bill was narrowed significantly by the Assembly Natural Resources Committee; however, it still provides additional certainty and reduces costs and delays to improve access to clean drinking water in many of the most severely drought-impacted areas in the state.

RCRC’s letter of support can be found here. For more information, please contact RCRC Policy Advocate, John Kennedy.

Bill to Extend Sunset Date of Construction Manager At-Risk Contracting Advances

On Wednesday, March 23rd, the Assembly Local Government Committee passed AB 1932 (Daly, D-Anaheim), which repeals the sunset date on a state law allowing local governments to use construction manager at-risk contracts.   

Construction manager at-risk contracts may be utilized for projects in excess of $1 million related to the erection, construction, alteration, repair, or improvement of infrastructure owned or leased by the county.  Projects eligible for this type of contracting include, but are not limited to, those associated with buildings, flood control, underground utility improvements, and bridges. 

RCRC supports AB 1932 because this type of contracting gives rural counties more flexibility to make the most cost-effective and advantageous decision for individual public works projects, thereby stretching limited local funds and improving on-time completion of complex projects. 

AB 1932, sponsored by the California State Association of Counties, now advances to the Assembly Floor.  

RCRC’s letter of support can be found here.  For more information, please contact RCRC Policy Advocate, Sarah Dukett

California State Auditor Reviews State Oversight of Wildfire Mitigation Improvements

On Thursday, March 24th, the California State Auditor released a detailed audit of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety’s (OEIS) oversight of electrical system safety with respect to utility wildfire mitigation efforts. 

The Audit shared some interesting statistics, including: 

  • PG&E owns the vast majority of uninsulated powerlines in high fire threat areas (33,000 miles of 40,000 miles of uncovered conductors operated by the six investor-owned utilities) 

  • Powerlines are responsible for 74% of utility-related wildfire ignitions.   

  • While Southern California Edison is working to replace its bare lines with covered conductors (roughly $700,000 per mile), PG&E is implementing other system hardening efforts, increasing the sensitivity of its system shutoff settings, and planning to underground 10,000 miles of distribution lines over the next several years (average cost of roughly $3 million per mile with a range between $93,000 and $5 million per mile in rural and urban areas respectively).   

  • It is estimated that Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) events cost roughly $42/day for residential customers and $12,600/day for small and medium sized businesses, costing a total of $21 billion to date.   

The Auditor estimates it would cost approximately $28 billion to replace the 40,000 miles of bare power lines in high fire risk areas.  It also noted that “the significant cost of making improvements necessary to prevent the need for power shutoffs, such as installing covered power lines or moving them underground, may be one of the reasons why the improvements have not yet been made.  However, even if these improvements cost billions of dollars, [Southern California Edison] estimates of customers’ costs during power shutoffs indicate that power shutoff’s have cost more than $21 billion to date.”   

Importantly, the Auditor highlighted that OEIS does not consider the outages related to last summer’s PG&E Enhanced Powerline Safety Settings (EPSS) to be covered by a new law, Senate Bill 533 of 2021.  RCRC strongly supported that bill, which requires utility Wildfire Mitigation Plans (WMPs) to identify circuits that frequently experienced planned outages and the measures that will be taken to reduce the need for and impact of those outages in the future.  The 600+ EPSS outages over the course of a few months in 2022 impacted over 650,000 customers, with an average of 1,000 customers per outage and an average duration of over 17 hours.   

The Auditor observed that while utilities’ use of PSPS events as a wildfire mitigation tool are declining, these decreases are due to more sensitive powerline safety settings that trigger more frequent outages for a smaller universe of customers.   

Disturbingly, OEIS’s response to the audit seems to indicate that it believes energy safety and reliability are mutually exclusive and that recent outages are merely “inconvenient” for customers.  This is inconsistent with CPUC assertions to the contrary which note the disruptive nature of the outages and the serious health and safety impacts that can result.  The Auditor strongly rebutted OEIS’s audit response, arguing that reliability and safety go hand in hand and that safety improvements will enhance reliability. 

The Audit made several recommendations to improve oversight, safety, and reliability, including: 

  • Require utility WMPs to disclose improvements necessary to prevent future power shutoffs, such as installing covered power lines. 

  • Require utility WMPs to disclose the number of circuits frequently deenergized as a result of enhanced powerline safety settings. 

  • Require OIES to find that a utility substantially implemented its WMP before issuing a safety certification that allows that utility to access the Wildfire Fund. 

  • Create a risk-based routine audit schedule of IOUs, and a schedule of penalties for violations discovered during CPUC audits. 

For more information, please contact RCRC Policy Advocate, John Kennedy

Dam in Merced County to Receive $100 Million from Bureau of Reclamation

On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of the Interior announced that the Bureau of Reclamation will be providing project-specific funding of $100 million for the modification of B.F. Sisk Dam in the RCRC member county of Merced. The dam is responsible for confining the nation’s largest offstream reservoir (San Luis Reservoir) and provides supplemental irrigation water storage and municipal and industrial water for the Central Valley Project and California’s State Water Project. This funding is the first dam safety project financed through the $500 million Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL)I allocation for “supporting critical dam safety projects.” 

House Democrats Outline Priorities on Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Broadband Implementation 

On Monday, seventeen Democratic members of the House Energy and Commerce’s Communications and Technology Subcommittee sent a letter to Alan Davidson, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), outlining their recommendations and priorities as the agency implements the broadband programs in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). Congress entrusted NTIA to administer several of the programs funded by the BIL’s $65 billion investment in broadband access, affordability, and adoption. The representatives wrote that NTIA should “ensure engagement with stakeholders at the federal and state level is ongoing as the law is implemented and should reflect the needs of the communities lacking meaningful access and adoption of high-speed broadband service.” 

Earmark Requests for FY 2023 and the President’s Budget

Last week, House Appropriations Chair Rosa DeLauro (D-Connecticut) sent a "Dear Colleague" letter outlining the process and schedule for Representatives to submit appropriations requests for the fiscal year (FY) 2023 budget. These may be traditional requests or Community Project Funding requests (aka “earmarks”). Members may submit requests from April 4th through the end of April, with each subcommittee posting its own deadlines. Total earmark funding will again be limited to no more than 1% of all discretionary funding, but House members may submit up to 15 requests for FY 2023, compared to 10 requests for FY 2022.  The process for requesting Community Project Funding in the House is described here.  The Senate has not yet announced its procedures for the FY 2023 funding cycle. The Biden Administration is set to release its FY 2023 budget request on March 28th.  

RCRC AFFILATE ENTITIES

A monthly update regarding the important work of RCRC's affiliated entities, providing innovative services for the benefit of rural communities.

 

GSCA and RCRC Leadership Meet with UTOPIA Fiber

Calaveras County Supervisor Jack Garamendi and Alpine County Supervisor David Griffith, Chair and Vice Chair respectively of Golden State Connect Authority (GSCA), traveled with members of the RCRC leadership team to Salt Lake City this week for a series of meetings with UTOPIA Fiber, the largest open-access municipal fiber network in the United States. During the trip, the team met with the UTIOPIA Fiber executive leadership team and members of their Board, discussing key aspects of their operations. They also visited UTOPIA Fiber’s headquarters and operations center, seeing firsthand how UTOPIA Fiber designs and finances the network, and provides customer support. The team even visited a fiber hut to see how fiber is deployed in the field. This visit provided key insight and a clear demonstration for the GSCA and RCRC team on successful implementation and operation of open-access municipal fiber, which will help inform future GSCA efforts in rural California.  

 

GSFA Highlights the Journey to Homeownership in New Video Series

Golden State Finance Authority (GSFA) is sharing the real-life stories of hardworking individuals and families in California who have achieved the dream of homeownership through GSFA in a new online video series title ‘The Journey to Homeownership”. The series highlights homebuyers who graciously share their unique situations and challenges, unveiling their journey to becoming homeowners. The common theme: With dedication and focus on the homebuying goal coupled with down payment and closing cost assistance from GSFA, these former renters became homeowners. Catch the latest episode, “Building a Better Life” here.

 

ESJPA Welcomes New Member San Luis Obispo County

The Rural Counties’ Environmental Joint Powers Authority (ESJPA) recently expanded to 25 member counties with the addition of San Luis Obispo County as its newest member. Supervisor John Peschong will serve as the delegate on the ESJPA board representing the County. San Luis Obispo, which joined RCRC in 2016, joins the ESJPA as our focus intensifies on assisting member jurisdictions with implementation of organics regulations in accordance with Senate Bill 1383 (Lara, 2016). The regulations, which will impact all residents and businesses in California, require separation of organic food waste and recovery of edible foods to help reduce emissions of methane, a harmful short-lived climate pollutant. While the regulations are complex, ESJPA is committed to helping ensure that its members are equipped to implement the program to the maximum extent feasible in our rural communities.

BULLETIN BOARD

Announcements regarding hearings, grants, and public comment notices of importance to California's rural counties.

 

State of Emergency Declared in 16 Counties to Support Recovery from October Storms

On Wednesday, March 23rd, Governor Newsom declared a state of emergency in in the counties of Amador, Butte, Contra Costa, Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Monterey, Napa, Placer, Plumas, San Francisco, Solano, Sonoma, and Trinity to support their ongoing recovery from severe October storms that caused widespread damage to roads and other infrastructure. The proclamation directs Caltrans to request immediate federal assistance for highway repairs or reconstruction, among other provisions. A copy of the proclamation can be found here.

 

CPUC Seeks New Members for Disadvantaged Communities Advisory Group

The Disadvantaged Communities Advisory Group (DACAG), which advises policymaking at the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and California Energy Commission (CEC), is seeking applications to fill open positions to advise these agencies on the development, implementation, and impacts of clean energy and transportation programs in disadvantaged communities. This group is comprised of 11 members and appointed to 2 year terms. DACAG members define a scope of annual priority areas; for 2022 these include transportation electrification, building decarbonization, reliability, gas transition, distributed energy resources, affordability, community engagement, and more. This is a unique opportunity to inform policymakers about the particular needs of rural communities outside of the narrow definition of CalEnviroScreen that often disenfranchises low-income communities in a rural setting. For more information, including how to apply, see here

 

USDOT Opens Application Window for Competitive Grants to Support Infrastructure Projects

On Wednesday, March 23rd, United States Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced $2.9 billion in competitive grants is available for major infrastructure projects as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. While there are three major grant programs with funding up for grabs, including the Rural Surface Transportation Grant Program (RURAL), USDOT has combined the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO)  into a single application to reduce the burdens on state, regional and local government applicants, as well as make it easier to apply for more than one program at a time. Up to $300 million is available this year for rural highway, bridge, and tunnel projects that help improve access to an agricultural, commercial, energy, or transportation facilities that support the rural economy. 

The application deadline is May 23, 2022 at 11:59pm EST. The NOFO can be found here. For more information, including frequently asked questions or how to apply, see here

 

University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources to Hire 48 More UC Cooperative Extension Advisors 

University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) has released 48 more UC Cooperative Extension (UCCE) Advisor positions for recruitment in counties throughout California over the next 12 months, thanks to increased 2021-22 state funding. This brings the total to 89 new UCCE Advisor positions since July 2021.The new UCCE advisors will be providing research-based information to residents about nutrition, community development, crop production, forestry, pest management, water management, youth development, landscape management and wildfire. In addition to traditional issues, some of the new UCCE advisors will be focusing on climate adaptation for Indigenous farmers, cultural burning and Indigenous land stewardship, repurposing green waste, and community development with Californians who are Black, Indigenous or speak English as a second language. For more information, see the UC ANR press release here.

For details about the open positions, see the full list posted online at https://bit.ly/CEpositions2021-22

 

Grant Funding Available for Behavioral Health Projects

On January 31, 2022, the California Departments of Health Care Services and Social Services released Requests for Applications (RFA’s) for funding for behavioral health “launch-ready” projects AND capital expansion projects, as follows: 

  • $518.5M from Behavioral Health Continuum Infrastructure Program (BHCIP) for expanding or developing infrastructure for behavioral health services; and 

  • $570M from Community Care Expansion (CCE) program for capital expansion of adult and senior care facilities that serve Supplemental Security Income / State Supplementary Payment (SSI/SSP) and Cash Assistance Program for Immigrants (CAPI) applicants and recipients, and other adults who are experiencing or at risk for homelessness. 

The RFA’s are due by March 31, 2022. These funds are open to counties, cities, tribal entities, nonprofit organizations, for-profit organizations, and private organizations whose projects reflect the state’s priorities. Additional information about the funding is available at the following locations by clicking on the respective links: 

 

California Air Resources Board Webinars on Regulatory Compliance Training

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) is offering a variety of training webinars for regulatory compliance on issues affecting public fleets such as Off-Road Regulations, Truck and Bus Rules, and Diesel Truck Rules. 

The New Programs and Regulations course covers the requirements of existing regulations and then CARB's new regulatory programs that will eventually be in effect. The goals for this class are to cover the proposed program elements and elicit participation in the regulatory process.

Date:               March 31, 2022
Time:               1:00 p.m.
Webinar:         Register

 

CDFA Announces New Funding to Help Nutrition Program Participants with Purchases of California-Grown Produce

The California Nutrition Incentive Program (CNIP), of the California Department of Food and Agriculture, has announced seven projects selected to receive $750,000 in total grant awards to facilitate the purchase of California-grown fruit and vegetables at participating farmers’ markets by shoppers using the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) and Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition programs. CNIP addresses food insecurity and access to fresh fruits and vegetables among low-income Californians while simultaneously supporting and expanding markets for California farmers. CNIP currently offers nutrition incentives to CalFresh shoppers at more than 280 locations throughout the state, including Certified Farmers’ Markets, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) programs, and retail outlets.
 
Among the new grantees are the rural counties of Tulare, Butte, Shasta, and Tehama. A detailed list of grantees and project descriptions is available on the CNIP webpage here
 

USDOT Announces $1.5 Billion in Discretionary Grants Available for Local and Regional Infrastructure

The United States Department of Transportation released a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for $1.5 billion in grant funding through the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) discretionary grant program—originally created under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act as TIGER grants. RAISE grants can be used for a wide variety of projects and under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, RAISE expands the number of communities eligible for 100 percent federal share of funding, specifically those in rural communities, Areas of Persistent Poverty and Historically Disadvantaged Communities. To determine if a project location is considered as a Historically Disadvantaged Community, please use the tool available here. The deadline for applications is 5 p.m. EST on April 14, 2022, and selections, which are vigorously reviewed and selected based on merit, will be announced no later than August 12, 2022. 

 

USDA Offers Rural Communities Financial Assistance for Renewable Energy Projects 

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced the application window is now open for (competitive) Rural Energy Pilot Program grants. State, Local, Tribal and non-profit entities are eligible for up to $2 million over three years to support community-scale renewable energy projects in rural communities, with priority given to distressed and high-energy burden communities that spend a greater proportion on energy costs than the average U.S. household. Funds may be for planning, installing, equipping, and maintaining community scale distributed renewable energy technologies, systems and resources. For more information, see here. Letters of Intent are due on or before April 19, 2022, and completed applications are due no later than July 18, 2022.

 

Registration Open for 2nd Annual Virtual Statewide Conference on Illegal Dumping

The 2nd Annual Virtual Statewide Conference on Illegal Dumping is happening April 19-21, 2022 The Conference will begin at 9:00 AM daily. This virtual conference is free to attend and designed for elected officials, city and county staff, public works agency employees, community based organizations, faith groups, community members and anyone interested in illegal dumping, community beautification or blight removal. Registration is now open! See here to register or for more information.

 

PG&E Safety Net Program – How to File a Claim 

If you are a residential customer who has gone without power for at least 48 hours because of severe storm conditions, you may qualify for an automatic payment under our Safety Net program. This program provides a payment of $25 - $100, which we pay automatically about 60 days following the storm outage.  However, you may submit a claim if you believe that PG&E caused a loss for which you should be compensated. You can make this type of claim using various methods, but online is the fastest way for it to be processed.  

View this message from PG&E for details

 

Access the State Grants Portal for a Multitude of Funding Opportunities

Billions of dollars are up for grabs to public agencies and other entities, including tribes and businesses. Grant seekers can access a centralized portal of grant and loan opportunities here, or sign up to receive new grant opportunities delivered straight to your inbox. 

IN THE NEWS

RCRC press releases and related news clips about RCRC and our member counties. Please note that a subscription may be required to read some external publications.

 

California Lawmakers Contemplate Interstate Cannabis Commerce - Cannabis Business Times

Monterey County Supervisor and Second Vice Chair of RCRC Chris Lopez is quoted discussing how interstate cannabis commerce could impact California’s cannabis industry through Senate Bill 1326 by state Senator Anna Caballero (D-Merced).

 

Nevada County Makes Moves on Housing – The Union

A Tuesday vote of the Nevada County Board of Supervisors increased funding to AMI Housing, Inc. — a nonprofit that provides housing and life-skills to residents of Nevada and Placer County who otherwise might be homeless. With another $900,000, the county hopes to buy property to house people with mental health challenges.

 

500th Community in California Designated ‘Firewise’ -YubaNet

With fire season 2022 already underway, CAL FIRE announced that California accomplished a new record with the recognition of the 500th Firewise USA® site in California, Hollister Ranch in Santa Barbara County.

 

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

Information related to the current status of legislation impacting California’s rural counties.

 

AB 240   (Rodriguez)   Local health department workforce assessment.   This bill would require the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) to contract with an appropriate and qualified entity to conduct an evaluation of the adequacy of local health department infrastructure, including an assessment of future staffing, workforce, and resource needs.   Location: Senate 2 year   Status: 8/27/2021-Failed Deadline pursuant to Rule 61(a)(12). (Last location was APPR. SUSPENSE FILE on 7/5/2021)(May be acted upon Jan 2022)   Position:   Support   Staff:  Sarah (1)

AB 522   (Fong)   Forestry: Forest Fire Prevention Exemption.   The Z’berg-Nejedly Forest Practice Act of 1973 authorizes the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection to exempt specific forest management activities, including the harvesting of trees for the purpose of reducing the rate of fire spread, and duration, intensity, fuel ignitability, or ignition of tree crowns, known as the Forest Fire Prevention Exemption. Assembly Bill 522 extends the sunset of the Forest Fire Prevention Exemption to January 1, 2026 to aid forest landowners with wildfire prevention activities.   Location: Senate Rules   Status: 1/27/2022-Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.   Position:   Support   Staff:  Staci (1)

AB 759   (McCarty)   Elections: county officers.   Assembly Bill 759 would require an election for all county-wide offices (sheriff, assessor, district attorney, etc.) be held at the presidential general election. Initially, this bill only applied to the county sheriff but recent amendments expand it to all county-wide offices. In addition, this bill would require that these officeholder elections occur at the 2024 General Election thereby requiring affected officeholders to hold a two-year term (assuming election in 2022).   Location: Senate 2 year   Status: 9/10/2021-Failed Deadline pursuant to Rule 61(a)(15). (Last location was INACTIVE FILE on 9/8/2021)(May be acted upon Jan 2022)   Position:   Watch   Staff:  Sarah (1)

AB 870   (Santiago)   Hazardous materials: liens.    Provides that when the Department of Toxic Substances Control determines that a contaminated site must be remediated, and issues a cost estimate to the property owner for the estimated cost of remediation, the amount in the cost estimate shall constitute a lien on the property that takes priority over all other liens, including liens for local property taxes and special assessments.   Location: Assembly Dead   Status: 2/1/2022-From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56.   Position:   Concerns   Staff:  John (1)

AB 925   (Dahle, Megan)   Sexual assault forensic examinations: reimbursement.   Would authorize the appropriate local law enforcement agency to seek reimbursement from the Office of Emergency Services, using the specified federal funds, for the cost of conducting the medical evidentiary examination of a sexual assault victim.   Location: Senate 2 year   Status: 8/27/2021-Failed Deadline pursuant to Rule 61(a)(12). (Last location was APPR. on 6/29/2021)(May be acted upon Jan 2022)   Position:   Support   Staff:  Sarah (1)

AB 1001   (Garcia, Cristina)   Environment: mitigation measures for air quality impacts: environmental justice.   Modifies the California Environmental Quality Act by: 1) Requiring air and water quality impacts to a disadvantaged community to be mitigated in that community; 2) Requiring local agencies to give consideration to the principles of environmental justice by ensuring the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of people of all races, cultures, incomes, and national origins.   Location: Senate Rules   Status: 3/22/2022-From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on RLS.   Position:   Oppose   Staff:  John (1)

AB 1078   (Patterson)   Energy: building standards: photovoltaic requirements.   Exempts residential buildings damaged or destroyed in a disaster during the 2020 calendar year from having to install solar energy systems under the California Energy Commission’s recently adopted building requirements.   Location: Senate Rules   Status: 1/27/2022-Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 61. Noes 0. Page 3410.) In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.   Position:   Support   Staff:  John (1)

AB 1154   (Patterson)   California Environmental Quality Act: exemption: egress route projects: fire safety.   Exempts from the California Environmental Quality Act secondary egress route projects undertaken by a public agency for a subdivision in a high fire threat area that was evaluated by the Board of Forestry.   Location: Senate Rules   Status: 1/27/2022-Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.   Position:   Support   Staff:  John (1)

AB 1434   (Friedman)   Urban water use objectives: indoor residential water use.     Location: Assembly Dead   Status: 2/1/2022-From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56.   Position:   Concerns   Staff:  Sidd (1)

AB 1454   (Bloom)   The California Beverage Container and Litter Reduction Act.   Assembly Bill 1454 makes several changes to the Beverage Container Recycling Program, including creation of a new $25,000 startup loan for the creation of new recycling centers in unserved or underserved areas and increased payments to redemption centers with an even greater increase in rural areas.   Location: Senate 2 year   Status: 9/10/2021-Failed Deadline pursuant to Rule 61(a)(15). (Last location was E.Q. on 6/16/2021)(May be acted upon Jan 2022)   Position:   Support   Staff:  John (1)

AB 1547   (Reyes)   Air pollution: warehouse facilities.   AB 1547 allows the Air Resources Board to regulate indirect sources of air pollution and requires local governments to undertake many other actions to identify and address the potential environmental impacts of warehouse development projects.   Location: Assembly Dead   Status: 2/1/2022-From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56.   Position:   Oppose   Staff:  John (1)

AB 1608   (Gipson)   County officers: consolidation of offices.     Location: Assembly Local Government   Status: 1/14/2022-Referred to Coms. on L. GOV. and PUB. S.   Position:   Pending   Staff:  Sarah (1)

AB 1642   (Salas)   California Environmental Quality Act: water system well and domestic well projects: exemption.   Exempts from CEQA, vital projects to prevent or mitigate failure of a well that would leave residents without an adequate supply of drinking water. This exemption only applies to those wells in areas designated by the State Water Resources Control Board as being at high risk or medium risk in the state’s annual Drinking Water Needs Assessment.   Location: Assembly Appropriations   Status: 3/24/2022-Read second time and amended.   Position:   Support   Staff:  John (1)

AB 1707   (Boerner Horvath)   Property tax postponement: Senior Citizens and Disabled Citizens Property Tax Postponement Fund.     Location: Assembly Appropriations   Status: 3/22/2022-From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 11. Noes 0.) (March 21). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.   Position:   Support   Staff:  Sarah (1)

AB 1717   (Aguiar-Curry)   Public works: definition.   Assembly Bill 1717 requires prevailing wage to be paid for public works projects funded by public dollars related to community wildfire prevention, vegetation management and fuels treatment.   Location: Assembly Appropriations   Status: 3/17/2022-From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 6. Noes 0.) (March 16). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.   Position:   Oppose   Staff:  Staci (1)

AB 1749   (Garcia, Cristina)   Community Air Protection Blueprint: community emissions reduction programs: toxic air contaminants and criteria air pollutants.   Prohibits approval or issuance of permits for projects that contribute to an increase in air pollutants or toxic air contaminants in a CalEnviroScreen disadvantaged community unless the agency finds that increased emissions caused by the project (combined with cumulative emissions from other sources) will not cause or contribute to additional negative public health impacts on individuals living and working in that community. Requires the state to identify measures to reduce criteria air pollutant and toxic air contaminant emissions in CalEnviroScreen disadvantaged communities.   Location: Assembly Appropriations   Status: 3/22/2022-From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 8. Noes 3.) (March 21). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.   Position:   Oppose   Staff:  John (1)

AB 1814   (Grayson)   Transportation electrification: community choice aggregators.   Allows community choice aggregators to file applications with the state for approval of programs and investments to accelerate widespread transportation electrification.   Location: Assembly U. & E.   Status: 2/18/2022-Referred to Com. on U. & E.   Position:   Watch   Staff:  John (1)

AB 1832   (Rivas, Luz)   Tidelands and submerged lands: hard mineral extraction.   Prohibits the State Lands Commission and local trustees of granted public trust lands from granting leases or issuing permits for extraction or removal of hard minerals (not including rock, gravel, sand, silt, and coal) from tidelands and submerged lands.   Location: Assembly Appropriations   Status: 3/22/2022-From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. with recommendation: To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 11. Noes 0.) (March 21). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.   Position:   Pending   Staff:  John (1)

AB 1944   (Lee)   Local government: open and public meetings.     Location: Assembly Local Government   Status: 2/18/2022-Referred to Com. on L. GOV.   Position:   Pending   Staff:  Sarah (1)

AB 1952   (Gallagher)   Infill Infrastructure Grant Program of 2019.    Exempts from the California Environmental Quality Act projects funded by the $500 million set aside for the Infill Infrastructure Grant Program of 2019.   Location: Assembly Housing and Community Development   Status: 2/18/2022-Referred to Coms. on H. & C.D. and NAT. RES.   Position:   Pending   Staff:  John (1)

AB 1956   (Mathis)   Solid waste: woody biomass: collection and conversion.   Creates a new grant program administered by CalRecycle to fund woody biomass collection and disposal by rural counties with a population of 250,000 or less.   Location: Assembly Appropriations   Status: 3/24/2022-Re-referred to Com. on APPR.   Position:   Support   Staff:  John (1)

AB 2208   (Kalra)   Fluorescent lamps: sale and distribution: prohibition.     Location: Assembly Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials   Status: 2/24/2022-Referred to Com. on E.S. & T.M.   Position:   Watch   Staff:  John (1)

AB 2258   (Wood)   Property Assessed Clean Energy program: wildfire safety improvements.     Location: Assembly Local Government   Status: 3/3/2022-Referred to Coms. on L. GOV. and B. & F.   Position:   Pending   Staff:  John (1)

AB 2374   (Bauer-Kahan)   Crimes against public health and safety: illegal dumping.     Location: Assembly Public Safety   Status: 3/3/2022-Referred to Coms. on PUB. S. and B. & P.   Position:   Support   Staff:  John (1)

AB 2419   (Bryan)   Environmental justice: federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act: Justice40 Oversight Committee.     Location: Assembly Natural Resources   Status: 3/3/2022-Referred to Coms. on NAT. RES. and E.S. & T.M.   Position:   Concerns   Staff:  Staci (1)

AB 2421   (Rubio, Blanca)   Water: unlicensed cannabis cultivation.     Location: Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife   Status: 3/15/2022-Re-referred to Com. on W.,P., & W.   Position:   Support   Staff:  Sarah (1)

AB 2449   (Rubio, Blanca)   Open meetings: local agencies: teleconferences.     Location: Assembly Local Government   Status: 3/3/2022-Referred to Com. on L. GOV.   Position:   Pending   Staff:  Sarah (1)

ACA 1   (Aguiar-Curry)   Local government financing: affordable housing and public infrastructure: voter approval.    ACA 1 would lower the vote threshold to 55 percent for approval of local bonded-indebtedness and specially dedicated taxes imposed for specified uses.   Location: Assembly Local Government   Status: 4/22/2021-Referred to Coms. on L. GOV. and APPR.   Position:   Support   Staff:  Tracy (1)

AJR 5   (Rivas, Luz)   Wild free-roaming horses and burros: protection: roundup moratorium.   AJR 5 would urge the federal government to declare a moratorium on all further wild horse and burro round-ups and would urge the United States Bureau of Land Management and the United States Forest Service to introduce and support populations in areas of California where wild horses and burros were historically present.   Location: Senate Natural Resources and Water   Status: 8/25/2021-Referred to Com. on N.R. & W.   Position:   Oppose   Staff:  Sidd (1)

SB 11   (Rubio)   The California FAIR Plan Association: basic property insurance: exclusions.   Senate Bill 11, which would remove certain barriers to enable homes and structures used to conduct business on farmland to be covered through the California Fair Access to Insurance Requirements (FAIR) Plan.   Location: Senate Chaptered   Status: 7/23/2021-Approved by the Governor. Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 128, Statutes of 2021.   Position:   Support   Staff:  Staci (1)

SB 12   (McGuire)   Local government: planning and zoning: wildfires.   Senate Bill 12 requires that the Office of Planning and Research, among other things, coordinate with appropriate entities, including state, regional, or local agencies, to establish a clearinghouse for climate adaptation information for use by state, regional, and local entities, as provided. This bill would require the safety element, upon the next revision of the housing element or the hazard mitigation plan, on or after July 1, 2024, whichever occurs first.   Location: Assembly 2 year   Status: 7/14/2021-Failed Deadline pursuant to Rule 61(a)(11). (Last location was H. & C.D. on 6/24/2021)(May be acted upon Jan 2022)   Position:   Pending   Staff:  Tracy (1)

SB 37   (Cortese)   Contaminated Site Cleanup and Safety Act.   Senate Bill 37 eliminates the ability to use a “common sense exemption” under the California Environmental Quality Act for any projects undertaken at over 40,000 sites throughout the state that appear on the Cortese List of currently or formerly contaminated properties. Instead allows specified types of projects to use either a statutory or categorical CEQA exemption is certain circumstances are met   Location: Assembly 2 year   Status: 9/10/2021-Failed Deadline pursuant to Rule 61(a)(15). (Last location was INACTIVE FILE on 9/8/2021)(May be acted upon Jan 2022)   Position:   Neutral   Staff:  John (1)

SB 38   (Wieckowski)   Beverage containers.   Replaces the existing Beverage Container Recycling Program (Bottle Bill) with a new recycling program administered by beverage container manufacturers and increases the CRV from $0.05 to $0.10 per container if the state fails to achieve specified recycling rates. Repeals the $10.5 million annually set aside for payments to cities and counties to address recycling and litter.   Location: Assembly Natural Resources   Status: 2/14/2022-From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on NAT. RES. (Amended 2/14/2022)   Position:   Oppose Unless Amended   Staff:  John (1)

SB 54   (Allen)   Plastic Pollution Producer Responsibility Act.   SB 54 requires manufactures of single-use, disposable packaging and food service ware to ensure that those products sold, distributed, or imported into the state are either recyclable or compostable.   Location: Assembly Desk   Status: 1/24/2022-Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 29. Noes 7.) Ordered to the Assembly. In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.   Position:   Support In Concept   Staff:  John (1)

SB 213   (Cortese)   Workers’ compensation: hospital employees.     Location: Assembly Desk   Status: 2/1/2022-In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.   Position:   Oppose   Staff:  Sarah (1)

SB 284   (Stern)   Workers’ compensation: firefighters and peace officers: post-traumatic stress.   Establishes a workers’ compensation system, administered by the Administrative Director of the Division of Workers’ Compensation, to compensate an employee for injuries sustained in the course of employment.   Location: Assembly 2 year   Status: 9/10/2021-Failed Deadline pursuant to Rule 61(a)(15). (Last location was INACTIVE FILE on 8/30/2021)(May be acted upon Jan 2022)   Position:   Oppose   Staff:  Sarah (1)

SB 286   (Min)   Elections: Orange County Board of Education.   Senate Bill 286 would require the top-two vote-getters seeking election to a county office to face-off in a General Election.   Location: Assembly Desk   Status: 1/26/2022-Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 30. Noes 7.) Ordered to the Assembly. In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.  

SB 316   (Eggman)   Medi-Cal: federally qualified health centers and rural health clinics.     Location: Assembly 2 year   Status: 9/10/2021-Failed Deadline pursuant to Rule 61(a)(15). (Last location was INACTIVE FILE on 9/9/2021)(May be acted upon Jan 2022)   Position:   Support   Staff:  Sarah (1)

SB 335   (Cortese)   Workers’ compensation: liability.   Senate Bill 335 prohibits a claim for workers’ compensation from being maintained unless within 30 days after the occurrence of the injury, the injured person, or in case of the death, a dependent, or someone on the injured person’s or dependent’s behalf, serves notice of the injury upon the employer.   Location: Assembly 2 year   Status: 7/14/2021-Failed Deadline pursuant to Rule 61(a)(11). (Last location was INS. on 6/10/2021)(May be acted upon Jan 2022)   Position:   Oppose   Staff:  Sarah (1)

SB 359   (Caballero)   Climate change: Resilient Merced County Incentive Pilot Program.   Senate Bill 359 requires the Department of Conservation to develop and implement the Resilient Merced County Incentive Pilot Program to assist the County of Merced to develop and adopt a climate action plan through the use of a scenario-planning tool developed by the department and provide financial assistance to private landowners in implementing activities resulting from the use of the scenario-planning tool set forth in the adopted climate action plan.   Location: Senate Dead   Status: 2/1/2022-Returned to Secretary of Senate pursuant to Joint Rule 56.   Position:   Pending   Staff:  Sidd (1)

SB 832   (Dodd)   Water rights: measurement of diversion.     Location: Senate Natural Resources and Water   Status: 3/24/2022-Set for hearing April 5.   Position:   Watch   Staff:  Sidd (1)

SB 833   (Dodd)   Community Energy Resilience Act of 2022.   Requires the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to develop and implement a grant program for local governments to develop community energy resilience plans.   Location: Senate Appropriations   Status: 3/21/2022-Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.   Position:   Support   Staff:  John (1)

SB 915   (Min)   Firearms: state property.     Location: Senate Appropriations   Status: 3/9/2022-From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 4. Noes 1.) (March 8). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.   Position:   Oppose   Staff:  Sarah (1)

SB 926   (Dodd)   Prescribed Fire Liability Pilot Program: Prescribed Fire Claims Fund.     Location: Senate Governmental Organization   Status: 3/22/2022-From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on G.O. with recommendation: To consent calendar. (Ayes 8. Noes 0.) (March 22). Re-referred to Com. on G.O.   Position:   Support   Staff:  Staci (1)

SB 953   (Min)   Oil and gas leases: state waters: State Lands Commission.   Requires the State Lands Commission to terminate all remaining oil and gas leases under its jurisdiction in tidelands and submerged lands within state waters.   Location: Senate Natural Resources and Water   Status: 3/10/2022-March 22 set for first hearing canceled at the request of author.   Position:   Watch   Staff:  John (1)

SB 1012   (Glazer)   State parks: open fires.     Location: Senate Appropriations   Status: 3/23/2022-Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.   Position:   Support   Staff:  Staci (1)

SB 1100   (Cortese)   Open meetings: orderly conduct.     Location: Senate Judiciary   Status: 3/22/2022-Set for hearing April 5.   Position:   Pending   Staff:  Sarah (1)

SB 1127   (Atkins)   Workers’ compensation: liability presumptions.     Location: Senate Appropriations   Status: 3/22/2022-From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 4. Noes 1.) (March 21). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.   Position:   Oppose   Staff:  Sarah (1)

SB 1215   (Newman)   Battery and Battery-Embedded Product Recycling and Fire Risk Reduction Act of 2022.     Location: Senate Environmental Quality   Status: 3/2/2022-Referred to Com. on E.Q.   Position:   Pending   Staff:  John (1)

SB 1235   (Borgeas)   Air pollution: portable equipment: emergency events.     Location: Senate Environmental Quality   Status: 3/17/2022-March 28 hearing postponed by committee.   Position:   Pending   Staff:  John (1)

SB 1256   (Wieckowski)   Waste management: disposable propane cylinders.     Location: Senate Environmental Quality   Status: 3/10/2022-From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on E.Q.   Position:   Watch   Staff:  John (1)

SB 1326   (Caballero)   Cannabis: interstate agreements.     Location: Senate B., P. & E.D.   Status: 3/24/2022-April 4 hearing postponed by committee.   Position:   Sponsor   Staff:  Sarah (1)