Assembly Energy Consolidation Bill Fails Committee

A bill to consolidate energy agencies and create a cabinet-level energy secretary failed to get out of the Assembly Utilities and Commerce Committee April 4. Committee chair Lloyd Levine (D-Van Nuys) was concerned that Joe Canciamilla?s (D-Martinez) AB 1190 was ?premature.? He abstained from voting for the bill. Levine reasoned that the governor has yet to flesh out his agency reorganization plan, also known as ?blowing up the boxes.? The bill ?certainly gives us one person to blame? if there is another energy crisis by designating an energy secretary, Levine said. However, ?it doesn?t solve the problem you?re trying to solve.? Other committee members also acknowledged the looming potential for another energy crisis either this summer or next. The problem, according to Canciamilla, is that the state?s energy policy is far from centralized. The bill was sponsored by the California Chamber of Commerce. Nearly every year, similar legislation is introduced and withers. The committee passed another bill by Canciamilla. AB 993 would require the California Energy Commission to plan and forecast for the state?s liquefied natural gas use and supply. Currently, though the commission carries out such planning and forecasting, it is not mandated by the state. At the federal level, legislation addressing who has authority to site LNG facilities is in flux. The heart of the debate reflects the battle between California and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission over whether the state has concurrent jurisdiction over the permitting of facilities along California?s coast or whether FERC alone calls the shots.

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Assembly Energy Consolidation Bill Fails Committee

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