AB-11 (Ward) Climate change: regional climate change coordinating groups.

This bill would require the [Strategic Growth Council], by January ____, 1, 2023, to establish up to 12 regional climate change coordinating groups authorities to develop and work on coordinate climate adaptation for and mitigation activities in their communities. regions and coordinate with other regional climate adaptation authorities, state agencies, and other relevant stakeholders. The bill would authorize the regional climate change coordinating groups authorities to engage in certain activities to address climate change. The bill would require the regional climate change authorities to annually submit to the council a report on their activities.

AB-50 (Boerner Horvath) Climate change: Climate Adaptation Center and Regional Support Network: sea level rise.

This bill would establish the Climate Adaptation Center and Regional Support Network in the Ocean Protection Council to provide local governments facing sea level rise challenges with information and scientific expertise necessary to proceed with sea level rise mitigation.

AB-51 (Quirk) Climate change: adaptation: regional climate adaptation planning groups: regional climate adaptation plans.

This bill would require the Strategic Growth Council, by July 1, 2022, to establish guidelines for the formation of regional climate adaptation planning groups. The bill would require the council, by July 1, 2023, and in consultation with certain state entities, to develop criteria for the development of regional climate adaptation plans.

AB-67 (Petrie-Norris) Sea level rise: working group: economic analysis.

This bill would require a state agency to take into account the current and future impacts of sea level rise based on projections provided by the Ocean Protection Council when planning, designing, building, operating, maintaining, and investing in infrastructure located in the coastal zone zone, within the jurisdiction of the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission, or otherwise vulnerable to flooding from sea level rise or storm surges, or when otherwise approving the allocation of state funds funds, including, but not limited to, bonds, grants, and loans, for those purposes. The bill would provide that new or expanded infrastructure built pursuant to the above-described provision shall only qualify for state funds if the project is not anticipated to be vulnerable to sea level rise risks during the life of that project. The bill would provide that specified projects may be exempt from the above-described analysis so long as the project design is resilient to mid-century sea level rise projections provided by the Ocean Protection Council and consistent with relevant state and local agency policies. The bill would require, by March 1, 2022, the Ocean Protection Council, in consultation with the Office of Planning and Research, to establish a multiagency working group, consisting of specified individuals, on sea level rise to provide recommended policies, resolutions, projects, and other actions to address sea level rise, the breadth of its impact, and the severity of its anticipated harm. The bill would require the council, in consultation with the working group group, to, among other things, develop a standardized methodology and template for conducting economic analyses of risks and adaptation strategies associated with sea level rise, as provided. The bill would require a state agency to conduct a sea level rise analysis for any state-funded infrastructure project located in the coastal zone zone, within the jurisdiction of the commission, or otherwise vulnerable to flooding from sea level rise or storm surges, and restrict funding as needed, pursuant to that methodology. The bill would authorize the Controller to conduct audits of state agencies to and consult with working group member agencies, as necessary, to verify and ensure compliance with certain of the above above-described provisions.

AB-125 (Rivas) Equitable Economic Recovery, Healthy Food Access, Climate Resilient Farms, and Worker Protection Bond Act of 2022.

This bill would enact the Equitable Economic Recovery, Healthy Food Access, Climate Resilient Farms, and Worker Protection Bond Act of 2022, which, if approved by the voters, would authorize the issuance of bonds in the amount of $3,122,000,000, $3,302,000,000 pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law, to finance programs related to, among other things, agricultural lands, food and fiber infrastructure, climate resilience, agricultural professionals, including farmers, ranchers, and farmworkers, workforce development and training, air quality, tribes, disadvantaged communities, nutrition, food aid, meat processing facilities, fishing facilities, and fairgrounds.

The bill would provide for the submission of the bond act to the voters at the November 8, 2022, statewide general election.

AB-252 (Rivas and Salas) Department of Conservation: Multibenefit Land Repurposing Incentive Program: administration.

This bill would require the Department of Conservation to establish and administer a grant program named the Multibenefit Land Repurposing Incentive Program establish the Multibenefit Land Repurposing Program, for purposes of assisting groundwater sustainability agencies in critically overdrafted basins in achieving achieve their groundwater sustainability goal by providing grants to public and private agencies and entities for projects and programs that reduce groundwater use by creating incentives to repurpose converting irrigated agricultural land for to new uses that both reduce groundwater use and demand or use and provide some other measurable benefits to the environment or broader community. The bill would require the department, Department of Conservation to establish and administer the grant program and, in consultation with specified state agencies, to develop guidelines to implement the grant program, as provided. The bill would require grant recipients to comply with certain requirements, including consistency with approved groundwater sustainability plans or alternative plans and general plans, and inclusion of a 50% match from nonstate sources. The bill would authorize up to 10% of funds appropriated for the purposes of the grant program to be expended for planning and monitoring necessary for the successful design, selection, and implementation of eligible projects and programs, and would require at least 40% of the funds appropriated for purposes of the grant program to be allocated for projects and programs that provide meaningful and direct benefits to disadvantaged communities, economically distressed areas, or socially disadvantaged farmers or ranchers, as defined. programs. The bill would require, on or before January 1, 2026, and 5 years thereafter, the department to submit a report to the relevant policy and budget committees of the Legislature that evaluates the performance of the grant program in relation to its goals and includes recommendations to improve the grant program. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2032.

AB-280 (Rivas) Electrical corporations: wildfire mitigation plans.

Existing law requires each electrical corporation to annually prepare and submit a wildfire mitigation plan to the Wildfire Safety Division of the commission for review and approval.

This bill would require each electrical corporation to also submit its wildfire mitigation plan to the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature.

AB-284 (Rivas) California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006: climate goal: natural and working lands.

This bill would require the [State Air Resources  Board] board, as part of the next scoping plan update, in collaboration with the Natural Resources Agency and other relevant state agencies and departments and no later than January 1, 2023, to identify a 2045 climate goal, with interim milestones, for the state’s natural and working lands, as defined, and to integrate into the scoping plan update recommendations developed by the Natural Resources Agency and the Department of Food and Agriculture regarding practices, policy and financial incentives, market needs, and potential reductions in barriers that would help achieve the 2045 climate goal, among other recommendations. The bill would require the state board, in collaboration with the Natural Resources Agency and other relevant state agencies and departments, to include this information in each subsequent update to the scoping plan and update that information, as appropriate. The

This bill would require the state board, no later than January 1, 2024, to develop standard methods for state agencies to consistently track greenhouse gas emissions and reductions, carbon sequestration, and, where feasible, feasible and in consultation with the Natural Resources Agency and the Department of Food and Agriculture, additional benefits from natural and working lands over time. The bill would require the state board, in estimating and tracking greenhouse gas emissions and reductions and carbon sequestration from natural working lands, to take into account, where feasible, greenhouse gas emissions and reductions of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide related to natural and working lands and the potential impacts of climate change on the ability to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and sequester carbon from natural and working lands.

AB-297 (Gallagher, Bigelow, Dahle, Patterson) Fire prevention.

This bill would continuously appropriate $480,000,000 and $20,000,000 to the Department of Forestry and Fire Prevention and the California Conservation Corps, respectively, for fire prevention activities, as provided.

This bill would exempt from the requirements of CEQA projects or activities related to forest health and fuel reduction that involve thinning overgrown brushes or trees 10 inches or less in diameter by mechanical thinning, pile burning, prescribed fire, and grazing. Because a lead agency would be required to determine the applicability of this exemption, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

This bill would require the California Competes Tax Credit Committee, in determining whether to enter an agreement with a taxpayer, to give priority to a taxpayer whose project or business enhances forest health and resiliency by utilizing timber harvested in California, including materials from forest health and fuel reduction projects.

AB-350 (Villapudua) Agriculture: Cannella Environmental Farming Act of 1995: technical assistance grant program: groundwater conservation planning.

This bill would require, upon an appropriation of funds, the Department of Food and Agriculture to establish and administer a 3-year grant program to fund technical assistance to support landowners located in a critically overdrafted basin, as defined, in reaching water use reduction goals established pursuant to the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. The bill would require the department, in its development of the grant program, to establish various criteria, guidelines, restrictions, processes, and requirements for the qualification and administration of grants to technical assistance providers, as specified. The bill would authorize the department to use specified guidelines to administer this program. The bill would require the grant program to fund one or more technical assistance providers in each critically overdrafted basin. The bill would require the department to ensure that at least 25% of the grant program funds are used to provide technical assistance to socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers, as defined. The bill would require that technical assistance from the grant program be provided directly to landowners in a critically overdrafted basin to design, develop, and implement on-farm conservation plans for agricultural lands that are at risk of fallowing due to water shortages.

AB-352 (Rivas) Agricultural land conservation: California Farmland Conservancy Program Act.

The bill would revise and recast provisions of the California Farmland Conservancy Program Act to, among other things, specify legislative intent to remove barriers to socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers, as defined, participating in the agricultural economy and stewarding working lands under conservation. The bill would expand the use of moneys in the fund for the program to include technical assistance grants, as described, to eligible assistance entities, as defined, and acquisition assistance grants to eligible assistance entities for the sole purpose of reducing barriers to land access for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers, as specified. The bill would require that not less than 25% of the program funds be provided to applicants that lease or sell to socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers. The bill would also expand the conditions that an applicant must agree to for a grant for the acquisition of fee title to agricultural land to include, among other things, a farmer-purchaser preference, as defined, in the text of the agricultural conservation easement used to encumber the acquired property.

The bill would provide that grants made for land improvements may include the financial and technical involvement of the University of California Cooperative Extension and would revise the selection criteria for an agricultural conservation easement or fee title acquisition grant to, among other things, include whether the proposal reduces barriers to land access for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers through ownership or long-term leases. The bill would delete the provisions relating to the termination of an agricultural conservation easement.

AB-433 (Chen, Lackey) California Wildfire Mitigation Financial Assistance Program: electrical utilities: voluntary contributions.

This bill would authorize the joint powers authority implementing the [wildfire mitigation program] to accept voluntary contributions and would require the contributions be deposited in the California Wildfire Mitigation Financial Assistance Fund, which the bill would establish in the State Treasury. The bill would provide that moneys in the fund are available, upon appropriation by the Legislature for purpose of the program.

AB-585 (Luz Rivas) Climate change: Extreme Heat and Community Resilience Program.

This bill would establish the Extreme Heat and Community Resilience Program for the purpose of coordinating state efforts and supporting local and regional efforts to mitigate the impacts of, and reduce the public health risks of, extreme heat and the urban heat island effect, and would require the Office of Planning and Research to administer the program through the Integrated Climate Adaptation and Resiliency Program. Under the Extreme Heat and Community Resilience Program, the bill would require the Office of Planning and Research to coordinate the state’s efforts to address extreme heat and the urban heat island effect and to provide financial and technical assistance to eligible entities to support local and regional efforts to mitigate the impacts of, and reduce the public health risks of, extreme heat and or the urban heat island effect, as provided. The bill would require the Office of Planning and Research to submit a report to the Legislature by July 1, 2023, on certain matters relating to extreme heat and the urban heat island effect. The bill would require the Office of Planning and Research, before awarding grants under the Extreme Heat and Community Resilience Program, to adopt certain guidelines for the program and would require the Office of Planning and Research to seek input from the public public, academic and technical experts, and relevant state agencies, as appropriate, in the drafting of those guidelines. The bill would establish the Extreme Heat and Community Resilience Fund in the State Treasury and would require the Office of Planning and Research, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to expend moneys in the fund for the implementation of the Extreme Heat and Community Resilience Program.

AB-648 (Fong) Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund: healthy forest and fire prevention: appropriation.

This bill would continuously appropriate, beginning in the 2021–22 fiscal year and ending in the 2028–29 fiscal year, $200,000,000 of the annual proceeds from the fund to the department for (1) healthy forest and fire prevention programs and projects that improve forest health and reduce greenhouse gas emissions caused by uncontrolled wildfires and (2) prescribed fire and other fuel reduction projects through proven forestry practices consistent with the recommendations of the California Forest Carbon Plan, including the operation of year-round prescribed fire crews and implementation of a research and monitoring program for climate change adaptation.

AB-880 (Aguiar-Curry) Affordable Disaster Housing Revolving Development and Acquisition Program.

This bill would, upon appropriation of the Legislature, establish the Affordable Disaster Housing Revolving Development and Acquisition Program to fund the predevelopment expenses, acquisition, construction, reconstruction, and rehabilitation of property to develop or preserve affordable housing in the state’s declared disaster areas that have experienced damage and loss of homes occupied by or affecting lower income households. The bill would require the department to administer the program. The bill would require the department to establish an application process for community development financial institutions, as defined, to apply for emergency short-term or temporary loans under the program.

This bill would require community development financial institutions receiving awards through the program to issue short-term loans to nonprofit housing development corporations, tribally designated housing entities, and local government agencies to fund the cost of developing dwelling units and transitional housing, childcare, after school care, and social service facilities that are integrally linked to the dwelling units, as specified. The bill would authorize certain cost categories related to the development of dwelling units, including the acquisition of real property, new construction or rehabilitation, general property improvements that are necessary to correct unsafe, unhealthy, or unsanitary conditions, and necessary and related onsite and offsite improvements.

AB-897 (Mullin, Bennett, Quirk, and Ward) Office of Planning and Research: regional climate networks: climate adaptation action plans.

This bill would authorize eligible entities, as defined, to establish and participate in a regional climate network, as defined. The bill would require the [Office of Planning and Research], through the [Integrated Climate Adaptation and Resiliency Program], to encourage the inclusion of agencies eligible entities with land use planning and hazard mitigation planning authority into regional climate networks. The bill would authorize a regional climate network to engage in activities to address climate change, as specified.

This bill would require a regional climate network to develop a regional climate adaptation and resilience action plan and to submit the plan to the office for review, comments, and certification, as described. The bill would require, on or before January 1, 2023, the office, through the program, to establish geographic boundaries for regional climate networks, and to develop and publish on its internet website guidelines on how eligible entities may establish regional climate networks and how governing boards may be established within regional climate networks. The bill would also require, on or before July 1, 2023, the office, through the program, in collaboration with the Office of Emergency Services, to develop and publish on its internet website guidelines, as prescribed, establishing standards and required content for a regional climate adaptation and resilience action plan, including certain information, analyses, and contents to be included in a plan and certain considerations and procedures for a regional climate network when preparing a plan.

This bill would require the office, through the program, to provide technical assistance to regions seeking to establish a regional climate network and to regional climate networks in developing regional climate adaptation and resilience action plans. The bill would require, on or before January 1, 2025, the office office, in consultation with the Office of Emergency Services, to make recommendations to certain policy and budget committees of the Legislature related to regional adaptation and resilience on expanding state support for the work of regional climate networks, as prescribed, and the potential sources of financial assistance and options for distributing state funds to support the creation and implementation of regional climate adaptation and resilience action plans and to support technical assistance and capacity building to engage underresourced vulnerable communities and under-resourced communities in the development of the plans.

AB-976 (Luz Rivas) Resilient Economies and Community Health Pilot Program.

This bill would establish the Resilient Economies and Community Health Pilot Program, which would be administered by the [Strategic Growth Council] from January 1, 2022, through December 31, 2026, as a grant pilot program for eligible community-based organizations, as defined, to provide a comprehensive suite of coordinated incentives and services to disadvantaged communities, as defined, at the resident household level to provide economic savings, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution, and improve resiliency to the impacts of climate change. The bill would require the council to evaluate the program and submit specified reports to the Legislature on the program no later than January 1, 2026. The bill would repeal these provisions as of January 1, 2027.

AB-1087 (Chiu) Environmental Justice Community Resilience Hubs Program

Beginning with the fiscal year commencing July 1, 2022, and ending with the fiscal year ending June 30, 2027, except as provided, this bill would require the PUC to annually allocate up to 5% of the revenues received by the electrical corporations from that allocation of greenhouse gas allowances to the Environmental Justice Community Resilience Hubs Program, which would require each electrical corporation to award those allocated revenues as to a single third-party administrator, selected by the commission, that will award competitive grants to owners of critical community institutions, meeting eligibility criteria established by the PUC, for building upgrade projects that demonstrate community engagement in all phases, demonstrate multistakeholder partnerships, reflect the geographic diversity of the state, and are installed at critical community institutions.

The bill would require the PUC to determine whether each electrical corporation or a third party, including the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission), will administer those competitive grants, and would require each administrator select a third-party administrator by no later than March 1, 2023, and require that the program be operational and begin processing applications by no later than July 1, 2023. The bill would require that the program be jointly operated among all the participating electrical corporations and be consistent across the utility territories. The bill would require the third-party administrator ensure that program moneys from each utility are used only for projects located in the service territory of that utility from which the moneys are received and to provide technical assistance to customers. program applicants. The bill would prohibit more than 10% of those allocated revenues from being used for administration, technical assistance, and outreach. The bill would require the PUC to establish requirements relating to hiring, wages, apprenticeship programs, and workforce standards for the program. The bill would require the PUC, in consultation with the Energy Commission and the administrators, to ensure for greater cross-referral between eligible programs, as specified, share best practices, scale programming, establish a uniform application for multiple eligible programs, and provide comprehensive guidance and technical assistance for applicants to eligible programs.

AB-1384 (Gabriel) Resiliency Through Adaptation, Economic Vitality, and Equity Act of 2022.

This bill would instead require the agency to release the draft plan by January 1, 2024, and every 3 years thereafter, and to update the plan by July 1, 2024, and every 3 years thereafter. The bill would require the agency to also coordinate with the Office of Planning and Research and identify, among other things, vulnerabilities to climate change for vulnerable communities, an operational definition of “climate resilience” for each sector and for vulnerable communities, special protections of vulnerable communities and industries that are disproportionately impacted by climate change, opportunities to improve policy and budget coordination across jurisdictions, and timetables and specific metrics to measure and evaluate the state’s progress in implementing the plan. The bill would require each lead agency or group of agencies to be informed, at a minimum, by specified documents and climate science research in identifying the vulnerabilities to climate change. The bill would require state agencies to also maximize the objective of prioritizing equity by ensuring public expenditures that address climate change adaptation prioritize protecting vulnerable communities, rectifying intersectional and systemic inequities, and enhancing low-income and vulnerable communities’ abilities to weather the impacts of climate change. The bill would authorize the Treasurer, and the financing authorities that the Treasurer chairs, to assist state agencies by leveraging public and private capital investment to help with loans and other incentives to attain the goals established pursuant to these provisions.

AB-1445 (Levine) Planning and zoning: regional housing need allocation: climate change impacts.

This bill would require that a council of governments, a delegate subregion, or the department, as applicable, additionally consider among these factors emergency evacuation route capacity, wildfire risk, sea level rise, and other impacts caused by climate change.

AB-1500 (Eduardo Garcia and Mullin) Safe Drinking Water, Wildfire Prevention, Drought Preparation, Flood Protection, Extreme Heat Mitigation, and Workforce Development Bond Act of 2022.

This bill would enact the Safe Drinking Water, Wildfire Prevention, Drought Preparation, Flood Protection, Extreme Heat Mitigation, and Workforce Development Bond Act of 2022, which, if approved by the voters, would authorize the issuance of bonds in the amount of $6,700,000,000 $6,955,000,000 pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law to finance projects for safe drinking water, wildfire prevention, drought preparation, flood protection, extreme heat mitigation, and workforce development programs.

This bill would provide for the submission of these provisions to the voters at the November 8, June 7, 2022, statewide general primary election.

This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

SB-12 (McGuire, Atkins, Caballero, and Dodd) Local government: planning and zoning: wildfires.

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, to be reviewed and updated as necessary to include a comprehensive retrofit strategy to reduce the risk of property loss and damage during wildfires, as specified, and would require the planning agency to submit the adopted strategy to the Office of Planning and Research for inclusion into the above-described clearinghouse. The bill would also require the planning agency to review and, if necessary, revise the safety element upon each revision of the housing element or local hazard mitigation plan, but not less than once every 8 years, to identify new information relating to retrofit updates applicable to the city or county that was not available during the previous revision of the safety element. By increasing the duties of local officials, this bill would create a state-mandated local program.

This bill would require a city or county that contains residential structures in a very high fire risk area, as defined, upon each revision of the housing element on or after July 1, 2024, to amend the land use element of its general plan to contain, among other things, the locations of all very high fire risk areas within the city or county and feasible implementation measures designed to carry out specified goals, objectives, and policies relating to the protection of lives and property from unreasonable risk of wildfire. The bill would require the city or county to complete a review of, and make findings related to, wildfire risk reduction standards, as defined, upon each subsequent revision of the housing element, as provided. The bill would require the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection to review the findings and make recommendations, as provided.

See more on this bill by reviewing the Legislative Counsel’s Digest.

SB-17 (Pan) Office of Racial Equity.

This bill, until January 1, 2029, would establish in state government an Office of Racial Equity, an independent public entity not affiliated with an agency or department, governed by a Racial Equity Advisory and Accountability Council. The bill would authorize the council to hire an executive director to organize, administer, and manage the operations of the office. The bill would task the office with coordinating, analyzing, developing, evaluating, and recommending strategies for advancing racial equity across state agencies, departments, and the office of the Governor. The bill would require the office, in consultation with state agencies, departments, and public stakeholders, as appropriate, to develop a statewide Racial Equity Framework that includes a strategic plan with policy and inclusive practice recommendations, guidelines, goals, and benchmarks to reduce racial inequities, promote racial equity, and address individual, institutional, and structural racism. The bill would require the office to develop the statewide Racial Equity Framework in collaboration with a Chief Equity Officer, who would be appointed and serve at the pleasure of the Governor and who would report to the Secretary of Government Operations in the Government Operations Agency. The bill would also require the office, in consultation with state agencies and departments, to establish methodologies, a system of measurement, and data needs for assessing how state statutes, regulations, and practices contribute to, uphold, or exacerbate racial disparities and to prepare an annual report that evaluates and reports on progress in, and any obstacles to, meeting statewide goals and policies established under the Racial Equity Framework.

The bill would require the Governor to direct the secretary of each state agency to adopt and implement the Racial Equity Framework through each agency’s Racial Equity Action Plan, which, when approved, which would be adopted by each state agency and integrated into the agency’s strategic plan. The bill would require the office to provide technical assistance to agencies during development of the Racial Equity Action Plan, to review, Plan and hold a public meeting to review and provide feedback regarding, and approve regarding each agency’s Racial Equity Action Plan, and to Plan. The bill would require the office to provide guidance and technical assistance to agencies in implementing strategies for racial equity consistent with the Racial Equity Action Plan. The bill would require the Racial Equity Action Plan to be posted publicly on each agency’s internet website. The bill would require each agency to prepare an annual report on the agency’s progress towards goals set forth in the Racial Equity Action Plan that shall include includes feedback and recommendations from the office, and to submit the report to the office, the Governor, and the Legislature, and would require each agency and the office post it on its internet website. the report on their internet websites.

SB-45 (Portantino, Allen, Hurtado, and Stern) Wildfire Prevention, Safe Drinking Water, Drought Preparation, and Flood Protection Bond Act of 2022.

This bill would enact the Wildfire Prevention, Safe Drinking Water, Drought Preparation, and Flood Protection Bond Act of 2022, which, if approved by the voters, would authorize the issuance of bonds in the amount of $5,510,000,000 $5,595,000,000 pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law to finance projects for a wildfire prevention, safe drinking water, drought preparation, and flood protection program.

This bill would provide for the submission of these provisions to the voters at the November 8, 2022, statewide general election.

SB-55 (Stern and Allen) Very high fire hazard severity zone: state responsibility area: development prohibition.

This bill would, in furtherance of specified state housing production production, sustainability communities strategies, greenhouse gas reduction, and wildfire mitigation goals, prohibit the creation or approval of a new development, as defined, in a very high fire hazard severity zone or a state responsibility area. area unless there is substantial evidence that the local agency has adopted a comprehensive, necessary, and appropriate wildfire prevention and community hardening strategy to mitigate significant risks of loss, injury, or death, as specified. By imposing new duties on local governments with respect to the approval of new developments in very high fire hazard severity zones and state responsibility areas, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

This bill would provide a qualifying developer a supplemental height bonus and a supplemental density bonus, as specified, if the development is located on a site that meets certain criteria, including, among others, not being located in a moderate, high, or very high fire hazard severity zone, as specified. By imposing additional requirements on local governments with respect to supplemental height and density bonuses, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The bill would include findings that changes proposed by this bill address a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, apply to all cities, including charter cities.

SB-99 (Dodd) Community Energy Resilience Act of 2021.

This bill, the Community Energy Resilience Act of 2021, would require the [Natural Resources Agency State Energy Resources Conservation and Development 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. The bill would authorize a community choice aggregator or other regional energy collaborative to apply for funding and prepare a community energy resilience plan on behalf of one or more of the local governments it serves upon request of that local government. The bill would set forth guiding principles for plan development, including equitable access to reliable energy, as provided. resources by local governments. The bill would require that the plans to be consistent with the city, county, or city and county general plan and other local government planning documents. The bill would require a plan to, among other things, ensure that a reliable electricity supply is maintained at to identify critical facilities and identify areas most likely to experience a loss of electrical service. The bill would require a public utility to share information identifying critical facilities and areas most likely to experience a loss of electricity with the local government, community choice aggregator, or regional energy collaborative that is preparing a community energy resilience plan. The bill would authorize grant funding awarded to be expended to complete environmental clearance of community energy resilience projects identified in the plan. facilities, locations and facilities where the construction of microgrids could meet local resilience needs, and potential funding sources, as specified.

The bill would require the commission to maintain a publicly available and searchable database of all local governments, community choice aggregators, or regional energy collaboratives governments receiving grant funding pursuant to the program, including information on specific plan projects. program. The bill would require a local government, community choice aggregator, or regional energy collaborative, as a condition of receiving grant funding, to submit its plan and a report of project expenditures to the commission within 6 months of completing the plan. The bill would require the commission to annually report specified information about the grant program to the Legislature and post the report on its internet website.

SB-359 (Caballero) Climate change: Resilient Merced County Incentive Pilot Program.

This bill would, until ____, require the [Strategic Growth Council], in consultation with the Department of Conservation and the state board, to develop and implement the Resilient Merced County Incentive Pilot Program (pilot program) to assist the County of Merced to develop and adopt a climate action plan through the use of a use scenario-planning tool developed by the department tools to estimate and account for the countywide greenhouse gas reduction and carbon sequestration potential of different land management, restoration, and conservation activities and for the council to provide financial assistance to private landowners in implementing to voluntarily implement activities resulting from the use of the scenario-planning tool set forth in the adopted climate action plan. tools used by the county. The bill would specify that activities described above are eligible for incentives under require the council to implement the pilot program as a component of the Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation Program, as provided. Program and consistent with the Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities Program. The bill would require the council, in collaboration with the department and the state board, to estimate and monitor the greenhouse gas reductions, carbon sequestration, and other benefits associated with the County of Merced’s scenario planning and the land management, restoration, and conservation activities implemented pursuant to the pilot program. The bill would require the department, by ____, to submit to the Legislature a report on the results of the pilot program. pilot program and a recommendation as to whether the pilot program should be expanded to other areas of the state.

SB-440 (Dodd) Earthquake and wildfire loss mitigation.

This bill would require the Wildfire Fund Administrator, the Office of Emergency Services, and the Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety to create the California Wildfire Residential Loss Mitigation Program as a joint powers authority. The bill would require that program to provide mitigation against wildfire risk, including a grant program to assist qualifying owners to retrofit their structures to protect against wildfire or to create a defensible space around their structures. The bill would establish the Wildfire Loss Mitigation Fund as a continuously appropriated subaccount in the Wildfire Fund to fund the program. Because the bill would create a continuously appropriated fund, the bill would make an appropriation. The bill would require the council to annually set aside 5% or $10,000,000, whichever is less, of the Wildfire Fund’s investment income for deposit in the Wildfire Loss Mitigation Fund. Because certain of these provisions would be codified in the Public Utilities Act and would require action by the commission, a violation of which would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

SB-449 (Stern) Climate-related financial risk.

This bill would require a covered entity, as defined, to, on or before December 31, 2022, and annually thereafter, prepare a climate-related financial risk report, as defined, and to submit to the Secretary of State, and make available to the public on its own internet website, a copy of that report. The bill would also require a covered entity to submit to the Secretary of State a statement affirming affirming, not under penalty of perjury, that the climate-related financial risk report discloses climate-related financial risk, as required by the bill. By expanding the scope of the crime of perjury, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

This bill would also require the Governor to, before January 1, 2023, establish an advisory Climate Change Financial Risk Task Force to assess climate-related financial risk facing investors, corporations, banks, credit unions, mortgage lenders, insurers, and the state. The bill would require the task force to include certain members, including the Commissioner of Financial Protection and Innovation, the Treasurer, the Controller, and the Insurance Commissioner, and would require the task force to, among other things, annually prepare a report containing certain elements regarding climate-related financial risk reports.