Southern California Green Real Estate Blog

GREEN LEGISLATION DOMINATES IN SACRAMENTO

January 6, 2010 on 12:08 am | In Green Building, Green Cities, Green Workplace, U.S. Government, Uncategorized, all |

A HOST OF GREEN BILLS PASS IN CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE

by Jodi Summers

Once his term as state leader is finished, do not be surprised if Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger crosses party lines and unites with former Vice President Al Gore in working for a greener world.

Green legislation and regulations have been a favorite in Sacramento since the adoption of Assembly Bill 32 in 2006, and this year is no different. The basics of the green bills signed into law this year by Schwarzenegger include:

Energy

* Assembly Bill 758 (Skinner, D-Berkeley): Requires the California Energy Commission to establish a program encouraging energy savings in existing residential and nonresidential buildings.

* Assembly Bill 920 (Huffman, D-San Rafael): Allows customers with solar and other alternative energy generators participating in a net-metering rate schedule the option of rolling over credits for excess energy generation into the following year or receiving payments from the utility at a wholesale rate.

* Senate Bill 32 (Negrete-McLeod, D-Chino): Creates a fixed-price payment for energy generated from renewable projects based on the value of renewable generation. The legislation makes it easier for the owners of storage units, vacant land, warehouses and other properties that require minimal energy consumption to transform their properties into independent solar power plants that sell back to utilities.

Greenhouse Gas Reductions/Climate Change

* Assembly Bill 1085 (Mendoza, D-Artesia): Shines “sunlight” on important regulatory procedures at the California Air Resources Board (aka CARB) by requiring it make available to the public each technical, theoretical and empirical study, report or similar document, if any, on which the agency relies, related to, but not limited to, air emissions, public health impacts and economic impacts before the comment period for any regulation proposed for adoption by the state board.

* Assembly Concurrent Resolution 77 (Swanson, D-Oakland): Urges CARB to meet the statutory requirements of the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, or AB32, by ensuring that its analysis of specified emission reduction measures include prescribed components.

* Assembly Bill 210 (Hayashi, D-Hayward): Encourages cities, counties and other local jurisdictions to adopt energy-efficient building standards that surpass those already included in the state’s landmark Green Building Standards Code. That code requires structures to use at least 15 percent less energy than current requirements, and sets goals for air quality, water conservation and other environmental concerns.

* Assembly Bill 531 (Saldana, D-San Diego): Delays the implementation of the state’s mandatory Energy Star benchmarking law - Assembly Bill 1103 - and requires the state Energy Commission to write implementing regulations.

Water

* Senate Bill 407 (Padilla, D-Pacoima): Requires all residential and commercial buildings to install water-conserving fixtures by 2019. Also authorizes public entities that supply water to require such retrofitting whenever real estate is transferred.

* Assembly Bill 474 (Blumenfield, D-Van Nuys): Authorizes the legislative body of any public agency to designate an area within which authorized city officials and free and willing property owners may enter into contractual assessments to finance the installation of water-efficiency improvements that are permanently fixed to real property.

* Addendum: The state remains without a water deal despite Schwarzenegger’s scheduling of a special session on the topic.

Under Governor Schwarzenegger, California has become an international leader in clean energy standards, enriching the state with clean energy investment, green jobs and a better quality of life. In the last three years, more than $6 billion in venture capital has been pumped into California’s economy, making us the national leader in the number of clean businesses. Green jobs have also skyrocketed, growing 10 times faster in California than in other areas. This growth is expected to continue, with assistance both on the state and national level.

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The Southern Nevada chapter of NAIOP, a commercial real estate trade group, is developing a series of sustainable building prototypes that address the region’s unique climate demands.

“We’re seeking a fully integrated building solution geared toward Southern Nevada’s microclimate,” Circle M Development President Ralph Murphy said. “We’re trying to design a high-performance building that reflects our environment.”

Comment by Las Vegas Business Press — January 6, 2010 #
While designing buildings to achieve LEED certification is becoming increasingly common, the construction industry is still in “the infancy stages” of implementing truly sustainable building practices, says Vanbots estimating director Compton Cho.

“LEED is probably short-term thinking,” Cho told a contractors’ roundtable on green building at Construct Canada. “We should be thinking in terms of the long-term aspects of how we build as an industry.”

Comment by PATRICIA WILLIAMS — January 6, 2010 #
The award of $2.3 billion in Recovery Act Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credits for 183 projects in 43 projects across the United States will generate more than 59,000 high quality clean energy jobs and the domestic manufacturing of advanced clean energy technologies including solar, wind, and efficiency and energy management technologies.

Comment by Tracey de Morsella, Green Economy Post — January 10, 2010 #
The code will slash water use, mandate the recycling of construction waste, cut back on polluting materials and step up enforcement of energy efficiency in new homes, schools, hospitals and commercial buildings statewide.

Critics say the rules fall short of rigorous standards adopted by Los Angeles, San Francisco and more than 50 California jurisdictions in league with the U.S. Green Building Council, a national nonprofit group of architects, engineers and construction companies.

Comment by Margot Roosevelt — January 21, 2010 #
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Comment by Robert Shumake — February 2, 2010 #
AB 32 AUTHOR DEFENDS CLIMATE CHANGE LAW

Senator Fran Pavley (D-Santa Monica) one of the original and strongest proponents of California Climate Change laws has penned an article responding to recent criticisms of the law. In an effort to make sure our members understand both side of the argument, here is a piece by the author.

“When AB 32, California’s landmark global warming law, was being debated in the legislature, a coalition of polluters and their misguided allies opposed the bill. This week these same opponents, who have also fought against clean air and water quality laws, are unveiling an initiative to suspend AB 32, predicting the sky will fall if the law is implemented. They predict that thousands of Californians would lose their jobs, and it will crush small businesses. There are even blaming the current loss of jobs on AB 32, but new emission reductions don’t even begin until 2012, and then are gradually phased in by 2020.”

Comment by Senator Fran Pavley (D-Santa Monica) — February 5, 2010 #
Assemblymember Nancy Skinner (D-14), Chair, Committee on Natural Resources, working in partnership with California Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr., has introduced AB 2514 (available here) – new legislation that will create a smarter, cleaner electric grid, increase the use of renewable energy, provide Californians with significant savings by avoiding costly new power plants and transmission lines, and reduce air pollution. This transformative legislation will also create thousands of permanent new green-collar jobs.

AB 2514 will achieve these benefits by closing the gap between the United States and other nations in investments and deployments of energy storage, a booming “green” industry that represents a significant economic development opportunity for California.

By mandating that utilities incorporate energy storage capacity – 2.25% of daytime peak demand for power by 2014 and 5% of peak demand by 2020 – the bill will provide much-needed lower electricity costs to consumers. Greater use of energy storage will provide the State with a cleaner and less costly alternative to the high costs of generating and supplying primarily fossil fuel-based power for only part-time daytime peak demand for power.

“Energy storage is the future — it’s a fast-growing clean technology industry that will save the state money and reduce pollution,” said Attorney General Jerry Brown, the bill’s sponsor. “What’s even better is that this new technology could create 8,500 new jobs in California during the next decade.”

Comment by PR Newswire — March 1, 2010 #
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Comment by Debt Settlement — April 23, 2010 #
AB 32 has an economic downside. A study by a UC Berkeley think tank devoted to green causes said even if California becomes the world leader in cleaner-energy technologies, relatively few jobs would be created. This finding was affirmed in a new report from the respected McKinsey consulting firm which concludes the clean-energy industry is far more akin to the employee-light semiconductor industry than to labor-heavy manufacturing. McKinsey is skeptical green jobs will ever make up much more than their present 0.6 percent of the U.S. work force.
Meanwhile, the state’s own research shows AB 32 will raise energy costs by 40 percent to 60 percent.

Comment by Sign on San Diego — May 9, 2010 #
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Comment by weathervacation — May 11, 2010 #
According to the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC), the country is all set to become the global leader by 2015 with over 1 billion sq ft of green building footprint.

“Until 2007 January, there were only 40 green buildings registered by the IGBC, of which only four were certified. We now have 532 green buildings registered, of which 77 have been certified (Of these 532, around 350 are commercial buildings and the rest are residential). Mumbai is the forerunner, followed by Chennai and then Bengaluru” aver-red Dr Prem C. Jain, chairman, IGBC.

Comment by Deccan Chronicle — May 21, 2010 #
Instituting a 10-year retrofit program for the country’s commercial spaces could save $41.1 billion in energy expenses every year, according to a new report by Pike Research.

According to the report, as of 2010, more than 80 percent of commercial buildings in the U.S. were more than 10 years old. Pike estimated that a 10-year retrofit program would cost a total of $22.5 billion over its 10-year span.

Comment by Environmental Leader — August 14, 2010 #