Staff Report Item 12
Staff Report Item 12
To: Ava Community Energy Authority
From: Todd Edmister, Sr. Director of Public Policy and Deputy General Counsel Subject: Overview of 2025 Legislative Session and “Short List” of Bills for Board Consideration at the May 2025 Board Meeting
Date: April 16, 2025
________________________________________________________________ Summary/Recommendation
Ava staff has worked to implement the Board approved Legislative Program since the Legislative Program’s adoption in July of 2018. The Legislative Program provides a framework for the Ava legislative team to identify, assess, track, and (with Board approval) take advocacy-related action regarding proposed legislation. Furthermore, the Legislative Program guides staff in identifying which of the more than 2,000 bills per year that are introduced in Sacramento are important to Ava and relevant to our services.
This month, we are presenting for your information:
1. An overview of the current California legislative session and budget process as well as a list of the bills the legislative team is tracking and analyzing; and
2. An updated draft of Ava's Legislative Program.
Please note that all information presented to the Board this month (with the exception of SB540) is for your consideration and review only. We are not requesting the Board vote to take any legislative positions this time. In May, the legislative team will present to the Staff Report Item 12
Board staff-recommended positions on specific bills working through the California legislature and request formal adoption of these positions. Furthermore, in May we will also request formal endorsement of the draft 2025 Legislative Program update (included below).
Attachments:
A. Ava April 2025 California Legislative Update
B. Legislative Program - updated April 2025
Ava 2025 April
California Legislative Update
April 16, 2025
Attachment Staff Report Item 12A
2 Agenda
• 2025 California Legislative Timeline
• 2025 California Legislative Themes
• 2025-2026 Governor's Proposed Budget
• Ava Legislative Program
• April 2025 Bill Review:
▪ Assembly
▪ Senate
Attachment Staff Report Item 12A
2025 California Legislative Timeline
3 January
6: Legislature reconvenes
10: Govenor submits
budget
February
21: Bill introduction
deadline
March April
WE ARE HERE
May
2: Policy cmtes move
fiscal bills to fiscal cmtes
(1st chamber)
9: Policy cmtes move
non-fiscal bills to floor
(1st chamber)
June
6: Last day for bills to be
passed by 1st house
15: Budget bill must be
passed
July
18: Policy cmtes move
bills to fiscal cmtes or
floor (2nd chamber)
August
29: Fiscal cmtes move
bills to floor (2nd
chamber)
September
12: Last day for each
chamber to pass bills
October
12: Last day for Governor
to sign/veto bills
November December
Attachment Staff Report Item 12A
2025 California Legislative Themes
4 Affordability: In the wake of November election, leadership in both the Senate and Assembly are prioritizing policies to reduce cost of living in California.
Energy/Climate: As part of the broader affordability push, multiple bills have been introduced with the goal of lowering electricity prices. Furthermore, reauthorization of the State's cap-and-trade program will be hotly debated.
Wildfire/Insurance: The impact of the Southern California fires are continuing to exacerbate the state's insurance crisis and will likely have a significant impact on legislation concerning wildfire response and preparation policies.
AI: For a second consecutive year, legislators will pursue policies to erect AI guardrails in the healthcare, consumer, and employment sectors, among others.
Federal Pushback: Legislation introduced in several policy areas seek to implement backstops against proposed and expected federal rollbacks and regulation. In particular, legislators are concerned about rumored Medicare and Medicaid cuts and their potential impact on the state.
Attachment Staff Report Item 12A
2025-2026 Governor's Proposed Budget
5 In January, the Governor proposed a roughly balanced budget with higher than projected revenues largely offset by higher expenditures (including $15B in total reserves). The state budget was in a stronger position than last year because the Governor and the Legislature worked to balance the budget over a two-year period in 2024.
In February, General Fund revenues were $4.6 billion (3.8%) above 2024-25 year-to-date projections, despite the multi-month delay allowed for Los Angeles County taxpayers due to the January wildfires.
However, as of April, the Governor's office and the Legislative Analysts's Office are now projecting multi-year operating deficits thru 2028-29 due to the SoCal Fires, federal budget uncertainty (e.g., Medicaid), and the impact of the Trump Administration's tariff policies.
In response, the Legislature is expected to adopt “early action” legislation amending current year budget to address immediate needs related to the SoCal fires and pay for nearly $3 billion in higher than expected medical expenditures.
Attachment Staff Report Item 12A
Ava’s California Legislative Program
6 Ava legislative staff's tracking, analysis, and recommendations for bill positions are based on Ava’s Legislative Program.
• Ava Board determines final bill positions
Note: Legislative staff will propose an updated Legislative Program (2025) for adoption at the May Board Meeting
Attachment Staff Report Item 12A
7 April 2025 Bill Review
Throughout February, March, and April, Ava's
legislative team partners with our consultants in
Sacramento, CalCCA, industry partners, advocates,
the Board, and others to assess all bills according to
the subject matter, the Ava Legislative Program,
industry perspectives, and potential customer
impact (among a number of factors) to determine
which bills we should actively monitor and bring to
the Board for potential engagement.
We further work with our cross-functional partners
to examine a sub-set of the most important bills to
determine which bills to bring before the Board for
your consideration.
As of the February introduction
deadline, California legislators
proposed 2,350 bills
Ongoing cross-functional
analysis of 24 bills for potential
consideration by the Board
Legislative team is monitoring
~100 bills
Attachment Staff Report Item 12A
8 Bill #
(Author)
Description Ava Delegation
Sponsor?
Bill Status
Assembly
AB 13
(Ransom-D)
Establishes geographic representation for CPUC Commissioners and adds a legislative liaison. Mandates an annual report on rate affordability and case resolutions, along with increased transparency on rate-setting decisions, including detailed reports to the Legislature within 15 days of final decisions.
Yes Asm. Approps
Committee
AB 39
(Zbur-D)
Requires that in next revision to their general plans, cities and counties must adopt an electrification/decarbonization plan.
No Asm. Local Gov
Committee
AB 44
(Schultz-D)
Requires the CEC to define and publicize load modification protocols by 12/2026, allowing LSEs to adjust their electrical demand forecasts. The bill aims to improve grid reliability by incorporating flexible demand tools, supporting decarbonization, and helping LSEs manage their resource adequacy obligations.
No Asm. U&E
Committee
AB 99
(Ta-R)
Prohibits an electrical corporation from proposing a rate increase above the level of inflation for any general rate cycle, except for cases related to safety improvements, system upgrades, or increased costs of materials.
No Asm. Approps
Committee
AB 222
(Bauer-Kahan-D)
AI data center energy tracking bill: Before using or making a covered model or system available, developers must calculate the total energy used and the percentage generated in California, then publish this data on their website. Additionally, the Commission may adopt regulations to improve energy standards generally.
Yes Asm. Privacy &
Consumer
Protection Committ
ee
Attachment Staff Report Item 12A
9 Bill #
(Author)
Description Ava Delegation
Sponsor?
Bill Status
Assembly
AB 259
(Rubio-D)
Extends Brown Act alternative teleconferencing rules indefinitely (currently scheduled to expire in 2026).
No Asm. Local Gov
Committee
AB 303
(Addis-D)
Prohibits CEC certification of battery energy storage >200 MWh; prohibits authorization of battery energy storage within 3,200 ft of a sensitive receptor or an environmentally sensitive site.
No Asm. U&E
Committee
AB 306
(Schultz-D,
co:Wicks-D)
In response to LA fires and housing crisis: places restrictions on local changes to building standards for residential units from June 2025 to June 2031, emphasizing uniformity in housing regulations and the protection of health, safety, and home hardening.
Co-author, yes Senate – 2nd
chamber
AB 434
(DeMaio-R)
Prohibits public agencies from authorizing the construction of 200+ MWh battery energy storage (BES) facilities until January 1, 2028.
After this date, construction can only proceed if the project meets new safety guidelines and minimum standards issued by the State Fire Marshal, excluding subject BES facilities from CEC certification.
No Asm. U&E
Committee
AB 740
(Harabedian-D)
Mandates electrical corporations to report on their efforts to achieve load shifting goals. Directs the CEC to develop a strategic plan to facilitate the large-scale deployment of Virtual Power Plants.
No Asm. U&E
Committee 4/23
Attachment Staff Report Item 12A
10 Bill #
(Author)
Description Ava Delegation
Sponsor?
Bill Status
Assembly
AB 884
(Essayli-R)
Prohibits an IOU from contributing to a candidate for elective state office and would prohibit a candidate for elective state office from accepting a contribution from an investor-owned utility.
No Asm. Elections
Committee
AB 915
(Petrie-Norris-D)
Appropriates $900M from General Fund to CPUC FY 25-26 for Clean Energy Reliability Investment Plan for local incentive grants to increase investment in clean energy infrastructure.
No Asm. – Pending
Committee Referral
AB 1117
(Schultz-D)
Requires the implementation of dynamic pricing for all commercial and residential customers by 2030. CCA participation in dynamic pricing is voluntary but requires gen rate alignment with market conditions while preventing cost shifts between bundled and unbundled customers.
No Asm. Approps
Committee
AB 1260
(Ward-D)
Requires the CPUC to modify customer renewable energy
subscription programs; requires CEC to evaluate community solar+storage as load-modifying resource.
No Asm. U&E
Committee 4/23
AB 1423
(Irwin-D)
Expands CEC's reliability and uptime regulations to all publicly-funded/utility-funded chargers installed before 2024 (including medium- and heavy-duty). Provides authority for CEC to impose civil penalties of no greater than $2,500 for each violation on companies that don't meet the CEC's standards.
No Asm. Transportation
Committee
Attachment Staff Report Item 12A
11 Bill #
(Author)
Description Ava Delegation
Sponsor?
Bill Status
Senate
SB 24
(McNerney-D)
Prohibits IOUs from using ratepayer funds political influence activities, charitable contributions, and lobbying against municipalization. It also mandates utilities to report detailed expense data to ensure compliance and requires service restoration during poor air quality conditions.
Yes Sen. EUC Committee
SB 57
(Padilla-D co:
McNerney-D)
Requires CPUC to establish transmission and distribution (T&D) tariffs for data centers to protect nonparticipating customers from cost shifts; requires retail sellers to serve data centers by 2030 with electricity from 100% zero-carbon resources with no resource shuffling.
Co Author: Yes Sen. Approps
Committee
SB 239
(Arreguín-D)
Authorizes subsidiary bodies to use alternative teleconferencing until 2030 with specific notice, agenda, public participation rules.
Yes Sen. Judiciary
Committee 5/6
SB 254
(Becker-D)
Requires IOU reports on Family Electric Rate Assistance Program (FERA) to include # of eligible households enrolled by Disadvantaged Community (DAC); requires strategies to reach households in DACs.
No Sen. EUC Committee
SB 282
(Wiener-D)
Streamlines certification of residential heat pump installers / ability to install with local permits.
No Sen. Local Gov 4/23
SB 283
(Laird-D)
Requires energy storage facilities to comply with NFPA 855 fire safety standards, certify fire department consultation, and undergo inspections before operation.
No Sen. EUC Committee
Attachment Staff Report Item 12A
12 Bill #
(Author)
Description Ava Delegation
Sponsor?
Bill Status
Senate
SB 541
(Becker-D)
Requires CEC in IEPR to allocate incremental load shifting to each retail supplier based on its relative share of statewide load. Instead of CPUC process, LSEs must meet established load-shifting goals, to extent cost-effective. Requires all retail suppliers to provide rate info to CEC's Market-Informed Demand Automation Server to provide 3rd parties with access to real-time rate info to automate load flexibility.
Requires all LSEs to offer optional dynamic pricing tariffs.
No Sen. EUC Committee
SB 593
(Hurtado-D)
Requires IOUs, Munis, and CCAs to provide notice of power surges to customers and compensate if equipment is at fault. Amendment to remove CCAs accepted in Committee (4/7)
No Sen. Judiciary
Committee
SB 698
(McNerney-D)
Authorizes CEC to establish DER equipment lists and adopt guidelines that further energy goals including solar energy systems, energy storage, bidirectional charging, and EVSE.
Yes Sen. Approps
Committee
Attachment Staff Report Item 12A
+1 833.699.3223 [email protected]
AvaEnergy.org
Legislative
Program
State and Federal Policy Priorities
Updated April 2025
Attachment Staff Report Item 12B
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM—updated April 2025
Contents
Introduction .....................................................................................................................3 Ava Board of Directors.....................................................................................................4 Contact Information.........................................................................................................5 Mailing Address...........................................................................................................................................................5 Program Staff..............................................................................................................................................................5 Legislative Advocates.......................................................................................................6 State Legislative Advocate ..........................................................................................................................................6 Federal Legislative Advocate ......................................................................................................................................6 General Legislative Principles ..........................................................................................7 Making Electricity More Affordable............................................................................................................................7 Protecting Community Choice ....................................................................................................................................7 Accelerating Decarbonization.....................................................................................................................................7 Promoting Local Development ...................................................................................................................................7 Increasing Bill Transparency and Understanding .......................................................................................................8 Ava Public Policy Positions...............................................................................................9
1.1 Nonbypassable Charges........................................................................................................................................9
1.2 Disadvantaged Communities................................................................................................................................9
1.3 Environmental Sustainability ................................................................................................................................9
1.4 Finance ..................................................................................................................................................................9
1.5 Educational, Neighborhood, and Social Services................................................................................................10
1.6 Distributed Energy Resources.............................................................................................................................10
1.7 Clean Energy Tax Credits.....................................................................................................................................10
1.8 Streamlining Energy Permitting and Regulatory Compliance ............................................................................10 Legislative Program Coordination..................................................................................11 Attachment Staff Report Item 12B
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM—updated April 2025
Introduction
The Ava Community Energy Legislative Program outlines the legislative priorities and stances of Ava Community Energy (“Ava”) with the intent to inform customers, representatives, and policymakers of Ava’s stances on the myriad public policies that intersect with Ava’s priorities, programs, and services. These priorities are applicable to legislation, statewide referenda, grant funding opportunities, and local ballot initiatives.
Ava has five major legislative priorities: Making Electricity More Affordable, Protecting Community Choice, Accelerating Decarbonization, Promoting Local Development, and Increasing Bill Transparency and Understanding.
Ava support of legislation will be contingent upon that legislation adhering to these priorities.
Moreover, Ava supports any and all policies that will preserve or enhance the ability of Ava to promote these priorities at the local level.
This document provides direction to Ava’s legislative advocates in Sacramento and Washington, DC. Additionally, this document serves as the foundation for any Ava Board action regarding Federal or State legislation or funding opportunity. Staff may draft letters, direct our legislative advocates, or speak on behalf of Ava regarding the legislative priorities this document outlines.
Any correspondence signifying Ava’s support or opposition of a given bill must be approved by the Ava Board of Directors, the Board’s Executive Committee, or the CEO in accordance with the delegation of authority provided by the Board to the CEO on time-sensitive matters.
Any questions regarding this Legislative Program can be directed to Sam Sadle, Principal Legislative Manager, at 510.753.5248 or [email protected].
Sincerely,
Howard Chang
Chief Executive Officer, Ava
Attachment Staff Report Item 12B
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM—updated April 2025
Ava Board of Directors
Alameda County
Supervisor Elisa Márquez
Albany
Mayor Robin López
Berkeley
Councilmember Igor Tregub
Dublin
Councilmember John Morada
Emeryville
Vice Mayor Sukhdeep Kaur
Fremont
Councilmember Teresa Keng
Hayward
Councilmember Julie Roche
Lathrop
Councilmember Minnie Diallo
Livermore
Councilmember Ben Barrientos
Newark
Councilmember Julie Del Catancio
Oakland
Councilmember Rowena Brown
Piedmont
Mayor Betsy Andersen (Vice Chair)
Pleasanton
Mayor Jack Balch (Chair)
San Joaquin County
Supervisor Robert Rickman
San Leandro
Mayor Juan González III
Stockton
Mayor Christina Fugazi
Tracy
Councilmember Dotty Nygard
Union City
Vice Mayor Scott Sakakihara
Community Advisory Committee (non-voting)
Ed Hernandez, Chair
Attachment Staff Report Item 12B
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM—updated April 2025
Contact Information
Mailing Address
1999 Harrison Street, Suite 2300
Oakland, CA 94612
Program Staff
Chief Executive Officer
Howard Chang
510.809.7458
[email protected]
Principal Legislative Manager
Sam Sadle
510.753.5248
[email protected]
Attachment Staff Report Item 12B
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM—updated April 2025
Legislative Advocates
State Legislative Advocate
Omni Government Relations
Dan Chia
1121 L Street, Suite 408
Sacramento, CA 95814
916.425.8481
[email protected]
Federal Legislative Advocate
Townsend Public Affairs
Joseph Melo
600 Pennsylvania Avenue SE, Suite 207
Washington, DC, 20003
202.546.8696
[email protected]
Attachment Staff Report Item 12B
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM—updated April 2025
General Legislative Principles
Ava has five general legislative principles. These priorities serve as the foundation for all actions Ava will take, including the lobbying for policies that promote those same guiding priorities.
Public policy encompasses a myriad of subject and topic areas. As these policies intersect at the local level, they have the ability to impact Ava revenues, programs, and/or administrative discretion and control. Ava will support policies that make electricity more affordable, protect community choice, accelerate decarbonatization, promote local development, increase bill transparency and understanding, or any combination thereof. If a given policy does not meet these criteria, Ava will oppose, support if amended, or in some cases take no stance on that policy or legislation.
The General Legislative Principles for Ava are:
Making Electricity More Affordable
• Support legislation, policies, referenda, and budgets that put downward pressure on current and future energy rates and decrease the amount customers pay for their electricity bills without jeopardizing reliability and emissions reductions goals.
• Oppose any legislation, policies, referenda, and budgets that increase customer costs without a clear and obvious justification for doing so, and unless there are no viable alternatives.
Protecting Community Choice
• Support any legislation, policies, referenda, and budgets that maintain or improve the stability of community choice energy providers by ensuring regulatory structure is equitable and enables Ava to meet its mission and goals.
• Oppose any legislation, policies, referenda, and budgets that undermine or circumvent community choice energy and impede the ability of the agency to achieve its mission and goals or its value proposition.
Accelerating Decarbonization
• Support the creation or expansion of federal, state, and local policies and programs that enable Ava to contribute to state and local community efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. • Oppose any legislation, policies, programs, referenda, unfunded mandates and budgets that would have an adverse impact on Ava’s ability to advance decarbonization through its procurement, programs, projects, and services.
Promoting Local Development
• Support any legislation, policy, referenda, and budgets that enhance community choice energy providers’ ability to invest in local clean energy, distributed energy resources, and zero-emission transportation, and promote equity in the communities that it serves.
• Oppose any legislation, policy, referenda, and budgets that limit or undermine Ava’s ability to invest in local clean energy, distributed energy resources, and zero-emission transportation, and promote equity in the communities that it serves.
Attachment Staff Report Item 12B
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM—updated April 2025
Increasing Bill Transparency and Understanding
• Support any legislation, policies, referenda, and budgets that provide for a more transparent electricity ratemaking process and strengthen customer understanding of where charges come from. • Oppose any legislation, policies, referenda, and budgets that hinder ratemaking transparency and/or induce customer confusion related to energy bills and why they are being billed for certain charges.
Attachment Staff Report Item 12B
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM—updated April 2025
Ava Public Policy Positions
The General Legislative Priorities help identify which public policy positions Ava will take.
The list of policy positions below is by no means exhaustive. In addition to the general legislative priorities, Ava takes the following more specific public policy positions:
1.1 Nonbypassable Charges
A. Oppose legislation that restricts or limits Ava’s ability to procure its own energy products to meet state policy goals.
B. Oppose legislation that increases or is likely to lead to an increase in nonbypassable charges.
C. Support legislation that promotes a level playing field between community choice aggregators and other market participants.
D. Support legislation that enhances the flexibility of community choice energy providers to meet statewide procurement policy and develop and expand programs, local options, and rate design to support Ava’s community and customers.
1.2 Disadvantaged Communities
A. Support legislation and initiatives that boost funding for and access to bill credits, energy projects, and electrification programs that serve disadvantaged communities and low-income customers within Ava’s service territory.
B. Support legislation and initiatives that reduce local air pollution, health outcome disparities, and other negative impacts associated with energy production and consumption.
C. Support legislation and policies that enhance the stability and impact of programs that reduce energy bills for low-income customers and assist them with paying their energy bills.
D. Oppose legislation and initiatives that have the potential to disproportionately and negatively impact disadvantaged communities and/or low-income customers within Ava’s service territory.
1.3 Environmental Sustainability
A. Support legislation and initiatives that increase and/or stabilize funding for the creation of sustainable energy supply infrastructure, innovative renewable energy sources, and resource efficiency programs.
B. Support legislation and initiatives that encourage efficient energy consumption and the overall conservation of energy resources.
C. Support legislation and initiatives that reduce and mitigate the effects of climate change and enhance local resiliency.
1.4 Finance
A. Support legislation that enhances the financial standing of community choice aggregators and their ability to receive a positive credit rating.
B. Oppose legislation that removes the tax-exempt status of municipal bonds or otherwise interferes with community choice aggregators’ ability to leverage bond markets to secure customer savings.
C. Oppose any legislation that would divert community choice energy revenues to the State or other governmental entities.
Attachment Staff Report Item 12B
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM—updated April 2025
1.5 Educational, Neighborhood, and Social Services
A. Support legislation that aids or helps Ava to provide energy support services, electric bill and home electrification education, and opportunities for reducing energy costs to people who are low-income, seniors, veterans, and/or people with disabilities.
B. Support legislation and initiatives that increase funding for energy efficiency, demand response, solar plus storage, transportation electrification programs, and energy literacy services.
C. Support legislation and policies that enhance ratemaking transparency and customer energy bill transparency and understanding.
1.6 Distributed Energy Resources
A. Support legislation and policies that increase funding for and facilitate the adoption and deployment of distributed energy resources (DERs), including batteries, electric heat pump water heaters, thermostats, and electric vehicle charging.
B. Support legislation and initiatives that encourage the development of dynamic load-shifting capabilities and technology, including managed charging.
C. Oppose legislation that threatens community choice aggregator autonomy over DER program implementation and virtual power plant (VPP) configuration and cost-recovery.
1.7 Clean Energy Tax Credits
A. Support legislation that maintains and/or expands financial incentives for investing in and developing clean energy projects, including for renewable energy component manufacturing and electricity generation.
B. Support legislation that maintains and/or expands financial incentives for households and property owners to install clean energy technologies and invest in energy efficiency home upgrades.
C. Support legislation that maintains and/or expands financial incentives for consumers, businesses, and local governments to purchase new or used zero emission vehicles and charging infrastructure.
D. Oppose legislation and policies that reduce, repeal, or create barriers to accessing clean energy tax incentives.
1.8 Streamlining Energy Permitting and Regulatory Compliance A. Support legislation and policies that reduce administrative and regulatory barriers to developing renewable energy generation and transmission projects, including through implementing more efficient permitting processes, without jeopardizing environmental standards and local community and stakeholder input.
B. Support legislation and policies that reduce and/or streamline certification requirements and permitting processes necessary to install energy efficient electric appliances and home battery systems, making it easier and more affordable for Ava customers to electrify their homes.
C. Support legislation and policies that eliminate outdated and duplicative compliance reporting requirements that save administrative overhead costs and increase customer savings.
D. Oppose legislation and policies that unjustifiably increase burdensome regulatory requirements, including for energy project development and ongoing load serving entity (LSE) compliance.
Attachment Staff Report Item 12B
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM—updated April 2025
Legislative Program Coordination
Legislation can be brought to the attention of Ava through a variety of channels:
• State and Federal Legislative Advocates
• Elected Representatives
• CalCCA
• LEAN Energy US
• Ava Board Members
• Ava Staff
• Ava Community Advisory Committee
• Ava Customers and Community Members
• Other Governmental Associations
All legislative requests for support or opposition will be directed toward Ava’s Public Policy department. Ava staff will then review the legislation in coordination with any relevant departments to analyze whether the legislation aligns with Ava’s general legislative priorities. Staff will then monitor and track the legislation, providing updates when necessary.
Concurrent with this evaluation, Ava’s Public Policy department will recommend a position and course of action.
Legislation Review Process and Timeline
The California state legislature routinely introduces thousands of bills during each legislative session, approximately half of which are passed by both chambers and sent to the governor’s desk. In 2024, for example, the legislature introduced 2,124 bills, 1,206 of which were acted on by the Governor. Although the exact number fluctuates year to year, typically a few hundred bills each session are related to energy, utilities, or local governance – the policy areas in which Ava takes a particular interest.
Bringing every energy or local government-related bill to the Board of Directors for a position vote each year would be unfeasible and inefficient. Ava’s Public Policy department, in partnership with Ava’s legislative advocates and trade associations, is therefore responsible for tracking this full suite of legislative activity, identifying bills that have or could have an impact on Ava’s operations, and ultimately selecting a smaller subset of bills to prioritize and bring to the Board of Directors for a position vote, based on the following general criteria:
1. Taking action (for, against, or neutral) on this legislation will align with Ava’s legislative principles;
2. Ava has a unique interest in this legislation;
3. Should Ava take no action, it is unlikely that other relevant stakeholders will lead the push for or against this legislation; and/or
4. The impacts of this legislation on Ava are substantial/existential.
Ava staff will typically spend the first few months of the legislative session (January-March) monitoring bill introductions and tracking all relevant legislation. As bills are amended in late March and into April, staff will conduct deeper bill analyses and determine the final slate of bills to introduce to committees and the full Board of Directors. Starting in May, staff will recommend the Board take a specific position on each bill included in the previously identified slate. (Support, Support if Amended, Oppose, Oppose Unless Amended, Neutral) Attachment Staff Report Item 12B
LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM—updated April 2025
Ava staff will follow a similar set of criteria when evaluating federal legislation. Because the Congressional legislative cycle is generally less predictable than California’s and the volume of bills passed each year by Congress is typically much smaller, federal bill position recommendations will be brought to the Board on an ad-hoc basis.
Legislative Action
There are six main levels of action, which may be taken independently or in combination, but all of which are coordinated by the Principal Legislative Manager of Public Policy or their designee:
1. Direction to lobbyists to advocate in support, support if amended, oppose unless amended, or opposition to legislation
a. Pursuant to direction from the Ava Board of Directors, the Board’s Executive Committee, or the CEO in accordance with the delegation of authority provided by the Board to the CEO on time-sensitive matters, Ava staff will notify lobbyists of Ava’s stance on legislation and direct them to take appropriate action with legislators. Ava may remain neutral on a given piece of legislation.
2. Ava correspondence with relevant legislators
a. In conjunction with providing direction to lobbyists once Ava has determined its stance on legislation, Ava staff will send a support or opposition letter to the appropriate legislators.
3. Ava Board-approved resolution
a. Ava staff will draft a staff report and resolution for consideration by the full Ava Board of Directors. Approved resolutions will be forwarded along with a letter signed by the Chief Executive Officer or his/her designee to the appropriate legislators.
4. Ava Board outreach
a. Ava staff will draft talking points and other relevant information for individual Board Members to personally contact appropriate legislators to advocate on behalf of Ava.
5. Travel to Sacramento or Washington, D.C
a. Ava staff and/or Board Members may decide to advocate in person. Staff will coordinate with the appropriate lobbyists to organize meetings or attendance at other lobbying events.
6. Draft or Sponsor Specific Legislation
a. Ava staff and legislative advocates will work with Ava’s legislative representatives to articulate Ava’s stance on a policy and to ensure said stance is codified in statute.
Attachment Staff Report Item 12B