AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 24, 2024
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 3, 2024
AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 16, 2024
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 22, 2024
SENATE BILL No. 1298
Introduced by Senator Cortese
February 15, 2024
An act to amend amend, repeal, and add Section 25541 of the Public Resources Code, relating to energy.
legislative counsel’s digest
SB 1298, as amended, Cortese. Certification of thermal powerplants:
data centers.
Existing law vests the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission with the exclusive power to certify all locations on which an electrical transmission line or thermal powerplant is constructed, or is proposed to be constructed, and related electrical transmission lines or thermal powerplants. Existing law authorizes the commission to exempt from certification a thermal powerplant with a generating capacity of up to 100 megawatts, and modifications to existing generating facilities that do not add capacity in excess of 100 megawatts, if the commission finds that no substantial adverse impact on the environment or energy resources will result from the construction or operation of the proposed facility or from the modifications.
This bill would additionally authorize the commission to exempt from certification a thermal powerplant with a generating capacity of up to 150 megawatts if specified requirements are met, including that it is used solely as a backup generation facility for a data center, it is located
95 on the customer side of the meter and is not interconnected to the distribution system, a skilled and trained workforce is used to perform all construction work on the facility, as specified, the commission finds that no substantial adverse impact on the environment or energy resources will result from the construction and operation of the facility, and the commission finds obtains a determination from the applicable air pollution control district or air quality management district that the facility’s backup generation technology meets the best available control technology requirements set by the applicable air pollution control district or air quality management district. requirements. The bill would repeal its provisions on January 1, 2030.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
line 1 SECTION 1. Section 25541 of the Public Resources Code is line 2 amended to read:
line 3 25541. The commission may exempt from this chapter both line 4 of the following:
line 5 (a) Thermal powerplants with a generating capacity of up to line 6 100 megawatts and modifications to existing generating facilities line 7 that do not add capacity in excess of 100 megawatts, if the line 8 commission finds that no substantial adverse impact on the line 9 environment or energy resources will result from the construction line 10 or operation of the proposed facility or from the modifications. line 11 (b) (1) Thermal powerplants with a generating capacity of up line 12 to 150 megawatts, subject to all of the following conditions:
line 13 (A) The facility is used solely as a backup generation facility line 14 for a data center.
line 15 (B) The facility is located on the customer side of the meter and line 16 is not interconnected to the distribution system. line 17 (C) A skilled and trained workforce will be used to perform all line 18 construction work on the facility pursuant to paragraph (2). line 19 (D) The commission finds that no substantial adverse impact line 20 on the environment or energy resources will result from the line 21 construction and operation of the facility.
line 22 (E) The commission finds obtains a determination from the line 23 applicable air pollution control district or air quality management line 24 district that the facility’s backup generation technology meets the 95 SB 1298 — 2 —
line 1 best available control technology requirements set by the line 2 requirements, as defined in Section 40405 of the Health and Safety line 3 Code. The applicable air pollution control district or air quality line 4 management district. district shall report its determination to the line 5 commission pursuant to this subparagraph.
line 6 (F) The commission finds that energy efficiency technologies, line 7 including Energy Star appliances and demand response options, line 8 have been considered first to reduce data center load. line 9 (G) The applicant provides a report to the commission on the line 10 expected energy use of the facility, including, but not limited to, line 11 energy intensities, peak factors, load profiles, and other related line 12 information.
line 13 (2) An application for an exemption pursuant to this subdivision line 14 shall include the applicant’s certification that a skilled and trained line 15 workforce will be used to perform all construction work on the line 16 facility and all of the following apply:
line 17 (A) The applicant shall require in all contracts for the line 18 performance of work that every contractor and subcontractor at line 19 every tier will individually use a skilled and trained workforce to line 20 construct the facility.
line 21 (B) Every contractor and subcontractor shall use a skilled and line 22 trained workforce to construct the facility.
line 23 (C) Except as provided in subparagraph (E), contractors and line 24 subcontractors that fail to use a skilled and trained workforce shall line 25 be subject to the penalties provided in Section 2603 of the Public line 26 Contract Code. Penalties for a contractor’s or subcontractor’s line 27 failure to comply with the requirement to use a skilled and trained line 28 workforce may be assessed by the Labor Commissioner within 18 line 29 months of completion of the facility using the same procedures line 30 for issuance of civil wage and penalty assessments pursuant to line 31 Section 2603 of the Public Contract Code. Penalties shall be paid line 32 to the State Public Works Enforcement Fund.
line 33 (D) For purposes of this subparagraph, an applicant shall be line 34 considered to be an “awarding body” under Chapter 2.9 line 35 (commencing with Section 2600) of Part 1 of Division 2 of the line 36 Public Contract Code. Except as provided in subparagraph (E), line 37 the applicant shall retain records, including copies of monthly line 38 reports, that demonstrate compliance with Chapter 2.9 line 39 (commencing with Section 2600) of Part 1 of Division 2 of the line 40 Public Contract Code while the facility or contract is being 95 — 3 — SB 1298
line 1 performed and for three years after completion of the facility or line 2 contract. The applicant shall submit these records immediately line 3 upon request of the commission. When submitted to the line 4 commission, these records shall be a public record under the line 5 California Public Records Act (Division 10 (commencing with line 6 Section 7920.000) of Title 1 of the Government Code) and shall line 7 be open to public inspection.
line 8 (E) Subparagraphs (C) and (D) do not apply if all contractors line 9 and subcontractors performing work on the facility are subject to line 10 a project labor agreement. The project labor agreement shall also line 11 include, but not be limited to, all of the following:
line 12 (i) Provisions requiring compliance with the skilled and trained line 13 workforce requirement and for enforcement of that obligation line 14 through an arbitration procedure.
line 15 (ii) Targeted hiring provisions, including a targeted hiring plan, line 16 on a craft-by-craft basis to address job access for local, line 17 disadvantaged, or underrepresented workers, as defined by a local line 18 agency.
line 19 (iii) Apprenticeship utilization provisions that commit all parties line 20 to increasing the share of work performed by state-registered line 21 apprentices above the state-mandated minimum ratio required in line 22 Section 1777.5 of the Labor Code.
line 23 (iv) Apprenticeship utilization provisions that commit all parties line 24 to hiring and retaining a certain percentage of state-registered line 25 apprentices that have completed the Multi-Craft Core line 26 preapprenticeship training curriculum referenced in subdivision line 27 (t) of Section 14005 of the Unemployment Insurance Code. line 28 (c) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2030, line 29 and as of that date is repealed.
line 30 SEC. 2. Section 25541 is added to the Public Resources Code, line 31 to read:
line 32 25541. (a) The commission may exempt from this chapter line 33 thermal powerplants with a generating capacity of up to 100 line 34 megawatts and modifications to existing generating facilities that line 35 do not add capacity in excess of 100 megawatts, if the commission line 36 finds that no substantial adverse impact on the environment or line 37 energy resources will result from the construction or operation of line 38 the proposed facility or from the modifications. 95 SB 1298 — 4 —
line 1 (b) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2030.
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95 — 5 — SB 1298