California 2023-2024 Regular Session Status: Passed Senate 1 D cosponsors

SB 1298 — Certification of thermal powerplants: data centers.

Last action — Re-referred to Com. on RLS. pursuant to Assembly Rule 97.

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  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed Assembly
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill died with 2023-2024 Regular Session. It reached “Passed Senate” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.

This bill is no longer active — its legislative session has ended, so there is no live prognosis. It would have to be reintroduced in the current session to move again.

Summary

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 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 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. The bill would require the owner or operator of a facility granted an exemption under the bill to fully mitigate the facility's impacts on air quality, as provided. The bill would repeal its provisions on January 1, 2027.

Bill Text

Action History

  1. Re-referred to Com. on RLS. pursuant to Assembly Rule 97.

  2. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

  3. Read second time and amended. Ordered to second reading.

  4. From committee: Do pass as amended. (Ayes 11. Noes 0.) (August 15).

  5. August 7 set for first hearing. Placed on suspense file.

  6. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

  7. From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (July 2).

  8. From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on L. & E. (Ayes 12. Noes 0.) (July 1). Re-referred to Com. on L. & E.

  9. Re-referred to Coms. on NAT. RES. and L. & E. pursuant to Assembly Rule 96.

  10. Assembly Rule 56 suspended.

  11. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on L. & E.

  12. From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on L. & E. (Ayes 14. Noes 0.) (June 19).

  13. From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on U. & E.

  14. Referred to Coms. on U. & E. and L. & E.

  15. In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.

  16. Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 33. Noes 0. Page 4146.) Ordered to the Assembly.

  17. Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

  18. Read second time and amended. Ordered to second reading.

  19. From committee: Do pass as amended. (Ayes 6. Noes 0. Page 3979.) (May 16).

  20. May 16 set for first hearing. Reconsideration of favorable vote granted.

  21. Set for hearing May 16.

  22. May 6 hearing: Placed on APPR suspense file.

  23. Set for hearing May 6.

  24. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

  25. From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 14. Noes 0. Page 3632.) (April 16).

  26. Set for hearing April 16.

  27. Referred to Com. on E., U. & C.

  28. From printer. May be acted upon on or after March 17.

  29. Introduced. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 121 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (121)

121 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 121 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Votes

Do pass as amended.

Passed 11 Yea · 0 Nay · 4 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 9000
Unaffiliated 2001
Republican 0003
Total 11004
% of votes cast 73%0%0%27%
How each member voted (15)
Member Party Vote
Villapudua — Yea
Jim Patterson — Not Voting
Wendy Carrillo — Yea
Arambula, Joaquin Democratic Yea
Bryan, Isaac G. Democratic Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Yea
Fong, Mike Democratic Yea
Grayson, Timothy S. Democratic Yea
Haney, Matt Democratic Yea
Hart, Gregg Democratic Yea
Pellerin, Gail Democratic Yea
Wicks, Buffy Democratic Yea
Dixon, Diane Republican Not Voting
Sanchez, Kate Republican Not Voting
Ta, Tri Republican Not Voting

Official roll call →

Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Labor and Employment]

Passed 12 Yea · 0 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 7000
Unaffiliated 2000
Republican 3000
Total 12000
% of votes cast 100%0%0%0%
How each member voted (12)
Member Party Vote
Wood — Yea
Friedman — Yea
Bauer-Kahan, Rebecca Democratic Yea
Bryan, Isaac G. Democratic Yea
Connolly, Damon Democratic Yea
Kalra, Ash Democratic Yea
Muratsuchi, Al Democratic Yea
Pellerin, Gail Democratic Yea
Wicks, Buffy Democratic Yea
Flora, Heath Republican Yea
Hoover, Josh Republican Yea
Lackey, Tom Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Do pass as amended and be re-referred to the Committee on [Labor and Employment]

Passed 14 Yea · 0 Nay · 2 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 6000
Republican 3000
Democratic 5002
Total 14002
% of votes cast 88%0%0%13%
How each member voted (16)
Member Party Vote
Friedman — Yea
Ting — Yea
Wood — Yea
Santiago — Yea
Holden — Yea
Jim Patterson — Yea
Bauer-Kahan, Rebecca Democratic Not Voting
Boerner, Tasha Democratic Yea
Calderon, Lisa Democratic Yea
Hart, Gregg Democratic Yea
Petrie-Norris, Cottie Democratic Yea
Reyes, Eloise Gómez Democratic Not Voting
Zbur, Rick Chavez Democratic Yea
Chen, Phillip Republican Yea
Patterson, Joe Republican Yea
Wallis, Greg Republican Yea

Official roll call →

3rd Reading

Passed 33 Yea · 0 Nay · 7 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Unaffiliated 9002
Democratic 17005
Republican 7000
Total 33007
% of votes cast 83%0%0%18%
How each member voted (40)
Member Party Vote
Roth — Yea
Atkins — Yea
Portantino — Yea
Newman — Yea
Min — Yea
Wilk — Yea
Glazer — Yea
Dodd — Yea
Bradford — Yea
Eggman — Not Voting
Skinner — Not Voting
Allen, Benjamin Democratic Not Voting
Archuleta, Bob Democratic Not Voting
Ashby, Angelique V. Democratic Yea
Becker, Josh Democratic Yea
Blakespear, Catherine S. Democratic Yea
Caballero, Anna M. Democratic Yea
Cortese, Dave Democratic Yea
Durazo, Maria Elena Democratic Yea
Gonzalez, Lena A. Democratic Yea
Hurtado, Melissa Democratic Yea
Laird, John Democratic Yea
Limón, Monique Democratic Yea
McGuire, Mike Democratic Yea
Menjivar, Caroline Democratic Not Voting
Nguyen, Stephanie Democratic Yea
Padilla, Stephen C. Democratic Yea
Rubio, Susan Democratic Yea
Smallwood-Cuevas, Lola Democratic Yea
Stern, Henry I. Democratic Not Voting
Umberg, Thomas J. Democratic Yea
Wahab, Aisha Democratic Yea
Wiener, Scott D. Democratic Not Voting
Alvarado-Gil, Marie Republican Yea
Dahle, Megan Republican Yea
Grove, Shannon Republican Yea
Jones, Brian W. Republican Yea
Niello, Roger W. Republican Yea
Ochoa Bogh, Rosilicie Republican Yea
Seyarto, Kelly Republican Yea

Official roll call →

[05-16-2024] set for [First] hearing: Reconsideration of favorable vote granted

Passed 7 Yea · 0 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 4000
Republican 2000
Unaffiliated 1000
Total 7000
% of votes cast 100%0%0%0%
How each member voted (7)
Member Party Vote
Bradford — Yea
Ashby, Angelique V. Democratic Yea
Becker, Josh Democratic Yea
Caballero, Anna M. Democratic Yea
Wahab, Aisha Democratic Yea
Jones, Brian W. Republican Yea
Seyarto, Kelly Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Do pass as amended, but first amend, and re-refer to the Committee on [Appropriations]

Passed 14 Yea · 0 Nay · 4 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 7001
Unaffiliated 5002
Republican 2001
Total 14004
% of votes cast 78%0%0%22%
How each member voted (18)
Member Party Vote
Wilk — Yea
Bradford — Yea
Dodd — Yea
Newman — Yea
Min — Yea
Eggman — Not Voting
Skinner — Not Voting
Ashby, Angelique V. Democratic Yea
Becker, Josh Democratic Yea
Caballero, Anna M. Democratic Yea
Durazo, Maria Elena Democratic Yea
Gonzalez, Lena A. Democratic Yea
Limón, Monique Democratic Yea
Rubio, Susan Democratic Yea
Stern, Henry I. Democratic Not Voting
Dahle, Megan Republican Yea
Grove, Shannon Republican Not Voting
Seyarto, Kelly Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Subjects

environment technology energy
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Frequently asked questions

What does SB 1298 do?
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 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 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. The bill would require the owner or operator of a facility granted an exemption under the bill to fully mitigate the facility's impacts on air quality, as provided. The bill would repeal its provisions on January 1, 2027.
Who sponsors SB 1298?
SB 1298 is sponsored by Cortese, Dave (Democratic).
What is the current status of SB 1298?
This bill died with 2023-2024 Regular Session. It reached “Passed Senate” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
Where can I track SB 1298?
Track SB 1298 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

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Last checked for changes 3 months ago · updated continuously

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