Plain English Breakdown
The official status indicates a veto, but it is unclear if lawmakers overrode that veto based on the provided text.
AB-615: Emergency Plans for Power and Battery Facilities
This vetoed bill would change application rules for power lines, plants, and battery storage by removing some map requirements and adding new emergency response plans.
What This Bill Does
- Removes the requirement that applications include maps of proposed routes, descriptions of transmission lines, route justifications, or environmental impact summaries.
- Requires applicants to create an emergency response plan paid for by them that covers impacts on nearby areas during emergencies.
- Mandates coordination between applicants and local emergency management agencies, unified program agencies, and first responders.
- Requires energy storage system applications to include analysis and feedback from a local emergency management agency.
- Sets safety distance rules for new battery systems based on the latest National Fire Protection Association standards.
Who It Names or Affects
- Companies or people applying to build electrical transmission lines or thermal power plants.
- Proposers of energy storage systems like large batteries.
- The State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission.
- Local emergency management agencies, unified program agencies, and first response teams.
Terms To Know
- State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission
- The state agency that reviews applications for new power facilities.
- Energy storage system
- A facility, such as a large battery bank, used to store electricity.
- Setback requirements
- Rules that set the minimum safe distance between a facility and nearby buildings or roads.
Limits and Unknowns
- The governor vetoed this bill, so it did not become law unless lawmakers later overrode the veto.
- Safety rules for battery systems only apply to applications submitted after January 1, 2026.
- The text does not specify how much money applicants must pay to create these emergency plans.