Report to Mayor and City Council
Tuesday, April 04, 2023
Consent
SUBJECT:
Title
CONSIDER TAKING A POSITION OF SUPPORT AND SENDING A CORRESPONDING LETTER REGARDING ASSEMBLY BILL 1538 TO CREATE A PROGRAM TO INCENTIVIZE GETTING CLEAN, ZERO-CARBON CAPACITY RESOURCES ONLINE TO DECREASE ELECTRICITY RATES AND INCREASE POWER GRID RELIABILITY (CITY COUNCIL)
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I. SUMMARY
This item is on the agenda at the request of District 3 Councilmember Cedric Hicks and transmits a request from the Clean Power Alliance (the "CPA") for City Council to consider taking a position of support and sending a corresponding letter regarding Assembly Bill 1538. The proposed letter is included as Exhibit 1 and the related fact sheet is included as Exhibit 2.
Authored by Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi, AB 1538 would create a catalyst program to incentivize getting clean, zero-carbon capacity resources online to decrease electricity rates and increase grid reliability. Given the increasing cost of electrical capacity, and the impacts that it has on customers, a combination of key resources going offline, regulatory changes, and other issues have reduced system capacity to critical levels.
At the same time, demand continues to increase due to climate change, and will increase even further as the state pushes towards increasing vehicle and building electrification. Like the rest of the state, our community has seen electricity costs increase over the past several years, while the risks of rotating outages during the scorching summer months have increased. Without a steady and predictable influx of new clean resources in the market, prices will continue to go up, electricity bills will continue to rise, and grid emergencies or rotating outages will become more frequent.
II. RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
TAKE a position of SUPPORT for Assembly Bill 1538 and DIRECT staff to transmit a corresponding letter.
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III. ALTERNATIVES
TAKE another action the City Council deems appropriate an...
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