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6 min read Assembly Bill 1777

WEEKEND NEWS CODEX: Assembly Bill 1777; Senate Bill 913; and California vs. the Defense Production Act

  • "We're Harvesting the Sun" – a Huge Solar Project Grows in California: "A sweeping plan to build 21 gigawatts of solar plus batteries on 136,000 acres could be a lifeline for Central Valley farmers facing devastating water shortages." CANARY MEDIA
  • BOEM Moves to Fast-Track Environmental Review for Offshore Fracking at Platform Gilda: "In a March 18, 2026 notice of intent, BOEM said it will prepare an environmental impact statement to evaluate a proposal to authorize well stimulation treatments, including fracking, across existing wells at the site. Platform Gilda, located approximately nine miles offshore in the Santa Barbara Channel, is part of the Santa Clara Unit and is operated by DCOR LLC." CALIFORNIA ENERGY JOURNAL
  • California Bets on an Obscure Tool to Replace Clean Air Authority Trump Revoked: " Assembly bill 1777, authored by Democrat Robert Garcia, who represents parts of San Bernardino County, would give California air regulators authority to hold ports, warehouses and railyards accountable for the pollution they draw to nearby communities — using a regulatory tool called the indirect source rule." CAL MATTERS
  • California Bill Would Unlock Distributed Energy Participation in Grid Resource Adequacy Market: "California Senator Josh Becker (D-Menlo Park) has introduced legislation aimed at integrating customer-owned energy resources into the state’s grid as a formal reliability tool. The bill, SB 913, would require the California Public Utilities Commission to update its Resource Adequacy rules to allow aggregated distributed energy resources, including home batteries, electric vehicles, and smart thermostats, to compete alongside traditional power plants. Proponents argue the measure could lower ratepayer costs by reducing the state’s reliance on expensive gas peaker plants during periods of high demand." PV MAGAZINE
  • California Sues to Block Federal Order Restarting Sable Pipeline: "California’s complaint argues the [Defense Production Act] does not authorize the federal government to override state environmental laws, judicial orders, or permitting requirements. It also contends that the statute does not permit the Department of Energy to compel private companies to enter into commercial arrangements with other private entities." CALIFORNIA ENERGY JOURNAL
  • CalReg CPUC Docket Monitor: "California electricity bills have surged roughly 39% over the last six years – the highest increase in the nation." JONES-AWAN CONSULTING
  • CARB Seeks Contractor to Help Identify UCO Mixed with Virgin Oils: "According to CARB, the selected vendor will utilize existing laboratory practices and other analytical or process-based methods to analyze biodiesel and renewable diesel feedstocks or finished diesel fuels to identify the existence of virgin oils. Information provided by the vendor will be used by CARB and third-party verification bodies to support administration of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard." BIOMASS MAGAZINE
  • Chevron Raises Alarm Over California Energy Crisis as Imports Slow: "Chevron’s refining chief, Andy Walz, described the potential consequences as his 'worst fear.' Cities such as San Francisco and Los Angeles could face shortages of jet fuel and gasoline, critical not only for civilian transportation but also for military operations, given that the state hosts more than 30 military bases..." YAHOO NEWS
  • Data Center Approvals in San Jose and Sunnyvale: "STACK will design, procure, and construct the 115 kV Ringwood Switching Station in San Jose to serve a 90 MW data center load, then transfer ownership to PG&E. The switching station is expected to be operational by April 2026." CRI LINKEDIN
  • Data Centers and California Electric Policy: "California should accommodate data center growth while avoiding unnecessary infrastructure investments by making more effective use of its existing electric grid through smarter planning. This includes incentivizing and prioritizing targeted transmission upgrades and strategic data center siting, encouraging the clean and flexible use of backup power resources, and leveraging load shifting to support the grid during periods of peak demand." LITTLE HOOVER COMMISSION
    • California Report Outlines Framework to Manage Data Center Power Demand: "In its report Data Centers and California Electricity Policy, the Little Hoover Commission evaluates how the state should manage rising electricity demand from data centers through updated rate design, financing mechanisms, and regulatory tools. Data centers—particularly those supporting artificial intelligence—are identified as a major new source of load growth and a potential driver of grid investment and modernization." CALIFORNIA ENERGY JOURNAL
  • Here Comes the Western Spadefoot: "The western spadefoot is a toad-like species that gets its name from shovel-like growths on its back legs it uses for digging. Its habitat has declined over the years due to “agriculture, extractive development, and roads,” according to the Center for Biological Diversity’s petition...The spadefoot petition risks putting the species on a collision course with clean energy plans that, by the Public Utilities Commission’s latest calculations, call for 36 gigawatts of new solar and 18 gigawatts of storage by 2031." THE CURRENT
  • How Sacramento Built an Energy Crisis and Called it a Climate Policy: "A state that produces its own CARBOB in sufficient volume, with a Gulf Coast connection as backup, protects both its air quality and its energy security. Sacramento has built a structure that protects neither. The governors of Nevada and Arizona have standing to demand federal action. The commanders of 40 military installations have operational reasons to require it." CALIFORNIA GLOBE
  • I Don't Have the "Capacity" for That Right Now: "Capacity – what we in the West call 'resource adequacy'– is a hard concept to get right. It doesn’t exist in other 'commodity' markets. In the old era of individual utilities building out a system to meet its needs, “capacity” was a term of art, not an accurately quantified term of a utility’s portfolio that was to represent a possibility of maximum capability. The need to more precisely define it and quantify it was to allow for utilities to share resources once we evolved to a system of moving or sharing power. This evolution developed after the slowdown of rapid economic growth in the first three quarters of the 20th century; the industry could not rely upon constant large load growth as demand grew much more slowly." WESTERN POWER TRADING FORUM
  • Joint Workshop on Safety Culture Assessments: "Multiple surveys from different agencies and internal departments lead to lower participation and employee burnout. SDG&E noted a drop in participation and stopped its internal survey to focus on the Energy Safety survey." MEETING BRIEFS
  • Over 400 Million Barrels Will be Added to the Oil Market Soon – What are Strategic Reserves and What Can They Do? "Starting in 1912, Congress set aside several petroleum-rich areas in the U.S., including Elk Hills in California and Teapot Dome in Wyoming. In times of need, oil wells could be drilled in those regions to produce fuel for the Navy." THE CONVERSATION
  • Replacing California's Peaker Plants with Long-Duration Energy Storage: "LDES systems, which store and deliver electricity for 10–12 hours or more, offer a cost-effective and reliable alternative. LDES systems store excess electricity when supply exceeds demand and discharges it when needed—covering evenings, multi-day renewable droughts, and other periods of grid stress." KLEINMAN CENTER FOR ENERGY POLICY
  • Stored Potential – Focus Group Perspectives on California's Battery Boom: "Participants across groups demonstrated very low baseline awareness of utility-scale battery energy storage systems. Most had never heard of the technology before the discussion. While a few participants initially said they were familiar with battery storage, it quickly became clear that they were referring to household-level battery systems paired with rooftop solar, rather than large, grid-scale facilities. Personal experience with residential renewable technologies — especially solar panels, electric vehicles, and home battery systems — provided a useful entry point for understanding the concept of battery storage for the grid. Framing BESS as essentially 'home batteries, but for many houses' helped participants grasp how the technology functions at a larger scale." DATA FOR PROGRESS
  • The Meek Must Not Inherit California's Electricity Bills: "California has the second-highest residential electricity rates in the country, roughly double the national average. Rates have risen 39 percent since 2019, the largest increase of any state in the nation. For a low-income family in California, electricity already eats up about 4.4 percent of their annual income. For a wealthy household, the same bill represents just 1.5 percent. The Public Policy Institute of California stated that in April 2025, 1.9 million California households had overdue electricity bills. 50,000 had their power cut off." LA SENTINAL
  • Transmission Infrastructure Gets Top Billing at March 19 CPUC Voting Meeting: "'These decisions,' said Commissioner Harada, 'are about what every Californian expects – that when we flip on a switch, the light turns on. When we plug in our EV – it actually charges. That we've got a family member who needs medical equipment to run through the night – that it does.'" ENERGY CENTRAL
  • Utilities Weigh Regional Resource Adequacy Under New Western Market: "Anna McKenna, vice president of market design and analysis for the California Independent System Operator, said that once the EDAM launches, CAISO will be 'spending a lot of time evaluating [its] performance' and providing monthly reports as the launch marks a 'very important, significant market design change.'" UTILITY DIVE

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