Assembly Standing Committee on Natural Resources

This begins the Assembly Natural Resource Committee hearing. We've got two agenda items today. AB 1016 by Assembly Member Jeff Gonzalez and AJR10 by Assembly Member Rogers. In the absence of a quorum, which I hope we will very soon establish, we're going to begin as a Subcommitee. Mr. Gonzalez, would you like to present? Sir, whenever you're ready.

Watch out for that. There's old knees right here. Happy to be here today to present AB 1016 and I would like to inform you that I'm accepting all Committee amendments and I thank the team for your hard work and guidance throughout all of this.

Thank you to the Chair and the Committee, the staff, for holding this hearing today and for working so diligently with my office to get the Bill ready for today. AB 1016 will increase the generating capacity of geothermal power plants that are eligible to be permitted at the local level only until 2030.

Imperial county and other regions with rich global which with rich geothermal resources have proven for decades that they are capable of responsibly permitting and managing clean energy energy development. AB 1016 empowers these local governments who have invested in planning, community engagement and environmental stewardship to lead the way in building the clean energy infrastructure.

California urgently needs project certification at the local level, provides the unique opportunity for an enhanced level of local input and ensures decisions are made closest to the communities they impact. This pilot program has the potential to stimulate significant economic activity in my district in which Imperial county retains the highest unemployment rate in the state.

Potentially transformational, this economic growth would bring desperately needed jobs to the region as well as a revenue source for schools and local government. These are family sustaining jobs in a regional that has long sought expanded economic opportunity and currently retains a 17.2 unemployment rate which is the highest in the state.

This Bill helps Imperial county transition from one of the state's most economically challenged areas into a regional hub for clean energy innovation and workforce development. Geothermal energy is a clean renewable resource that can provide much needed baseload power to our energy grid by facilitating the development of geothermal power plants.

AB 1016 supports the state's efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and transition to a sustainable energy future. This measure is exactly how we accelerate our climate progress and bring tangible benefits to regions like Imperial county that are ready to lead. Imperial county has the geothermal potential and local leadership ready to meet California's clean energy goals.

AB 1016 clears a path for responsible community driven development that creates jobs, boosts the regional economy and strengthens climate resilience. Beside me today to testify in Support of this measure is Imperial County Supervisor Ryan Kelly and Imperial County Deputy CEO of Natural Resources, Barry Bean.

I look forward to addressing any questions you might have on this measure as well.

Thank you, Chair and Members of the Committee. My name is Ryan Kelley. I'm Imperial County Supervisor District 4, which encompasses lithium Valley in Imperial County. We have had over 40 years of experience in permitting geothermal plants up to 49.9 and we look with 1016 to be able to expand that to 150 megawatts.

We have a proven track record and this is in alignment with California policy for renewable baseload power and also critical mineral development for not only California's needs, but for the nation's needs.

So I strongly urge your support to continue this forward as we've been working through the Governor's office, the Legislature and especially thankful to our Assembly Member Gonzalez. Thank you.

Good afternoon Chair and Members of the Committee. My name is Bari Bean and I'm the Deputy CEO of Natural Resources for the County of Imperial. And prior to this role I spent two years directly working in the geothermal industry. And I'm proud to speak in strong support of AB 1016 today.

As a lifelong resident of Imperial County, I know firsthand of the opportunities and challenges that we face in our region. And as we heard over a 17% unemployment and 21% poverty rate. Every job opportunity and every economic opportunity for growth matters in our region.

In fact, if you look at some of the recent developments of geothermal that we're going through our area with bhe renewables, those three geothermal projects would have had life changing impact on our community.

If we look at the property tax allocation of just those three projects, you're looking at over $460 million that would have come to the Calipatria Unified School District, over 51 million to our healthcare district and over 94 million to our community college. Those are dollars that can change the lives of our residents.

And it's essential that we expand geothermal generation development so that we can impact our residents. I'm deeply rooted in our community and I'm passionate about opportunities for our residents. And for those reasons I urge your aye vote today on a B1060. Thank you very much.

Thank you. Anyone else in support? Please come up and name an organization. Mr. Flora, can you hit the button

Mr. Vice Chair Members Mike Monagan on behalf of the State Building Trades. If I have a moment, I'd like to thank the chair were here for all of his work and getting this hearing scheduled. And the Committee staff for all the hard work they put in over the last week.

Also to Mr. Gonzalez for his commitment to not only his district, but the men and women of his district, creating some career opportunities for a county that is really sadly lacking at this point. Anyway, the building trades have removed their opposition. We're now in very strong support. Thank you. Thank you.

Good morning. Delilah Clay, on behalf of the Independent Energy Producers Association. And strong support.

Thank you, Delilah. Anyone else in support? All right, anyone in opposition, please come up to the table. All right. Seeing none, we'll bring it back to the Committee. Committee. Any questions, Mr. Ellis?

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Assemblyman Gonzalez. My background has been in drilling and in geothermal and it is a hidden jewel of the sustainable energy in our country today. We. It's. It's not very well known how critical it is and how important it is and how sustainable it is.

So I commend you for bringing this forth because it is sustainable, it is longevity, and it is clean energy. Congratulations. Thank you.

Thank you. Mr. Ellis. Any of our new Members to show up, have any questions? Mr. Zbur.

Good afternoon. Sorry I rushed here. I knew that this was being presented. I know that. That you're continuing to work with the building trades on some additional amendments and just wanted to make sure that you had seen those, you were comfortable with them.

You'd made a commitment to continue working on the amendments that I think get to generating capacity of between 50 and 150 megawatts.

You have my firm commitment to continue working this and Absolutely. We are hand in hand with the trades to make sure that the language is just right. So. Yes, thank you.

And Mr. Zbur, just right before you came up here, the trades had just mentioned all of that, so they are all on board. Anyone else on the Committee? Okay. Before we get started, Madam Clerk, can we take roll? We have a quorum.

[Roll Call]

We have a quorum. We. Mr. Flora moved the Bill. Oh, okay. Matthew wants it. Mr. Haney has the second. Before we close or before I ask you to close, I just want to. I know the chair's not here, but I know he. He did a lot to go out of his way to make sure this happened.

And I just want to thank him also for working with us on that. Working with you and everyone else. It's great to see that everybody came together on this, and I'm proud to be part of this. With that, you can close.

Thank you. This was truly a collaborative effort. I'm not saying that as just a word, but it was really a collaborative effort, not only with the chair, with the staff, with the trades, with the county.

I couldn't have asked for more of a collaborative effort to bring this across because everyone, even on this dais, knows how important it is to get jobs in our community. And I thank you for your support and understanding that it's super important. This is not a partisan issue. This is a community issue.

And I'm thankful for every single one of you for coming on board and working together to make this happen for California. With that, I respectfully ask for an aye vote.

Thank you, Mr. Gonzalez. Madam Clerk, please take a roll.

[Roll Call]

We have nine votes. Enough to get out, and we will keep it. The roll open for any Members who come in. Thank you. Thank you. Congratulations, Mr. Rogers. Just wanted to say that item number 210 the floor is yours. We have Mr. Flora moving, and I have Ms. Pellerin seconding it. Thank you very much. Floor is yours.

Thank you, sir. Chair Members, the United States Forest Service staffing levels might seem like something far from everyday life, but it affects all of us on a daily basis. So many of our water sources originate in national forest lands. Critical species icons like the California Condor and vulnerable ecosystems rely on this natural lands for survival.

These vast forests are basically the lungs of our state, soaking up, soaking up carbon and helping keep our air clean. They also provide affordable recreation opportunities for all Californians. You don't need a reservation or much planning to enjoy most of our national forests.

You often can just get in your car, drive up to the national forest and pitch your tent and take a hike on these stunning public landscapes. I'm immensely proud that the second Assembly District is home to the Mendocino National Forest, the first established in the state.

It spans an area covering almost 1 million acres, is close in size to the entire State of Rhode Island. I also represent Trinity county, which has nearly 90% of its acreage in the Shasta Trinity National Forest as well.

This forest and other national forests in my district sustain tribal communities and thousands of rural residents for their food source, water for crystal clear rivers, and jobs for recreation. Sadly, the Mendocino National Forest has also been almost completely covered in wildfire damage in the last decade.

A few years ago, the entire Bay Area was choked in Orange Wildfire smoke from one of these many fires. The forest was already critically underfunded with wildfire prevention work. And recent cuts by Donald Trump and his co President Elon Musk put us all at even greater risk. These staffing cuts directly impact my constituents.

Literally taking food off the table of longtime public servants who work in the Forest Service at our small rural communities. Even a few jobs lost can have a large ripple effect on everyone. These cuts imperil all residents in every corner of this state, from the Angeles National Forest to the slope surrounding Lake Tahoe.

This resolution sends a strong message to to the Federal Government that we shouldn't be abruptly firing the hardworking staff at the Forest Service just so that we can hand out more tax cuts to billionaires that don't need them. I don't remember anyone campaigning on making us more vulnerable to massive wildfires and deforestation. And with that, I respectfully ask for your aye vote.

Thank you. Anyone else in support? All right. Anyone in opposition? Go and just have a seat up here. I made you look. I was like Smokey Bear. Any questions from the Committee? All right. Seeing hearing, None. I thank the author for bringing this. And you may close.

Thank you so much. Respectfully ask for an aye.

And the chair is recommending an aye vote. Madam Clerk, please take the roll.

[Roll Call]

Mr. Rogers, you have 10 votes. It gets out, we'll leave the roll open. And for those that are leaving, have a good weekend. We'll get to Mr. Hoover in just a minute. Thank you very right. We're gonna lift the call for Mr. Gonzalez's Bill so Mr. Hoover can start his weekend.

[Roll Call]

Thank you, Mr. Hoover.

[Roll Call]

Oh, I have Assembly Member Schultz here now. We will take the roll.

[Roll Call]

Thank you for waiting. Thank you and have a great weekend.

[Roll Call]

This concludes the Assembly Natural Resource Committee hearing.