California Bill Aims for 100% Renewable Energy

The last few years have seen great strides taken towards renewable energy dependence, particularly in the environmentally minded state of California. Under Senate Bill 100 (SB 100), the state has set high renewable energy goals for its utilities under the California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program, with the goal of both obtaining higher levels of energy based in renewable energy sources and reducing emissions of greenhouse gas.

Under the existing law the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has regulatory authority over public utilities, including publicly owned utilities. The California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program requires the PUC to establish a renewables portfolio standard that requires all energy retailers to procure a minimum quantity of electricity from renewable energy sources in order for the total kilowatt hours of the energy sold to home and business owners to reach a set percentage of renewable sourced energy.

The current law required that 25% of retail sales by December 31, 2016; 33% by December 31, 2016; 40% by December 31, 2024; 45% by December 31, 2027 and 50% by December 31, 2030. The amendment proposes that the target for 2030 be adjusted to 60%, and for the first time, a proposal to reach 100% by 2045.The program also requires each local publicly owned electric utility to obtain a minimum quantity of electricity products from eligible renewable energy sources to achieve the procurement requirements set by the program.

California is home to the largest solar energy power plant in the United States

In an added measure of security that these goals are met, bill further requires that those utilities that do not meet the standards that the PUC is subject to will have criminal consequences that will be locally governed and determined. Although local governments have not addressed what those charges may be, it is highly likely that failing to meet the standards will result in heavy fines for those utilities that do not begin to shift towards a renewable energy source.

To ensure that consumers of electricity are not subject to power outages from a single renewable energy source being compromised, such as low wind for wind power and cloudy days for solar, the Warren-Alquist State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Act established that utilities diversify their renewable energy sources. Such sources can come from any renewable source such as solar, wind, geothermal, or hydro; however, no utility can have 100% dependence on a single source.

Consumers in California hope that the Renewable Energy Standards and the shift to renewable energy sources will assist in decreasing their utility bills in addition to making the environment in California greener and assist in moving away from fossil fuels. The measure serves as an ambitious start, however, California has met and exceeded previous expectations for a greener future, which may be a determining factor in the state amping up their plans for 2030 and setting the admirable goal of 100% independence by 2045.

To date, California has some of the highest energy charges in the nation, due in part to their heavy reliance on AC systems and dense population. However, with these careful measures being put in place, it is possible that the shift towards renewable energy will lessen the cost taken on by utilities and result in a more reasonable electricity bill. With the number of residential and business solar arrays increasing every year it is also possible that residents will start to outpace utilities in their race towards renewable energy dependence.