(1) The Lempert-Keene-Seastrand Oil Spill Prevention and Response Act generally requires the administrator for oil spill response, acting at the direction of the Governor, to implement activities relating to oil spill response, including emergency drills and preparedness, and oil spill containment and cleanup, and to represent the state in any coordinated response efforts with the federal government. Existing law requires the Governor to establish a California oil spill contingency plan that provides for an integrated and effective state procedure to combat the results of major oil spills within the state and that specifies state agencies to implement the plan. Existing law requires the administrator to adopt and implement regulations governing the adequacy of oil spill contingency plans to be prepared and implemented and requires the regulations to provide for the best achievable protection of coastal and marine waters. Existing law requires these regulations to permit the development, application, and use of an oil spill contingency plan for similar vessels, pipelines, terminals, and facilities within a single company or organization, and across companies and organizations. Existing law requires these regulations to ensure, among other things, standards for determining a reasonable worst case oil spill. Under the act, the owner or operator of a facility where a spill could impact waters of the state is required apply for and obtain a certificate of financial responsibility issued by the administrator for the facility or the oil to be handled, stored, or transported by the facility. This bill would require the administrator to publicly post a list of all applications for certificates of financial responsibility submitted by facility owners and operators on the internet website of the Office of Spill Prevention and Response and would require the posting to include specified information about applicants, including reasonable worst case spill volume of the facility to be covered by the certificate and the amount of financial responsibility demonstrated, as provided. This bill would, commencing January 15, 2027, and at least once every 10 years thereafter, require the administrator to solicit public input regarding both (A) the appropriateness of the reasonable worst case spill volumes for facilities and (B) the appropriateness of the financial responsibility requirements for facilities. The bill would require the supervisor, based on this feedback, to review and, as appropriate, revise the criteria and formulas for (A) calculating reasonable worst case spill volume and (B) calculating the financial assurances and setting the maximum amount of a certificate of financial responsibility necessary to respond to an oil spill, as provided. (2) The Elder California Pipeline Safety Act of 1981 requires the State Fire Marshal to administer provisions regulating the inspection of intrastate pipelines used for the transportation of hazardous liquid. A violation of the act is a crime. This bill would prohibit the restarting of an existing oil pipeline that is 6 inches or larger that has been idle, inactive, or out of service for 5 years or more without passing a spike hydrostatic testing program that meets the requirements established by the State Fire Marshal, as provided. By expanding the scope of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require these tests to be performed by a qualified testing company, as provided. The bill would require the Office of the State Fire Marshal to promulgate regulations as necessary to implement these provisions. The bill would require the State Fire Marshal to post on its public internet website information fully characterizing the parameters and results of each hydrostatic spike test performed, subject to any information deemed confidential and proprietary, no less than 30 calendar days after each hydrostatic spike test is conducted. (3) Existing law authorizes the State Air Resources Board (state board) to adopt and implement motor vehicle fuel specifications for the control of air contaminants and sources of air pollution. Existing law requires the state board to establish, by regulation, maximum standards for the volatility of gasoline, as provided. Pursuant to these authorizations, the state board has adopted the California Reformulated Gasoline regulations establishing California-specific gasoline specifications for various regions of the state at specified time periods. Existing regulations also prohibit a person from selling, offering for sale, supplying, offering for supply, or transporting California gasoline that exceeds the applicable cap limit for Reid vapor pressure within each of specified air basins during various defined regulatory periods throughout the year. This bill would require the Governor to suspend those regulatory control periods on which gasoline exceeding the Reid vapor pressure may be sold or supplied for use in the state, if the Governor, in consultation with the state board and the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission, determines the average retail gasoline price increased substantially or is projected to increase substantially within any 30-day period and a suspension is necessary to protect consumers in the state from extraordinary gasoline price increases and determines, in the Governor's discretion, that suspension is prudent and unlikely to yield unintended consequences. The bill would require the Governor, in considering whether to suspend the regulatory control periods, to consider the air quality effects and options to mitigate those effects, if necessary and subject to available resources. (4) Existing law requires the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (energy commission) , on or before January 1, 2024, and every 3 years thereafter, to submit an assessment to the Governor and the Legislature that, among other things, identifies methods to ensure a reliable supply of affordable and safe transportation fuels in California and evaluates the price of transportation fuels, including branded and unbranded retail prices, alternate formulations of gasoline with lower carbon impact, and other products suitable for production from refineries in California, as provided. This bill would require the next version of the above-described transportation fuels assessment to evaluate the cost and supply impacts of allowing the sale of gasoline with alternative specifications from the state board's gasoline specifications, as provided. The bill would require the energy commission to recommend a strategy to facilitate the sale of gasoline with those alternative specifications that, at a minimum, considers a trigger mechanism for when the gasoline with those alternative specifications may be sold, the existing variance process, and the use of a fee associated with the sale of the gasoline with those alternative specifications, as provided. The bill would additionally require the next version of this assessment to evaluate the development of westwide gasoline specification that could be used in a western region to include California and areas outside of California as an alternative to the California-specific specification in order to stabilize the petroleum market and petroleum prices in the western region, as provided. The bill would additionally require the energy commission, on or before March 31, 2026, to submit an assessment to the Governor and the Legislature that evaluates recommendations and strategies identified by the vice chair of the energy commission in a specified letter, and offers recommendations to the Legislature on potential changes to working group authorities or structures to support the state's reliable, equitable, safe, and affordable transition away from petroleum fuels. (5) The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. CEQA prohibits a lead agency or a responsible agency from requiring the preparation of a subsequent or supplemental EIR unless one or more of 3 specified events occurs. Existing law establishes the Geologic Energy Management Division in the Department of Conservation under the direction of the State Oil and Gas Supervisor, who is required to supervise the drilling, operation, maintenance, and abandonment of oil and gas wells in the state and the operation, maintenance, and removal or abandonment of tanks and facilities related to oil and gas production within an oil and gas field so as to prevent damage to life, health, property, and natural resources. Existing law requires the operator of a well to file a written notice of intention to commence drilling with, and prohibits any drilling until approval is given by, the supervisor or district deputy. Existing law prohibits the division from approving any notice of intention within a health protection zone, defined as the area within 3,200 feet of certain residential, educational, health care, detention, or business facilities, except approvals necessary for specified purposes. Existing law requires oil or gas production facilities or wells with a wellhead within a health protection zone to comply with specified health, safety, and environmental requirements, as provided. This bill would, among other things, deem a specified County of Kern environmental impact report sufficient for full compliance with the requirements of CEQA for purposes of consideration and adoption of amended revisions to a specified County of Kern zoning ordinance, and would establish that this determination of full compliance shall be final and conclusive for purposes of reliance on that environmental impact report by any responsible agency, as provided. The bill would establish that projects that satisfy the requirements of that zoning ordinance and that are approved by the County of Kern under that ordinance are deemed sufficient for full compliance with CEQA and no further environmental review shall be required pursuant to CEQA. This bill would prospectively apply these provisions concerning CEQA compliance to any approvals by the County of Kern with respect to the permitting of oil and gas production operations under any adopted local ordinance and associated development. The bill would also apply these provisions prospectively and retroactively to any pending causes of action and claims for which no final nonappealable judgment has been entered, as provided. The bill would prohibit the granting of approvals by the County of Kern or the Geologic Energy Management Division in reliance on that environmental impact report for any operation located in a health protection zone, regardless of whether the above-described prohibitions on health protection zones are enforceable. The bill would require the division to be the lead agency for projects in Kern County that include approval of a notice of intention to drill or rework an oil or gas well within 3,200 feet of specified types of buildings, to the extent such projects may be authorized by law. The bill would prohibit the division from approving more than 2,000 notices of intention to drill new wells in reliance on that environmental impact report as a responsible agency, unless the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission makes a formal finding that additional permit issuance is necessary for in-state crude oil production to supply 25% of in-state refinery feedstock demand, and that such production would likely help reduce costs for retail consumers of gasoline in the state. The bill would repeal all of the above-described provisions concerning CEQA in the County of Kern on January 1, 2036. To the extent a lead agency would be required to determine the applicability of some of the above-described exemptions and determinations of full compliance with CEQA, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (6) The California Coastal Act of 1976 requires a person wishing to perform or undertake any development in the coastal zone to obtain a coastal development permit. The act encourages coastal-dependent industrial facilities to locate or expand within existing sites and requires that facilities be permitted reasonable long-term growth, as provided. The act specifies that new or expanded oil and gas development is not to be considered a coastal-dependent industrial facility and is to be permitted only if it is consistent with the act and meets certain requirements, including a requirement that oil produced offshore is to be transported onshore by pipeline using the best achievable technology, as defined, and onshore transport of the oil to processing and refining facilities by pipeline. The act applies the pipeline requirements on new or expanded oil extraction operations, and defines terms for these purposes, including the term "expanded oil extraction." The act authorizes the transport of the oil by other modes of transportation if certain conditions are met. This bill would require the onshore transportation of the oil to processing and refining facilities to use the best available technology, as provided. The bill would repeal authorization for the use of alternative modes of transportation. The bill would revise the definition of "expanded oil extraction" to include reactivation of a facility idled, inactive, or out of service for more than 5 years, or an increase in oil extraction from the use of hydraulic fracturing, extended reach drilling, acidization, or other unconventional technologies. The act authorizes the repair and maintenance of an existing oil and gas facility to be permitted as a coastal-dependent industrial facility if certain requirements are met. The bill would require a person to obtain a new coastal development permit for the repair, reactivation, and maintenance of an oil and gas facility, including an oil pipeline, that has been idled, inactive, or out of service for 5 years or more. Because the bill would impose additional duties on a local government with a certified local coastal program in processing and reviewing an application for a coastal development permit, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (7) Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest. This bill would make legislative findings to that effect. (8) This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the County of Kern. (9) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
Sponsored bills
Maddy summarySCR 95 is a ceremonial resolution that would establish September 20, 2025, and every September 20 thereafter, as "Soju Day" in the state. It does not create new laws or regulations, nor does it affect any specific individuals or groups. The resolution solely designates an annual date for recognition and celebration. This is purely symbolic, with no concrete policy changes or practical impact beyond the ceremonial observance.
This measure would declare October 28, 2025, as First Responders' Day and would urge all Californians to observe and promote the day with appropriate ceremonies and activities that promote awareness of the contributions of first responders in California.
This measure would proclaim the month of October 2025 as California Firefighter Appreciation Month and October 4, 2025, as California Firefighters Memorial Day.
The Elder California Pipeline Safety Act of 1981 requires the State Fire Marshal to administer provisions regulating the inspection of intrastate pipelines that transport hazardous liquids. A person who willfully and knowingly violates the act or a regulation issued pursuant to the act is, upon conviction, subject to a fine, imprisonment, or both a fine and imprisonment, as provided. The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 establishes the State Air Resources Board as the state agency responsible for monitoring and regulating sources emitting greenhouse gases. The act requires the state board to ensure that statewide greenhouse gas emissions are reduced to at least 40% below the statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit, as defined, no later than December 31, 2030. The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report (EIR) on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. This bill would revise the definition of "pipeline," for purposes of the act, to include intrastate pipelines used for the transportation of carbon dioxide. The bill would require the State Fire Marshal, by July 1, 2026, to adopt regulations governing the safe transportation of carbon dioxide in pipelines that, at a minimum, are as protective as certain draft regulations issued by the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration on January 10, 2025. The bill would authorize the State Fire Marshal to amend those regulations, as provided. The bill would prohibit the approval of a pipeline for use in transporting carbon dioxide if the pipeline is originally constructed to transport any other liquid or gas, and would prohibit the construction of those pipelines using previously used pipe or components. The bill would prohibit an operator from constructing a pipeline transporting carbon dioxide in a location where one or more sensitive receptors, as defined, are located within the emergency planning zone of the pipeline, which is defined as an area within 2 miles of either side of the pipeline, except as provided. The bill would require an operator of a pipeline transporting carbon dioxide to submit to the State Fire Marshal and the public agency that is the lead agency for the project that includes the pipeline an emergency planning zone inventory and map, as provided, and would require the State Fire Marshal to review, at least once every 3 years, the inventory and map for completeness and accuracy. The bill would require the operator, at least once every 3 years, to provide to local governments providing emergency response services to sensitive receptors within an emergency planning zone the inventory and map determined by the State Fire Marshal to be complete and accurate and any updates to the inventory and map. The bill would require the State Fire Marshal and the lead agency to make publicly available on its internet website all inventories and maps determined to be current, complete, and accurate and would require the State Fire Marshal and the lead agency to redact any personally identifiable information from the publicly available inventories and maps. To the extent this requirement imposes additional duties on a local agency regarding the posting of, and the redaction of information from, the inventories and maps, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the operator to annually provide the map to sensitive receptors within the emergency planning zone of the pipeline. The bill would authorize the State Fire Marshal, for a pipeline transporting carbon dioxide, to order a pipeline shutdown for violations of state or federal laws, or if continued pipeline operations present an immediate danger to health, welfare, or the environment. The bill would, in the event of a pipeline rupture, require the pipeline to remain nonoperational until an investigation into the pipeline rupture is completed and the origin and cause of the pipeline rupture is determined. Because the bill would expand the application of a crime to pipelines transporting carbon dioxide and because a violation of the regulations adopted by the State Fire Marshal related to pipelines transporting carbon dioxide would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require that to be recognized by the state board for meeting any requirement under the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, carbon dioxide transported by pipeline be transported only by pipelines meeting or exceeding the standards adopted by the State Fire Marshal. This bill would, for a project that includes the construction of a pipeline transporting carbon dioxide subject to the requirements of the Elder California Pipeline Safety Act of 1981, require the lead agency to prepare or cause to be prepared an EIR or equivalent documentation, as defined, and to certify or adopt those documents for the project. The bill would require the lead agency, upon the completion of a draft EIR or draft equivalent documentation, to notify owners and operators of sensitive receptors within 14 mile of the proposed pipeline and to the State Fire Marshal, as provided. The bill would require the lead agency, at least 30 days before the certification of the EIR or the adoption of the equivalent documentation, to notify the State Fire Marshal of the project. By imposing additional duties on a lead agency, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require that the State Fire Marshal provide to the lead agency, in writing, its confirmation that the pipeline is constructed consistent with the Elder California Pipeline Safety Act of 1981 and to make the determination publicly available on its internet website. Existing law requires that pipelines only be used to transport carbon dioxide to or from a carbon dioxide capture, removal, or sequestration project once the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration has concluded its rulemaking regarding minimum federal safety standards for transportation of carbon dioxide by pipeline. This bill would limit the language restricting the transportation of carbon dioxide by pipeline to apply only to federally regulated interstate pipelines, and would require that intrastate pipelines be used to transport carbon dioxide to or from a carbon dioxide capture, removal, or sequestration project only after the State Fire Marshal adopts its regulations pursuant to the bill and only once the project operator demonstrates that the pipelines meet the standards in those regulations. Existing law assesses a civil penalty for a violation of the act or regulations adopted pursuant to the act. Existing law requires civil penalties assessed for violation, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to be available to the State Fire Marshal to provide hazardous liquid fire suppression training to local fire departments. This bill would additionally authorize the assessed civil penalties to be used to provide fire responder training for hazardous gas response and suppression training to local fire departments. Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest. This bill would make legislative findings to that effect. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for specified reasons. With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
This measure would proclaim that the State of California celebrates the numerous contributions of public and private sector nuclear fusion organizations within California for advancing fusion energy research and development, applauds recent scientific advances in magnetic fusion energy and inertial confinement at public research facilities in San Diego and Livermore, recognizes the vast potential of fusion energy for addressing key climate and national security goals and the contributions of California's private fusion industry, commends the University of California's Office of the President for its leadership in establishing the Pacific CREST Fusion initiative, and supports developing the fusion energy ecosystem with the goal of siting a first-of-a-kind fusion pilot plant in California by the 2040s.
Existing law generally regulates artificial intelligence, including by requiring the Office of Emergency Services to, as appropriate, perform a risk analysis of potential threats posed by the use of generative artificial intelligence to California's critical infrastructure, including those that could lead to mass casualty events. This bill would require the Attorney General to establish and maintain a specified program to build internal expertise in artificial intelligence, including its applications, risks, regulatory implications, and civil rights impacts. The bill would require, on or before July 1, 2027, and annually thereafter, the Attorney General to submit a public report to the Legislature describing the program, key developments in artificial intelligence law and policy, and recommendations for additional state oversight or safeguards.
Maddy summarySenate Resolution 63, adopted by the California State Senate on August 29, 2025, celebrates the 41st anniversary of the California-Taiwan sister-state relationship and the 26th anniversary of Taiwanese American Heritage Week. The resolution acknowledges Taiwan's economic contributions to California, including $50 billion in bilateral trade and $280 million in agricultural exports in 2024, and supports Taiwan's participation in international organizations like the WHO and UN climate talks. It reaffirms the Senate's recognition of Taiwan's vibrant democracy as vital to Asia-Pacific stability and commends efforts to strengthen U.S.-Taiwan economic collaboration. As a symbolic gesture, the resolution does not create new laws or affect specific groups legally, but expresses legislative support for the California-Taiwan partnership.
Maddy summarySenate Resolution 64 designates September 2025 as "California Wine Month" to celebrate the state's wine industry. The resolution recognizes the industry's economic impact (supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs, 95% of U.S. wine exports), cultural significance, and sustainability efforts (90% of wine made in certified sustainable wineries). It is a ceremonial resolution with no new policy or funding requirements, solely honoring the wine community's contributions.
The Political Reform Act of 1974 requires public officials to periodically file a statement of economic interest disclosing the person's investments, interests in real property, and income. The act defines "investment" to mean any financial interest in or security issued by a business entity, including, among other things, stocks and any partnership or other ownership interest owned by the public official or that person's immediate family, as specified. The act specifies that an asset is an investment only if its fair market value equals or exceeds $2,000. The act requires each public agency to adopt a conflict of interest code for designated employees of the agency. Existing law defines digital financial asset to mean a digital representation of value that is used as a medium of exchange, unit of account, or store of value, and that is not legal tender, whether or not denominated in legal tender, subject to specified exceptions. This bill, beginning January 1, 2027, would expand the definition of "investment" for purposes of the Political Reform Act of 1974 to include a digital financial asset, and would specifically require public officials to disclose interests in their digital financial assets, as specified. The bill would also require an agency's conflict of interest code to require designated employees to disclose interests in digital financial assets, as specified. Existing law makes a knowing or willful violation of the Political Reform Act of 1974 a misdemeanor and subjects offenders to criminal penalties. By including additional assets that must be disclosed by public officials on statements of economic interest, the bill would expand the scope of a crime and impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. The Political Reform Act of 1974, an initiative measure, provides that the Legislature may amend the act to further the act's purposes upon a 23 vote of each house of the Legislature and compliance with specified procedural requirements. This bill would declare that it furthers the purposes of the act.