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2009
BOMA LEGISLATIVE SYNOPSIS
BOMA California engages directly in the legislative, regulatory, and political processes, to protect the interests of the commercial real estate industry.
BOMA California is engaged full-time in the Legislative process. In 2009, we tracked more than 500 bills with a potential impact on the industry.
Legislative work was expended on broad range of issues from tax code changes and Worker’s Comp, to energy policy and green building mandates.
Here is a synopsis of a few of these bills that had a direct and/or disproportionate impact on Commercial Real Estate. The list will be updated after the governor makes final actions:
GREENHOUSE GAS/CLIMATE CHANGE
AB 19 (Ruskin; D-Redwood City) Enacts the Carbon Labeling Act of 2009. Requires the State Air Resources Board to develop and implement a program for the assessment, verification, and standardized labeling of the carbon footprint of ALL consumer products sold in this state.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD
AB 118 (Logue; R-Chico) Delays implementation of the Greenhouse Gas law (AB 32) until the economy recovers.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: DEAD.
AB 231 (Huffman; D-San Rafael) Expand the California Air Resources Board (CARB)’s authority to impose carbon fees for purposes beyond what is necessary to administer the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (AB 32). The bill provides no guidance, no limits, and no controls over the amount of revenue CARB could collect. The claim that fees should be “reasonable” is insufficient. Large new fees would add another burden on an economy already absorbing the impact of tax increases to solve the budget crisis – dampening business investment, job creation and tax revenues to the state. Consumers would ultimately bear much higher costs for energy.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD
AB 1085 (Mendoza; D-Artesia) which will shine “sunlight” on important regulatory procedures at the State Air Resources Board (CARB), continues to move forward with strong industry support. This good government bill simply requires CARB to make available to the public each technical, theoretical, and empirical study, report, or similar document, if any, on which the agency relies, related to, but not limited to, air emissions, public health impacts, and economic impacts before the comment period for any regulation proposed for adoption by the state board.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK
AB 1091 (Ruskin; D-Redwood City) Asks the Natural Resources Agency to develop a climate change adaptation strategy to assess the state's vulnerability to climate change.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD
AB 1373 (Skinner; D-Berkeley) “High Global Warming Potential” Gases – HVAC regulation. Enacts the California Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Innovation Review Act of 2009. Requires the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to develop and to conduct a study containing specified elements to assess the potential to optimize the efficiency of stationary cooling technology while significantly reducing the use and emission of high-global warming potential compounds in the stationary refrigeration and air-conditioning industry.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD
AB 1404 (De Leon; D-Los Angeles) Limits the ability of building owners and developers to engage in market-based programs to reduce greenhouse gasses. Requires the ARB to limit the use of certain compliance offsets to a certain percentage of the greenhouse gas emission reductions. In other words – if you need capital up front to invest heavily in energy efficiency improvements for your building, you will have a difficult time finding someone to purchase any credits you may have.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK
AB 1405 (De Leon; D-Los Angeles) Redirects fees paid by building owners and developers to mitigate carbon emissions to projects not related to such reductions. Establishes the Community Benefits Fund. Requires a specified percentage of revenues generated pursuant to the act include the above fees, to be deposited into the fund. Provides that fund moneys will mitigate health impacts and reduce greenhouse emissions in the most disadvantaged and impacted communities in the state.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
ACR 77 (Swanson; D-Oakland) Urges the State Air Resources Board to meet the statutory requirements of the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 by ensuring that its analysis of specified emission reduction measures include prescribed components.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK
SB 104 (Oropeza; D-Long Beach) Directs ARB to regulate any gas designated as a greenhouse gas by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK
LAND USE/PLANNING
AB 782 (Jeffries; R-Riverside) Includes commercial projects in the CEQA exemptions of SB 375, among other provisions related to land use planning and greenhouse gases.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: DEAD.
AB 1204 (Huber; D-Lodi) Includes Commercial projects in the CEQA Exemptions of SB 375.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: DEAD.
SB 476 (Correa; D-Santa Ana) Reforms CEQA to encourage and quickly re-use building that are empty.
Position: Support. Status: Two Year Bill.
ENERGY
AB 234 (Huffman; D-San Rafael) Requires the funds received under the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 that are directed for energy related activities be administered by the state's energy and water agencies. Provides the activities should be used for promoting energy efficiency, water conservation, the development of renewable energy resources, environmental protection, and green job training.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: DEAD.
AB 413 (Fuentes; D-Los Angeles) Relates to the Public Utilities Commission authority to fix rates and charges for every public utility. Prohibits the commission from requiring or permitting an electrical corporation to employ time-variant pricing for residential customers. Authorizes the commission to authorize an electrical corporation to offer customers the option of receiving service pursuant to time-variant pricing.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
AB 758 (Skinner; D-Berkeley) Requires the Energy Commission to establish a regulatory proceeding to develop a program to achieve greater energy savings in the state's existing residential and nonresidential buildings. Requires a new proceeding by the Public Utilities Commission to investigate the ability of electrical and gas corporations to provide customers energy efficiency financing options. Provides for no-cost energy audits.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK
AB 64 (Krekorian; D-Burbank) & SB 14 (Simitian; D-Palo Alto) contains a number of new proposals that would impact the existing Renewable Portfolio Standard (“green energy”), mainly increasing it to 33%, as well as the current implementation of AB 32 at the California Air Resources Board. We oppose this bill based on a number of concerns that we hope will be addressed by the Legislature.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK (PROMISED VETO)
SB 279 (Hancock; D-Berkeley) Authorizes a community facilities district to finance and refinance the acquisition, installation, and improvement of energy efficiency, water conservation, and renewable energy improvements to or on real property and in buildings. Authorizes a separate procedure for establishing a community facilities district where the district initially consists solely of territory proposed for annexation to the community facilities district in the future.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK
SOLAR ENERGY
AB 212 (Saldana; D-San Diego) Mandates all new homes be Zero-Net Energy by 2020.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
AB 560 (Skinner; D-Berkeley) Requires that the standard contract or tariff for net energy metering be offered on a first-come-first-served basis until the time that the total rated generating capacity used by customer-generators exceeds a specified percentage of an electric distribution utility or cooperative's peak demand.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: DEAD.
AB 920 (Huffman; D-San Rafael) Allow customers on a net metering rate schedule to receive a payment for excess generation at a wholesale rate. These customers have renewable projects on their homes or businesses that are sized to meet the on-site load only. But due to weather and on-site electricity consumption variances, they sometimes have generated more electricity than they use. Current law limits net metering to an annual ‘true-up’ so that the customer ‘loses’ the value of the excess generation. Some utilities roll the credit over to future years. If AB 920 is enacted, these customers will be allowed to either elect to roll over their credits or receive a payment for the excess generation.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK.
SB 32 (Negrete-McLeod; D-Chino) Creates a fixed price payment for generation from renewable energy projects based on the value of renewable generation (energy plus the value of GHG reduction, emissions reductions, location close to demand, relieves transmission congestion, and time of delivery coincident with times of the day/year when electricity demand is highest). Projects can be located anywhere on the local utility distribution system up to maximum project size of 3MW. By knowing the terms and the rate ahead of time, this bill will encourage entrepreneurs (building owners, property owners, 3rd parties) to build projects close to where electricity is needed, without requiring new transmission lines.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK.
UNNECESSARILY EXPANDING REGULATORY AUTHORITY
AB 109 (Feuer; D-Los Angeles) Enacts a moratorium on all digital outdoor advertising.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
AB 226 (Ruskin; D-Redwood City) Relates to coastal development permitting. Allows the Coastal Commission to assess penalties and keep the monies to fund further enforcement activity. Creates a “bounty hunter” provision and will further stymie legitimate development.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
AB 291 (Saldana; D-San Diego) Infringes on the right of “due process” to property owners by prohibiting acting upon an application for a coastal development permit for development on any property that is subject to an existing violation case.
Position: OPPOSE. DEAD.
AB 846 (Torrico; D-Fremont) Require the Department of Toxic Substances Control, the State Air Resources Board, the Department of Industrial Relations and the State Water Resources Control Board to increase the maximum and minimum amounts of civil and administrative penalties. Requires that a penalty be assessed at a minimum at a level that recovers any economic benefits derived by alleged violations.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
MANDATORY COMMERCIAL RECYCLING
AB 283 (Chesbro; D-Eureka) Expanded Waste Bureaucracy. Leads to increased cost for consumers and businesses by requiring producers of select products sold in California to collect their products after use by the consumer and manage the recycling and/or disposal of those products.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
AB 478 (Chesbro; D-Eureka) Requires the State Integrated Waste Management Board to adopt rules and regulations relating to recycling and solid waste management to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Subjects violators of these rules and regulations to civil and criminal penalties.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
AB 479 (Chesbro; D-Eureka) Mandatory Commercial Recycling. Requires the Integrated Waste Management Board to ensure a specified percentage of all solid waste generated is source reduced, recycled and composted, by providing unprecedented power to regulate businesses.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
AB 737 (Chesbro; D-Eureka) Expanded Waste Bureaucracy. Gives the California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB) new and potentially broad authority to impose new mandates on California businesses to achieve a statewide solid waste diversion rate of 75 percent by 2020.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
SB 25 (Padilla; D-Pacoima) Establishes statewide mandatory commercial recycling. Requires a jurisdiction, when revising the source reduction and recycling element of its integrated waste management plan, to divert a higher percentage of solid waste through source reduction, recycling, and composting. Requires that the Integrated Waste Management Board adopt rules and provide grants contingent on increased solid waste disposal fees. Requires businesses generating a specified quantity of solid waste per week to arrange for recycling service.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
MANDATORY BENCHMARKING
AB 531 (Saldana; D-San Diego) Delays the implementation of the state’s mandatory Energy Star benchmarking law AB 1103 and requires the Energy Commission to write implementing regulations.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK
PARKING
AB 1186 (Blumenfield; D-Van Nuys) Requires landlords to provide information about parking costs to companies eligible to participate in the State’s Parking Cash-Out Program.
Position: NEUTRAL (fixed). Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK
SB 728 (Lowenthal; D-Long Beach) Current law requires each employer with 50 or more employees that provides a parking subsidy to employees to provide a cash allowance to an employee who does not use the parking space an amount equivalent to the amount the employer would otherwise pay to provide that employee a parking space. This bill allows the program to be administered and enforced by local entities.
Position: NEUTRAL (fixed). Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK
WATER
AB 49 (Feuer; D-Los Angeles) and SEVERAL BILLS - WATER DEAL – DEAD THE LAST NIGHT OF SESSION
his bill authorizes the Energy Commission to make grants and enter into contracts to award federal energy efficiency and conservation funds.
Position: Oppose. Status: DEAD.
AB 234 (Huffman; D-San Rafael) Water Efficiency Funding. Authorizes the Energy Commission to make grants to award federal energy efficiency and conservation funds for water efficiency projects.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: DEAD.
AB 300 (Caballero; D-Salinas) Amends the Subdivision Map Act to require that the water supply assessments be based on the anticipated water demand for the project, given planned water demand reduction actions contained in an adopted urban water management plan and current statutory, regulatory, and local ordinance requirements, reduced by the amount of voluntary demand management measures.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: DEAD.
AB 408 (Saldana; D-San Diego) Requires a city or county to notify the Regional Water Quality Control Board servicing the area before adopting or amending its general plan, requires the Regional Board to provide the planning agency with certain information regarding implementation of low impact development water management to increase local water supplies by increasing stormwater recharge and reuse.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: Dead.
AB 1408 (Krekorian; D-Burbank) Requires “zero net water” requirements for new projects.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
SB 371 (Cogdill; R-Fresno) Water Bond.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: DEAD.
SB 407 (Padilla; D-Pacoima) Mandates all residential and commercial buildings replace certain water fixtures by 2019. Declares that it is the intent of the Legislature that public entities that supply water exercise authority to enact ordinances the require the retrofitting of outdated, high water use plumbing fixtures, and the disclosure thereof, in connection with the transfer of real estate.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK.
AB 474 (Blumenfield; D-Van Nuys) Authorizes the legislative body of any public agency to designate an area within which authorized city officials and free and willing property owners may enter into contractual assessments to finance the installation of water efficiency improvements that are permanently fixed to real property.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK
SB 261 (Dutton; R-Inland Empire) Requires a retail urban water supplier to develop and implement an urban water conservation plan or achieve high-efficiency water use. Requires such supplier or other entities acting on the supplier's behalf, to submit reports regarding the water conservation goal. Amends the Agricultural Water Management Planning Act to require an agricultural water supplier to prepare and adopt a water management plan. Requires the supplier to submit copies of the plan to receive specified state funds.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: DEAD.
PROPERTY CRIMES
AB 568 (Lieu; D-Torrance) Provides that if a person is convicted counterfeiting copyrighted materials such as DVD’s or name brand purses, then a nonresidential building or place used by that person for manufacturing, selling, or possessing for sale the counterfeit goods, including counterfeit of a registered mark or any recording or audiovisual work, the cover, box, jacket or label which does not disclose specified information shall be deemed a nuisance. Authorizes an action to abate and prevent the nuisance.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK
AB 576 (Torres; D-Pomona) Relates to vandalism and graffiti. Amends existing law which provides that in every case in which a victim has suffered economic loss as a result of the defendant's or the juvenile offender's conduct, the court is required to impose an order for restitution. Adds to the definition of victim a governmental entity that is responsible for repairing, replacing, or restoring public or privately owned property that has been defaced with graffiti or other inscribed material and that has sustained an economic loss.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK
TAXES
AB 150 (Smyth; R-Santa Clarita) Provides a tax break for companies that purchase certain energy proficient products (major equipment, HVAC).
Position: SUPPORT. Status: DEAD.
AB 178 (Skinner; D-Berkeley) Allows the state to collects currently uncollected sales taxes from in state internet-based sales. Treats in-state online retailers the same as in-state brick-and-mortar stores.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: DEAD.
AB 1299 (Coto; D-San Jose) “Backdoor” attempt at Split Roll Property Tax. Defines "state taxes," as used in Proposition 13, to "facilitate a clear and consistent application of the legislative two-thirds vote requirement of Section 3 of Article XIII A of the California Constitution in furtherance of the purposes of that provision." The bill's definition: "For purposes of Section 3 of Article XIII A of the California Constitution, 'state taxes' means taxes that are imposed by state law, levied and collected by the state, and required by state law to be deposited in the State Treasury. 'State taxes' for this purpose do not include any ad valorem property tax that is subject to Article XIII or Article XIII A."
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
SB 816 (Ducheny; D-San Diego) helps local tax officials more efficiently reassess properties when a change of ownership occurs. Under current law there are often multi-month and even multi-year delays in determining new property tax rates after ownership transitions. This delay causes an incredible hardship on both commercial landlords and tenants when taxes in arrears are discovered and assessed.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK.
GREEN BUILDING/ENERGY EFFICIENCY
AB 210 (Hayashi; D-Hayward) Clarifies local can adopt green building codes stricter than the statewide building code.
Position: Support. Status: Signed by Governor.
AB 433 (Ammiano; D-San Francisco) Proposes strict ventilation standards for newly constructed buildings with potential roadway exposure.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
AB 1105 (Blakeslee; R-San Luis Obispo) Building Energy Retrofit Revolving Loan Program
Position: Support. Status: DEAD
AB 828 (Lieu; D-Torrance) Requires the Buildings Standards Commission and other state agencies proposing green building standards to seek input from other agencies and specified groups. Requires any agency providing input to recommend whether the standard should be voluntary or mandatory. Authorizes the Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to develop and adopt voluntary energy efficiency standards.
Position: SUPPORT. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK.
SB 408 (Padilla; D-Pacoima) Exempts from certain requirements of CEQA those projects that are proposed for LEED Platinum certification.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
WORKPLACE MANDATES
AB 664 (Skinner; D-Berkeley) Increased Workers’ Compensation Costs. Increases workers’ compensation costs by creating a legal presumption that neck and back injuries, and blood-borne and specific infections suffered by hospital employees are related to employment.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
AB 660 (Torrico; D-Fremont) Enacts a comprehensive program for the certification and regulation of sprinkler fitters. Prohibits a person from performing work on any fire suppression system, unless he or she possess a valid sprinkler fitter or limited scope sprinkler fitter certificate. Prohibits a person or entity from employing a person to perform work on a suppression system without such certificate or permit.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
SB 227 (Alquist; D-Santa Clara) New Health Care Tax. Increases health care premiums by establishing a new targeted tax and government bureaucracy to change California’s major risk medical insurance program (MRMIP).
Position: OPPOSE. Status: DEAD.
SB 242 (Yee; D-San Francisco/San Mateo) New Lawsuits Against Small Business. Could result in new shakedown lawsuits against business establishments by making it a strict liability violation of the Unruh Civil Rights Act, subject to minimum damages of $4,000, if a business limits the use of a customer’s language, even if unintentionally.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: GOVERNOR’S DESK.
SB 789 (Steinberg; D-Sacramento) Card Check. Undermines the process that now guarantees, through secret-ballot elections, a fair vote and the expression of agricultural employees’ true sentiments on the selection of a collective bargaining representative. This act will hurt California’s businesses by driving up costs, making employers less competitive in a global market.
Position: OPPOSE. Status: Vetoed.
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