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Home/Bills/AB 1191California · 2025–2026 Regular Session
Assembly BillFailedHealth and Safety

AB 1191: California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program: hydroelectric generation.

California · Assembly · 2025–2026 Regular Session · last verified February 3, 2026

What AB 1191 does, verified February 3, 2026

This bill aims to amend the California Renewables Portfolio Standard program to expand its scope. The existing program requires utilities to procure a certain amount of renewable energy each year, and it currently includes small hydroelectric generation facilities with a capacity of 30 megawatts or less. The proposed change would broaden the definition to include all hydroelectric generating facilities, making it easier for utilities to meet the program's goals. This expansion would help increase the use of hydroelectric power in California.

Bill journey
✓IntroducedComplete
2In CommitteeCurrent
3First Chamber FloorPending
4Second ChamberPending
5GovernorPending
6ChapteredPending
Last action: From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56. (2026-02-02)Alert me
Author and sponsors
Asm. David TangipaAuthor · California State Assembly
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Recent actions7 total · showing 5
Feb. 02, 2026From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56.
Jan. 31, 2026Died pursuant to Art. IV, Sec. 10(c) of the Constitution.
Apr. 02, 2025In committee: Set, first hearing. Failed passage. Reconsideration granted.
Mar. 10, 2025Referred to Coms. on U. & E. and NAT. RES.
Feb. 24, 2025Read first time.
Full action history, 2 earlier actionsConnect Plus
Latest bill textIntroduced version, February 21, 2025 · 1,914 words


CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 1191

Introduced by Assembly Member Tangipa

February 21, 2025

An act to amend Section 44258.5 of the Health and Safety Code, and to amend Sections 399.12, 399.25, and 399.30 of, and to repeal Sections 399.12.5 and 399.20.5 of, the Public Utilities Code, relating to energy.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 1191, as introduced, Tangipa. California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program: hydroelectric generation.
Existing law establishes the California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program, which requires the Public Utilities Commission to implement annual procurement targets for the procurement of eligible renewable energy resources, as defined, for all retail sellers, as defined, and requires local publicly owned electric utilities to adopt and implement renewable energy resources procurement plans to achieve the targets and goals of the program. Under existing law, eligible renewable energy resources include small hydroelectric generation facilities of 30 megawatts or less that meet specified criteria.
This bill would revise the definition of an eligible renewable energy resource for the purposes of the California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program to include all hydroelectric generating facilities and would make conforming changes.
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

Section 44258.5 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:

44258.5.

(a) For the purposes of this section, the following terms mean the following: definitions apply:
(1) “Local publicly owned electric utility” has the same meaning as defined in Section 224.3 of the Public Utilities Code.
(2) “Retail seller” has the same meaning as set forth in subdivision (j) of Section 399.12 of the Public Utilities Code.
(3) “Transportation electrification” has the same meaning as set forth in Section 237.5 of the Public Utilities Code.
(b) The state board shall identify and adopt appropriate policies, rules, or regulations to remove regulatory disincentives preventing retail sellers and local publicly owned electric utilities from facilitating the achievement of greenhouse gas emission reductions in other sectors through increased investments in transportation electrification. Policies to be considered shall include, but are not limited to, an allocation of greenhouse gas emissions allowances to retail sellers and local publicly owned electric utilities, or other regulatory mechanisms, to account for increased greenhouse gas emissions in the electric electricity sector from transportation electrification.

SEC. 2.

Section 399.12 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to read:

399.12.

For purposes of this article, the following terms have the following meanings:

(a)“Conduit hydroelectric facility” means a facility for the generation of electricity that uses only the hydroelectric potential of an existing pipe, ditch, flume, siphon, tunnel, canal, or other manmade conduit that is operated to distribute water for a beneficial use.

(b)

(a) “Balancing authority” means the responsible entity that integrates resource plans ahead of time, maintains load-interchange generation balance within a balancing authority area, and supports interconnection frequency in real time.

(c)

(b) “Balancing authority area” means the collection of generation, transmission, and loads within the metered boundaries of the area within which the balancing authority maintains the electrical load-resource balance.

(d)

(c) “California balancing authority” is means a balancing authority with control over a balancing authority area primarily located in this state and operating for retail sellers and local publicly owned electric utilities subject to the requirements of this article and includes the Independent System Operator (ISO) and a local publicly owned electric utility operating a transmission grid that is not under the operational control of the ISO. A California balancing authority is responsible for the operation of the transmission grid within its metered boundaries boundaries, which is not limited by the political boundaries of the State of California.

(e)

(d) (1) “Eligible renewable energy resource” means an a hydroelectric generating facility or any electrical generating facility that meets the definition of a “renewable electrical generation facility” in Section 25741 of the Public Resources Code, subject to the following: Code.

(1)(A)An existing small hydroelectric generation facility of 30 megawatts or less shall be eligible only if a retail seller or local publicly owned electric utility procured the electricity from the facility as of December 31, 2005. A new hydroelectric facility that commences generation of electricity after December 31, 2005, is not an eligible renewable energy resource if it will cause an adverse impact on instream beneficial uses or cause a change in the volume or timing of streamflow.

(B)Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), a conduit hydroelectric facility of 30 megawatts or less that commenced operation before January 1, 2006, is an eligible renewable energy resource. A conduit hydroelectric facility of 30 megawatts or less that commences operation after December 31, 2005, is an eligible renewable energy resource so long as it does not cause an adverse impact on instream beneficial uses or cause a change in the volume or timing of streamflow.

(C)A facility approved by the governing board of a local publicly owned electric utility prior to June 1, 2010, for procurement to satisfy renewable energy procurement obligations adopted pursuant to former Section 387, shall be certified as an eligible renewable energy resource by the Energy Commission pursuant to this article, if the facility is a “renewable electrical generation facility” as defined in Section 25741 of the Public Resources Code.

(D)(i)A small hydroelectric generation unit with a nameplate capacity not exceeding 40 megawatts that is operated as part of a water supply or conveyance system is an eligible renewable energy resource only for the retail seller or local publicly owned electric utility that procured the electricity from the unit as of December 31, 2005. No unit shall be eligible pursuant to this subparagraph if an application for certification is submitted to the Energy Commission after January 1, 2013. Only one retail seller or local publicly owned electric utility shall be deemed to have procured electricity from a given unit as of December 31, 2005.

(ii)Notwithstanding clause (i), a local publicly owned electric utility that meets the criteria of subdivision (j) of Section 399.30 may sell to another local publicly owned electric utility electricity from small hydroelectric generation units that qualify as eligible renewable energy resources under clause (i), and that electricity may be used by the local publicly owned electric utility that purchased the electricity to meet its renewables portfolio standard procurement requirements. The total of all those sales from the utility shall be no greater than 100,000 megawatthours of electricity.

(iii)The amendments made to this subdivision by the act adding this subparagraph are intended to clarify existing law and apply from December 10, 2011.

(2) (A) A facility engaged in the combustion of municipal solid waste shall not be considered an eligible renewable energy resource.
(B) Subparagraph (A) does not apply to generation before January 1, 2017, from a facility located in the County of Stanislaus County that was operational prior to before September 26, 1996.

(f)

(e) “Procure” means to acquire through ownership or contract.

(g)

(f) “Procurement entity” means any person or corporation authorized by the commission to enter into contracts to procure eligible renewable energy resources on behalf of customers of a retail seller pursuant to subdivision (f) of Section 399.13.

(h)

(g) (1) “Renewable energy credit” means a certificate of proof associated with the generation of electricity from an eligible renewable energy resource, issued through the accounting system established by the Energy Commission pursuant to Section 399.25, that one unit of electricity was generated and delivered by an eligible renewable energy resource.
(2) “Renewable energy credit” includes all renewable and environmental attributes associated with the production of electricity from the eligible renewable energy resource, except for an emissions reduction credit issued pursuant to Section 40709 of the Health and Safety Code and any credits or payments associated with the reduction of solid waste and treatment benefits created by the utilization usage of biomass or biogas fuels.
(3) (A) Electricity generated by an eligible renewable energy resource attributable to the use of nonrenewable fuels, beyond a de minimis quantity used to generate electricity in the same process through which the facility converts renewable fuel to electricity, shall not result in the creation of a renewable energy credit. The Energy Commission shall set the de minimis quantity of nonrenewable fuels for each renewable energy technology at a level of no more than 2 percent of the total quantity of fuel used by the technology to generate electricity. The Energy Commission may adjust the de minimis quantity for an individual facility, up to a maximum of 5 percent, if it finds that all of the following conditions are met:
(i) The facility demonstrates that the higher quantity of nonrenewable fuel will lead to an increase in generation from the eligible renewable energy facility that is significantly greater than generation from the nonrenewable fuel alone.
(ii) The facility demonstrates that the higher quantity of nonrenewable fuels will reduce the variability of its electrical output in a manner that results in net environmental benefits to the state.
(iii) The higher quantity of nonrenewable fuel is limited to either natural gas or hydrogen derived by reformation of a fossil fuel.

(B)Electricity generated by a small hydroelectric generation facility shall not result in the creation of a renewable energy credit unless the facility meets the requirements of subparagraph (A) or (D) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (e).

(C)Electricity generated by a conduit hydroelectric generation facility shall not result in the creation of a renewable energy credit unless the facility meets the requirements of subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (e).

(D)

(B)
 Electricity generated by a facility engaged in the combustion of municipal solid waste shall not result in the creation of a renewable energy credit. This subparagraph does not apply to renewable energy credits that were generated before January 1, 2017, by a facility engaged in the combustion of municipal solid waste located in the County of Stanislaus County that was operational prior to before September 26, 1996, and sold pursuant to contacts entered into before January 1, 2017.

(i)

(h) “Renewables portfolio standard” means the specified percentage of electricity generated by eligible renewable energy resources that a retail seller or a local publicly owned electric utility is required to procure pursuant to this article.

(j)

(i)
 “Retail seller” means an entity engaged in the retail sale of electricity to end-use customers located within the state, including any of the following:
(1) An electrical corporation, as defined in Section 218.
(2) A community choice aggregator. A community choice aggregator shall participate in the renewables portfolio standard program subject to the same terms and conditions applicable to an electrical corporation.
(3) An electric service provider, as defined in Section 218.3. The electric service provider shall be subject to the same terms and conditions applicable to an electrical corporation pursuant to this article. This paragraph does not impair a contract entered into between an electric service provider and a retail customer prior to before the suspension of direct access by the commission pursuant to Section 80110 of the Water Code.
(4) “Retail seller” does not include any of the following:
(A) A corporation or person employing cogeneration technology or producing electricity consistent with subdivision (b) of Section 218.
(B) The Department of Water Resources acting in its capacity pursuant to Division 27 (commencing with Section 80000) of the Water Code.
(C) A local publicly owned electric utility.

(k)

(j) “WECC” means the Western Electricity Coordinating Council of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation, or a successor to the corporation.
Text of AB 1191 as introduced, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions
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