GREEN BUILDINGS COMMITTEE

Legislative Session Wrap-Up

October 15, 2021

On October 10, California's legislative year ended, with Governor Gavin Newsom signing or vetoing the remaining bills. For Green Buildings, it was a disappointing session, as several bills related to building electrification were held back as two-year bills (which can return in January).

Two interesting bills passed and were ultimately signed by the governor this year, however. One of these bills, SB 596 (Becker), sets a goal of eliminating greenhouse gas emissions in the creation of cement by 2045. Cement, the main ingredient of concrete, is a relatively high source of "embedded carbon", meaning emissions that are generated in the process of making something, rather than its ongoing use. Cement accounts for 1.8% of California's greenhouse gas emissions, but 7% of GHG emissions worldwide, and is considered one of the most "hard to abate" industrial sectors. There are technologies to reduce GHG emissions in the industry, but there has been insufficient regulatory requirements to deploy these solutions. Additionally, current processes for producing cement cause numerous adverse health effects concentrated in low-income communities in the Inland Empire and Eastern Kern County regions.

Previously, the only regulation of greenhouse gas emissions in cement was the cap-and-trade program, which has been inadequate to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from cement production, since manufacturers can just buy credits, which are relatively cheap. SB-596 directly address the greenhouse gas emissions from cement by directing the Air Resource Board (CARB) to put in place processes to phase out these emissions by 2045.

The other successful Green Buildings bill we tracked this year was SB 68 (also Becker). This is a relatively minor bill that requires the California Energy Commission (CEC) to publish best practices for building electrification and electric vehicle charging installation. It would also make funds available for projects designed to lead to technological advancements to reduce the costs of building electrification.

As we look forward to 2022, perhaps the greatest opportunity for the state legislature to act on building decarbonization is to put both funds and financing structures in place to support electrification of existing buildings, something we will discuss in our call this month.

Best,
Michael Rochmes
Chair, Green Buildings Committee

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