Bill > AB615

This bill amends existing California law to enhance emergency preparedness and safety requirements for power facilities and energy storage systems. The bill mandates that applications for power facilities and energy storage systems must now include a comprehensive emergency response and action plan, which must be developed in coordination with local emergency management agencies, unified program agencies, and first response agencies. The plan must analyze potential impacts to surrounding areas in the event of an emergency and will be paid for by the applicant. Additionally, for energy storage systems applying after January 1, 2026, the bill requires the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to ensure that facilities comply with setback requirements consistent with the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 855 standard, which provides guidelines for the safe installation of stationary energy storage systems. The bill removes some previous application requirements related to electrical transmission lines and route descriptions while adding these new emergency preparedness and safety provisions. The changes aim to improve community safety and emergency readiness for power and energy storage facilities by ensuring more thorough risk assessment and local agency coordination during the application process.

Budget and Finance, Military Affairs and Security, Transportation and Infrastructure

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB615