On Jan. 23, 2025, California Assemblymember Dawn Addis (D-Morro Bay) introduced Assembly Bill (AB) 303, titled the “Battery Energy Safety and Accountability Act.” Broadly, AB 303, would impose siting restrictions on battery energy storage system (BESS) projects and rescind the California Energy Commission’s (CEC) ability to approve BESS projects through the opt-in certification process created by AB 205 (2022).
Enacted in 2022, AB 205 added a new chapter to the Warren-Alquist Act to govern CEC certification of, among others, energy storage systems capable of storing 200 megawatt hours (MWh) or more of electricity and appurtenant facilities. The bill provided that issuance of the certification is “in lieu of any permit, certificate, or similar document required by any state, local, or regional agency, or federal agency ...,” thereby creating a state-level permitting alternative to the traditional local permitting pathway for such projects.
AB 303 takes aim at BESS projects in two ways. First, by redefining “facilities” under AB 205, AB 303 would eliminate the CEC’s authority to issue a certification over a BESS project, returning sole authority over such projects to local agencies. AB 303 would also require the CEC to deny any certification applications for BESS projects that are pending.
Second, AB 303 would impose siting restrictions by prohibiting BESS projects from locating on (1) environmentally sensitive sites or (2) a site within 3,200 feet of a sensitive receptor, as defined in AB 303. “Environmentally sensitive sites” would include, for example, various areas within the coastal zone, high-value farmland, wetlands, parcels in very high fire hazard severity zones, hazardous waste sites, earthquake zones, and flood hazard zones. “Sensitive receptors” would include (but are not limited to) residences, schools, community centers and businesses open to the public.
The bill has been introduced as urgency legislation, which would require a two-thirds vote and would take effect immediately, which the author justifies by the alleged “potential fire hazard posed by large energy storage systems.” According to a press release from Assemblymember Addis, AB 303 was prompted by the recent fire at the Moss Landing Power Plant in Monterey County on Jan. 16, 2025.
AB 303 comes at a time when the state is leaning in to its clean energy transition, in which BESS projects play a crucial role in supporting grid reliability and making carbon-free electrons available when needed. In 2024, the California Public Utilities Commission (PUC) reported that over 13 gigawatts (GW) of energy storage has been installed, although there is still a long way to go to hit the 49 GW by 2045 target established by the CPUC. It is unclear whether AB 303’s restrictions would imperil the state’s ability to meet its greenhouse gas reduction goals, or lead to more instability in the grid as renewables become a larger and larger share of the state’s energy mix.
What comes next? At this time, AB 303 is pending referral to a policy committee and can be acted upon Feb. 23 thereafter.
