(a) Beginning November 1, 2003, and every two years thereafter, the commission shall adopt an integrated energy policy report. This integrated report shall contain an overview of major energy trends and issues facing the state, including, but not limited to, supply, demand, pricing, reliability, efficiency, and impacts on public health and safety, the economy, resources, and the environment. The integrated energy policy report shall present policy recommendations based on an in-depth and integrated analysis of the most current and pressing energy issues facing the state. The analyses supporting this integrated energy policy report shall explicitly address interfuel and intermarket effects to provide a more informed evaluation of potential tradeoffs when developing energy policy across different markets and systems.

(b) The integrated energy policy report shall include an assessment and forecast of system reliability and the need for resource additions, efficiency, and conservation that considers all aspects of energy industries and markets that are essential for the state economy, general welfare, public health and safety, energy diversity, and protection of the environment. This assessment shall be based on the determinations made pursuant to this chapter.

(c) Beginning November 1, 2004, and every two years thereafter, the commission shall prepare an energy policy review to update analyses from the integrated energy policy report prepared pursuant to subdivisions (a) and (b), or to raise energy issues that have emerged since the release of the integrated energy policy report. The commission may also periodically prepare and release technical analyses and assessments of energy issues and concerns to provide timely and relevant information for the Governor, the Legislature, market participants, and the public.

(d) In the preparation of the report, the commission shall consult with the following entities: the Public Utilities Commission, the Public Advocate’s Office of the Public Utilities Commission, the State Air Resources Board, the Electricity Oversight Board, the Independent System Operator, the Department of Water Resources, the Department of Transportation, and the Department of Motor Vehicles, and any federal, state, and local agencies it deems necessary in preparation of the integrated energy policy report. To assure the collaborative development of state energy policies, these agencies shall make a good faith effort to provide data, assessment, and proposed recommendations for review by the commission.

(e) The commission shall provide the report to the Public Utilities Commission, the Public Advocate’s Office of the Public Utilities Commission, the State Air Resources Board, the Electricity Oversight Board, the Independent System Operator, the Department of Water Resources, and the Department of Transportation. For the purpose of ensuring consistency in the underlying information that forms the foundation of energy policies and decisions affecting the state, those entities shall carry out their energy-related duties and responsibilities based upon the information and analyses contained in the report. If an entity listed in this subdivision objects to information contained in the report and has a reasonable basis for that objection, the entity shall not be required to consider that information in carrying out its energy-related duties.

(f) The commission shall make the report accessible to state, local, and federal entities and to the general public.

(Amended by Stats. 2018, Ch. 611, Sec. 2. (SB 1374) Effective January 1, 2019.)