SACRAMENTO – Assemblymember Steve Fox (D-Palmdale) on Monday announced that his Assembly Bill (AB) 1060 was approved by Governor Jerry Brown.
The measure provides continued access to renewable energy grants for 15 counties that are located within the Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan area.
“Desert counties have a fighting chance to obtain funds for innovative, environmentally friendly programs,” said Fox. “These planning grants inspire communities to develop creative future energy resources.”
In 2011, a previous bill authorized up to $7 million for the California Energy Commission (CEC) to issue grants to 15 counties to help them develop policies and regulations to facilitate renewable energy development.
Though grant funds were available to eligible counties for two years, when the authorization expired on June 30, 2013 only Imperial, Inyo, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, and San Luis Obispo counties had applied.
Consequently, $3.6 million in planning grant funds remained unused—money that county governments can apply for thanks to this legislation.
Kern County expressed an immediate interest in applying for a grant. The counties of Fresno, Kings, Madera, Merced, Riverside, San Diego, San Joaquin, Stanislaus and Tulare also are eligible to apply for renewable development grant funds under AB 1060.
“These grants will ensure close collaboration and consistency of shared planning for our state,” Fox concluded.
For more information, visit www.asmdc.org/fox.