republic-os/legislation/us/states/ca/20092010/ab-1954.md

---
type: "Bill"
title: "Electrical transmission: renewable energy resources."
description: "Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations, as defined. Existing law, the Public Utilities Act, prohibits any electrical corporation from beginning the construction of, among other things, a line, plant, or system, or of any extension thereof, without having first obtained from the CPUC a certificate that the present or future public convenience and necessity require or will require that construction (certificate of public convenience and necessity) . Existing law requires the CPUC, in acting upon an application by an electrical corporation for a certificate of public convenience and necessity, to deem new transmission facilities necessary to the provision of electric service if the CPUC finds that new transmission facilities are necessary to facilitate achievement of the renewable power goals established under the renewables portfolio standard. That law additionally requires the CPUC, upon finding that new transmission facilities are necessary to facilitate achievement of the renewable power goals established under the renewables portfolio standard, to take all feasible actions to ensure that the transmission rates established by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission are fully reflected in any retail rates established by the commission."
jurisdiction: "us/states/ca"
legislature: "California Legislature"
session: "20092010"
identifier: "AB 1954"
citation: "California AB 1954 (20092010)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Electrical transmission: renewable energy resources."]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Skinner"]
version_count: 9
action_count: 30
vote_count: 8
first_action: "2010-02-17"
last_action: "2010-09-29"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/669425b8-7601-4c8c-b547-95c2c1dfb3c2"
source_url: "http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=200920100AB1954"
source_hash: "a83adf3ec4791b8a416e79c89e5326ae0022cd2f16f174a19d3dc0dc1c9a295a"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-ca"]
---

# California AB 1954 (20092010) — Electrical transmission: renewable energy resources.

Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations, as defined. Existing law, the Public Utilities Act, prohibits any electrical corporation from beginning the construction of, among other things, a line, plant, or system, or of any extension thereof, without having first obtained from the CPUC a certificate that the present or future public convenience and necessity require or will require that construction (certificate of public convenience and necessity) . Existing law requires the CPUC, in acting upon an application by an electrical corporation for a certificate of public convenience and necessity, to deem new transmission facilities necessary to the provision of electric service if the CPUC finds that new transmission facilities are necessary to facilitate achievement of the renewable power goals established under the renewables portfolio standard. That law additionally requires the CPUC, upon finding that new transmission facilities are necessary to facilitate achievement of the renewable power goals established under the renewables portfolio standard, to take all feasible actions to ensure that the transmission rates established by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission are fully reflected in any retail rates established by the commission.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **02/17/10 - Introduced** (filed) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=200920100AB1954&version=20090AB195499INT)
2. **04/12/10 - Amended Assembly** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=200920100AB1954&version=20090AB195498AMD)
3. **06/17/10 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=200920100AB1954&version=20090AB195497AMD)
4. **07/15/10 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=200920100AB1954&version=20090AB195496AMD)
5. **08/04/10 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=200920100AB1954&version=20090AB195495AMD)
6. **08/20/10 - Amended Senate** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=200920100AB1954&version=20090AB195494AMD)
7. **09/29/10 - Chaptered** (committee substitute) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=200920100AB1954&version=20090AB195492CHP)
8. **AB1954** (committee substitute) — [source](http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=200920100AB1954)
9. **09/08/10 - Enrolled** (enrolled) — [source](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billPdf.xhtml?bill_id=200920100AB1954&version=20090AB195493ENR)

## Votes

- Do pass as amended, and re-refer to the Committee on Appropriations. — **pass** (pass) · upper
- Do pass as amended. — **pass** (pass) · upper
- AB 1954 SKINNER Consent Calendar Second Day Regular Session — **pass** (pass) · lower
- AB 1954 SKINNER Concurrence in Senate Amendments — **pass** (pass) · lower
- Do pass, to Consent Calendar. — **pass** (pass) · lower
- Assembly 3rd Reading AB1954 Skinner By Strickland — **pass** (pass) · upper
- Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on Appropriations. — **pass** (pass) · lower
- Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on Natural Resources. — **pass** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- Skinner — primary (person)
- V. Manuel Perez — author (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2010-02-17** Read first time. To print. `reading-1`
- **2010-02-18** From printer. May be heard in committee March 20.
- **2010-03-04** Referred to Coms. on U. & C. and NAT. RES. `referral-committee`
- **2010-04-06** From committee: Do pass, and re-refer to Com. on NAT. RES. Re-referred. (Ayes 14. Noes 0.) (April 5). `committee-passage-favorable, committee-passage`
- **2010-04-12** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on NAT. RES. Read second time and amended. `amendment-introduction, reading-2, amendment-passage, reading-1`
- **2010-04-13** Re-referred to Com. on NAT. RES. `referral-committee`
- **2010-04-20** From committee: Do pass, and re-refer to Com. on APPR. Re-referred. (Ayes 9. Noes 0.) (April 19). `committee-passage-favorable, committee-passage`
- **2010-05-06** From committee: Do pass. To Consent Calendar. (May 5). `committee-passage-favorable, committee-passage`
- **2010-05-10** Read second time. To Consent Calendar. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **2010-05-13** Read third time, passed, and to Senate. (Ayes 76. Noes 0. Page 5159.) `reading-3, passage, reading-1`
- **2010-05-13** In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. `reading-1`
- **2010-05-27** Referred to Com. on E., U., & C. `referral-committee`
- **2010-06-10** In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author.
- **2010-06-17** From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on E., U., & C. `amendment-introduction, reading-2, amendment-passage, referral-committee, reading-1`
- **2010-07-15** From committee: Amend, do pass as amended, and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 9. Noes 0.) (June 29). `amendment-introduction, amendment-passage, committee-passage`
- **2010-07-15** Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR. `reading-2, amendment-passage, referral-committee, reading-1`
- **2010-08-03** From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended. (Ayes 9. Noes 0.) (August 2). `amendment-introduction, amendment-passage, committee-passage`
- **2010-08-04** Read second time and amended. Ordered to third reading. `amendment-passage, reading-2, reading-1`
- **2010-08-12** Ordered to Special Consent Calendar.
- **2010-08-18** From Special Consent Calendar pursuant to Joint Rule 22.2.
- **2010-08-18** Ordered to third reading.
- **2010-08-20** Read third time, amended. To second reading. `reading-3, amendment-passage, reading-1`
- **2010-08-23** Read second time. To third reading. `reading-2, reading-1`
- **2010-08-24** Read third time, passed, and to Assembly. (Ayes 35. Noes 0. Page 4845.) `reading-3, passage, reading-1`
- **2010-08-24** In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending. May be considered on or after August 26 pursuant to Assembly Rule 77.
- **2010-08-25** Assembly Rule 77 suspended. (Page 6644.)
- **2010-08-27** Senate amendments concurred in. To enrollment. (Ayes 75. Noes 0. Page 6776.) `amendment-passage, committee-passage-favorable`
- **2010-09-09** Enrolled and to the Governor at 4:30 p.m.
- **2010-09-29** Approved by the Governor. `executive-signature`
- **2010-09-29** Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 460, Statutes of 2010.

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/669425b8-7601-4c8c-b547-95c2c1dfb3c2`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official California legislature records).