MOTION-- In 2016, the Los Angeles City Council unanimously approved a motion (CF 16-0243, Krekorian and Bonin) recognizing that "the city has an opportunity to re-create its utility in a way that recognizes the potential for a fossil-free future, demonstrates global leadership in its commitment to clean energy, and protects ratepayers from the increasing costs of carbon-based fuels." The motion instructed the Department of Water and Power (DWP) to develop a partnership with the US Department of Energy and other entities to determine what investments must be made to achieve a 100% fossil-free energy portfolio for the DWP. This project is known as LA100. As a result of the Council's action on the Krekorian/Bonin LA 100 motion, the DWP entered into an innovative, first-in-the-nation partnership with the US Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) to study the technical feasibility of achieving a 100% clean energy grid. The NREL study team, made up of nearly 100 technical experts, working with some of the most powerful supercomputers in the nation, led a thorough process on behalf of, and in close partnership with, the DWP. The study provides objective, technically rigorous, science-based recommendations on different 100% carbon-free energy scenarios, and considers their technical feasibility, cost, reliability, resiliency, health improvements, job benefits, and environmental justice implications.
The study was enhanced by the participation of more than 100 members of the stakeholder advisory panel, representing nearly 50 organizations that included environmental justice groups, industry representatives, local technical experts, and government agencies.
All scenarios in the LA 100 analysis share dramatic local benefits, including:
Significant improvements to local air quality and reduced hospitalization and death from respiratory ailments associated with ozone and particulate matter;
Thousands of local, good-paying jobs created, such as maintenance of clean energy systems and construction of new transmission and distribution lines;
The opportunity to reverse decades of environmental injustice by replacing dirty gas fired plants in working class neighborhoods with clean energy; and
A reliable and resilient grid, capable of adapting to a changing climate and shocks caused by natural disasters.
LA 1OO's "stress" scenarios, which assume high amounts of building and transportation electrification but modest energy efficiency and demand response programs, demonstrate the imperative of creating much more robust and creative programs to address future demand. Energy efficiency programs, which make LA 100 goals more feasible, must prioritize low-income customers and ensure that all communities share in the benefits of the clean energy economy.
In the coming months, LADWP will prepare a Strategic Long Term Resource Plan (SL TRP),which is the first opportunity to create a schedule and begin planning and approving investments needed to reach the 100% clean energy goal. As the Department prepares its proposals for Council approval, the SL TRP should feature "no regrets" investment strategies, including:
o Substantial investments in new transmission capacity
o Substantial investments in new storage capacity
o A ramp up of distributed energy generation programs, particularly rooftop solar
o Expanded energy efficiency programs
Rate structures that promote electrification of buildings, transportation, and facilitate demand response
In 2018, SB100 committed all power utilities in California to achieve 100% renewable energy by2045. which represents the DWP's current legally mandated requirement. In 2019, this City Council adopted the LA Green New Deal, which further sets Los Angeles on a path to achieve net zero carbon by 2050, including strategies to electrify our building and transportation sectors. In his January 27, 2021 Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis, President Joe Biden committed the federal government to decarbonizing the nation's electric power sector by 2035.Given this national target, the hope for federal funding to support these goals, and the technical knowledge acquired from LA 100, Los Angeles is in a position to lead.
I THEREFORE MOVE that the Council INSTRUCT the Department of Water and Power to prepare a Strategic Long Term Resource Plan that achieves 100% carbon-free energy by 2035,in a way that is equitable and has minimal adverse impact on ratepayers .
I FURTHER MOVE that the Strategic Long Term Resource Plan prioritize equity for environmental justice communities, defined as those scoring at or above the 80th percentile on CalEnviroScreen. The plan should ensure that emissions are not increased for any period of time at facilities in environmental justice communities, particularly Valley Generating Station .
I FURTHER MOVE that the Council INSTRUCT the Chief Legislative Analyst, with the assistance of the Department of Water and Power, to report on the 'no-regrets" projects that are common to all LA 100 paths and present an accelerated pathway to launch and complete those projects. This report should include a list of "shovel-ready" projects that DWP can be ready to act on in order to seize on Federal and State funding opportunities.