On December 5, 2022, Senator Shannon Grove introduced SB 15, a bill that would express the intent of the legislature to monitor crude oil imports into California from countries with human rights abuses or lower environmental standards for oil production. The bill, which ultimately aims to increase oil production in the state, is an updated version of the previously introduced SB 1319.
More specifically, the bill would express the intent of the legislature to require the California Energy Commission (CEC) to monitor foreign countries that export oil to California and identify which of those countries have demonstrated human rights abuses as documented by the United States Department of State or by human rights organizations. The CEC would also be required to monitor foreign countries that export oil to California and identify which of those countries have environmental standards for the production of oil that are lower than California standards. The CEC would be required to publish this information on its website.
The bill would also require the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to produce an annual assessment of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with the transportation of oil in California and to publish that assessment on its website. The assessment would include the GHG emissions associated with the transportation of oil in California for oil imported into the state during the previous year broken down by the country of origin and for oil produced within the state during the previous year.
The CEC would be required to provide data collected pursuant to the Petroleum Industry Information Reporting Act of 1980 to CARB for the assessment. This bill would also require the California Geologic Energy Management Division to provide a link on its website to air quality emissions data associated with the transportation of oil imported into the state.