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California lawmakers sent Gov. Gavin Newsom legislation Friday that would narrow a year-old exemption from the California Environmental Quality Act for advanced manufacturing projects.
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Environmental groups advocated for SB 954 over concerns that the CEQA exemption could allow heavily polluting facilities to bypass environmental review.
“Today, the Legislature stood up for California communities by delivering on its promise to close a dangerous loophole that gave the dirtiest industries a free pass,” Shannon Olivieri Hovis, chief strategy officer of California Environmental Voters, said in a statement.
The bill would preserve the exemption for some advanced manufacturing projects but restrict it to facilities engaged exclusively in “final tier manufacturing,” such as assembling, testing or packaging completed products, rather than producing raw materials or intermediate components.
Authored by Sen. Catherine Blakespear, D-Encinitas, the bill received final legislative approval Friday when the Senate concurred with the Assembly’s amendments. The measure now heads to Newsom.
Manufacturers, however, say SB 954 goes too far. The California Manufacturers & Technology Association urged Newsom to veto the bill, arguing it would undermine permitting reforms lawmakers approved just last year.
The organization tied its opposition to Newsom’s “Made in California” campaign, which he launched Friday morning to promote products manufactured in the state.
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“We agree with Governor Newsom — California makes just about everything, and we make it better than anyone. But consumers can only buy Californian if manufacturers can build in California,” CMTA President and CEO Lance Hastings said in a statement.
The Legislature made numerous changes to CEQA last year through SB 131, including creating an exemption for advanced manufacturing facilities. Blakespear said the definition was broad enough to encompass a wide range of heavy industrial uses, including chemical, plastics and pesticide manufacturing and strip mining.
Blakespear called her bill “cleanup legislation” that corrects last year’s “overreach.”
The bill also adds conditions projects must meet to qualify for the exemption. Facilities would have to be on land zoned for heavy industrial use and could not be located near disadvantaged communities or populations sensitive to pollutants, such as hospitals, schools and nursing homes. Projects would also face limits on air pollution and requirements related to clean backup power, green building standards and worker protections.
“SB 954 ensures that when new industrial and manufacturing facilities are built, that the environment, workers and the communities living next door have the safeguards they need,” Blakespear said in a statement.
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