State Government / California / Legislation / AB 706
Source-provided summary
Existing law establishes in the Natural Resources Agency the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL-FIRE) and makes CAL-FIRE responsible for, among other things, fire protection and prevention, as provided. Existing law establishes the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection in CAL-FIRE to represent the state's interest in the acquisition and management of state forests and requires the board to maintain an adequate forest policy. Former Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr., issued a proclamation of a state of emergency on October 30, 2015, that required CAL-FIRE, the Natural Resources Agency, the Department of Transportation, and the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission) , among other things, to identify areas of the state that represent high hazard zones for wildfire and falling trees, known as Tier 1 and Tier 2 high hazard zones. Existing law creates the Timber Regulation and Forest Restoration Fund (Timber Fund) in the State Treasury and imposes an assessment on the purchase of a lumber product or an engineered wood product for storage, use, or other consumption in this state, at the rate of 1% of the sales price, for deposit into the Timber Fund. Existing law requires that moneys deposited in the Timber Fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, only be expended for specified purposes, including, among other things, as a loan to the Department of Fish and Wildlife for activities to address environmental damage occurring on forest lands resulting from marijuana cultivation. Existing law specifies the funding priorities of the Timber Fund. Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. The California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program requires every electrical corporation to file with the PUC a standard tariff for electricity generated by an electric generation facility, as defined, that qualifies for the tariff, is owned and operated by a retail customer of the electrical corporation, and is located within the service territory of, and developed to sell electricity to, the electrical corporation. This bill would, upon appropriation by the Legislature, make moneys from the Timber Fund or from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund available to the state board to establish and implement the Forest Organic Residue Energy and Safety Transformation (FOREST) program in order to maintain and expand biomass power generation in the state, to revitalize idle facilities for biomass power generation, and to support biomass power generation facilities by creating additional capacity for power generation or feedstock utilization in strategically located regions of the state. The bill would make a facility's electrical generation eligible for reimbursement at an incentive rate determined by the state board if, among other things, the facility uses forest biomass waste, as defined, to generate electricity and the electricity is sold to specified retail sellers. The bill would require, among other things, that no less than 60% of the feedstock used by a facility originate from Tier 1 and Tier 2 high hazard zones, as defined, and would require the facility to be located in specified counties or meet specified emission limits. The bill would create an application process for an operator of a facility to seek this reimbursement that also requires the operator to demonstrate the facility is certified by the Energy Commission as an eligible renewable energy resource for purposes of the California Renewable Portfolio Standards Program, as provided, and would require the state board to adopt regulations to implement the FOREST program, as provided. This bill would establish the FOREST and Wildfire Prevention Fund (FOREST Fund) in the State Treasury, and would make moneys in the FOREST Fund available, upon appropriation, to the Natural Resources Agency for the FOREST program, as specified. The bill would repeal the authorization to loan moneys in the Timber Fund for addressing marijuana cultivation damage, as described above, and would instead, in the same funding priority, authorize the Timber Fund to be expended to support the FOREST Fund and FOREST program, as specified. The bill would also specify certain procedures regarding the funding priorities of the Timber Fund so that each purpose identified in a higher priority is funded before a lower priority, as specified. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Sections 4629.6 and 4629.8 of the Public Resources Code proposed by AB 2494 to be operative only if this bill and AB 2494 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.
Latest development · Sep 4, 2026
Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 4 p.m.
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Primary sponsors are listed before cosponsors and other sponsoring entities.
Newest action first. Action language is supplied by the state source.
Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 4 p.m.
Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 75. Noes 0.).
In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.
Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 39. Noes 0.).
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
Read second time and amended. Ordered returned to second reading.
From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (August 13).
In committee: Referred to APPR. suspense file.
Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 17. Noes 0.) (June 30).
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on E., U & C. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (June 23). Re-referred to Com. on E., U & C.
From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on N.R. & W.
In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author.
Referred to Coms. on N.R. & W. and E., U & C.
In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.
Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 75. Noes 0. Page 1906.)
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
Read second time and amended. Ordered returned to second reading.
From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended. (Ayes 11. Noes 0.) (May 23).
Assembly Rule 63 suspended. (Ayes 51. Noes 16. Page 1644.)
In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to suspense file.
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 18. Noes 0.) (April 30). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
Measure version as amended on April 23 corrected.
Re-referred to Com. on U. & E.
Read second time and amended.
From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on U. & E. (Ayes 13. Noes 0.) (April 21).
Coauthors revised.
Re-referred to Com. on NAT. RES.
From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on NAT. RES. Read second time and amended.
Re-referred to Com. on NAT. RES.
From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on NAT. RES. Read second time and amended.
Referred to Coms. on NAT. RES. and U. & E.
From printer. May be heard in committee March 17.
Read first time. To print.
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