BACKGROUND

GO 131-D

GO 131-D Section XI.B requires that utilities give notice of the construction of any facilities fitting within the exemptions under Sections III.A and B from the need to file an application for a certificate of public convenience and necessity or permit to construct, not less than 30 days before the date the construction is intended to begin, by:

1. Direct mail to the planning director for each county or city in which the proposed facility would be located and the Executive Director and the Energy Commission [California Energy Conservation and Development Commission]; and

2. Advertisement, not less than once a week, two weeks successively, in a newspaper or newspapers of general circulation in the county or counties in which the proposed facility would be located, the first publication to be no later than 45 days before the date when construction is intended to begin; and

3. By posting a notice on-site and off-site where the project would be located.

4. Filing an informational advice letter with the CACD¹ in accordance with General Order 96-A, which includes a copy and distribution list of the notices required by items 1-3 herein. On the same day, a copy of the advice letter must be delivered to the CPUC Public Advisor.

GO 131-D Section XIII provides in pertinent part that:

Those to whom notice has been given under Section XI.B hereof and any other person or entity entitled to participate in a proceeding for a certificate of public convenience and necessity or permit to construct may, within 20 days after the notice was mailed and published, contest any intended construction for which exemption is claimed by the utility from the requirements of Section III.B if such persons or entities have valid reason to believe that any of the conditions described in Section III.B.2 exist or the utility has incorrectly applied for an exemption as defined in Section III herein.

Persons or groups may protest the proposed construction if they believe that a utility has incorrectly applied for an exemption or that the conditions set out in Section III.B.2 of General Order 131-D exist;

a. There is a reasonable possibility that the activity may impact on an environmental resource of hazardous or critical concern where designated, precisely mapped and officially adopted pursuant to law by federal, state, or local agencies; or

b. The cumulative impact of successive projects of the same type in the same place, over time, is significant; or

c. There is a reasonable possibility that the activity will have a significant effect on the environment due to unusual circumstances.

GO 131-D Section XIII provides that protests must be filed within 20 days after the notice was mailed and published, that a utility must respond to protests within 5 business days, and the Executive Director must within 30 days of the utility's response consult with the Energy Division and issue an Executive Resolution on whether: the utility is to file an application for a certificate of public convenience and necessity or permit to construct, or the protest is dismissed for failure to state a valid reason. The Executive Director must state the reasons for granting or denying the protest and provide a copy of each Executive Resolution to the Commission's Public Advisor. The Public Advisor must provide information to assist the public in submitting such protests.

1 1. The Commission's Compliance and Advisory Division, now divided into industry specific divisions, such as the Energy Division. For purposes of this resolution, advice letters subject to General Order 131-D must be filed with the Energy and Legal Divisions.