A new bill in the state legislature would renew funding to communities and schools around Diablo Canyon, California’s only operational nuclear power plant.
State Senator John Laird and Assemblymember Dawn Addis coauthored Senate Bill 931 and introduced it last week.
PG&E operates Diablo Canyon and has historically paid money, often referred to as a “unitary tax,” to local communities to help compensate for the impacts of having a nuclear plant nearby.
That funding ended last year when Diablo Canyon had been scheduled to close, even though operations were ultimately extended until 2030.
“Communities in San Luis Obispo County have relied on this funding to support essential public services, including fire protection, public safety response, and local schools until Diablo Canyon’s planned closure,” Laird said in a press release. “When the state extended the plant’s operations, it’s only fair that we also extend the funding commitments made to support those communities.”
Ben Lippert is the father of two girls who both attend Los Ranchos Elementary.
He co-founded a group along with Annie Aguiñiga Frew and Emily Goodman called the San Luis Coastal Parent Information Network. The organization tries to educate parents on school funding issues.
He says the network was created because he and other parents were frustrated with budget cuts at the San Luis Coastal Unified School District. Those cuts were due, in part, to the loss of revenue coming from PG&E.
“ We didn't feel like the people involved were advocating for our kids in the way that we thought they should,” Lippert said.
Lippert says he is glad that Laird and Addis are attempting to reinstate funding to public schools in San Luis Obispo County.
“Our elected officials have now sort of taken up the cause for the community and I think are making really great steps in the right direction,” Lippert told KCBX. “ Any decisions about Diablo Canyon, even though they have to be made at the state legislature, should have local input as a key part of the decision making process.”
Senate Bill 931 would renew the funding by reviving a settlement negotiated in 2016 between PG&E, San Luis Obispo County and other groups prior to the scheduled closure of Diablo Canyon.
The bill would extend that funding until 2030, when the plant is currently supposed to cease operations, according to state law.
