Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 38, September 20, 2024
(a)
Validation of Fuel Pathway
Applications (CIs).
(1)
Applicability. The following entities must obtain the services
of a verification body accredited by the Executive Officer for purposes of
conducting verification services, including required site visit(s), for each
fuel pathway application submitted under this subarticle.
(A) Fuel pathway applicants supplying
site-specific CI data for the fuel pathway application, as specified in
sections 95488.5 through
95488.8.
(B) Specified source feedstock suppliers and
other entities with site-specific CI data who apply for separate Executive
Officer recognition as a joint applicant and elect to be responsible for
separate validation and verification as specified in section
95488(b).
(b)
Verification of Annual Fuel
Pathway Report (Cls).
(1)
Applicability. The following entities must obtain the services
of a verification body accredited by the Executive Officer for purposes of
conducting verification services, including required site visit(s), for each
Fuel Pathway Report submitted under this subarticle.
(A) Holders of certified fuel pathways who
supplied site-specific CI data for pathway certification and are required to
update site-specific CI data on an annual basis, as specified in this
subarticle, are responsible for annual verification of their Fuel Pathway
Report.
(B) Specified source
feedstock suppliers and other entities with site-specific CI data who apply for
separate Executive Officer recognition as a joint applicant and elect to be
responsible for separate validation and verification as specified in section
95488(b).
(2)
Verification Schedule.
Entities required to contract for verification of Fuel Pathway Reports (CI)
must ensure a fuel pathway verification statement for each Fuel Pathway Report
is submitted to the Executive Officer according to the following schedule.
(A)
Annual Verification.
Verification statements are due to the Executive Officer by August 31 of the
year the annual Fuel Pathway Report is submitted, beginning in 2021 for 2020
data, unless eligible to defer verification, as specified in section
95500(b)(2)(B).
(B)
Deferred Verification.
Fuel pathway holders producing alternative fuels may defer verification of
their annual Fuel Pathway Reports for each production facility up to two years
if the quantity of fuel produced at the production facility and reported by any
entity does not result in 6,000 or more credits and 6,000 or more deficits
generated in LRT-CBTS during the prior calendar year and does not include a
fuel pathway with biomethane supplied using book-and-claim accounting pursuant
to section
95488.8(i)(2).
The verification body must submit fuel pathway
verification statements to the Executive Officer for all prior unverified
reports on August 31 of the year verification is required for the production
facility.
(C) Verification
services may not begin until the entity required to contract for verification
services attests that the data submitted to the Executive Officer is true,
complete, and accurate by certifying under penalty of perjury under the laws of
the State of California.
"Quarterly review" for purposes of this subarticle
means a review process conducted by the verification team after quarterly data
is submitted and before annual data is submitted and verified.
Quarterly review does not supersede the requirements
for the verification team to consider all quarterly data submitted during
annual verification. Quarterly review is optional for annual Fuel Pathway
Reports, Quarterly Fuel Transactions Reports, and Crude Oil Quarterly and
Annual Volumes Reports. Quarterly review must conform to the requirements for
verification services in section
95501. A verification statement
and verification report are not submitted after quarterly review.
Quarterly review of operational CI data may only be
included as part of annual verification services if the fuel pathway holder
submits quarterly data to the Executive Officer. Quarterly review may only be
conducted after the fuel pathway holder submits the report and attests that the
statements and information submitted are true, accurate, and
complete.
(c)
Verification of Quarterly Fuel
Transactions Reports.
(1)
Applicability. Entities submitting Quarterly Fuel Transactions
Reports under this subarticle that include the following transaction types must
obtain the services of a verification body accredited by the Executive Officer
for purposes of conducting verification services, including required site
visit(s). The scope of verification services would be limited to the following
transaction types, including associated corrections submitted in annual reports
under this subarticle.
(A) For all liquid
fuels:
1. Production in California;
2. Production for Import;
3. Import;
4. Export;
5. Gain of Inventory;
6. Loss of Inventory; and
7. Not Used for
Transportation.
(B) NGV
Fueling;
(C) Propane Fueling;
and
(D) FCV Fueling for hydrogen
produced from biomethane supplied using book-and-claim accounting pursuant to
section 95488.8(i)(2).
(2)
Verification Schedule.
Entities responsible for verification of Quarterly Fuel Transactions Reports
must ensure a transactions data verification statement is submitted to the
Executive Officer according to the following schedule.
(A)
Annual Verification. The
entity required to contract for verification of Quarterly Fuel Transactions
Reports must ensure a transactions verification statement is submitted annually
by August 31, beginning in 2021 for 2020 data, to the Executive Officer for the
prior calendar year of data unless specified otherwise in sections
95500(c)(2)(B) or
95500(c)(2)(C).
Quarterly review of a Quarterly Fuel Transactions
Report may only be included as part of annual verification services after the
entity submits the report and attests that the statements and information
submitted are true, accurate, and complete.
(B)
Deferred Verification.
Fuel pathway holders producing alternative fuels may defer annual verification
of their Quarterly Fuel Transactions Reports for each production facility up to
two years if the quantity of fuel produced at the production facility and
reported by any entity does not result in 6,000 or more credits and 6,000 or
more deficits generated in LRT-CBTS during the prior calendar year.
Fuel reporting entities only reporting alternative fuel
quantities using Lookup Table Pathways may defer annual verification of their
Quarterly Fuel Transactions Reports up to two years if they do not generate
6,000 or more credits and 6,000 or more deficits in LRT-CBTS during the prior
calendar year.
Any fuel quantity reported under a pathway with
biomethane supplied using book-and-claim accounting pursuant to section
95488.8(i)(2) is
not eligible for deferred verification.
The verification body must submit transactions
verification statements to the Executive Officer for all prior unverified
reports on August 31 of the year verification is required for the production
facility.
(C)
Verification Exemption for Designated Liquid Fuel
Transactions. Entities reporting fuel transactions as Export, Gain of
Inventory, Loss of Inventory, and Not Used for Transportation, which do not
result in 6,000 or more credits and 6,000 or more deficits generated in
LRT-CBTS in a calendar year are exempt from verification of the Quarterly Fuel
Transactions Reports for that calendar year if all the following conditions are
met:
1. The entity did not report any liquid
fuel using the transaction types: Production in California, Production for
Import, or Import; and
2. The
entity did not report any transactions specified in section
95500(c)(1)(B) or
95500(c)(1)(C).
(d)
Verification of Crude Oil
Quarterly and Annual Volumes Reports.
(1)
Applicability. Entities
submitting crude oil volume data must obtain the services of a verification
body accredited by the Executive Officer for purposes of conducting
verification services, including required site visit(s), for Crude Oil
Quarterly and Annual Volumes Reports submitted under this subarticle.
(2)
Verification Schedule.
Entities required to contract for verification of Crude Oil Quarterly and
Annual Volumes Reports must ensure a crude oil volume verification statement
for the prior calendar year of data is submitted to the Executive Officer
annually by August 31st, beginning in 2021 for 2020
data.
Quarterly review of a Crude Oil Quarterly Volumes
Report may only be conducted as part of annual verification services after the
entity submits the quarterly report and attests that the statements and
information submitted are true, accurate, and
complete.
(e)
Verification of Project Reports.
(1)
Applicability. The
following entities must obtain the services of a verification body accredited
by the Executive Officer for purposes of conducting verification services,
including required site visit(s), for Project Reports submitted under this
subarticle:
(A) Project operators and joint
applicants for refinery investment project reports;
(B) Project operators and joint applicants
for innovative crude project reports;
(C) Project operators and joint applicants
for renewable hydrogen project reports; and
(D) Project operators and joint applicants
for direct air capture project reports.
(2)
Verification Schedule.
Entities submitting Project Reports may elect to conduct quarterly or annual
verification. Entities must determine before the initial verification of a
Project Report whether to conduct quarterly or annual verification. If an
entity elects to conduct quarterly verification, it may only switch to annual
verification at the beginning of a calendar year.
Entities electing quarterly verification must ensure
each quarterly project data verification statement is submitted to the
Executive Officer within five months of the Quarterly Project Report deadline
beginning with 2020 data.
Entities electing annual verification must ensure
annual project data verification statements are submitted to the Executive
Officer by August 31, 2021 for submittal of 2020 data, and annually
thereafter.
(f)
Verification of Low-Complexity/Low-Energy-Use Refinery
Reports.
(1)
Applicability. Entities submitting
Low-Complexity/Low-Energy-Use refinery data must obtain the services of a
verification body accredited by the Executive Officer for purposes of
conducting verification services, including required site visit(s), for
Low-Complexity/Low-Energy-Use Refinery Reports submitted under this
subarticle.
(2)
Verification Schedule. The verification body must submit an
annual verification statement to the Executive Officer for the prior calendar
year by August 31, beginning in 2021 for 2020 data.
(g)
Verification Body and Individual
Verifier Rotation Requirements. An entity that is required to contract
for validation or verification must not use the same verification body or
individual verifier(s) to perform validation and verification services under
this subarticle for a period of more than six consecutive years, beginning
January 1, 2020.
The six-year period begins on the execution date of the
entity's first contract for any validation or verification under this
subarticle and ends on the date the final verification statement is submitted.
The six-year limit does not reset upon a change in ownership or operational
control of the entity required to contract for validation or verification
services.
If the entity is required or elects to contract with
another verification body or verifier(s), the entity may re-engage the previous
verification body or verifier(s) only after three years, except in the case of
a set-aside of a validation or verification statement as specified in section
95501. An entity required to
contract for validation or verification services must, in time for the next
verification, replace a verification body that has a suspended or revoked
Executive Order pursuant to MRR section
95132(d), and
included by reference in section
95502(a).
1. New
section filed 1-4-2019; operative 1-4-2019 pursuant to Government Code section
11343.4(b)(3)
(Register 2019, No. 1).
Note: Authority cited: Sections
38510,
38530,
38560,
38560.5,
38571,
38580,
39600,
39601,
41510,
41511
and
43018,
Health and Safety Code; 42
U.S.C. section 7545; and Western Oil and Gas
Ass'n v. Orange County Air Pollution Control District, 14 Cal.3d 411, 121
Cal.Rptr. 249 (1975). Reference: Sections
38501,
38510,
39515,
39516,
38571,
38580,
39000,
39001,
39002,
39003,
39515,
39516,
41510,
41511
and
43000,
Health and Safety Code; Section
25000.5,
Public Resources Code; and Western Oil and Gas Ass'n v. Orange County Air
Pollution Control District, 14 Cal.3d 411, 121 Cal.Rptr. 249
(1975).
