The California Energy Commission was created in 1974 pursuant to the Warren-Alquist State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Act (Stats. 1974, ch. 276). Prior to the development of the Commission, utilities wanting to construct an energy facility faced a fragmented and lengthy siting process that necessitated authorization of local, state, and federal agencies. Beginning in the mid 1960s the Resources Agency assumed the duties of determining acceptability of proposed sites and coordinating the activities of state agencies connected to the siting process. The changing environmental laws at the state and federal levels and the need for a formalized siting process prompted the Legislature to introduce several siting bills beginning in the 1970 session. In response to the oil shortage of 1973, the Governor signed A.B. 1575 (1974) into law, which consolidated the operations of energy forecasting, conservation, development, and siting within a single agency.

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