15473. (a) There is in state government, within the Natural Resources Agency, the Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety. The office shall be under the supervision of the Director of the Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety, who shall have all rights and powers of a head of an office as provided by this code.
(b) The director shall be appointed by, and hold office at the pleasure of, the Governor. The appointment of the director is subject to confirmation by the Senate.
(1) The director shall receive an annual salary as set forth in Section 11552.
(2) The Governor may appoint a deputy director of the office. The deputy director shall hold office at the pleasure of the Governor.
(c) In carrying out the provisions of this part, the director may:
(1) Cooperate and contract with public and private agencies for the performance of acts, the rendition of services, and the affording of facilities as may be necessary and proper.
(2) Do other acts and things as may be necessary and incidental to the exercise of powers and the discharge of duties conferred or imposed by the provisions of this part, including, but not limited to, all of the following:
(A) Employ and prescribe duties of staff members as necessary to carry out the duties of the office.
(B) Employ and prescribe duties for staff designated as investigators. The personnel classification of the investigators shall be consistent with the technical qualifications needed to conduct the investigations.
(C) Designate staff as compliance officers or hearing examiners.
(D) Conduct investigations in any part of the state, compel information, and hold hearings, public meetings, or workshops as necessary to carry out the powers, duties, and responsibilities of the office, consistent with the exercise of its authority pursuant to this part, Section 326 of, and Sections 8385 to 8389, inclusive, of, the Public Utilities Code, or other statutes pertaining to the office.
(E) Adopt, amend, and repeal regulations as necessary to carry out the powers, duties, and responsibilities of the office, consistent with Section 15475. The adoption, amendment, or repeal of regulations shall be deemed to be an emergency and necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health and safety, or general welfare.
(F) Require a regulated entity to file an incident report with the office concerning any matter regulated by the office concerning a regulated entity’s infrastructure.
(d) The director and deputy director may administer oaths, certify to all official acts, serve warrants, and issue subpoenas for the attendance of witnesses and the production of papers, including computer modeling, programs, maps, geographic information systems data, and other digital records, waybills, books, accounts, documents, and testimony in any inquiry, investigation, or hearing in any part of the state.
(e) The director has the power of a head of a department pursuant to Article 2 (commencing with Section 11180) of Chapter 2 of Part 1.
(Amended by Stats. 2021, Ch. 115, Sec. 15. (AB 148) Effective July 22, 2021.)