The California PUC has called a special meeting on Friday, July 26, 2019, in Sacramento for the sole reason of issuing an Order Instituting Rulemaking to consider authorization of a non-bypassable charge to support a California Wildfire Fund, intended to pay eligible claims from covered wildfires, as defined by Assembly Bill (AB) 1054 (Stats. 2019, ch. 79). The State Legislature had directed the CPUC in AB 1054 to consider whether the the Commission should exercise its authority under Public Utilities (PU) Code 701 to require certain electric companies (Pacific Gas & Electric, Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas and Electric and other Investor Owned Utilities) to collect from ratepayers a non-bypassable charge for the new Wildfire Fund. AB1054 requires the CPUC to determine if the imposition of the Wildfire Fund non-bypassable charge is just and reasonable, and if such imposition is an appropriate exercise of the Commission's authority.
The Commission set forth a Preliminary Scoping Memo as to what issues will be considered:
1. Whether it's appropriate for the CPUC to exercise its authority under PU Code Section 701 to require electric companies to impose a non-bypassable charge on ratepayers to support a CA Wildfire Fund established by AB1054, including payment of bonds issued pursuant to Section 80500 et seq of the CA Water Code;
2. Whether imposition of the non-bypassable charge is just and reasonable;
3. The estimated dollar amount of the revenue requirement referred to in the Section 3289 of the PU Code (estimated to be $880 million);
4. The nature of the CPUC's agreement with the Dept. of Water Resources pursuant to Water Code Section 80524(b);
5. Other issues that must be addressed before the Wildfire Fund non-bypassable charge may be imposed.
A different proceeding or phase of this proceeding will be held after this proceeding to determine the actual charges to be annually collected from each electric company. The proceeding was categorized as a ratesetting proceeding as a result.
A very aggressive time schedule was set with a final decision set to issue in October 2019:
Prehearing Conference Statements due August 7, 2019 by respondents and interested parties
Prehearing Conference held on August 8, 2019 at 10 a.m. at the CPUC headquarters in San Francisco, where parties may enter appearances and address the OIR's issues, scope and schedule.
Scoping Memo and Ruling issued on August 12, 2019
Opening Comments on Scoped Issues due on August 22, 2019
Reply Comments on Scoped Issues due on August 29, 2019
Deadline for Filing Motions for Oral Argument on August 29, 2019
Proposed Decision to issue in September 2019 (subject to comments by parties)
Final Decision to issue in October 2019
"Non bypassable" charges are assessed to make sure every customer pays into programs that have broad benefits, even if they get their kilowatts from an outside supplier (such as direct access customers and Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) customers). Examples of non-bypassable charges in California are public purpose programs to provide discounted energy to low income families, nuclear decommissioning, competition transition charges, and Dept. of Water Resources bonds.
