He is referring to the complex deregulation plan under which utilities were given a deal to pay off old contracts and the costs of nuclear power plants. Consumers received a temporary rate cut. Now the state needs to reimburse its own general fund. So half the bond issue will go directly into the general fund and the rest will be available to buy power this summer. If the state buys the utility's transmission lines, it must invest in upgrades and expansion.
Loose ends remain.
But the costs of this year's borrowings and the long-term contracts concluded at the height of the crisis will go on for decades. Times staff writer Miguel Bustillo in Sacramento contributed to this report.