The bill would make related legislative findings and declarations. Existing law relating to electrical restructuring states that nothing in those provisions prevents the commission from exercising its authority to investigate a process for the certification and regulation of the rates, charges, terms, and conditions of default service, and if the commission determines that a process for the certification and regulation of default service is in the public interest, existing law requires the commission to submit its findings and recommendations to the Legislature for approval. This bill would require electrical corporations serving certain agricultural customers to conduct research to determine the typical simultaneous peak load of those customers and report the results of the research to the customers and the commission not later than a specified date. The bill would require the commission to consider the results of the research when setting future electric distribution rates for those customers. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state.
Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. Section 328 of the Public Utilities Code is repealed. In order to ensure that all core customers of a gas corporation continue to receive safe basic gas service in a competitive market, each existing gas corporation should continue to provide this essential service. No customer should have to pay separate fees for utilizing services that protect public or customer safety. The commission shall require each gas corporation to provide bundled basic gas service to all core customers in its service territory unless the customer chooses or contracts to have natural gas purchased and supplied by another entity.