BILL NUMBER: SB 1055	CHAPTERED  10/03/01

	CHAPTER  447
	FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE  OCTOBER 3, 2001
	APPROVED BY GOVERNOR  OCTOBER 2, 2001
	PASSED THE SENATE  SEPTEMBER 14, 2001
	PASSED THE ASSEMBLY  SEPTEMBER 14, 2001
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  AUGUST 23, 2001
	AMENDED IN SENATE  JUNE 19, 2001
	AMENDED IN SENATE  MAY 22, 2001

INTRODUCED BY   Senator Morrow

                        FEBRUARY 23, 2001

   An act to amend Section 2772 of the Public Utilities Code,
relating to public utilities, and declaring the urgency thereof, to
take effect immediately.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 1055, Morrow.  Public Utilities Commission:  customer
priorities.
   (1) Existing law requires the Public Utilities Commission to
establish priorities among the types or categories of customers of
every electrical corporation and every gas corporation, and among the
uses of electricity or gas by those customers.  In establishing
those priorities, the commission is required, among other things, to
identify those customers and uses that provide the most important
public benefits and serve the greatest public need in descending
order of priority.
   This bill would require the commission to also include as a
consideration when establishing these priorities a determination of
unacceptable jeopardy or imminent danger to public health and safety
that creates substantial likelihood of severe health risk requiring
medical attention.  The bill would also require the commission to
consider the effect of providing a high priority to some customers on
nonpriority customers.
   (2) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately
as an urgency  statute.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


  SECTION 1.  Section 2772 of the Public Utilities Code, as amended
by Section 1 of Chapter 2 of the Statutes of 2001, Second
Extraordinary Session, is amended to read:
   2772.  In establishing the priorities pursuant to Section 2771,
the commission shall include, but not be limited to, a consideration
of all the following:
   (a) A determination of the customers and uses of electricity and
gas, in descending order of priority, that provide the most important
public benefits and serve the greatest public need.
   (b) A determination of the customers and uses of electricity and
gas that are not included under subdivision (a).
   (c) A determination of the economic, social, and other effects of
a temporary discontinuance in electrical or gas service to the
customers or for the uses determined in accordance with subdivision
(a) or (b).
   (d) A determination of the potential effect of extreme
temperatures on the health and safety of residential customers.  In
making this determination, the commission shall do all of the
following:
   (1) Consult with appropriate medical experts and review
appropriate literature and research.
   (2) Consider whether providing priority to customers experiencing
extreme temperatures would result in increased outage frequency and
duration for remaining customers and its effect on the health and
safety of those remaining customers.
   (3) To the extent the commission determines it is in the public
interest to provide priority to customers that experience extreme
temperatures, it shall provide that priority only when temperatures
are extreme.
   (4) Consider whether alternative measures are appropriate,
including, but not limited to, reducing the duration of the outage or
imposing the outage earlier or later in the day.
   (e) A determination of unacceptable jeopardy or imminent danger to
public health and safety that creates substantial likelihood of
severe health risk requiring medical attention.
   (f) Any curtailment or allocation rules, orders, or regulations
issued by any agency of the federal government.
   (g) The commission shall also consider the effect of providing a
high priority to some customers on those customers who do not receive
a high priority.
  SEC. 2.  This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the
meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate
effect.  The facts constituting the necessity are:
   In order to immediately protect the public's health and safety,
including, but not limited to, the elderly and disabled residents who
reside in the state's 1,200 skilled nursing facilities and who
depend on the ability of those facilities to provide quality care in
a safe, low-stress environment, and to maintain temperature control,
lighting, infection control, and the use of technologically advanced
medical equipment, it is necessary that this act take effect
immediately.