BILL ANALYSIS Ó
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
SB 1207 (Fuller) - California Alternative Rates for Energy
program.
Amended: May 1, 2012 Policy Vote: EU&C 12-0
Urgency: No Mandate: No
Hearing Date: May 24, 2012 Consultant: Marie Liu
SUSPENSE FILE. AS PROPOSED TO BE AMENDED.
Bill Summary: SB 1207 authorizes investor owned utilities (IOUs)
to take certain actions on participants of the California
Alternative Rates for Energy (CARE) program whose usage exceeds
400% and 600% of the baseline in any monthly billing cycle
including requesting proof of income eligibility for the
program, conducting a residential energy audit, and requiring
participation in an energy savings assistance program.
Fiscal Impact: Potential one-time costs of $150,000 from the
Public Utilities Commission Utilities Reimbursement Account
(special fund) in 2013-14 for a proceeding.
Background: The CARE program provides a discount for electric
and gas service for customers whose incomes are below 200% of
the federal poverty guideline levels and limits the rate
structure for CARE customers to no more than three usage tiers.
Increases to CARE rates are currently restricted to on annual
increases in the CalWORKS program. The CARE program is funded
through a rate surcharge paid by all other utility customers.
The California Public Utilities Commission (PUC) currently has
an open proceeding regarding the CARE program which is
explicitly considering requirements for CARE customers that are
using more than 600% of the baseline usage.
Proposed Law: This bill would allow an IOU to require of any
CARE customer who use more than 400% of the baseline usage in a
monthly billing cycle: (1) proof of income eligibility,
regardless of how the customer was enrolled in the program; (2)
participation in an energy savings assistance program to inform
and assist the customer in lowering their energy usage; and (3)
identification of the landlord of the property, if the customer
SB 1207 (Fulller)
Page 1
is a renter, in order to share recommendations to the landlord.
The IOU may condition the customer's continued participation in
the CARE program to the customer's agreement to participate in
the energy savings assistance program.
This bill would further require an IOU to obligate a CARE
customer using 600% of the baseline usage to participate in an
energy savings assistance program as a condition of remaining in
the program. If the customer's usage continues to exceed 600% of
baseline usage despite participation in the energy savings
assistance program, the IOU would be allowed to remove the
customer from the CARE program in a manner consistent with
procedures adopted by the PUC.
Staff Comments: This bill would require the PUC to open a
proceeding to develop procedures by which an IOU can remove a
customer from the CARE program for persistent electricity or gas
usage exceeding 600% of the baseline usage. Although not
explicitly required in the bill, presumably the proceeding will
take into consideration the duration of the high usage before
IOUs take actions against a customer; situations where the
customer has little or no control over items that dramatically
increase load such as inefficient HVAC systems, high heat
storms, or multiple families living in one unit; and other
consumer protections not specified in this bill.
On May 4, 2012, the PUC issued a proposed decision (PD) that
likely meets the requirements of this bill. If the PUC adopts
the PD as recently drafted, there will be no costs associated
with this bill, as the bill would have no practical effect.
However, if the PD is substantially changed before it is adopted
by the PUC, the PUC could be required to open a new proceeding
as a result of the passage of this bill at an approximate
one-time cost of $150,000.
Proposed Author Amendments: Technical changes to conform
requirements to existing practices and to not constrain the PUC
in developing procedures to implement this bill, presumably to
accommodate the recently released proposed decision.