Assembly Bill No. 327

CHAPTER 611

An act to amend Sections 382, 399.15, 739.1, 2827, and 2827.10 of, to amend and renumber Section 2827.1 of, to add Sections 769 and 2827.1 to, and to repeal and add Sections 739.9 and 745 of, the Public Utilities Code, relating to energy.

[Approved by Governor October 7, 2013. Filed with Secretary of State October 7, 2013.]

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 327, Perea. Electricity: natural gas: rates: net energy metering: California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program.

Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical and gas corporations, as defined. Existing law authorizes the commission to fix the rates and charges for every public utility, and requires that those rates and charges be just and reasonable. Existing law requires the commission to designate a baseline quantity of electricity and gas necessary to supply a significant portion of the reasonable energy needs of the average residential customer and requires that electrical and gas corporations file rates and charges, to be approved by the commission, providing baseline rates. Existing law requires the commission, in establishing the baseline rates, to avoid excessive rate increases for residential customers. Existing law requires the commission to establish a program of assistance to low-income electric and gas customers, referred to as the California Alternate Rates for Energy (CARE) program. The CARE program provides lower rates to low-income customers that are financed through a separate rate component, which is required to be a nonbypassable element of the local distribution service and collected on the basis of usage. Eligibility for the CARE program is for those electric and gas customers with annual household incomes that are no greater than 200% of the federal poverty guideline levels.

Existing law revises certain prohibitions upon raising residential electrical rates adopted during the energy crisis of 2000-01, to authorize the commission to increase the rates charged residential customers for electricity usage up to 130% of the baseline quantities by the annual percentage change in the Consumer Price Index from the prior year plus 1%, but not less than 3% and not more than 5% per year. Existing law additionally authorizes the commission to increase the rates in effect for CARE program participants for electricity usage up to 130% of baseline quantities by the annual percentage increase in benefits under the CalWORKs program, as defined, not to exceed 3%, and subject to the limitation that the CARE rates not exceed 80% of the corresponding rates charged to residential customers not participating in the CARE program. Existing law states the intent of the Legislature that CARE program participants be afforded the lowest possible electric and gas rates and, to the extent possible, be exempt from additional surcharges attributable to the energy crisis of 2000-01.

This bill would repeal the limitations upon increasing the electric service rates of residential customers, including the rate increase limitations applicable to electric service provided to CARE customers, but would require the commission, in establishing rates for CARE program participants, to ensure that low-income ratepayers are not jeopardized or overburdened by monthly energy expenditures and to adopt CARE rates in which the level of discount for low-income electricity and gas ratepayers correctly reflects their level of need, as determined by a specified needs assessment. The bill would require that this needs assessment be performed not less often than every 3rd year. The bill would revise the CARE program eligibility requirements to provide that for one-person households, program eligibility would be based on 2-person household guideline levels. The bill would require the commission, when establishing the CARE discounts for an electrical corporation with 100,000 or more customer accounts in California, to ensure that the average effective CARE discount be no less than 30% and no more than 35% of the revenues that would have been produced for the same billed usage by non-CARE customers and that the entire discount be provided in the form of a reduction in the overall bill for the eligible CARE customer. The bill would require that increases to rates and charges in rate design proceedings, including any reduction in the CARE discount, be reasonable and subject to a reasonable phase-in schedule relative to the rates and charges in effect prior to January 1, 2014. The bill would authorize the commission to approve new, or expand existing, fixed charges, as defined, for an electrical corporation for the purpose of collecting a reasonable portion of the fixed costs of providing service to residential customers. The bill would require the commission to ensure that any new or expanded fixed charges reasonably reflect an appropriate portion of the different costs of serving small and large customers, do not unreasonably impair incentives for conservation and energy efficiency, and do not overburden low-income and moderate-income customers. The bill would impose a $10 limit per residential customer account per month for customers not enrolled in the CARE program, would impose a $5 per month limit per residential customer account per month for customers enrolled in the CARE program, and would, beginning January 1, 2016, authorize the commission to adjust this maximum allowable fixed charge by no more than the annual percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for the prior calendar year. The bill would authorize the commission to consider whether minimum bills are an appropriate substitute for any fixed charges.

Existing law prohibits the commission from requiring or permitting an electrical corporation to do any of the following: (1) employ mandatory or default time-variant pricing, as defined, with or without bill protection, as defined, for residential customers prior to January 1, 2013, (2) employ mandatory or default time-variant pricing, without bill protection, for residential customers prior to January 1, 2014, or (3) employ mandatory or default real-time pricing, without bill protection, for residential customers prior to January 1, 2020. Existing law authorizes the commission to authorize an electrical corporation to offer residential customers the option of receiving service pursuant to time-variant pricing and to participate in other demand response programs. Existing law requires the commission to only approve an electrical corporation’s use of default time-variant pricing for residential customers, beginning January 1, 2014, if those residential customers have the option to not receive service pursuant to time-variant pricing and incur no additional charges, as specified, as a result of the exercise of that option. Existing law exempts certain customers from being subject to default time-variant pricing.

This bill would delete these provisions and instead prohibit the commission from requiring or permitting an electrical corporation from employing mandatory or default time-variant pricing, as defined, for any residential customer, except that beginning January 1, 2018, the commission may require or authorize an electrical corporation to employ default time-of-use pricing to residential customers, subject to specified limitations and conditions. The bill would permit the commission to authorize an electrical corporation to offer residential customers the option of receiving service pursuant to time-variant pricing and to participate in other demand response programs. The bill would provide that a residential customer would have the option to not receive service pursuant to time-variant pricing and not incur any additional charge as a result of the exercise of that option. Unless the commission has authorized an electrical corporation to employ default time-of-use pricing, the bill would require the commission to require each electrical corporation to offer default rates to residential customers with at least 2 usage tiers and would require that the first tier include electricity usage of no less than the baseline quantity established by the commission. The bill would authorize the commission to modify the baseline seasonal definitions and applicable percentage of average consumption for one or more climate zones.

Existing law requires every electric utility, defined to include an electrical corporation, local publicly owned electric utility, or an electrical cooperative, to develop a standard contract or tariff providing for net energy metering, as defined, and to make this contract or tariff available to eligible customer generators, as defined, upon request for generation by a renewable electrical generation facility, as defined. An electric utility, upon request, is required to make available to eligible customer generators contracts or tariffs for net energy metering on a first-come-first-served basis until the time that the total rated generating capacity used by eligible customer generators exceeds 5% of the electric utility’s aggregate customer peak demand. Existing law authorizes a local publicly owned electric utility to elect to instead offer co-energy metering, which uses a generation-to-generation energy and time-of-use credit formula, as specified.

This bill would require a large electrical corporation, defined as an electrical corporation with more than 100,000 service connections in California, to provide net energy metering to additional eligible customer-generators in its service area through July 1, 2017, or until the corporation reaches its net energy metering program limit, as specified. The bill would require the commission, no later than December 31, 2015, to develop a standard contract or tariff for eligible customer-generators with a renewable electrical generation facility that is a customer of a large electrical corporation. In developing the standard contract or tariff for large electrical corporations, the commission would be required to take specified actions. The bill would require the large electrical corporation to offer the standard contract or tariff to an eligible customer-generator beginning July 1, 2017, or prior to that date if ordered to do so by the commission because it has reached the net energy metering program limit established for the corporation. The bill would provide that there shall be no limitation on the number of new eligible customer-generators entitled to receive service pursuant to the new standard contract or tariff developed by the commission for a large electrical corporation.

Existing law provides that a fuel cell electrical generation facility is not eligible for the tariff unless it commences operation before January 1, 2015.

This bill would instead provide that a fuel cell electrical generation facility is not eligible for the tariff unless it commences operation before January 1, 2017.

The Public Utilities Act requires each electrical corporation, as a part of its distribution planning process, to consider specified nonutility owned distributed energy resources as an alternative to investments in its distribution system to ensure reliable electric services at the lowest possible costs.

This bill would require an electrical corporation, by July 1, 2015, to submit to the commission a distribution resources plan proposal, as specified, to identify optimal locations for the deployment of distributed resources, as defined. The bill would require the commission to review each distribution resources plan proposal submitted by an electrical corporation and approve, or modify and approve, a distribution resources plan for the corporation. The bill would require that any electrical corporation spending on distribution infrastructure necessary to accomplish the distribution resources plan be proposed and considered as part of the next general rate case for the corporation and would authorize the commission to approve this proposed spending if it concludes that ratepayers would realize net benefits and the associated costs are just and reasonable.

The California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program requires the Public Utilities Commission to establish a rewewables portfolio standard requiring all retail sellers, as defined, to procure a minimum quantity of electricity products from eligible renewable energy resources, as defined, at specified percentages of the total kilowatthours sold to their retail end-customers during specified compliance periods. The program additionally requires each local publicly owned electric utility, as defined, to procure a minimum quantity of electricity products from eligible renewable energy resources to achieve the targets established by the program. Existing law prohibits the commission from requiring the procurement of eligible renewable energy resources in excess of the specified quantities.

This bill would authorize the commission to require a retail seller to procure eligible renewable energy resources in excess of the specified quantities.

Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act or any order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime.

Because portions of this bill are within the act and require action by the commission to implement their requirements, a violation of these provisions would impose a state-mandated local program by creating a new crime or expanding an existing crime.

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.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 382 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to read:

382.  

(a) Programs provided to low-income electricity customers, including, but not limited to, targeted energy-efficiency services and the California Alternate Rates for Energy program shall be funded at not less than 1996 authorized levels based on an assessment of customer need.

(b) In order to meet legitimate needs of electric and gas customers who are unable to pay their electric and gas bills and who satisfy eligibility criteria for assistance, recognizing that electricity is a basic necessity, and that all residents of the state should be able to afford essential electricity and gas supplies, the commission shall ensure that low-income ratepayers are not jeopardized or overburdened by monthly energy expenditures. Energy expenditure may be reduced through the establishment of different rates for low-income ratepayers, different levels of rate assistance, and energy efficiency programs.

(c) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit electric and gas providers from offering any special rate or program for low-income ratepayers that is not specifically required in this section.

(d) Beginning in 2002, an assessment of the needs of low-income electricity and gas ratepayers shall be conducted periodically by the commission with the assistance of the Low-Income Oversight Board. A periodic assessment shall be made not less often than every third year. The assessment shall evaluate low-income program implementation and the effectiveness of weatherization services and energy efficiency measures in low-income households. The assessment shall consider whether existing programs adequately address low-income electricity and gas customers’ energy expenditures, hardship, language needs, and economic burdens.

(e) The commission shall, by not later than December 31, 2020, ensure that all eligible low-income electricity and gas customers are given the opportunity to participate in low-income energy efficiency programs, including customers occupying apartments or similar multiunit residential structures. The commission and electrical corporations and gas corporations shall make all reasonable efforts to coordinate ratepayer-funded programs with other energy conservation and efficiency programs and to obtain additional federal funding to support actions undertaken pursuant to this subdivision.

These programs shall be designed to provide long-term reductions in energy consumption at the dwelling unit based on an audit or assessment of the dwelling unit, and may include improved insulation, energy efficient appliances, measures that utilize solar energy, and other improvements to the physical structure.

(f) The commission shall allocate funds necessary to meet the low-income objectives in this section.

SEC. 2.  

Section 399.15 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to read:

399.15.  

(a) In order to fulfill unmet long-term resource needs, the commission shall establish a renewables portfolio standard requiring all retail sellers to procure a minimum quantity of electricity products from eligible renewable energy resources as a specified percentage of total kilowatthours sold to their retail end-use customers each compliance period to achieve the targets established under this article. For any retail seller procuring at least 14 percent of retail sales from eligible renewable energy resources in 2010, the deficits associated with any previous renewables portfolio standard shall not be added to any procurement requirement pursuant to this article.

(b) The commission shall implement renewables portfolio standard procurement requirements only as follows:

(1) Each retail seller shall procure a minimum quantity of eligible renewable energy resources for each of the following compliance periods:

(A) January 1, 2011, to December 31, 2013, inclusive.

(B) January 1, 2014, to December 31, 2016, inclusive.

(C) January 1, 2017, to December 31, 2020, inclusive.

(2) (A) No later than January 1, 2012, the commission shall establish the quantity of electricity products from eligible renewable energy resources to be procured by the retail seller for each compliance period. These quantities shall be established in the same manner for all retail sellers and result in the same percentages used to establish compliance period quantities for all retail sellers.

(B) In establishing quantities for the compliance period from January 1, 2011, to December 31, 2013, inclusive, the commission shall require procurement for each retail seller equal to an average of 20 percent of retail sales. For the following compliance periods, the quantities shall reflect reasonable progress in each of the intervening years sufficient to ensure that the procurement of electricity products from eligible renewable energy resources achieves 25 percent of retail sales by December 31, 2016, and 33 percent of retail sales by December 31, 2020. The commission shall require retail sellers to procure not less than 33 percent of retail sales of electricity products from eligible renewable energy resources in all subsequent years.

(C) Retail sellers shall be obligated to procure no less than the quantities associated with all intervening years by the end of each compliance period. Retail sellers shall not be required to demonstrate a specific quantity of procurement for any individual intervening year.

(3) The commission may require the procurement of eligible renewable energy resources in excess of the quantities specified in paragraph (2).

(4) Only for purposes of establishing the renewables portfolio standard procurement requirements of paragraph (1) and determining the quantities pursuant to paragraph (2), the commission shall include all electricity sold to retail customers by the Department of Water Resources pursuant to Division 27 (commencing with Section 80000) of the Water Code in the calculation of retail sales by an electrical corporation.

(5) The commission shall waive enforcement of this section if it finds that the retail seller has demonstrated any of the following conditions are beyond the control of the retail seller and will prevent compliance:

(A) There is inadequate transmission capacity to allow for sufficient electricity to be delivered from proposed eligible renewable energy resource projects using the current operational protocols of the Independent System Operator. In making its findings relative to the existence of this condition with respect to a retail seller that owns transmission lines, the commission shall consider both of the following:

(i) Whether the retail seller has undertaken, in a timely fashion, reasonable measures under its control and consistent with its obligations under local, state, and federal laws and regulations, to develop and construct new transmission lines or upgrades to existing lines intended to transmit electricity generated by eligible renewable energy resources. In determining the reasonableness of a retail seller’s actions, the commission shall consider the retail seller’s expectations for full-cost recovery for these transmission lines and upgrades.

(ii) Whether the retail seller has taken all reasonable operational measures to maximize cost-effective deliveries of electricity from eligible renewable energy resources in advance of transmission availability.

(B) Permitting, interconnection, or other circumstances that delay procured eligible renewable energy resource projects, or there is an insufficient supply of eligible renewable energy resources available to the retail seller. In making a finding that this condition prevents timely compliance, the commission shall consider whether the retail seller has done all of the following:

(i) Prudently managed portfolio risks, including relying on a sufficient number of viable projects.

(ii) Sought to develop one of the following: its own eligible renewable energy resources, transmission to interconnect to eligible renewable energy resources, or energy storage used to integrate eligible renewable energy resources. This clause shall not require an electrical corporation to pursue development of eligible renewable energy resources pursuant to Section 399.14.

(iii) Procured an appropriate minimum margin of procurement above the minimum procurement level necessary to comply with the renewables portfolio standard to compensate for foreseeable delays or insufficient supply.

(iv) Taken reasonable measures, under the control of the retail seller, to procure cost-effective distributed generation and allowable unbundled renewable energy credits.

(C) Unanticipated curtailment of eligible renewable energy resources necessary to address the needs of a balancing authority.

(6) If the commission waives the compliance requirements of this section, the commission shall establish additional reporting requirements on the retail seller to demonstrate that all reasonable actions under the control of the retail seller are taken in each of the intervening years sufficient to satisfy future procurement requirements.

(7) The commission shall not waive enforcement pursuant to this section, unless the retail seller demonstrates that it has taken all reasonable actions under its control, as set forth in paragraph (5), to achieve full compliance.

(8) If a retail seller fails to procure sufficient eligible renewable energy resources to comply with a procurement requirement pursuant to paragraphs (1) and (2) and fails to obtain an order from the commission waiving enforcement pursuant to paragraph (5), the commission shall exercise its authority pursuant to Section 2113.

(9) Deficits associated with the compliance period shall not be added to a future compliance period.

(c) The commission shall establish a limitation for each electrical corporation on the procurement expenditures for all eligible renewable energy resources used to comply with the renewables portfolio standard. In establishing this limitation, the commission shall rely on the following:

(1) The most recent renewable energy procurement plan.

(2) Procurement expenditures that approximate the expected cost of building, owning, and operating eligible renewable energy resources.

(3) The potential that some planned resource additions may be delayed or canceled.

(d) In developing the limitation pursuant to subdivision (c), the commission shall ensure all of the following:

(1) The limitation is set at a level that prevents disproportionate rate impacts.

(2) The costs of all procurement credited toward achieving the renewables portfolio standard are counted towards the limitation.

(3) Procurement expenditures do not include any indirect expenses, including imbalance energy charges, sale of excess energy, decreased generation from existing resources, transmission upgrades, or the costs associated with relicensing any utility-owned hydroelectric facilities.

(e) (1) No later than January 1, 2016, the commission shall prepare a report to the Legislature assessing whether each electrical corporation can achieve a 33-percent renewables portfolio standard by December 31, 2020, and maintain that level thereafter, within the adopted cost limitations. If the commission determines that it is necessary to change the limitation for procurement costs incurred by any electrical corporation after that date, it may propose a revised cap consistent with the criteria in subdivisions (c) and (d). The proposed modifications shall take effect no earlier than January 1, 2017.

(2) Notwithstanding Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, the requirement for submitting a report imposed under paragraph (1) is inoperative on January 1, 2021.

(3) A report to be submitted pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.

(f) If the cost limitation for an electrical corporation is insufficient to support the projected costs of meeting the renewables portfolio standard procurement requirements, the electrical corporation may refrain from entering into new contracts or constructing facilities beyond the quantity that can be procured within the limitation, unless eligible renewable energy resources can be procured without exceeding a de minimis increase in rates, consistent with the long-term procurement plan established for the electrical corporation pursuant to Section 454.5.

(g) (1) The commission shall monitor the status of the cost limitation for each electrical corporation in order to ensure compliance with this article.

(2) If the commission determines that an electrical corporation may exceed its cost limitation prior to achieving the renewables portfolio standard procurement requirements, the commission shall do both of the following within 60 days of making that determination:

(A) Investigate and identify the reasons why the electrical corporation may exceed its annual cost limitation.

(B) Notify the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature that the electrical corporation may exceed its cost limitation, and include the reasons why the electrical corporation may exceed its cost limitation.

(h) The establishment of a renewables portfolio standard shall not constitute implementation by the commission of the federal Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (Public Law 95-617).

SEC. 3.  

Section 739.1 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to read:

739.1.  

(a) The commission shall continue a program of assistance to low-income electric and gas customers with annual household incomes that are no greater than 200 percent of the federal poverty guideline levels, the cost of which shall not be borne solely by any single class of customer. For one-person households, program eligibility shall be based on two-person household guideline levels. The program shall be referred to as the California Alternate Rates for Energy or CARE program. The commission shall ensure that the level of discount for low-income electric and gas customers correctly reflects the level of need.

(b) The commission shall establish rates for CARE program participants, subject to both of the following:

(1) That the commission ensure that low-income ratepayers are not jeopardized or overburdened by monthly energy expenditures, pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 382.

(2) That the level of the discount for low-income electricity and gas ratepayers correctly reflects the level of need as determined by the needs assessment conducted pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 382.

(c) In establishing CARE discounts for an electrical corporation with 100,000 or more customer accounts in California, the commission shall ensure all of the following:

(1) The average effective CARE discount shall not be less than 30 percent or more than 35 percent of the revenues that would have been produced for the same billed usage by non-CARE customers. The average effective discount determined by the commission shall reflect any charges not paid by CARE customers, including payments for the California Solar Initiative, payments for the self-generation incentive program made pursuant to Section 379.6, payment of the separate rate component to fund the CARE program made pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 381, payments made to the Department of Water Resources pursuant to Division 27 (commencing with Section 80000) of the Water Code, and any discount in a fixed charge. The average effective CARE discount shall be calculated as a weighted average of the CARE discounts provided to individual customers.

(2) If an electrical corporation provides an average effective CARE discount in excess of the maximum percentage specified in paragraph (1), the electrical corporation shall not reduce, on an annual basis, the average effective CARE discount by more than a reasonable percentage decrease below the discount in effect on January 1, 2013, or that the electrical corporation had been authorized to place in effect by that date.

(3) The entire discount shall be provided in the form of a reduction in the overall bill for the eligible CARE customer.

(d) The commission shall work with electrical and gas corporations to establish penetration goals. The commission shall authorize recovery of all administrative costs associated with the implementation of the CARE program that the commission determines to be reasonable, through a balancing account mechanism. Administrative costs shall include, but are not limited to, outreach, marketing, regulatory compliance, certification and verification, billing, measurement and evaluation, and capital improvements and upgrades to communications and processing equipment.

(e) The commission shall examine methods to improve CARE enrollment and participation. This examination shall include, but need not be limited to, comparing information from CARE and the Universal Lifeline Telephone Service (ULTS) to determine the most effective means of utilizing that information to increase CARE enrollment, automatic enrollment of ULTS customers who are eligible for the CARE program, customer privacy issues, and alternative mechanisms for outreach to potential enrollees. The commission shall ensure that a customer consents prior to enrollment. The commission shall consult with interested parties, including ULTS providers, to develop the best methods of informing ULTS customers about other available low-income programs, as well as the best mechanism for telephone providers to recover reasonable costs incurred pursuant to this section.

(f) (1) The commission shall improve the CARE application process by cooperating with other entities and representatives of California government, including the California Health and Human Services Agency and the Secretary of California Health and Human Services, to ensure that all gas and electric customers eligible for public assistance programs in California that reside within the service territory of an electrical corporation or gas corporation, are enrolled in the CARE program. The commission may determine that gas and electric customers are categorically eligible for CARE assistance if they are enrolled in other public assistance programs with substantially the same income eligibility requirements as the CARE program. To the extent practicable, the commission shall develop a CARE application process using the existing ULTS application process as a model. The commission shall work with electrical and gas corporations and the Low-Income Oversight Board established in Section 382.1 to meet the low-income objectives in this section.

(2) The commission shall ensure that an electrical corporation or gas corporation with a commission-approved program to provide discounts based upon economic need in addition to the CARE program, including a Family Electric Rate Assistance program, utilize a single application form, to enable an applicant to alternatively apply for any assistance program for which the applicant may be eligible. It is the intent of the Legislature to allow applicants under one program, that may not be eligible under that program, but that may be eligible under an alternative assistance program based upon economic need, to complete a single application for any commission-approved assistance program offered by the public utility.

(g) It is the intent of the Legislature that the commission ensure CARE program participants receive affordable electric and gas service that does not impose an unfair economic burden on those participants.

(h) The commission’s program of assistance to low-income electric and gas customers shall, as soon as practicable, include nonprofit group living facilities specified by the commission, if the commission finds that the residents in these facilities substantially meet the commission’s low-income eligibility requirements and there is a feasible process for certifying that the assistance shall be used for the direct benefit, such as improved quality of care or improved food service, of the low-income residents in the facilities. The commission shall authorize utilities to offer discounts to eligible facilities licensed or permitted by appropriate state or local agencies, and to facilities, including women’s shelters, hospices, and homeless shelters, that may not have a license or permit but provide other proof satisfactory to the utility that they are eligible to participate in the program.

(i) (1) In addition to existing assessments of eligibility, an electrical corporation may require proof of income eligibility for those CARE program participants whose electricity usage, in any monthly or other billing period, exceeds 400 percent of baseline usage. The authority of an electrical corporation to require proof of income eligibility is not limited by the means by which the CARE program participant enrolled in the program, including if the participant was automatically enrolled in the CARE program because of participation in a governmental assistance program. If a CARE program participant’s electricity usage exceeds 400 percent of baseline usage, the electrical corporation may require the CARE program participant to participate in the Energy Savings Assistance Program (ESAP), which includes a residential energy assessment, in order to provide the CARE program participant with information and assistance in reducing his or her energy usage. Continued participation in the CARE program may be conditioned upon the CARE program participant agreeing to participate in ESAP within 45 days of notice being given by the electrical corporation pursuant to this paragraph. The electrical corporation may require the CARE program participant to notify the utility of whether the residence is rented, and if so, a means by which to contact the landlord, and the electrical corporation may share any evaluation and recommendation relative to the residential structure that is made as part of an energy assessment, with the landlord of the CARE program participant. Requirements imposed pursuant to this paragraph shall be consistent with procedures adopted by the commission.

(2) If a CARE program participant’s electricity usage exceeds 600 percent of baseline usage, the electrical corporation shall require the CARE program participant to participate in ESAP, which includes a residential energy assessment, in order to provide the CARE program participant with information and assistance in reducing his or her energy usage. Continued participation in the CARE program shall be conditioned upon the CARE program participant agreeing to participate in ESAP within 45 days of a notice made by the electrical corporation pursuant to this paragraph. The electrical corporation may require the CARE program participant to notify the utility of whether the residence is rented, and if so, a means by which to contact the landlord, and the electrical corporation may share any evaluation and recommendation relative to the residential structure that is made as part of an energy assessment, with the landlord of the CARE program participant. Following the completion of the energy assessment, if the CARE program participant’s electricity usage continues to exceed 600 percent of baseline usage, the electrical corporation may remove the CARE program participant from the program if the removal is consistent with procedures adopted by the commission. Nothing in this paragraph shall prevent a CARE program participant with electricity usage exceeding 600 percent of baseline usage from participating in an appeals process with the electrical corporation to determine whether the participant’s usage levels are legitimate.

(3) A CARE program participant in a rental residence shall not be removed from the program in situations where the landlord is nonresponsive when contacted by the electrical corporation or does not provide for ESAP participation.

SEC. 4.  

Section 739.9 of the Public Utilities Code is repealed.

SEC. 5.  

Section 739.9 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to read:

739.9.  

(a) “Fixed charge” means any fixed customer charge, basic service fee, demand differentiated basic service fee, demand charge, or other charge not based upon the volume of electricity consumed.

(b) Increases to electrical rates and charges in rate design proceedings, including any reduction in the California Alternate Rates for Energy (CARE) discount, shall be reasonable and subject to a reasonable phase-in schedule relative to the rates and charges in effect prior to January 1, 2014.

(c) Except as provided in subdivision (c) of Section 745, the commission shall require each electrical corporation to offer default rates to residential customers with at least two usage tiers. The first tier shall include electricity usage of no less than the baseline quantity established pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (d) of Section 739.

(d) Consistent with the requirements of Section 739, the commission may modify the seasonal definitions and applicable percentage of average consumption for one or more climatic zones.

(e) The commission may adopt new, or expand existing, fixed charges for the purpose of collecting a reasonable portion of the fixed costs of providing electric service to residential customers. The commission shall ensure that any approved charges do all of the following:

(1) Reasonably reflect an appropriate portion of the different costs of serving small and large customers.

(2) Not unreasonably impair incentives for conservation and energy efficiency.

(3) Not overburden low-income customers.

(f) For the purposes of this section and Section 739.1, the commission may, beginning January 1, 2015, authorize fixed charges that do not exceed ten dollars ($10) per residential customer account per month for customers not enrolled in the CARE program and five dollars ($5) per residential customer account per month for customers enrolled in the CARE program. Beginning January 1, 2016, the maximum allowable fixed charge may be adjusted by no more than the annual percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for the prior calendar year. This subdivision applies to any default rate schedule, at least one optional tiered rate schedule, and at least one optional time variant rate schedule.

(g) This section does not require the commission to approve any new or expanded fixed charge.

(h) The commission may consider whether minimum bills are appropriate as a substitute for any fixed charges.

SEC. 6.  

Section 745 of the Public Utilities Code is repealed.

SEC. 7.  

Section 745 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to read:

745.  

(a) For purposes of this section, “time-variant pricing” includes time-of-use rates, critical peak pricing, and real-time pricing, but does not include programs that provide customers with discounts from standard tariff rates as an incentive to reduce consumption at certain times, including peak time rebates.

(b) The commission may authorize an electrical corporation to offer residential customers the option of receiving service pursuant to time-variant pricing and to participate in other demand response programs. The commission shall not establish a mandatory or default time-variant pricing tariff for any residential customer except as authorized in subdivision (c).

(c) Beginning January 1, 2018, the commission may require or authorize an electrical corporation to employ default time-of-use pricing for residential customers subject to all of the following:

(1) Residential customers receiving a medical baseline allowance pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 739, customers requesting third-party notification pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 779.1, customers who the commission has ordered cannot be disconnected from service without an in-person visit from a utility representative (Decision 12-03-054 (March 22, 2012), Decision on Phase II Issues: Adoption of Practices to Reduce the Number of Gas and Electric Service Disconnections, Order 2 (b) at page 55), and other customers designated by the commission in its discretion shall not be subject to default time-of-use pricing without their affirmative consent.

(2) The commission shall ensure that any time-of-use rate schedule does not cause unreasonable hardship for senior citizens or economically vulnerable customers in hot climate zones.

(3) The commission shall strive for time-of-use rate schedules that utilize time periods that are appropriate for at least the following five years.

(4) A residential customer shall not be subject to a default time-of-use rate schedule unless that residential customer has been provided with not less than one year of interval usage data from an advanced meter and associated customer education and, following the passage of this period, is provided with no less than one year of bill protection during which the total amount paid by the residential customer for electric service shall not exceed the amount that would have been payable by the residential customer under that customer’s previous rate schedule.

(5) Each electrical corporation shall provide each residential customer, not less than once per year, using a reasonable delivery method of the customer’s choosing, a summary of available tariff options with a calculation of expected annual bill impacts under each available tariff. The summary shall not be provided to customers who notify the utility that they choose not to receive the summary. The reasonable costs of providing this service shall be recovered in rates.

(6) Residential customers have the option to not receive service pursuant to a time-of-use rate schedule and incur no additional charges as a result of the exercise of that option. Prohibited charges include, but are not limited to, administrative fees for switching away from time-of-use pricing, hedging premiums that exceed any actual costs of hedging, and more than a proportional share of any discounts or other incentives paid to customers to increase participation in time-of-use pricing. This prohibition on additional charges is not intended to ensure that a customer will necessarily experience a lower total bill as a result of the exercise of the option to not receive service pursuant to a time-of-use rate schedule.

SEC. 8.  

Section 769 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to read:

769.  

(a) For purposes of this section, “distributed resources” means distributed renewable generation resources, energy efficiency, energy storage, electric vehicles, and demand response technologies.

(b) Not later than July 1, 2015, each electrical corporation shall submit to the commission a distribution resources plan proposal to identify optimal locations for the deployment of distributed resources. Each proposal shall do all of the following:

(1) Evaluate locational benefits and costs of distributed resources located on the distribution system. This evaluation shall be based on reductions or increases in local generation capacity needs, avoided or increased investments in distribution infrastructure, safety benefits, reliability benefits, and any other savings the distributed resources provides to the electric grid or costs to ratepayers of the electrical corporation.

(2) Propose or identify standard tariffs, contracts, or other mechanisms for the deployment of cost-effective distributed resources that satisfy distribution planning objectives.

(3) Propose cost-effective methods of effectively coordinating existing commission-approved programs, incentives, and tariffs to maximize the locational benefits and minimize the incremental costs of distributed resources.

(4) Identify any additional utility spending necessary to integrate cost-effective distributed resources into distribution planning consistent with the goal of yielding net benefits to ratepayers.

(5) Identify barriers to the deployment of distributed resources, including, but not limited to, safety standards related to technology or operation of the distribution circuit in a manner that ensures reliable service.

(c) The commission shall review each distribution resources plan proposal submitted by an electrical corporation and approve, or modify and approve, a distribution resources plan for the corporation. The commission may modify any plan as appropriate to minimize overall system costs and maximize ratepayer benefit from investments in distributed resources.

(d) Any electrical corporation spending on distribution infrastructure necessary to accomplish the distribution resources plan shall be proposed and considered as part of the next general rate case for the corporation. The commission may approve proposed spending if it concludes that ratepayers would realize net benefits and the associated costs are just and reasonable. The commission may also adopt criteria, benchmarks, and accountability mechanisms to evaluate the success of any investment authorized pursuant to a distribution resources plan.

SEC. 9.  

Section 2827 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to read:

2827.  

(a) The Legislature finds and declares that a program to provide net energy metering combined with net surplus compensation, co-energy metering, and wind energy co-metering for eligible customer-generators is one way to encourage substantial private investment in renewable energy resources, stimulate in-state economic growth, reduce demand for electricity during peak consumption periods, help stabilize California’s energy supply infrastructure, enhance the continued diversification of California’s energy resource mix, reduce interconnection and administrative costs for electricity suppliers, and encourage conservation and efficiency.

(b) As used in this section, the following terms have the following meanings:

(1) “Co-energy metering” means a program that is the same in all other respects as a net energy metering program, except that the local publicly owned electric utility has elected to apply a generation-to-generation energy and time-of-use credit formula as provided in subdivision (i).

(2) “Electrical cooperative” means an electrical cooperative as defined in Section 2776.

(3) “Electric utility” means an electrical corporation, a local publicly owned electric utility, or an electrical cooperative, or any other entity, except an electric service provider, that offers electrical service. This section shall not apply to a local publicly owned electric utility that serves more than 750,000 customers and that also conveys water to its customers.

(4) “Eligible customer-generator” means a residential customer, small commercial customer as defined in subdivision (h) of Section 331, or commercial, industrial, or agricultural customer of an electric utility, who uses a renewable electrical generation facility, or a combination of those facilities, with a total capacity of not more than one megawatt, that is located on the customer’s owned, leased, or rented premises, and is interconnected and operates in parallel with the electrical grid, and is intended primarily to offset part or all of the customer’s own electrical requirements.

(5) “Large electrical corporation” means an electrical corporation with more than 100,000 service connections in California.

(6) “Net energy metering” means measuring the difference between the electricity supplied through the electrical grid and the electricity generated by an eligible customer-generator and fed back to the electrical grid over a 12-month period as described in subdivisions (c) and (h).

(7) “Net surplus customer-generator” means an eligible customer-generator that generates more electricity during a 12-month period than is supplied by the electric utility to the eligible customer-generator during the same 12-month period.

(8) “Net surplus electricity” means all electricity generated by an eligible customer-generator measured in kilowatthours over a 12-month period that exceeds the amount of electricity consumed by that eligible customer-generator.

(9) “Net surplus electricity compensation” means a per kilowatthour rate offered by the electric utility to the net surplus customer-generator for net surplus electricity that is set by the ratemaking authority pursuant to subdivision (h).

(10) “Ratemaking authority” means, for an electrical corporation, the commission, for an electrical cooperative, its ratesetting body selected by its shareholders or members, and for a local publicly owned electric utility, the local elected body responsible for setting the rates of the local publicly owned utility.

(11) “Renewable electrical generation facility” means a facility that generates electricity from a renewable source listed in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 25741 of the Public Resources Code. A small hydroelectric generation facility is not an eligible renewable electrical generation facility if it will cause an adverse impact on instream beneficial uses or cause a change in the volume or timing of streamflow.

(12) “Wind energy co-metering” means any wind energy project greater than 50 kilowatts, but not exceeding one megawatt, where the difference between the electricity supplied through the electrical grid and the electricity generated by an eligible customer-generator and fed back to the electrical grid over a 12-month period is as described in subdivision (h). Wind energy co-metering shall be accomplished pursuant to Section 2827.8.

(c) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (4) and in Section 2827.1, every electric utility shall develop a standard contract or tariff providing for net energy metering, and shall make this standard contract or tariff available to eligible customer-generators, upon request, on a first-come-first-served basis until the time that the total rated generating capacity used by eligible customer-generators exceeds 5 percent of the electric utility’s aggregate customer peak demand. Net energy metering shall be accomplished using a single meter capable of registering the flow of electricity in two directions. An additional meter or meters to monitor the flow of electricity in each direction may be installed with the consent of the eligible customer-generator, at the expense of the electric utility, and the additional metering shall be used only to provide the information necessary to accurately bill or credit the eligible customer-generator pursuant to subdivision (h), or to collect generating system performance information for research purposes relative to a renewable electrical generation facility. If the existing electrical meter of an eligible customer-generator is not capable of measuring the flow of electricity in two directions, the eligible customer-generator shall be responsible for all expenses involved in purchasing and installing a meter that is able to measure electricity flow in two directions. If an additional meter or meters are installed, the net energy metering calculation shall yield a result identical to that of a single meter. An eligible customer-generator that is receiving service other than through the standard contract or tariff may elect to receive service through the standard contract or tariff until the electric utility reaches the generation limit set forth in this paragraph. Once the generation limit is reached, only eligible customer-generators that had previously elected to receive service pursuant to the standard contract or tariff have a right to continue to receive service pursuant to the standard contract or tariff. Eligibility for net energy metering does not limit an eligible customer-generator’s eligibility for any other rebate, incentive, or credit provided by the electric utility, or pursuant to any governmental program, including rebates and incentives provided pursuant to the California Solar Initiative.

(2) An electrical corporation shall include a provision in the net energy metering contract or tariff requiring that any customer with an existing electrical generating facility and meter who enters into a new net energy metering contract shall provide an inspection report to the electrical corporation, unless the electrical generating facility and meter have been installed or inspected within the previous three years. The inspection report shall be prepared by a California licensed contractor who is not the owner or operator of the facility and meter. A California licensed electrician shall perform the inspection of the electrical portion of the facility and meter.

(3) (A) On an annual basis, every electric utility shall make available to the ratemaking authority information on the total rated generating capacity used by eligible customer-generators that are customers of that provider in the provider’s service area and the net surplus electricity purchased by the electric utility pursuant to this section.

(B) An electric service provider operating pursuant to Section 394 shall make available to the ratemaking authority the information required by this paragraph for each eligible customer-generator that is their customer for each service area of an electrical corporation, local publicly owned electrical utility, or electrical cooperative, in which the eligible customer-generator has net energy metering.

(C) The ratemaking authority shall develop a process for making the information required by this paragraph available to electric utilities, and for using that information to determine when, pursuant to paragraphs (1) and (4), an electric utility is not obligated to provide net energy metering to additional eligible customer-generators in its service area.

(4) (A) An electric utility that is not a large electrical corporation is not obligated to provide net energy metering to additional eligible customer-generators in its service area when the combined total peak demand of all electricity used by eligible customer-generators served by all the electric utilities in that service area furnishing net energy metering to eligible customer-generators exceeds 5 percent of the aggregate customer peak demand of those electric utilities.

(B)  The commission shall require every large electrical corporation to make the standard contract or tariff available to eligible customer-generators, continuously and without interruption, until such times as the large electrical corporation reaches its net energy metering program limit or July 1, 2017, whichever is earlier. A large electrical corporation reaches its program limit when the combined total peak demand of all electricity used by eligible customer-generators served by all the electric utilities in the large electrical corporation’s service area furnishing net energy metering to eligible customer-generators exceeds 5 percent of the aggregate customer peak demand of those electric utilities. For purposes of calculating a large electrical corporation’s program limit, “aggregate customer peak demand” means the highest sum of the noncoincident peak demands of all of the large electrical corporation’s customers that occurs in any calendar year. To determine the aggregate customer peak demand, every large electrical corporation shall use a uniform method approved by the commission. The program limit calculated pursuant to this paragraph shall not be less than the following:

(i) For San Diego Gas and Electric Company, when it has made 607 megawatts of nameplate generating capacity available to eligible customer-generators.

(ii) For Southern California Edison Company, when it has made 2,240 megawatts of nameplate generating capacity available to eligible customer-generators.

(iii) For Pacific Gas and Electric Company, when it has made 2,409 megawatts of nameplate generating capacity available to eligible customer-generators.

(C) Every large electrical corporation shall file a monthly report with the commission detailing the progress toward the net energy metering program limit established in subparagraph (B). The report shall include separate calculations on progress toward the limits based on operating solar energy systems, cumulative numbers of interconnection requests for net energy metering eligible systems, and any other criteria required by the commission.

(D) Beginning July 1, 2017, or upon reaching the net metering program limit of subparagraph (B), whichever is earlier, the obligation of a large electrical corporation to provide service pursuant to a standard contract or tariff shall be pursuant to Section 2827.1 and applicable state and federal requirements.

(d) Every electric utility shall make all necessary forms and contracts for net energy metering and net surplus electricity compensation service available for download from the Internet.

(e) (1) Every electric utility shall ensure that requests for establishment of net energy metering and net surplus electricity compensation are processed in a time period not exceeding that for similarly situated customers requesting new electric service, but not to exceed 30 working days from the date it receives a completed application form for net energy metering service or net surplus electricity compensation, including a signed interconnection agreement from an eligible customer-generator and the electric inspection clearance from the governmental authority having jurisdiction.

(2) Every electric utility shall ensure that requests for an interconnection agreement from an eligible customer-generator are processed in a time period not to exceed 30 working days from the date it receives a completed application form from the eligible customer-generator for an interconnection agreement.

(3) If an electric utility is unable to process a request within the allowable timeframe pursuant to paragraph (1) or (2), it shall notify the eligible customer-generator and the ratemaking authority of the reason for its inability to process the request and the expected completion date.

(f) (1) If a customer participates in direct transactions pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 365, or Section 365.1, with an electric service provider that does not provide distribution service for the direct transactions, the electric utility that provides distribution service for the eligible customer-generator is not obligated to provide net energy metering or net surplus electricity compensation to the customer.

(2) If a customer participates in direct transactions pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 365 with an electric service provider, and the customer is an eligible customer-generator, the electric utility that provides distribution service for the direct transactions may recover from the customer’s electric service provider the incremental costs of metering and billing service related to net energy metering and net surplus electricity compensation in an amount set by the ratemaking authority.

(g) Except for the time-variant kilowatthour pricing portion of any tariff adopted by the commission pursuant to paragraph (4) of subdivision (a) of Section 2851, each net energy metering contract or tariff shall be identical, with respect to rate structure, all retail rate components, and any monthly charges, to the contract or tariff to which the same customer would be assigned if the customer did not use a renewable electrical generation facility, except that eligible customer-generators shall not be assessed standby charges on the electrical generating capacity or the kilowatthour production of a renewable electrical generation facility. The charges for all retail rate components for eligible customer-generators shall be based exclusively on the customer-generator’s net kilowatthour consumption over a 12-month period, without regard to the eligible customer-generator’s choice as to from whom it purchases electricity that is not self-generated. Any new or additional demand charge, standby charge, customer charge, minimum monthly charge, interconnection charge, or any other charge that would increase an eligible customer-generator’s costs beyond those of other customers who are not eligible customer-generators in the rate class to which the eligible customer-generator would otherwise be assigned if the customer did not own, lease, rent, or otherwise operate a renewable electrical generation facility is contrary to the intent of this section, and shall not form a part of net energy metering contracts or tariffs.

(h) For eligible customer-generators, the net energy metering calculation shall be made by measuring the difference between the electricity supplied to the eligible customer-generator and the electricity generated by the eligible customer-generator and fed back to the electrical grid over a 12-month period. The following rules shall apply to the annualized net metering calculation:

(1) The eligible residential or small commercial customer-generator, at the end of each 12-month period following the date of final interconnection of the eligible customer-generator’s system with an electric utility, and at each anniversary date thereafter, shall be billed for electricity used during that 12-month period. The electric utility shall determine if the eligible residential or small commercial customer-generator was a net consumer or a net surplus customer-generator during that period.

(2) At the end of each 12-month period, where the electricity supplied during the period by the electric utility exceeds the electricity generated by the eligible residential or small commercial customer-generator during that same period, the eligible residential or small commercial customer-generator is a net electricity consumer and the electric utility shall be owed compensation for the eligible customer-generator’s net kilowatthour consumption over that 12-month period. The compensation owed for the eligible residential or small commercial customer-generator’s consumption shall be calculated as follows:

(A) For all eligible customer-generators taking service under contracts or tariffs employing “baseline” and “over baseline” rates, any net monthly consumption of electricity shall be calculated according to the terms of the contract or tariff to which the same customer would be assigned to, or be eligible for, if the customer was not an eligible customer-generator. If those same customer-generators are net generators over a billing period, the net kilowatthours generated shall be valued at the same price per kilowatthour as the electric utility would charge for the baseline quantity of electricity during that billing period, and if the number of kilowatthours generated exceeds the baseline quantity, the excess shall be valued at the same price per kilowatthour as the electric utility would charge for electricity over the baseline quantity during that billing period.

(B) For all eligible customer-generators taking service under contracts or tariffs employing time-of-use rates, any net monthly consumption of electricity shall be calculated according to the terms of the contract or tariff to which the same customer would be assigned, or be eligible for, if the customer was not an eligible customer-generator. When those same customer-generators are net generators during any discrete time-of-use period, the net kilowatthours produced shall be valued at the same price per kilowatthour as the electric utility would charge for retail kilowatthour sales during that same time-of-use period. If the eligible customer-generator’s time-of-use electrical meter is unable to measure the flow of electricity in two directions, paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) shall apply.

(C) For all eligible residential and small commercial customer-generators and for each billing period, the net balance of moneys owed to the electric utility for net consumption of electricity or credits owed to the eligible customer-generator for net generation of electricity shall be carried forward as a monetary value until the end of each 12-month period. For all eligible commercial, industrial, and agricultural customer-generators, the net balance of moneys owed shall be paid in accordance with the electric utility’s normal billing cycle, except that if the eligible commercial, industrial, or agricultural customer-generator is a net electricity producer over a normal billing cycle, any excess kilowatthours generated during the billing cycle shall be carried over to the following billing period as a monetary value, calculated according to the procedures set forth in this section, and appear as a credit on the eligible commercial, industrial, or agricultural customer-generator’s account, until the end of the annual period when paragraph (3) shall apply.

(3) At the end of each 12-month period, where the electricity generated by the eligible customer-generator during the 12-month period exceeds the electricity supplied by the electric utility during that same period, the eligible customer-generator is a net surplus customer-generator and the electric utility, upon an affirmative election by the net surplus customer-generator, shall either (A) provide net surplus electricity compensation for any net surplus electricity generated during the prior 12-month period, or (B) allow the net surplus customer-generator to apply the net surplus electricity as a credit for kilowatthours subsequently supplied by the electric utility to the net surplus customer-generator. For an eligible customer-generator that does not affirmatively elect to receive service pursuant to net surplus electricity compensation, the electric utility shall retain any excess kilowatthours generated during the prior 12-month period. The eligible customer-generator not affirmatively electing to receive service pursuant to net surplus electricity compensation shall not be owed any compensation for the net surplus electricity unless the electric utility enters into a purchase agreement with the eligible customer-generator for those excess kilowatthours. Every electric utility shall provide notice to eligible customer-generators that they are eligible to receive net surplus electricity compensation for net surplus electricity, that they must elect to receive net surplus electricity compensation, and that the 12-month period commences when the electric utility receives the eligible customer-generator’s election. For an electric utility that is an electrical corporation or electrical cooperative, the commission may adopt requirements for providing notice and the manner by which eligible customer-generators may elect to receive net surplus electricity compensation.

(4) (A) An eligible customer-generator with multiple meters may elect to aggregate the electrical load of the meters located on the property where the renewable electrical generation facility is located and on all property adjacent or contiguous to the property on which the renewable electrical generation facility is located, if those properties are solely owned, leased, or rented by the eligible customer-generator. If the eligible customer-generator elects to aggregate the electric load pursuant to this paragraph, the electric utility shall use the aggregated load for the purpose of determining whether an eligible customer-generator is a net consumer or a net surplus customer-generator during a 12-month period.

(B) If an eligible customer-generator chooses to aggregate pursuant to subparagraph (A), the eligible customer-generator shall be permanently ineligible to receive net surplus electricity compensation, and the electric utility shall retain any kilowatthours in excess of the eligible customer-generator’s aggregated electrical load generated during the 12-month period.

(C) If an eligible customer-generator with multiple meters elects to aggregate the electrical load of those meters pursuant to subparagraph (A), and different rate schedules are applicable to service at any of those meters, the electricity generated by the renewable electrical generation facility shall be allocated to each of the meters in proportion to the electrical load served by those meters. For example, if the eligible customer-generator receives electric service through three meters, two meters being at an agricultural rate that each provide service to 25 percent of the customer’s total load, and a third meter, at a commercial rate, that provides service to 50 percent of the customer’s total load, then 50 percent of the electrical generation of the eligible renewable generation facility shall be allocated to the third meter that provides service at the commercial rate and 25 percent of the generation shall be allocated to each of the two meters providing service at the agricultural rate. This proportionate allocation shall be computed each billing period.

(D) This paragraph shall not become operative for an electrical corporation unless the commission determines that allowing eligible customer-generators to aggregate their load from multiple meters will not result in an increase in the expected revenue obligations of customers who are not eligible customer-generators. The commission shall make this determination by September 30, 2013. In making this determination, the commission shall determine if there are any public purpose or other noncommodity charges that the eligible customer-generators would pay pursuant to the net energy metering program as it exists prior to aggregation, that the eligible customer-generator would not pay if permitted to aggregate the electrical load of multiple meters pursuant to this paragraph.

(E) A local publicly owned electric utility or electrical cooperative shall only allow eligible customer-generators to aggregate their load if the utility’s ratemaking authority determines that allowing eligible customer-generators to aggregate their load from multiple meters will not result in an increase in the expected revenue obligations of customers that are not eligible customer-generators. The ratemaking authority of a local publicly owned electric utility or electrical cooperative shall make this determination within 180 days of the first request made by an eligible customer-generator to aggregate their load. In making the determination, the ratemaking authority shall determine if there are any public purpose or other noncommodity charges that the eligible customer-generator would pay pursuant to the net energy metering or co-energy metering program of the utility as it exists prior to aggregation, that the eligible customer-generator would not pay if permitted to aggregate the electrical load of multiple meters pursuant to this paragraph. If the ratemaking authority determines that load aggregation will not cause an incremental rate impact on the utility’s customers that are not eligible customer-generators, the local publicly owned electric utility or electrical cooperative shall permit an eligible customer-generator to elect to aggregate the electrical load of multiple meters pursuant to this paragraph. The ratemaking authority may reconsider any determination made pursuant to this subparagraph in a subsequent public proceeding.

(F) For purposes of this paragraph, parcels that are divided by a street, highway, or public thoroughfare are considered contiguous, provided they are otherwise contiguous and under the same ownership.

(G) An eligible customer-generator may only elect to aggregate the electrical load of multiple meters if the renewable electrical generation facility, or a combination of those facilities, has a total generating capacity of not more than one megawatt.

(H) Notwithstanding subdivision (g), an eligible customer-generator electing to aggregate the electrical load of multiple meters pursuant to this subdivision shall remit service charges for the cost of providing billing services to the electric utility that provides service to the meters.

(5) (A) The ratemaking authority shall establish a net surplus electricity compensation valuation to compensate the net surplus customer-generator for the value of net surplus electricity generated by the net surplus customer-generator. The commission shall establish the valuation in a ratemaking proceeding. The ratemaking authority for a local publicly owned electric utility shall establish the valuation in a public proceeding. The net surplus electricity compensation valuation shall be established so as to provide the net surplus customer-generator just and reasonable compensation for the value of net surplus electricity, while leaving other ratepayers unaffected. The ratemaking authority shall determine whether the compensation will include, where appropriate justification exists, either or both of the following components:

(i) The value of the electricity itself.

(ii) The value of the renewable attributes of the electricity.

(B) In establishing the rate pursuant to subparagraph (A), the ratemaking authority shall ensure that the rate does not result in a shifting of costs between eligible customer-generators and other bundled service customers.

(6) (A) Upon adoption of the net surplus electricity compensation rate by the ratemaking authority, any renewable energy credit, as defined in Section 399.12, for net surplus electricity purchased by the electric utility shall belong to the electric utility. Any renewable energy credit associated with electricity generated by the eligible customer-generator that is utilized by the eligible customer-generator shall remain the property of the eligible customer-generator.

(B) Upon adoption of the net surplus electricity compensation rate by the ratemaking authority, the net surplus electricity purchased by the electric utility shall count toward the electric utility’s renewables portfolio standard annual procurement targets for the purposes of paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 399.15, or for a local publicly owned electric utility, the renewables portfolio standard annual procurement targets established pursuant to Section 387.

(7) The electric utility shall provide every eligible residential or small commercial customer-generator with net electricity consumption and net surplus electricity generation information with each regular bill. That information shall include the current monetary balance owed the electric utility for net electricity consumed, or the net surplus electricity generated, since the last 12-month period ended. Notwithstanding this subdivision, an electric utility shall permit that customer to pay monthly for net energy consumed.

(8) If an eligible residential or small commercial customer-generator terminates the customer relationship with the electric utility, the electric utility shall reconcile the eligible customer-generator’s consumption and production of electricity during any part of a 12-month period following the last reconciliation, according to the requirements set forth in this subdivision, except that those requirements shall apply only to the months since the most recent 12-month bill.

(9) If an electric service provider or electric utility providing net energy metering to a residential or small commercial customer-generator ceases providing that electric service to that customer during any 12-month period, and the customer-generator enters into a new net energy metering contract or tariff with a new electric service provider or electric utility, the 12-month period, with respect to that new electric service provider or electric utility, shall commence on the date on which the new electric service provider or electric utility first supplies electric service to the customer-generator.

(i) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) shall apply to an eligible customer-generator with a capacity of more than 10 kilowatts, but not exceeding one megawatt, that receives electric service from a local publicly owned electric utility that has elected to utilize a co-energy metering program unless the local publicly owned electric utility chooses to provide service for eligible customer-generators with a capacity of more than 10 kilowatts in accordance with subdivisions (g) and (h):

(1) The eligible customer-generator shall be required to utilize a meter, or multiple meters, capable of separately measuring electricity flow in both directions. All meters shall provide time-of-use measurements of electricity flow, and the customer shall take service on a time-of-use rate schedule. If the existing meter of the eligible customer-generator is not a time-of-use meter or is not capable of measuring total flow of electricity in both directions, the eligible customer-generator shall be responsible for all expenses involved in purchasing and installing a meter that is both time-of-use and able to measure total electricity flow in both directions. This subdivision shall not restrict the ability of an eligible customer-generator to utilize any economic incentives provided by a governmental agency or an electric utility to reduce its costs for purchasing and installing a time-of-use meter.

(2) The consumption of electricity from the local publicly owned electric utility shall result in a cost to the eligible customer-generator to be priced in accordance with the standard rate charged to the eligible customer-generator in accordance with the rate structure to which the customer would be assigned if the customer did not use a renewable electrical generation facility. The generation of electricity provided to the local publicly owned electric utility shall result in a credit to the eligible customer-generator and shall be priced in accordance with the generation component, established under the applicable structure to which the customer would be assigned if the customer did not use a renewable electrical generation facility.

(3) All costs and credits shall be shown on the eligible customer-generator’s bill for each billing period. In any months in which the eligible customer-generator has been a net consumer of electricity calculated on the basis of value determined pursuant to paragraph (2), the customer-generator shall owe to the local publicly owned electric utility the balance of electricity costs and credits during that billing period. In any billing period in which the eligible customer-generator has been a net producer of electricity calculated on the basis of value determined pursuant to paragraph (2), the local publicly owned electric utility shall owe to the eligible customer-generator the balance of electricity costs and credits during that billing period. Any net credit to the eligible customer-generator of electricity costs may be carried forward to subsequent billing periods, provided that a local publicly owned electric utility may choose to carry the credit over as a kilowatthour credit consistent with the provisions of any applicable contract or tariff, including any differences attributable to the time of generation of the electricity. At the end of each 12-month period, the local publicly owned electric utility may reduce any net credit due to the eligible customer-generator to zero.

(j) A renewable electrical generation facility used by an eligible customer-generator shall meet all applicable safety and performance standards established by the National Electrical Code, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and accredited testing laboratories, including Underwriters Laboratories Incorporated and, where applicable, rules of the commission regarding safety and reliability. A customer-generator whose renewable electrical generation facility meets those standards and rules shall not be required to install additional controls, perform or pay for additional tests, or purchase additional liability insurance.

(k) If the commission determines that there are cost or revenue obligations for an electrical corporation that may not be recovered from customer-generators acting pursuant to this section, those obligations shall remain within the customer class from which any shortfall occurred and shall not be shifted to any other customer class. Net energy metering and co-energy metering customers shall not be exempt from the public goods charges imposed pursuant to Article 7 (commencing with Section 381), Article 8 (commencing with Section 385), or Article 15 (commencing with Section 399) of Chapter 2.3 of Part 1.

(l) A net energy metering, co-energy metering, or wind energy co-metering customer shall reimburse the Department of Water Resources for all charges that would otherwise be imposed on the customer by the commission to recover bond-related costs pursuant to an agreement between the commission and the Department of Water Resources pursuant to Section 80110 of the Water Code, as well as the costs of the department equal to the share of the department’s estimated net unavoidable power purchase contract costs attributable to the customer. The commission shall incorporate the determination into an existing proceeding before the commission, and shall ensure that the charges are nonbypassable. Until the commission has made a determination regarding the nonbypassable charges, net energy metering, co-energy metering, and wind energy co-metering shall continue under the same rules, procedures, terms, and conditions as were applicable on December 31, 2002.

(m) In implementing the requirements of subdivisions (k) and (l), an eligible customer-generator shall not be required to replace its existing meter except as set forth in paragraph (1) of subdivision (c), nor shall the electric utility require additional measurement of usage beyond that which is necessary for customers in the same rate class as the eligible customer-generator.

(n) It is the intent of the Legislature that the Treasurer incorporate net energy metering, including net surplus electricity compensation, co-energy metering, and wind energy co-metering projects undertaken pursuant to this section as sustainable building methods or distributive energy technologies for purposes of evaluating low-income housing projects.

SEC. 10.  

Section 2827.1 of the Public Utilities Code is amended and renumbered to read:

2827.3.  

(a) By October 1, 2013, the commission shall complete a study to determine who benefits from, and who bears the economic burden, if any, of, the net energy metering program authorized pursuant to Section 2827, and to determine the extent to which each class of ratepayers and each region of the state receiving service under the net energy metering program is paying the full cost of the services provided to them by electrical corporations, and the extent to which those customers pay their share of the costs of public purpose programs. In evaluating program costs and benefits for purposes of the study, the commission shall consider all electricity generated by renewable electric generating systems, including the electricity used onsite to reduce a customer’s consumption of electricity that otherwise would be supplied through the electrical grid, as well as the electrical output that is being fed back to the electrical grid for which the customer receives credit or net surplus electricity compensation under net energy metering. The study shall quantify the costs and benefits of net energy metering to participants and nonparticipants and shall further disaggregate the results by utility, customer class, and household income groups within the residential class. The study shall further gather and present data on the income distribution of residential net energy metering participants. In order to assess the costs and benefits at various levels of net energy metering implementation, the study shall be conducted using multiple net energy metering penetration scenarios, including, at a minimum, the capacity needed to reach the solar photovoltaic goals of the California Solar Initiative pursuant to Section 25780 of the Public Resources Code, and the estimated net energy metering capacity under the 5-percent minimum requirement of paragraphs (1) and (4) of subdivision (c) of Section 2827.

(b) (1) The commission shall report the results of the study to the Legislature within 30 days of its completion.

(2) The report shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.

(3) Pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, this section is repealed on July 1, 2017.

SEC. 11.  

Section 2827.1 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to read:

2827.1.  

(a) For purposes of this section, “eligible customer-generator,” “large electrical corporation,” and “renewable electrical generation facility” have the same meanings as defined in Section 2827.

(b) Notwithstanding any other law, the commission shall develop a standard contract or tariff, which may include net energy metering, for eligible customer-generators with a renewable electrical generation facility that is a customer of a large electrical corporation no later than December 31, 2015. The commission may develop the standard contract or tariff prior to December 31, 2015, and may require a large electrical corporation that has reached the net energy metering program limit of subparagraph (B) of paragraph (4) of subdivision (c) of Section 2827 to offer the standard contract or tariff to eligible customer-generators. A large electrical corporation shall offer the standard contract or tariff to an eligible customer-generator beginning July 1, 2017, or prior to that date if ordered to do so by the commission because it has reached the net energy metering program limit of subparagraph (B) of paragraph (4) of subdivision (c) of Section 2827. The commission may revise the standard contract or tariff as appropriate to achieve the objectives of this section. In developing the standard contract or tariff, the commission shall do all of the following:

(1) Ensure that the standard contract or tariff made available to eligible customer-generators ensures that customer-sited renewable distributed generation continues to grow sustainably and include specific alternatives designed for growth among residential customers in disadvantaged communities.

(2) Establish terms of service and billing rules for eligible customer-generators.

(3) Ensure that the standard contract or tariff made available to eligible customer-generators is based on the costs and benefits of the renewable electrical generation facility.

(4) Ensure that the total benefits of the standard contract or tariff to all customers and the electrical system are approximately equal to the total costs.

(5) Allow projects greater than one megawatt that do not have significant impact on the distribution grid to be built to the size of the onsite load if the projects with a capacity of more than one megawatt are subject to reasonable interconnection charges established pursuant to the commission’s Electric Rule 21 and applicable state and federal requirements.

(6) Establish a transition period during which eligible customer-generators taking service under a net energy metering tariff or contract prior to July 1, 2017, or until the electrical corporation reaches its net energy metering program limit pursuant to subparagraph (B) of paragraph (4) of subdivision (c) of Section 2827, whichever is earlier, shall be eligible to continue service under the previously applicable net energy metering tariff for a length of time to be determined by the commission by March 31, 2014. Any rules adopted by the commission shall consider a reasonable expected payback period based on the year the customer initially took service under the tariff or contract authorized by Section 2827.

(7) The commission shall determine which rates and tariffs are applicable to customer generators only during a rulemaking proceeding. Any fixed charges for residential customer generators that differ from the fixed charges allowed pursuant to subdivision (f) of Section 739.9 shall be authorized only in a rulemaking proceeding involving every large electrical corporation. The commission shall ensure customer generators are provided electric service at rates that are just and reasonable.

(c) Beginning July 1, 2017, or when ordered to do so by the commission because the large electrical corporation has reached its capacity limitation of subparagraph (B) of paragraph (4) of subdivision (c) of Section 2827, all new eligible customer-generators shall be subject to the standard contract or tariff developed by the commission and any rules, terms, and rates developed pursuant to subdivision (b). There shall be no limitation on the amount of generating capacity or number of new eligible customer-generators entitled to receive service pursuant to the standard contract or tariff after July 1, 2017. An eligible customer-generator that has received service under a net energy metering standard contract or tariff pursuant to Section 2827 that is no longer eligible to receive service shall be eligible to receive service pursuant to the standard contract or tariff developed by the commission pursuant to this section.

SEC. 12.  

Section 2827.10 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to read:

2827.10.  

(a) As used in this section, the following terms have the following meanings:

(1) “Electrical corporation” means an electrical corporation, as defined in Section 218.

(2) “Eligible fuel cell electrical generating facility” means a facility that includes the following:

(A) Integrated powerplant systems containing a stack, tubular array, or other functionally similar configuration used to electrochemically convert fuel to electric energy.

(B) An inverter and fuel processing system where necessary.

(C) Other plant equipment, including heat recovery equipment, necessary to support the plant’s operation or its energy conversion.

(3) (A) “Eligible fuel cell customer-generator” means a customer of an electrical corporation that meets all the following criteria:

(i) Uses a fuel cell electrical generating facility with a capacity of not more than one megawatt that is located on or adjacent to the customer’s owned, leased, or rented premises, is interconnected and operates in parallel with the electrical grid while the grid is operational or in a grid independent mode when the grid is nonoperational, and is sized to offset part or all of the eligible fuel cell customer-generator’s own electrical requirements.

(ii) Is the recipient of local, state, or federal funds, or who self-finances projects designed to encourage the development of eligible fuel cell electrical generating facilities.

(iii) Uses technology the commission has determined will achieve reductions in emissions of greenhouse gases pursuant to subdivision (b), and meets the emission requirements for eligibility for funding set forth in subdivision (c), of Section 379.6.

(B) For purposes of this paragraph, a person or entity is a customer of the electrical corporation if the customer is physically located within the service territory of the electrical corporation and receives bundled service, distribution service, or transmission service from the electrical corporation.

(4) “Net energy metering” means measuring the difference between the electricity supplied through the electrical grid and the difference between the electricity generated by an eligible fuel cell electrical generating facility and fed back to the electrical grid over a 12-month period as described in subdivision (e). Net energy metering shall be accomplished using a time-of-use meter capable of registering the flow of electricity in two directions. If the existing electrical meter of an eligible fuel cell customer-generator is not capable of measuring the flow of electricity in two directions, the eligible fuel cell customer-generator shall be responsible for all expenses involved in purchasing and installing a meter that is able to measure electricity flow in two directions. If an additional meter or meters are installed, the net energy metering calculation shall yield a result identical to that of a time-of-use meter.

(b) (1) Every electrical corporation, not later than March 1, 2004, shall file with the commission a standard tariff providing for net energy metering for eligible fuel cell customer-generators, consistent with this section. Subject to the limitation in subdivision (f), every electrical corporation shall make this tariff available to eligible fuel cell customer-generators upon request, on a first-come-first-served basis, until the total cumulative rated generating capacity of the eligible fuel cell electrical generating facilities receiving service pursuant to the tariff reaches a level equal to its proportionate share of a statewide limitation of 500 megawatts cumulative rated generation capacity served under this section. The proportionate share shall be calculated based on the ratio of the electrical corporation’s peak demand compared to the total statewide peak demand.

(2) To continue the growth of the market for onsite electric generation using fuel cells, the commission may review and incrementally raise the limitation established in paragraph (1) on the total cumulative rated generating capacity of the eligible fuel cell electrical generating facilities receiving service pursuant to the tariff in paragraph (1).

(c) In determining the eligibility for the cumulative rated generating capacity within an electrical corporation’s service territory, preference shall be given to facilities that, at the time of installation, are located in a community with significant exposure to air contaminants or localized air contaminants, or both, including, but not limited to, communities of minority populations or low-income populations, or both, based on the ambient air quality standards established pursuant to Section 39607 of the Health and Safety Code.

(d) (1) Each net energy metering contract or tariff shall be identical, with respect to rate structure, all retail rate components, and any monthly charges, to the contract or tariff to which the customer would be assigned if the customer was not an eligible fuel cell customer-generator. Any new or additional demand charge, standby charge, customer charge, minimum monthly charge, interconnection charge, or other charge that would increase an eligible fuel cell customer-generator’s costs beyond those of other customers in the rate class to which the eligible fuel cell customer-generator would otherwise be assigned are contrary to the intent of the Legislature in enacting this section, and may not form a part of net energy metering tariffs.

(2) The commission shall authorize an electrical corporation to charge a fuel cell customer-generator a fee based on the cost to the utility associated with providing interconnection inspection services for that fuel cell customer-generator.

(e) The net metering calculation shall be made by measuring the difference between the electricity supplied to the eligible fuel cell customer-generator and the electricity generated by the eligible fuel cell customer-generator and fed back to the electrical grid over a 12-month period. The following rules shall apply to the annualized metering calculation:

(1) The eligible fuel cell customer-generator shall, at the end of each 12-month period following the date of final interconnection of the eligible fuel cell electrical generating facility with an electrical corporation, and at each anniversary date thereafter, be billed for electricity used during that period. The electrical corporation shall determine if the eligible fuel cell customer-generator was a net consumer or a net producer of electricity during that period. For purposes of determining if the eligible fuel cell customer-generator was a net consumer or a net producer of electricity during that period, the electrical corporation shall aggregate the electrical load of the meters located on the property where the eligible fuel cell electrical generation facility is located and on all property adjacent or contiguous to the property on which the facility is located, if those properties are solely owned, leased, or rented by the eligible fuel cell customer-generator. Each aggregated account shall be billed and measured according to a time-of-use rate schedule.

(2) At the end of each 12-month period, where the electricity supplied during the period by the electrical corporation exceeds the electricity generated by the eligible fuel cell customer-generator during that same period, the eligible fuel cell customer-generator is a net electricity consumer and the electrical corporation shall be owed compensation for the eligible fuel cell customer-generator’s net kilowatthour consumption over that same period. The compensation owed for the eligible fuel cell customer-generator’s consumption shall be calculated as follows:

(A) The generation charges for any net monthly consumption of electricity shall be calculated according to the terms of the tariff to which the same customer would be assigned to or be eligible for if the customer was not an eligible fuel cell customer-generator. When the eligible fuel cell customer-generator is a net generator during any discrete time-of-use period, the net kilowatthours produced shall be valued at the same price per kilowatthour as the electrical corporation would charge for retail kilowatthour sales for generation, exclusive of any surcharges, during that same time-of-use period. If the eligible fuel cell customer-generator’s time-of-use electrical meter is unable to measure the flow of electricity in two directions, paragraph (4) of subdivision (a) shall apply. All other charges, other than generation charges, shall be calculated in accordance with the eligible fuel cell customer-generator’s applicable tariff and based on the total kilowatthours delivered by the electrical corporation to the eligible fuel cell customer-generator. To the extent that charges for transmission and distribution services are recovered through demand charges in any particular month, no standby reservation charges shall apply in that monthly billing cycle.

(B) The net balance of moneys owed shall be paid in accordance with the electrical corporation’s normal billing cycle.

(3) At the end of each 12-month period, where the electricity generated by the eligible fuel cell customer-generator during the 12-month period exceeds the electricity supplied by the electrical corporation during that same period, the eligible fuel cell customer-generator is a net electricity producer and the electrical corporation shall retain any excess kilowatthours generated during the prior 12-month period. The eligible fuel cell customer-generator shall not be owed any compensation for those excess kilowatthours.

(4) If an eligible fuel cell customer-generator terminates service with the electrical corporation, the electrical corporation shall reconcile the eligible fuel cell customer-generator’s consumption and production of electricity during any 12-month period.

(f) No fuel cell electrical generating facility shall be eligible for the tariff unless it commences operation prior to January 1, 2017, unless a later enacted statute, that is chaptered before January 1, 2017, extends this eligibility commencement date. The tariff shall remain in effect for an eligible fuel cell electrical generating facility that commences operation pursuant to the tariff prior to January 1, 2017. A fuel cell customer-generator shall be eligible for the tariff established pursuant to this section only for the operating life of the eligible fuel cell electrical generating facility.

SEC. 13.  

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.



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