AB 2218, as amended, Bradford. Electricity and natural gas rates.
Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations 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 establish a program of assistance to low-income electric and gas customers, referred to as the California Alternate Rates for Energy (CARE) program.
This bill would require each electrical corporation and gas corporationbegin insert, subject to direction and supervision by the commission,end insert to develop and implement a program of rate assistance to eligible food banks, as defined,begin delete subject to direction and supervision by the commission.end deletebegin insert
at a fixed percentage to be determined by the commission. The bill would authorize the commission to adjust the fixed percentage of rate assistance as appropriate.end insert
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 the provisions of this bill would be a part of the act and because a violation of an order or decision of the commission implementing its requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program by creating a new 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.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 739.3 is added to the Public Utilities
2Code, to read:
begin insert(a)end insertbegin insert end insertSubject to direction and supervision by the
4commission, each electrical corporation and gas corporation shall
5develop and implement a program of rate assistance to eligible
6foodbegin delete banks.end deletebegin insert banks at a fixed percentage to be determined by the
7commission. The commission may adjust the fixed percentage as
8appropriate.end insert The funding source for the rate assistance program
9is subject to the approval of the commission.begin delete Forend delete
10begin insert(b)end insertbegin insert end insertbegin insertForend insert purposes of this section,begin delete “eligibleend deletebegin insert
the following terms
11have the following meanings:end insert
12begin insert(1)end insertbegin insert end insertbegin insert“Eligibleend insert food bank” means abegin delete public or charitable institution begin insert qualified eligible recipient agency that has
13that participatesend delete
14executed an agreement with the State Department of Social
15Services in order to participateend insert
in The Emergency Food Assistance
16Program administered by the Food and Nutrition Service of the
17United States Department of Agriculture.
18(2) “Eligible recipient agency” has the same meaning as defined
19in Section 251.3(d) of Title 7 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
20(3) “Agreement” means an agreement executed in compliance
21with Section 251.2 of Title 7 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
23Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
P3 1the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
2district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
3infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
4for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of
5the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within
6the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
7Constitution.
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