BILL NUMBER: SB 699 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 18, 2014
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 25, 2014
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 12, 2014
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 7, 2013
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 19, 2013
AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 8, 2013
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 4, 2013
INTRODUCED BY Senator Hill
( Coauthor: Assembly Member
Gatto )
FEBRUARY 22, 2013
An act to amend Section 364 of the Public Utilities Code, relating
to public utilities.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 699, as amended, Hill. Public utilities: electrical
and gas corporations. corporations.
Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory
authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations,
as defined. Existing law requires the commission to adopt inspection,
maintenance, repair, and replacement standards for the distribution
systems of electrical corporations in order to provide high-quality,
safe, and reliable service. Existing law requires the commission to
conduct a review to determine whether the standards have been met and
to perform the review after every major outage.
This bill would require the commission to adopt rules
commission, in a new proceeding, or new phase of an
existing proceeding, to commence on or before July 1, 20
15, to consider adopting rules to address security
threats to the distribution systems of electrical
corporations, to be adopted by the commission with inspection,
maintenance, repair, and replacement standards no later than July 1,
2015. corporations.
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 are within the act and require
action by the commission to implement its requirements, a violation
of these provisions would impose a state-mandated local program by
expanding the definition of a 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 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) Physical or electronic threats Threats
to the electrical distribution system could threaten public
health and safety and disrupt economic activity in California.
(b) Ensuring appropriate actions are taken to protect and secure
vulnerable electrical distribution system assets from
physical or electronic threats that could disrupt safe and
reliable electric service, or disrupt essential public services,
including safe drinking water supplies, are in the public interest.
(c) Proper planning, in coordination with the appropriate federal
and state regulatory and law enforcement authorities, will help
prepare for attacks on the electrical distribution system and thereby
help reduce the potential consequences of such attacks.
SEC. 2. Section 364 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to
read:
364. (a) The commission shall adopt inspection, maintenance,
repair, and replacement standards, and adopt
shall, in a new proceeding, or new phase of an existing proceeding,
to commence on or before July 1, 2015, consider adopting rules
to address security threats, for threats to
the distribution systems of electrical corporations by
no later than July 1, 2015. The standards,
corporations. The standards or rules, which shall be
performance or prescriptive standards, based,
or both, and may be based on risk management, as appropriate,
for each substantial type of distribution equipment or facility,
shall provide for high-quality, safe, and reliable service.
(b) In setting its standards, standards or
rules, the commission shall consider: cost, local geography
and weather, applicable codes, potential security threats, national
electric industry practices, sound engineering judgment, and
experience. The commission shall also adopt standards for operation,
reliability, and safety during periods of emergency and disaster. The
commission shall require each electrical corporation to report
annually on its compliance with the standards. That
standards or rules. Except as provided in subdivision
(d), that report shall be made available to the public.
(c) The commission shall conduct a review to determine whether the
standards standards or rules
prescribed in this section have been met. If the commission finds
that the standards standards or rules
have not been met, the commission may order appropriate sanctions,
including penalties in the form of rate reductions or monetary fines.
The review shall be performed after every major outage. Any money
collected pursuant to this subdivision shall be used to offset
funding for the California Alternative Rates for Energy Program.
(d) The commission may, consistent with other provisions of law,
withhold from the public information generated or obtained pursuant
to this section that it deems would pose a security threat to the
public if disclosed.
SEC. 3. 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.