BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1023
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Date of Hearing: April 27, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON UTILITIES AND COMMERCE
Anthony Rendon, Chair
AB 1023
(Rendon) - As Amended April 20, 2015
SUBJECT: Public Utilities Commission: proceedings: ex parte
communications
SUMMARY: This bill would require the California Public
Utilities Commissions (CPUC) policy to establish and maintain a
weekly communications log summarizing all oral or written ex
parte communications, as specified. Specifically, this bill:
a)Requires the CPUC to establish and maintain a weekly
communications log summarizing all oral or written ex parte
communications made in that week.
b)Requires the communications log to include a summary of all
oral and written communications that meet the definition of an
ex parte communication that occur between a person with an
interest in a matter before the CPUC and a commissioner,
advisor to a commissioner appointed, executive director of the
CPUC, deputy executive director, a division director, or an
administrative law judge.
c)Requires that each communication log include the date of each
communication, the persons involved in the communication, and
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to the extent known, and any proceedings that were the subject
of each communication.
d)Requires each communications log to be posted on the CPUCs
website.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Requires the CPUC to determine whether a proceeding requires a
hearing, and whether the matter requires a quasi-legislative,
an adjudication, or a ratesetting hearing. (Public Utilities
Code Section 1701.1)
2)Requires the CPUC to establish regulations regarding ex parte
communication on case categorization issues. (Public
Utilities Code Section 1701.1)
3)Requires the CPUC, upon initiating a hearing, to assign one or
more commissioners to oversee the case and an administrative
law judge where appropriate. The assigned commissioner shall
schedule a prehearing conference. The assigned commissioner
shall prepare and issue by order or ruling a scoping memo that
describes the issues to be considered and the applicable
timetable for resolution. (Public Utilities Code Section
1701.1)
4)Defines "quasi-legislative cases" to mean cases that establish
policy, including, but not limited to, rulemakings and
investigations which may establish rules affecting an entire
industry. (Public Utilities Code Section 1701.1)
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5)Defines "adjudication cases" to mean enforcement cases and
complaints, except those challenging the reasonableness of any
rates or charges, as specified. (Public Utilities Code
Section 1701.1)
6)Defines "ratesetting cases" to mean cases in which rates are
established for a specific company, including, but not limited
to, general rate cases, performance-based ratemaking, and
other ratesetting mechanisms. (Public Utilities Code Section
1701.1)
7)Defines "ex parte communication" to mean any oral or written
communication between a decision maker and a person with an
interest in a matter before the commission concerning
substantive, but not procedural issues, that does not occur in
a public hearing, workshop, or other public proceeding, or on
the official record of the proceeding on the matter. (Public
Utilities Code Section 1701.1)
FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown.
COMMENTS:
1)Author's Statement: "In recent months, revelations have shown
a pattern of informal and private contacts by California
Public Utilities Commission members with regulated entities.
In response, CPUC management set up a weekly communications
log that summarizes oral and written ex parte communications.
AB 1023 would codify the requirement that the CPUC maintain
that contact log."
2)Background: In 2014, revelations surfaced that members of the
CPUC repeatedly had informal private contacts with entities
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under its regulatory purview. As a result, on October 18,
2014, the CPUC Executive Director issued a memo implementing
new reporting procedures for communications between certain
CPUC staff and CPUC-regulated entities. The memo was issued
in order to enhance the transparency of the CPUC's process and
its accountability to the public. The memo directed Division
Directors and above, as well as voluntarily asked
Commissioners and their Advisors and the Chief Administrative
Law Judge to provide a communications log summarizing all oral
or written ex parte communications that occur between
themselves and CPUC-regulated entities who are interested
persons to a ratesetting or adjudicatory proceeding. The
communications log must include the date of each
communication, the persons involved, and to the extent known,
any proceedings that were the subject of each communication.
The communications log must be provided on a weekly basis and
be made available on the CPUC's website.
Since October 15, 2014, the CPUC began publishing these logs
every other week since the policy was established. But the
policy limited the scope of the policy to only adjudicatory
and ratesetting proceedings, and did not require reporting on
communications between high-level CPUC personnel and
interested parties on quasi-legislative proceedings, advice
letters, and scoping memos.
This bill would codify the provisions of the CPUC policy that
requires the CPUC to establish and maintain a weekly
communications log summarizing all oral or written ex parte
communications between a person with an interest in a matter
before the CPUC and a commissioner, an appointed advisor to a
commissioner, the executive director, a deputy executive
director, a division director, or an administrative law judge.
The bill would expand the reporting to include
quasi-legislative proceedings, advice letters, and scoping
memos.
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3)Arguments in Support: According to the Sierra Club of
California, "This bill would improve accountability and
transparency at the [CPUC.] The bill does this by requiring
the [CPUC] to establish and maintain weekly communications log
summarizing all oral or written ex parte communication and
requires the [CPUC] to make each log available to the public
on the [CPUC's] internet website."
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
Sierra Club California
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by:Edmond Cheung / U. & C. / (916) 319-2083
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