BILL NUMBER: SB 106	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  SEPTEMBER 10, 2015
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  SEPTEMBER 4, 2015

INTRODUCED BY   Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review

                        JANUARY 9, 2015

   An act to add Section  12803.2.5   13295.6
 to the Government Code,   to amend Section 25751 of the
Public Resources Code,   and to amend  Section 
 Sections 306 and  309.5 of, and to add Sections 
326.6,   307.1,  326.7,  and 327.5
  327.5, and 769.5  to, the Public Utilities Code,
relating to the Public Utilities Commission, and making an
appropriation therefor, to take effect immediately, bill related to
the budget.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 106, as amended, Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review. Public
Utilities Commission.
   The California Constitution establishes the Public Utilities
Commission  (PUC)  with jurisdiction over all public
utilities, authorizes the  commission   PUC
 to establish its own procedures, subject to statutory
limitations or directions and constitutional requirements of due
process, and authorizes the  commission   PUC
 to fix the rates and establish rules for public utilities,
subject to control by the Legislature.  The  
The Public Utilities Act provides that the office of the PUC shall be
in the City and County of San Francisco, requires that the PUC hold
its sessions at least once in each calendar month in the City and
County of San Francisco, and authorizes the PUC to also meet at those
other times and places as may be expedient and necessary for the
proper performance of its duties.  
   This bill would require that the PUC hold its sessions at least
once in each calendar month in the City and County of San Francisco
or the City of Sacramento.  
   The Public Utilities Act authorizes the PUC to appoint an attorney
for the PUC who holds that office at the pleasure of the PUC. The
act requires the PUC's attorney to commence, prosecute, and expedite
the final determination of all actions and proceedings directed or
authorized by the president, except as otherwise directed or
authorized by vote of the PUC, to advise the PUC and each
commissioner in regard to all matters in connection with the powers
and duties of the PUC or a commissioner, when requested, and
generally to perform all duties and services as attorney to the PUC
that the president, or vote of the PUC, may require of him or her.
 
   This bill would require the PUC to notify the Joint Legislative
Budget Committee when it enters into a contract for outside legal
counsel to represent the PUC in any criminal investigation at an
expense exceeding $1,000,000 and to provide a copy of the contract to
that committee within 10 days of it being approved by the
Department of General Services.  
   Existing law provides that upon request made in writing to a
public entity, that public entity may, in its discretion, defend or
indemnify or defend and indemnify any witness who has testified on
behalf of the public entity in any criminal, civil, or administrative
action, except as specified.  
   This bill would prohibit the PUC from including in a contract for
outside legal counsel terms providing for the representation in any
criminal matter of individual employees except as provided in the
above-described law. The bill would require the PUC to supply the
Joint Legislative Budget Committee with a copy of the contract to
represent an individual employee in a criminal investigation pursuant
to the above-described law within 10 days of the date the contract
is approved by the Department of General Services. 
    The  Public Utilities Act establishes an independent
Office of Ratepayer Advocates within the  Public Utilities
Commission,   PUC  to represent the interests of
public utility customers and subscribers, with the goal of obtaining
the lowest possible rate for service consistent with reliable and
safe service levels. Existing law requires the director of the office
to develop a budget for the office that is submitted to the
Department of Finance for final approval. Existing law authorizes the
director of the office to appoint a lead attorney to represent the
office and requires the lead attorney to obtain adequate legal
personnel for the work to be conducted by the office from the
 Public Utilities Commission's   PUC's 
attorney and requires the  Public Utilities Commission's
  PUC's  attorney to timely and appropriately
fulfill all requests for legal personnel made by the lead attorney
for the office, provided the office has sufficient moneys and
positions in its budget for the services requested. Existing law
requires the  commission   PUC to develop
appropriate procedures to ensure that the existence of the office
does not create a conflict of roles for any employee.
   This bill would delete the requirement that the lead attorney
obtain adequate legal personnel for the work to be conducted by the
office from the  Public Utilities Commission's  
PUC's  attorney and the requirement that the  Public
Utilities Commission's   PUC's  attorney timely and
appropriately fulfill all requests for legal personnel made by the
lead attorney for the office. The bill would require the 
commission   PUC  to coordinate with the office in
developing appropriate procedures to ensure that the existence of the
office does not create a conflict of roles for any employee. 
 
   The California Constitution provides that the Legislature has
plenary power, unlimited by the other provisions of the constitution,
to confer additional authority and jurisdiction upon the commission
that is cognate and germane to the regulation of public utilities.
The Public Utilities Act authorizes the commission to supervise and
regulate every public utility and to do all things that are necessary
and convenient in the exercise of its power and jurisdiction whether
specifically designated in the act or in addition thereto. 

   This bill would prohibit the commission from funding any program
by a state entity using charges collected from public utility
ratepayers unless expressly authorized to do so by statute enacted by
the Legislature, including the annual Budget Act. 
   Existing law requires the  commission   PUC
 to submit to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee reports on
all sources and amount of funding and actual and proposed
expenditures for various activities.
   This bill would require the  commission,  
Department of Finance,  on a semiannual basis, to provide the
Joint Legislative Budget Commission a written notification of any
redirection of funds and  positions,   positions
within the PUC,  including  any  loaning  of 
staff to other state agencies or departments. The bill would require
the California Research Bureau to conduct a review of the
organization of the  commission   PUC  to
ensure that the  commission   PUC  is the
best governmental entity to direct, regulate, and oversee specified
public utility sectors.
   Existing decisions of the  commission   PUC
 establish the California Hub for Energy Efficiency Financing,
or CHEEF, program, a 2-year pilot program administered by the
California Alternative Energy and Advanced Transportation Financing
Authority and funded through charges collected by specified
electrical corporations and gas corporations from their ratepayers.
   The bill would require the commission to report to the relevant
policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature on the outcomes of
the CHEEF program and would prohibit the  commission
  PUC  from approving any extension of the program
sooner than 30 days after making its report. 
   Existing law establishes the Government Operations Agency
consisting of certain state entities, including the Department of
Human Resources, which is governed by the Secretary of Government
Operations.  
   Existing law places various duties upon the PUC with respect to
distributed generation and requires each electrical corporation, as
defined, to submit to the PUC for its approval a distribution
resources plan proposal to identify optimal locations for the
deployment of distributed resources, as defined. Pursuant to existing
law, the PUC has established operational and metering requirements
for a generation facility to be interconnected to an electrical
corporation's distribution grid.  
   This bill would require the PUC, by April 1, 2016, to establish an
expedited distribution grid interconnection dispute resolution
process, as specified, with the goal of resolving disputes over
interconnection applications within the jurisdiction of the PUC in no
more than 60 days from the time the dispute is formally brought to
the PUC.  
   Decisions of the PUC adopted the California Solar Initiative
administered by electrical corporations and subject to the PUC's
supervision. Existing law requires the PUC and the State Energy
Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission)
to undertake certain steps in implementing the California Solar
Initiative and requires the PUC to ensure that the total cost over
the duration of the program does not exceed $3,550,800,000. Existing
law specifies that the financial components of the California Solar
Initiative include the New Solar Homes Partnership Program, which is
administered by the Energy Commission. Existing law requires the
program to be funded by charges in the amount of $400,000,000
collected from customers of the state's 3 largest electrical
corporations. If moneys from the Renewable Resource Trust Fund for
the program are exhausted, existing law authorizes the PUC, upon
notification by the Energy Commission, to require those electrical
corporations to continue the administration of the program pursuant
to the guidelines established by the Energy Commission for the
program until the $400,000,000 monetary limit is reached. Existing
law authorizes the PUC to determine if a 3rd party, including the
Energy Commission, should administer the electrical corporations'
continuation of the program. Existing law makes the New Solar Homes
Partnership Program inoperative on June 1, 2018, and requires any
funding made available be encumbered no later than June 1, 2018, and
disbursed no later than December 31, 2021.  
   If the PUC determines that the Energy Commission should be the
3rd-party administrator for the New Solar Homes Partnership Program,
this bill would require that any additional moneys made available to
fund the New Solar Homes Partnership Program be deposited into the
Emerging Renewable Resources Account of the Renewable Resource Trust
Fund and used for this purpose.  
   Existing law authorizes the Department of Finance to furnish
services, or provide work for, any other state agency as requested by
the Legislature and authorizes the department to charge an amount
sufficient to recover the cost of furnishing services or the work
performed.  
   The 
    This  bill would require the  Secretary of
Government Operations to contract with an independent, 3rd-party
consulting firm to   Office of State Audits and
Evaluations within the Department of Finance to  assess the
degree to which each activity and position related to the energy
responsibilities of the  commission   PUC 
supports the core mission of the  commission.  
PUC and to make recommendations as to how resources might be better
allocated to achieve the core mission objectives of the PUC. 
The bill would require the  secretary,   office,
 by April 1, 2016, to submit a report to the Legislature on the
assessment.  The bill would require the PUC to reimburse the
department for the costs incurred by the office upon request by the
department. 
   The bill would appropriate $5,000,000 to the  commission
  PUC  for the support of the  commission.
  PUC. 
   This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a
bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: yes. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section  12803.2.5   13295.6 
is added to the Government Code, to read:
    12803.2.5.   13295.6.   (a) The
 Secretary of Government Operations shall contract with an
independent, third-party consulting firm to   Office of
State Audits and Evaluations within the Department of Finance shall
 assess the degree to which each activity and position related
to the energy responsibilities of the Public Utilities Commission, as
identified in the commission's zero-based budget conducted pursuant
to Section 318 of the Public Utilities Code, supports the core
mission of the commission and to make recommendations as to how
resources might be better allocated to achieve the core mission
objectives of the commission.
   (b) The  contracted consulting firm  office
 shall provide to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee
 and the Department of Finance  monthly updates on
the progress of the assessment.
   (c) (1) By April 1, 2016, the  Secretary of Government
Operations   office  shall, pursuant to Section
9795, submit to the Legislature a report on the assessment.
   (2) Pursuant to Section 10231.5, this subdivision is inoperative
on April 1, 2020.
   (d) The Public Utilities Commission shall reimburse the 
Government Operations Agency   Department of Finance
 for the costs incurred pursuant to this section upon request by
the  agency   department  and
appropriation by the Legislature.
   SEC. 2.    Section 25751 of the   Public
Resources Code   is amended to read: 
   25751.  (a) The Renewable Resource Trust Fund is hereby created in
the State Treasury.
   (b) The Emerging Renewable Resources Account is hereby established
within the Renewable  Resources   Resource
 Trust Fund. Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government
Code, the moneys in the account are hereby continuously appropriated
to the commission without regard to fiscal years for the following
purposes:
   (1) To close out the award of incentives for emerging technologies
in accordance with former Section 25744, as this law existed prior
to the enactment of the Budget Act of 2012, for which applications
had been approved before the enactment of the Budget Act of 2012.
   (2) To close out consumer education activities in accordance with
former Section 25746, as this law existed prior to the enactment of
the Budget Act of 2012.
   (3) To provide funding for the New Solar Homes Partnership
pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (e) of Section 2851 of the
Public Utilities Code.
   (c) The Controller shall provide to the commission funds pursuant
to the continuous appropriation in, and for purposes specified in,
subdivision (b).
   (d) The Controller shall provide to the commission moneys from the
fund sufficient to satisfy all contract and grant awards that were
made by the commission pursuant to former Sections 25744 and 25746,
and Chapter 8.8 (commencing with Section 25780), as these laws
existed prior to the enactment of the Budget Act of 2012. 
   (e) If the Public Utilities Commission determines that the State
Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission should be
the third-party administrator for the New Solar Homes Partnership
Program pursuant to subparagraph (A) of paragraph (3) of subdivision
(e) of Section 2851 of the Public Utilities Code, any additional
moneys made available to fund the New Solar Homes Partnership Program
shall be deposited into the Emerging Renewable Resources Account of
the Renewable Resource Trust Fund and used for this purpose. 
   SEC. 3.    Section 306 of the   Public
Utilities Code   is amended to read: 
   306.  (a) The office of the commission shall be in the City and
County of San Francisco. The office shall always be open, legal
holidays and nonjudicial days excepted. The commission shall hold its
sessions at least once in each calendar month in the City and County
of San  Francisco.   Francisco or the City of
Sacramento.  The commission may also meet at such other times
and in such other places as may be expedient and necessary for the
proper performance of its duties, and for that purpose may rent
quarters or offices.
   (b) The meetings of the commission shall be open and public in
accordance with the provisions of Article 9 (commencing with Section
11120) of Chapter 1 of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the
Government Code.
   In addition to the requirements of Section 11125 of the Government
Code, the commission shall include in its notice of meetings the
agenda of business to be transacted, and no item of business shall be
added to the agenda subsequent to the notice in the absence of an
unforeseen emergency situation. A rate increase shall not constitute
an unforeseen emergency situation. As used in this subdivision,
"meeting" shall include all investigations, proceedings, and showings
required by law to be open and public.
   (c) The commission shall have a seal, bearing the inscription
"Public Utilities Commission State of California." The seal shall be
affixed to all writs and authentications of copies of records and to
such other instruments as the commission shall direct.
   (d) The commission may procure all necessary books, maps, charts,
stationery, instruments, office furniture, apparatus, and appliances.

   SEC. 4.    Section 307.1 is added to the  
Public Utilities Code   , t   o read:  
   307.1.  (a) The commission shall notify the Joint Legislative
Budget Committee when it enters into a contract for outside legal
counsel to represent the commission in any criminal investigation at
an expense exceeding one million dollars ($1,000,000) and shall
provide a copy of the contract to that committee within 10 days of it
being approved by the Department of General Services.
   (b) A contract of any size entered into by the commission for
outside legal counsel in any criminal investigation shall not include
terms providing for the representation of individual employees
except as provided in Section 995.9 of the Government Code. Copies of
any contract for the representation of individual employees in a
criminal investigation pursuant to Section 995.9 of the Government
Code shall be provided to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee
within 10 days of the date the contract is approved by the Department
of General Services. 
   SEC. 2.   SEC. 5.   Section 309.5 of the
Public Utilities Code is amended to read:
   309.5.  (a) There is within the commission an independent Office
of Ratepayer Advocates to represent and advocate on behalf of the
interests of public utility customers and subscribers within the
jurisdiction of the commission. The goal of the office shall be to
obtain the lowest possible rate for service consistent with reliable
and safe service levels. For revenue allocation and rate design
matters, the office shall primarily consider the interests of
residential and small commercial customers.
   (b) (1) The director of the office shall be appointed by, and
serve at the pleasure of, the Governor, subject to confirmation by
the Senate.
    (2) The director shall annually appear before the appropriate
policy committees of the Assembly and the Senate to report on the
activities of the office.
   (c) The director shall develop a budget for the office that shall
be subject to final approval of the Department of Finance. As
authorized in the approved budget, the office shall employ personnel
and resources, including attorneys and other legal support staff, at
a level sufficient to ensure that customer and subscriber interests
are effectively represented in all significant proceedings. The
office may employ experts necessary to carry out its functions. The
director may appoint a lead attorney who shall represent the office,
and shall report to and serve at the pleasure of the director.
   (d) The commission shall coordinate with the office to develop
appropriate procedures to ensure that the existence of the office
does not create a conflict of roles for any employee. The procedures
shall include, but shall not be limited to, the development of a code
of conduct and procedures for ensuring that advocates and their
representatives on a particular case or proceeding are not advising
decisionmakers on the same case or proceeding.
   (e) The office may compel the production or disclosure of any
information it deems necessary to perform its duties from any entity
regulated by the commission, provided that any objections to any
request for information shall be decided in writing by the assigned
commissioner or by the president of the commission, if there is no
assigned commissioner.
   (f) There is hereby created the Public Utilities Commission
Ratepayer Advocate Account in the General Fund. Moneys from the
Public Utilities Commission Utilities Reimbursement Account in the
General Fund shall be transferred in the annual Budget Act to the
Public Utilities Commission Ratepayer Advocate Account. The funds in
the Public Utilities Commission Ratepayer Advocate Account shall be a
budgetary program fund administered and utilized exclusively by the
office in the performance of its duties as determined by the
director. The director shall annually submit a staffing report
containing a comparison of the staffing levels for each five-year
period.
   (g) On or before January 10 of each year, the office shall provide
to the chairperson of the fiscal committee of each house of the
Legislature and to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee all of the
following information:
   (1) The number of personnel years utilized during the prior year
by the Office of Ratepayer Advocates.
   (2) The total dollars expended by the Office of Ratepayer
Advocates in the prior year, the estimated total dollars expended in
the current year, and the total dollars proposed for appropriation in
the following budget year.
   (3) Workload standards and measures for the Office of Ratepayer
Advocates.
   (h) The office shall meet and confer in an informal setting with a
regulated entity prior to issuing a report or pleading to the
commission regarding alleged misconduct, or a violation of a law or a
commission rule or order, raised by the office in a complaint. The
meet and confer process shall be utilized in good faith to reach
agreement on issues raised by the office regarding any regulated
entity in the complaint proceeding. 
  SEC. 3.    Section 326.6 is added to the Public
Utilities Code, to read:
   326.6.  The commission shall not fund any program by a state
entity using charges collected from ratepayers unless expressly
authorized to do so by statute enacted by the Legislature, including
the annual Budget Act. 
   SEC. 4.   SEC. 6.   Section 326.7 is
added to the Public Utilities Code, to read:
   326.7.  The  commission,   Department of
Finance,  on a semiannual basis, shall provide to the Joint
Legislative Budget Committee a written notification of any
redirection of funds and  positions,   positions
within the commission,  including  any  loaning 
of  staff to other state agencies or departments.
   SEC. 5.   SEC. 7.  Section 327.5 is
added to the Public Utilities Code, to read:
   327.5.  (a) The California Research Bureau shall conduct a review
of the organization of the commission to ensure that the commission
is the best governmental entity to continue to direct, regulate, and
oversee activities under the commission's jurisdiction, including
safety enforcement, in energy, communications, transportation, and
water sectors, to determine whether other governmental entities are
duplicating the activities of the commission, and to determine
whether other governmental entities are better situated to regulate
and oversee those activities.
   (b) In conducting the review, the California Research Bureau, in
consultation with appropriate state entities, shall do all of the
following:
   (1) Make recommendations as to which state or local agencies are
best suited to regulate and oversee those activities specified in
subdivision (a).
   (2) Make recommendations for improving oversight, regulation, and
efficiency to best serve California's ratepayers, businesses, and
utilities.
   (3) Estimate the costs associated with the implementation of its
recommendations.
   SEC. 8.    Section 769.5 is added to the  
Public Utilities Code   , to read:  
   769.5.  (a) By April 1, 2016, the commission shall establish an
expedited distribution grid interconnection dispute resolution
process with the goal of resolving disputes over interconnection
applications that are within the jurisdiction of the commission in no
more than 60 days from the time the dispute is formally brought to
the commission.
   (b) The expedited distribution grid interconnection dispute
resolution process shall include the following elements:
   (1) A distribution grid interconnection technical advisory panel
consisting of at least eight individuals selected by the commission.
Four of the technical advisory panel members shall be from electrical
corporations and four shall not be from electrical corporations. The
commission shall determine the length of the term of each member. If
any member of the panel is an employee of, or contractor to, an
electrical corporation, an employee of a vendor with an open
application, or has a financial interest or financial relationship to
a person or corporation with a financial interest in the outcome of
the decision, that member shall not participate in any discussion
involving that electrical corporation, vendor, or financially
interested person or corporation.
   (2) A review panel of four members shall be selected from the
technical advisory panel for each dispute.
   (3) If an applicant is unable to resolve an
interconnection-related dispute after working with the electrical
corporation operating the distribution grid, the applicant may seek
resolution of the dispute using the commission's expedited
distribution grid interconnection dispute resolution process.
   (4) Upon agreeing to a final settlement of the dispute, parties
shall be free to withdraw from the dispute resolution process.
   (5) If the dispute is filed with the commission, the commission
shall ensure that a technical advisory panel shall review the dispute
and make a recommendation to the executive director of the
commission within 30 days of receiving the dispute.
   (6) The commission shall establish a public process to allow the
electrical corporation, the applicant, and other interested parties
to file written comments on the recommendation of the technical
advisory panel.
   (7) The panel shall request appropriate documents from the
electrical corporation involved in the dispute, including, but not
limited to, interconnection application studies.
   (8) The scope of the technical advisory panel's review shall be
limited to issues regarding compliance with the established
interconnection rules. Any recommendations shall ensure safe and
reliable interconnection.
   (9) The scope of the technical advisory panel's review is limited
to making recommendations to resolve specific customer disputes and
recommending associated corrective actions, and the panel shall have
no authority to assess penalties.
   (10) Upon receipt of the recommendation from the technical
advisory panel, the executive director shall have 30 days to review
the recommendation and to prepare an order to the electrical
corporation resolving the dispute. If the review panel from the
technical advisory panel cannot agree on recommendations, then each
recommendation of a review panel member shall be submitted to the
executive director, who shall make the decision resolving the
dispute.
   (11) Any interested person seeking commission review of the
executive director's determination shall file the request for review
within 10 days of the determination. Upon receipt of the request for
review, the executive director or the energy division director shall
prepare a proposed resolution of the matter for approval by the
commission.
   (c) The commission shall provide the members of the technical
advisory panel that are not from electrical corporations with an
appropriate per diem compensation consistent with Section 19822.5 of
the Government Code. 
   SEC. 6.   SEC. 9.   The Public Utilities
Commission shall report to the relevant policy and fiscal committees
of the Legislature on the outcomes of the California Hub for Energy
Efficiency Financing, or CHEEF, program. The commission shall not
approve any extension of the CHEEF program sooner than 30 days after
making its report pursuant to this section.
   SEC. 7.   SEC. 10.   The sum of five
million dollars ($5,000,000) is hereby appropriated from the Public
Utilities Commission Utilities Reimbursement Account to the Public
Utilities Commission for the support of the commission.
   SEC. 8.   SEC. 11.    This act is a bill
providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill within the
meaning of subdivision (e) of Section 12 of Article IV of the
California Constitution, has been identified as related to the budget
in the Budget Bill, and shall take effect immediately.