BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 793|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
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UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Bill No: SB 793
Author: Wolk (D), et al.
Amended: 6/30/15
Vote: 21
SENATE ENERGY, U. & C. COMMITTEE: 8-3, 4/21/15
AYES: Hueso, Hertzberg, Hill, Lara, Leyva, McGuire, Pavley,
Wolk
NOES: Fuller, Cannella, Morrell
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 5-2, 5/11/15
AYES: Lara, Beall, Hill, Leyva, Mendoza
NOES: Bates, Nielsen
SENATE FLOOR: 23-13, 5/18/15
AYES: Allen, Beall, Block, De León, Galgiani, Hancock,
Hernandez, Hertzberg, Hill, Hueso, Jackson, Lara, Leno, Leyva,
Liu, McGuire, Mendoza, Mitchell, Monning, Pan, Roth,
Wieckowski, Wolk
NOES: Anderson, Bates, Cannella, Fuller, Gaines, Huff,
Moorlach, Morrell, Nguyen, Nielsen, Runner, Stone, Vidak
NO VOTE RECORDED: Berryhill, Hall, Pavley
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 79-0, 8/27/15 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT: Green Tariff Shared Renewables Program
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill requires an investor-owned utility (IOU) that
offers a Green Tariff Shared Renewables (GTSR) Program to permit
a participating customer to subscribe to the program and be
provided with a nonbinding estimate of reasonably anticipated
SB 793
Page 2
bill credits and bill charges, as determined by the California
Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), for a period of up to 20
years.
Assembly Amendments replace the words "receive a reasonably
estimated bill credit and bill charge" with "be provided with a
nonbinding estimate of reasonably anticipated bill credits and
bill charges." The Assembly amended the bill for clarity. The
Assembly amendment is consistent with the intent behind prior
amendments made to the bill in the Senate.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Requires the electrical IOUs to permit customers to subscribe
to the GTSR Program until there is statewide 600 megawatts
(MW) of customer participation, with each utility responsible
for its proportionate share of GTSR participation. Statute
also sets aside the following GTSR Program components: (a) 100
MW for facilities 1 MW or less located in areas identified by
the California Environmental Protection Agency as the most
impacted and disadvantaged communities; (b) 100 MW for
residential customers; and (c) 20 MW for the City of Davis.
Statute declares the intent of the Legislature that
implementation of the GTSR Program not affect nonparticipating
ratepayers. Statute further requires the CPUC, by July 1,
2014, to issue a decision to approve or disapprove each IOU's
GTSR Program, with or without modification. (Public Utilities
Code §2831 et seq.)
2)Grants the CPUC authority to fix rates charged by public
utilities under its jurisdiction. (Article XII, Section 6,
California Constitution.)
3)Requires retail sellers of electricity - IOUs, community
choice aggregators, and energy service providers - and
publicly-owned utilities to increase purchases of renewable
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Page 3
energy such that at least 33 percent of retail sales are
procured from renewable energy resources by December 31, 2020.
This is known as the Renewable Portfolio Standard. (Public
Utilities Code §399.11 et seq.)
This bill requires an IOU to allow a customer participating in
its GTSR Program to subscribe to the program and be provided
with a nonbinding estimate of reasonably anticipated bill
credits and bill charges, as determined by the CPUC, for a
period of up to 20 years.
Background
SB 43 and the GTSR Program. In 2013, the Legislature approved a
bill - SB 43 (Wolk, Chapter 88) - that required the IOUs to
allow customers to subscribe to a GTSR Program, which was to
expand access to renewable energy resources to all ratepayers
who are unable to access the benefits of onsite generation. The
IOUs implemented the 600 MW program proportionately. The bill
also set aside portions of the program for specific customer
classes, including disadvantaged communities, residential
customers and the City of Davis, which had operated a community
solar pilot project prior to introduction of SB 43.
The bill codified numerous findings and statements of intent.
Among those statements was that IOU ratepayers not participating
in the GTSR Program be unaffected by implementation of the
program.
The bill directed the IOUs each to submit a GTSR Program plan to
the CPUC. The bill required the CPUC, by July 1, 2014, to issue
a decision to approve each of the plans if it determines the
plan is reasonable and meets the bill's declarations and
statements of intent. The bill also gave the CPUC the power to
modify the IOUs' GTSR Program plans.
CPUC proposes GTSR Program plan decision, limits contracts to
one year. On January 29 of this year, the CPUC released a
decision to approve the GTSR Program plans. (A.12-01-008 et al
(http://docs.cpuc.ca.gov/PublishedDocs/
Published/G000/M145/K819/145819809.PDF). The CPUC decision, in
interpreting SB 43, understands the bill to require
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implementation of two, distinct programs: (1) a Green Tariff
option, in which customers may purchase energy with a greater
share of renewables, and (2) an enhanced community renewables
(ECR) option, which allows customers to purchase renewable
energy from community-based projects.
Among the decision's provisions was a discussion of customer
subscription terms for both components of the GTSR Program. As
described in the decision, the IOUs had submitted plans that
offered various subscription terms. SDG&E had proposed that
customers be able to participate with a one-year minimum
commitment or with long-term commitments of two, three, five, or
10 years. Pacific Gas and Electric Company proposed customers
commit to a one-year contract, moving to month-to-month
participation thereafter. Southern California Edison, in
contrast, proposed month-to-month participation.
The CPUC's proposed decision, in discussing the IOUs' proposals,
declared a number of benefits to one-year GTSR Program
contracts. First, the CPUC opined, one-year contracts provide
the IOUs some certainty around program participation in the
coming year. Second, the CPUC continued, a one-year commitment
was long enough to allow participants to test the program
without being locked in to the program for a longer duration.
The proposed decision also offered a number of drawbacks to
longer-term contracts, such as those proposed by San Diego Gas &
Electric Company, calling such contract terms "not viable." As
support for its position, CPUC noted that program rates would
automatically adjust to match changes in commodity prices;
therefore, long-term contracts provided no value as a hedge
against future cost increases.
In the end, the proposed decision required GTSR Program (both
Green Tariff and ECR) subscription terms of one year.
Bill requires terms, and a nonbinding estimate of reasonably
anticipated bill credits and bill charges, for up to 20 years.
As described above, this bill requires the IOUs to offer GTSR
Program subscription of 20 years duration. This bill also
requires a subscribing customer to be provided with a nonbinding
estimate of reasonably anticipated bill credits and bill
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charges, as determined by the CPUC, for a period of up to 20
years.
Prior Legislation
SB 43 (Wolk, Chapter 88, Statutes of 2013) required the IOUs to
offer the GTSR Program to ratepayers.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: Yes
According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, ongoing
annual costs of approximately $130,000 (Public Utilities
Reimbursement Account) for the CPUC to estimate costs and
credits over 20 years.
SUPPORT: (Verified 8/27/15)
Borrego Solar
California Environmental Justice Alliance
California Public Utilities Commission
California Solar Energy Industries Association
Environmental Defense Fund
Large-Scale Solar Association
Recurrent Energy
Sierra Club California
Solar Energy Industries Association
SolarCity
The Utility Reform Network
Vote Solar
OPPOSITION: (Verified8/27/15)
None received
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: The author and proponents contend this
bill removes a barrier to participation in the GTSR Program by
allowing longer-term contracts and providing, reasonably
estimated, stable rates to those participating in it.
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ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 79-0, 8/27/15
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom,
Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chang,
Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle,
Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia,
Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray,
Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones,
Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low,
Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin,
Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Perea,
Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago,
Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber,
Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins
NO VOTE RECORDED: Frazier
Prepared by:Jay Dickenson / E., U., & C. / (916) 651-4107
8/28/15 17:13:23
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