BILL ANALYSIS
SB 1437
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SENATE THIRD READING
SB 1437 (Kehoe)
As Amended June 7, 2010
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE :(vote not relevant)
UTILITIES & COMMERCE 13-0
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|Ayes:|Knight, Buchanan, Carter, | | |
| |Fletcher, Fong, Fuller, | | |
| |Furutani, Huffman, Ma, | | |
| |Skinner, Swanson, | | |
| |Villines, Bradford | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Requires a representative of the California
Independent System Operator (CAISO) to annually appear before
the appropriate policy committees of the Senate and Assembly.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires the independent governing board of directors to
annually select a representative of CAISO to appear before the
appropriate policy committees of the Senate and Assembly to
report on the activities of CAISO.
2)Requires the representative of CAISO to annually report on the
following:
a) A summary of actions undertaken by CAISO to ensure
reliability of electric service and the health and safety
of the public by managing the transmission system and
related energy markets;
b) A summary of those actions undertaken by CAISO relative
to the adoption or modification of performance or
prescriptive standards for transmission equipment or
facility; and,
c) The results of each review of major outage undertaken by
CAISO.
EXISTING LAW establishes CAISO as a nonprofit, public benefit
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corporation to ensure the efficient use and reliable operation
of the transmission grid, and mandates CAISO is overseen by a
five-member Board of Governors who are appointed by the Governor
and confirmed by the state Senate.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : CAISO was created in the bill that deregulated the
wholesale and retail electricity markets, AB 1890 (Brulte)
Chapter 854, Statutes of 1996, to ensure fair and open
transmission access by all electricity providers. (The
investor-owned utilities still own and maintain the grid,
however, operation of the grid was transferred to CAISO.) CAISO
is required to operate the grid consistent with Western
Electricity Coordinating Council (WECC), which is the western
regional subgroup of the North American Electric Reliability
Corporation (NERC). NERC is the federally designated Electric
Reliability Organization. CAISO is governed by tariffs
submitted to and approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission.
CAISO plays an important role in implementing California's
landmark policies. AB 32 (Nunez) Chapter 488, Statutes of 2006,
requires the California Air Resources Board (ARB) to adopt a
statewide greenhouse gas emissions limit equivalent to the
statewide greenhouse gas emissions levels in 1990 to be achieved
by 2020. In 2008, ARB began to develop a plan for how
California, including the power sector, would reduce emissions
through direct regulation, such as end-use energy efficiency
standards and renewables portfolio standards, and through a
cap-and-trade system.
Shortly after midnight on April 1, 2010, about 300,000 homes and
businesses in the San Diego area lost power for about 45
minutes. The CAISO performed an investigation, it found that
control room personnel made an error. CAISO has taken personnel
measures and steps to prevent a repeat, including additional
training and audible alarms that tell grid operators when an
area is getting close to not having enough power to operate.
CAISO investigation was reviewed by WECC. WECC found the
investigation and subsequent remedies appropriate and no further
actions were requested.
The author and the Utility Consumers' Action Network (UCAN) are
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concerned that CAISO investigation is lacking and believe that
the public has a right to know exactly what happened and what
steps have been taken since the outage to protect California
from future outages. In a letter to UCAN dated April 27, 2010,
CAISO states that it is cooperating fully with WECC's review of
the event, and is fully briefing state and federal regulatory
agencies. Upon the completion of CAISO's review, a public
report will be issued.
Analysis Prepared by : Gina Adams / U. & C. / (916) 319-2083
FN: 0004833