Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. Existing law requires every electric utility, except as provided, to develop a standard contract or tariff providing for net energy metering, and to make this standard contract or tariff available to eligible customer-generators using renewable electrical generation facilities, as specified. Pursuant to its authority, the commission issued a decision revising net energy metering tariff and subtariffs, commonly known as the net billing tariff.

This bill would include the regenerative braking from electric trains as a renewable electrical generation facility for those purposes, as provided.

This bill would, upon an electrical corporation and an operator of an electrified commuter railroad that produces electricity through the regenerative braking of electric trains, including the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board, completing certain technical studies, require the electrical corporation to adopt or modify a net billing contract or tariff that is approved by the commission. The bill would require that contract or tariff to, among other things, require the electrical corporation to apply bill credits for the electricity exported to the electrical grid based on its value, as specified. The bill would require the electrical corporation to provide, or install at its cost, if necessary, metering that records and documents electricity imports and exports, as specified.

Under existing law, a violation of any order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime.