Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. Existing law requires the commission, on or before March 31, 2024, to evaluate each customer renewable energy subscription program to determine if the program meets specified goals and to determine whether it would be beneficial to ratepayers to establish a new tariff or program for an electrical corporation, or modify an existing tariff or program administered by an electrical corporation, to establish a community renewable energy program, as provided. If the commission determines that it would be beneficial to ratepayers to establish the community renewable energy program, existing law requires the commission, on or before July 1, 2024, to establish the program and require each electrical corporation to participate in the program. Existing law requires each community choice aggregator and electric service provider, if the commission establishes the program, to notify the commission whether it will participate in the program within 180 days of the establishment of the program. Existing law requires the commission, on or before March 31, 2024, to report to the Legislature on its actions taken pursuant to these requirements and its justification for terminating, modifying, or retaining each customer renewable energy subscription program.

This bill would instead require the commission to evaluate those programs on or before March 31, 2027, and to establish the community renewable energy program, if applicable, on or before July 1, 2027. The bill would require each community choice aggregator and electric service provider to notify the commission whether it will participate in the program within 190 days, rather than 180 days, of the establishment of the program. The bill would instead require the commission to report that information to the Legislature on or before March 31, 2027.

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