Existing law requires the Public Utilities Commission to designate a baseline quantity of gas and electricity that is necessary to supply a significant portion of the reasonable energy needs of the average residential customer. Existing law requires every electrical corporation and gas corporation to file a schedule of rates and charges providing baseline rates, as provided. Existing law requires the commission, in establishing residential electrical and gas rates, including baseline rates, to ensure that the rates are sufficient to enable the electrical corporation or gas corporation to recover a just and reasonable amount of revenue from residential customers as a class, while observing the principle that electricity and gas services are necessities, for which a low affordable rate is desirable, as provided.

This bill would require the commission to ensure that each electrical rate schedule does not cause an unreasonable hardship on public schools, or economically vulnerable residential customers, in hot climate zones, as specified. The bill would define several terms for that purpose, including, among others, “unreasonable hardship” to mean an electrical rate schedule that imposes a rate on a public school or economically vulnerable residential customer above the baseline rate during any hour when the temperature is above 90 degrees Fahrenheit for the duration of the hour, as provided.

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