Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. Existing law requires the PUC, in consultation with the Independent System Operator, to establish resource adequacy requirements for all electrical corporations, electric service providers, and community choice aggregators. Existing law requires that the resource adequacy program achieve specified objectives, including that it establish new or maintain existing demand response products and tariffs, as specified.

This bill would require the PUC, in coordination with the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission and the Independent System Operator, on or before June 30, 2027, to enhance existing market-integrated pathways for aggregated distributed capacity resources, as defined, to qualify as resource adequacy capacity, as specified. The bill would require the PUC to allow electrical corporations, electric service providers, and community choice aggregators to include aggregated distributed capacity resources in resource adequacy filings and commission-ordered procurement, as specified. The bill would require the commission, on or before June 30, 2027, to develop recommendations for changes to the Independent System Operator’s proxy demand resource and the distributed energy resource aggregation participation models to be consistent with the commission’s requirements for aggregated distributed capacity resources pursuant to these provisions, and to request that the Independent System Operator implement these changes in a new or existing initiative.

Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act or any order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the PUC is a crime.