AB 2454: Energy: procurement plans.

Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. The Public Utilities Act requires the commission to review and accept, modify, or reject a procurement plan for each electrical corporation in accordance with specified requirements and objectives. The act requires that an electrical corporations proposed procurement plan include certain elements, including a showing that the electrical corporation will first meet its unmet needs through all available energy efficiency and demand reduction resources that are cost effective, reliable, and feasible.

This bill would require the electrical corporation, in determining the availability of cost-effective, reliable, and feasible demand reduction resources, to consider the findings of the Demand Response Potential Study required by a specific order of the commission, as specified. The bill would require the commission, prior to approving a contract for any new gas-fired generating unit, to require the electrical corporation to demonstrate compliance with its approved procurement plan.

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

Because the provisions of this bill would be a part of the act and because a violation of an order or decision of the commission implementing its requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program by creating a new crime.

This bill would incorporate changes to Section 454.5 of the Public Utilities Code proposed by both this bill and AB 1937, which would become operative only if both bills are enacted and become effective on or before January 1, 2017, and this bill is chaptered last.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.