AB 2700: Electrical corporations: wildfire victim restitution shortfalls: report.

Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations. Existing law authorizes the commission to fix the rates and charges for every public utility and requires that those rates and charges be just and reasonable. Existing law requires the Wildfire Fund Administrator, in consultation with the commission and other entities, to prepare and submit to the Legislature and the Governor a report that evaluates and sets forth recommendations on new models or approaches that mitigate damage, accelerate recovery, and responsibly and equitable allocate burdens from natural catastrophes, including catastrophic wildfires, across stakeholders, as provided.

This bill would require the commission to generate a report outlining recommendations to decrease the kilowatt-per-hour rate for electricity charged to ratepayers by not less than 30% by January 1, 2028. The bill would require the commission, in making those rate-reduction recommendations, to take certain actions, including to review, and evaluate the cost effectiveness of, certain public purposes programs and to audit electrical corporation wildfire mitigation plan costs, as specified. The bill would require the commission to also include in its commission, on or before January 1, 2028, to generate a report an assessment of assessing the verified restitution shortfalls for victims of wildfires caused by electrical corporations occurring before July 12, 2019. The bill would further require the commission to recommend mechanisms for electrical corporations to address those shortfalls, as provided.