AB 705: Public Utilities Commission: Independent Office of Audits and Investigations.

Session Year: 2025-2026
House: Assembly

Current Status:

In Progress

(2025-08-29: In committee: Held under submission.)

Introduced

First Committee Review

First Chamber

Second Committee Review

Second Chamber

Enacted

Version:

Existing law requires the Public Utilities Commission to appoint a chief internal auditor to hold office at the pleasure of the commission. Existing law requires the chief internal auditor to be responsible for the oversight of the internal audit unit and to plan, initiate, and perform audits of key financial, management, operational, and information technology functions within the commission to improve accountability and transparency to executive and state management.

This bill would delete the provision providing for the appointment of the chief internal auditor and instead provide that, effective January 1, 2026, the internal audit unit of the commission and its staff are transferred to the Independent Office of Audits and Investigations, which the bill would establish within the commission, as specified. The bill would provide for the appointment and removal of the director of the office, who would have the title of Inspector General. The bill would require that the office have access and authority to examine all records, files, documents, accounts, reports, correspondence, or other property of the commission, public utilities, and other entities regulated by the commission, as specified. The bill would require the Inspector General to report to the Governor and the Legislature, as provided.

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 a commission action implementing the bills requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

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.

The California Constitution vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities and authorizes the commission to establish its own procedures, subject to statutory limitations or directions and constitutional requirements of due process. Existing law requires that the commissions hearings, investigations, and proceedings be governed, in part, by the commissions rules of practice and procedure, as specified.This bill would make nonsubstantive changes to that requirement and state the intent of the Legislature to adopt further revisions to those provisions.Existing law requires the commission to determine whether each proceeding is a quasi-legislative, an adjudication, a ratesetting, or a catastrophic wildfire proceeding. Existing law requires the commission to resolve the issues raised in a ratesetting or quasi-legislative case scoping memo within 18 months of the date on which the scoping memo is issued, except in two specified circumstances. One of those exceptions is satisfied if the commission makes a written determination that the deadline cannot be met, including findings as to the reason, and issues an order extending the deadline.This bill would eliminate that exception to the requirement that the commission resolve the issues raised in the scoping memo within 18 months.

Discussed in Hearing