SB 57: Data centers: rates.

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.

This bill, the Ratepayer and Technological Innovation Protection Act, would require the commission, on or before July 1, 2026, to establish a special rate structure for data centers, as defined, that, among other things, protects residential ratepayers and small businesses and prevents cost shifts to those existing ratepayers and ensures electrical grid investments to serve data centers are fully recovered, as specified.

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.