Utility property: leases for park purposes.

Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory authority over public utilities. Under the existing Public Utilities Act, a public utility is required to seek commission approval prior to selling, leasing, assigning, mortgaging, or otherwise disposing of or encumbering any property necessary or useful in the performance of its duties to the public. This bill would authorize a public utility that owns real property acquired for purposes of obtaining a utility right-of-way, to lease that property to a governmental entity for purposes of a public park, if the utility will retain the use of the right-of-way for public utility purposes. The bill would require the commission, in determining whether the lease is for fair value, to include the community benefits, as defined, of parks and open space as a benefit to ratepayers.