Electrical corporations: wildfire and undercollection.

Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has 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 authorizes an electrical corporation to file an application requesting the commission to issue a financing order to authorize the recovery of costs and expenses related to a catastrophic wildfire through the issuance of bonds by the electrical corporation that are secured by a rate component, as provided. This bill would authorize an electrical corporation to file an application requesting the commission to issue a financing order to authorize the recovery of certain incremental undercollection amounts for calendar year 2020 through the issuance of bonds by the electrical corporation that are secured by a rate component if the electrical corporation's annual true-up advice letter is accepted and verified and those incremental amounts are verified for calendar year 2020. The bill would prohibit the recovery of the incremental undercollection amounts that are subject to such a financing order through any other cost recovery application, mechanism, or request by the electrical corporation. Existing law establishes the Wildfire Fund to pay eligible claims arising from a wildfire ignited on or after July 12, 2019, caused by an electrical corporation as determined by the governmental agency responsible for determining causation. Existing law defines "eligible claims" as claims for third-party damages against an electrical corporation resulting from covered wildfires exceeding the greater of $1,000,000,000 in the aggregate in any calendar year, or the amount of the insurance coverage required to be in place for the electrical corporation, measured by the amount of that excess. This bill would revise the definition of "eligible claim" to change "calendar year" to "year." Under existing law, a violation of any order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime. Because certain of the above provisions would require action by the commission, a violation of which would be a crime, this 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.