BILL NUMBER: ABX1 3	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  MARCH 21, 2001
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 5, 2001
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  FEBRUARY 27, 2001
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  FEBRUARY 16, 2001

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Members Wright and Shelley
   (Coauthor:  Assembly Member Romero)

                        JANUARY 9, 2001

   An act to add Section 739.4 to the Public Utilities Code, relating
to public utilities, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take
effect immediately.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 3, as amended, Wright.  California Alternate Rates for Energy
or CARE program.
   (1) Existing law requires the Public Utilities Commission to
establish a program of assistance to low-income electric and gas
customers, which is referred to as the California Alternate Rates for
Energy or CARE program.
   This bill would require the commission to adopt regulations  ,
as prescribed,  to deem a customer enrolled in the CARE program
after the effective date of the bill, but before August 1, 2001, to
be enrolled as of that effective date, to impose certain requirements
on electrical and gas corporations to facilitate better penetration
rates for the CARE program, and protect low-income and senior
households from unwarranted disconnection of necessary electric and
gas services, and to conduct targeted outreach about the program.
Because a violation of an order of the commission is a crime under
existing provisions of law, this bill would create a state-mandated
local program by expanding the definition of a crime.
  (2) 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.
   (3) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately
as an urgency statute.
   Vote:  2/3.  Appropriation:  no.  Fiscal committee:  yes.
State-mandated local program:   yes.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


  SECTION 1.  (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
   (1) Commencing in the summer of 2000 and continuing to the
present, wholesale prices for electricity have skyrocketed in
California.
   (2)  Since November 2000, natural gas prices have increased
significantly.
   (3) The extraordinarily high costs of electricity and natural gas
are threatening the economic well-being of the state.
   (4) Low-income and senior households, who spend a disproportionate
portion of their income on energy costs, have been particularly
affected.
   (5) The energy burden borne by low-income and senior customers is
greater than the energy burden of most other households in
California. California low-income households spend approximately 10
percent of their incomes on energy bills, compared to the average
energy burden of 2.9 percent for a median-income household.
   (6) Under the California Alternate Rates for Energy program
(CARE), low-income customers are eligible to receive gas and electric
services at a discounted rate.
   (b) It is therefore the intent of the Legislature to protect
low-income and senior customers from the impacts of skyrocketing
energy rates and to enact legislation to increase the CARE
penetration rate, to look at other means to expand the program to all
eligible low-income and low-income senior customers, and to
encourage energy conservation by all customer classes.
  SEC. 2.  Section 739.4 is added to the Public Utilities Code, to
read:
   739.4.  (a) The commission shall immediately adopt regulations to
deem a customer enrolled in the CARE program after the effective date
of the act that added this section, but before August 1, 2001, to be
enrolled as of that effective date,  notwithstanding
Sections 453, 743, and 532.   notwithstanding Sections
453, 532, and 734.  The commission shall adopt the same income and
eligibility requirements for the CARE program as those of the
Universal Lifeline Telephone Service (ULTS) program as of the
effective date of the act adding this section, except for the
definition of a household.  The commission shall adjust CARE program
income requirements annually to correspond with those of the ULTS
program. 
   (b) The commission shall require all electrical and gas utilities
through which CARE program rates are available to do all of the
following, in multilingual formats to the extent printed and recorded
information is provided, to facilitate better penetration rates for
the CARE program and to protect low-income and senior households from
unwarranted disconnection of necessary electric and gas services:

   (1) Require all electric and gas utilities to provide an outgoing
 
   (1) Provide an outgoing  message on all calls to 
business offices and  customer service lines that briefly
describes the CARE program in standard language approved by the
commission, and that provides a phone number for customers to call to
subscribe to the program or for further information.  
   (2) Require all electric and gas utilities to provide information
 
   (2) Provide information  to customers about the CARE program
and facilitate subscription to CARE, on all calls in which customers
are making payment arrangements, on all collections calls, and on all
calls for reconnection of service.  
   (3) (A) Require all electric and gas utilities to provide
 
   (3) (A) Provide  information about the CARE program and
attempt to qualify customers for CARE  , and provide information
about individual payment arrangements and attempt to enroll customers
in a payment arrangement program,  before effecting any
disconnection of service for nonpayment or inability to pay energy
bills in full  , and prohibit disconnection of energy
services to low-income and low-income senior households for
delinquencies of up to six months where partial payments have been
received.  As used in this paragraph, "partial payment" means at
least 40 percent of the billed amount, inclusive of previous
balances, for each month of delinquency.  This paragraph shall apply
on a one-time basis only for individual customers.
   (B) Prohibit disconnection of a residential customer whose rates
have increased 15 percent or more since November 1, 2000, if payment
arrangements are made to provide payment of 50 percent of the billed
monthly amount, inclusive of previous balances, on a payment plan not
to exceed 120 days in duration.   .
   (B) (i) Offer individual payment arrangements to customers, with
priority given to customers that spend a disproportionate portion of
their income on energy costs and that are disproportionately burdened
by rising energy costs, as determined by the commission.
   (ii) Prohibit the disconnection of customers that have made, and
are in compliance with, payment arrangements offered by an electric
or gas utility pursuant to this subparagraph. 
   (C)  Require that   (i) Advise 
residential customers facing disconnection or who contact the utility
to make payment arrangements  be advised  of the
levelizing payment program that allows them to pay a monthly average
rate based on 12 months usage.   Require the utility to
advise  
   (ii) Advise  residential customers about enrollment in the
levelizing payment program in conjunction with completion of payment
arrangements, payment under terms of subparagraph (B), or at the
customer's request absent those arrangements.
   (D) Nothing in this paragraph is intended to reduce the revenues
of any utility extending payment arrangements subject to the terms of
the paragraph.
   (E) This paragraph shall become inoperative April 1, 2002.

   (4) Require all electric and gas utilities to provide information
 
   (4) Provide information  on customer bills, presented in a
conspicuous manner on a front facing page, that indicates that a
customer may be eligible for the CARE program.  This notice shall be
provided quarterly in customer bills.
   (c) The commission shall conduct targeted outreach about the
program using census block data to effectively target low-income and
senior households throughout the state.
   (d) CARE program funds shall be used for the purposes of paragraph
(3) of subdivision (b) and outreach pursuant to subdivision (c).
The commission's costs for outreach pursuant to subdivision (c)
 shall   may  not exceed five hundred
thousand dollars ($500,000) above the amount that the commission
currently expends on similar activities related to the CARE program.
Energy corporations may recover all reasonable costs of implementing
this act.
  SEC. 3.  No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIIIB of the California Constitution because the
only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district
will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction,
eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime
or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government
Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of
Section 6 of Article XIIIB of the California Constitution.
  SEC. 4.  This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate
preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the
meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate
effect.  The facts constituting the necessity are:
   In order that low-income and senior customers  are
  be  protected from the extraordinarily high
electricity and gas prices  as soon as possible  , it is
necessary that this act take effect immediately.