BILL NUMBER: AB 1284 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 17, 2003
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 8, 2003
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 5, 2003
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 24, 2003
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 10, 2003
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Leslie
FEBRUARY 21, 2003
An act to add and repeal Section 80110.2 of the Water Code,
relating to energy resources , and declaring the urgency
thereof, to take effect immediately .
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1284, as amended, Leslie. Direct transactions: cost
responsibility surcharges.
Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission regulates
electrical corporations. The Public Utilities Act requires the
commission to authorize direct transactions between electricity
suppliers and retail end-use customers. However, other existing law
suspends the right of retail end-use customers to acquire service
from certain electricity suppliers after a period of time to be
determined by the commission until the Department of Water Resources
no longer supplies electricity under that law. Under existing law,
the commission has imposed a cost recovery surcharge on retail
end-use customers that continue to receive service in a direct
transaction.
This bill, until January 1, 2009, would exempt a qualifying exempt
direct transaction customer, as defined, from certain components of
the direct access cost recovery surcharge and would subject the
remaining charges to a cap of $0.01 per kilowatthour.
The bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an
urgency statute.
Vote: majority 2/3 .
Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local
program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 80110.2 is added to the Water Code, to read:
80110.2. (a) (1) Notwithstanding Section 80110, a qualifying
exempt direct transaction customer shall be exempt from paying a
direct access cost recovery surcharge, except for the following
surcharge components, subject to paragraph (2):
(A) Any charge imposed to enable the department to recover its
bond-related costs under this division.
(B) A tail competition transition charge.
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the charges paid by a
qualifying exempt direct transaction customer may not exceed $0.01
per kilowatthour on the actual kilowatthours used.
(b) For purposes of this section, a "qualifying exempt direct
transaction customer" means any corporation
company that meets each of the following requirements:
(1) The corporation company entered
into a direct transaction with an electric service provider for
electric service for a plant or facility in California, by executing
a contract prior to January 1, 2000, that extended service through at
least February 1, 2001.
(2) The plant or facility was, after February 1, 2001,
involuntarily returned to the electrical corporation for electrical
service, as a result of the electric service provider terminating
electrical service under the direct transaction contract.
(3) The plant or facility returned to receiving electric service
from an electric service provider pursuant to a direct transaction
within 90 days.
(3) The plant or facility entered into a new direct transaction
with an electric service provider for the plant or facility's
electric service and a direct access service request (DASR) was
submitted within 90 days from the date the plant or facility's most
recent direct transaction contract was involuntarily terminated.
(4) The plant or facility continuously participated in an
interruptible or curtailable service program.
(5) The corporation plant or facility
had an average total cost for all aspects of electric service,
as a percentage of sales, in excess of 8 percent, for the five years
beginning January 1, 1996, and continuing to December 31, 2000.
(6) The corporation plant or facility
had an average net profit margin as a percentage of sales of
greater than 2 percent, for the five years beginning January 1, 1996,
and continuing to December 31, 2000.
(7) The average total electric service cost as a percentage of
sales, exceeded the average net profit margin for the
corporation as a percentage of sales for the plant or
facility , for the five years beginning January 1, 1996, and
continuing to December 31, 2000.
(8) The corporation company submits
a declaration from an officer, director, or owner stating that unless
relieved of the expense of the direct access cost recovery
surcharge, the plant or facility of the corporation
that purchases electric service under the direct
transaction contract, faces certain and imminent closure.
(c) It is the intent of the Legislature that bundled customer
indifference be achieved and that no costs be shifted between
customer classes as a result of this section.
(d) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2009,
and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute,
that is enacted before January 1, 2009, deletes or extends that date.
SEC. 2. 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 to ensure that the public's best interest is served, and
to preserve numerous jobs at facilities that face certain and
imminent closure due to the high cost of electricity as a result of
being involuntarily returned to bundled electric service during the
energy crisis, it is necessary that this act take effect immediately.