BILL ANALYSIS
SB 1163
Page 1
Date of Hearing: June 21, 2004
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON UTILITIES AND COMMERCE
Sarah Reyes, Chair
SB 1163 (Dunn) - As Amended: June 10, 2004
SENATE VOTE : 23-13
SUBJECT : Utilities.
SUMMARY : Makes changes to the utility statements provided by
the management of a mobilehome park to residents and requires
the consumer affairs branch of the California Public Utilities
Commission (CPUC) to accept and respond to complaints made by
submetered customers in mobilehome parks or apartment complexes.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires that when the management of a mobilehome park
provides master meter and submeter service of utilities to a
homeowner through a third party billing agent that the
management shall disclose on each bill the name, address, and
telephone number of the billing agent or company.
2)Requires CPUC to accept and investigate, as necessary,
complaints made by submetered mobilehome park or apartment
complex customers alleging violations of master meter
responsibilities
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires master meter customers to provide the opening and
closing readings for submetered mobilehome park customers each
billing period.
2)Establishes requirements regarding the rates charged by master
meter customers to submetered tenants, specifies the general
form and content of the bills rendered by the master meter
customer, and makes it a duty of mater meter customers to
maintain and repair the facilities between the master meter
and the submetered tenant.
3)Provides that CPUC shall have enforcement authority over
violations of statutes or constitutional provisions effecting
public utilities.
SB 1163
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FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown.
COMMENTS : There are approximately 4,850 mobilehome parks and
manufactured communities in California, which house more than
600,000 people. Each mobilehome space consists of a utility
pedestal for electric and gas as well as sewer and water
hookups. In most parks utility service is provided by the park
owner to individual mobilehome spaces through a "master meter"
system, with a public utility providing gas, electricity, and
sometimes water to the park master meter but not to individual
spaces. The park operator maintains the park utility system,
reads the submeters where applicable, and bills the residents.
Many parks hire third party billing companies or agents to
perform these functions.
Master meter parks receive a "differential" or discount on
residential rates from the utility in recognition of their costs
of operating and maintaining the submeter system but charge
residents at the same rate the serving public utility would
charge if it served the residents directly. The differential is
negotiated between the parks and the serving utility and
approved by CPUC.
The Senate Select Committee on Mobile and Manufactured Housing
has received a number of complaints from residents of mobilehome
parks regarding their master meter service over the last few
years regarding the utility billing practices of the management.
The committee held a hearing in 2001 during which residents
offered numerous complaints including questions as to the
accuracy of park's utility billings and meter readings, the
inability to speak to third party billing companies regarding a
resident's statement, and CPUC's lack of response to individual
complaints from residents.
Clarifying the role of CPUC
There is some disagreement as to CPUC's authority to address
resident complaints regarding their master meter utility
service. This bill requires CPUC to accept and respond to
complaints concerning master-meter customers. CPUC already does
respond to complaints from mobilehome park residents regarding
their electric and gas services by contacting and working with
the park owners regarding the problems, but CPUC does not appear
to be opening formal complaints. The intent of the bill is to
eliminate any ambiguity by making it clear CPUC is responsible
SB 1163
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for handling complaints led by submetered customers.
However, CPUC argues that the language in the bill does not
fully address the issue of their jurisdiction over master meter
customers. They are concern that because the mobile home park
owner is not a public utility, CPUC may lack jurisdiction.
While recent court decisions appear to make it clear that CPUC
has enforcement jurisdiction, CPUC requests additional language
to further clarify their authority over master-meter customers.
Without this language, CPUC will continue to believe their
jurisdiction is in doubt, and may continue to be reluctant to
open formal enforcement actions.
Third-Party Billing
Many mobilehome parks hire third party billing companies to read
meters and bill residents. But, when residents have questions
about their bills, they do not have access to the billing
company. According to the author, the management cannot address
the questions because they do not issue this bill and management
generally will not provide the billing company's contact
information so the resident can speak with them directly. This
bill requires that if park management uses a third party billing
company they must provide the contact information of that
company on each bill the resident receives.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) (Support if
Amended)
Golden State Manufactured-Home Owners League, Inc. (GSMOL)
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Edward Randolph / U. & C. / (916)
319-2083