BILL NUMBER: SB 1201 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 26, 2004
AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 30, 2004
AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 15, 2004
INTRODUCED BY Senator Torlakson
FEBRUARY 10, 2004
An act to amend Sections 374 and Section
701.8 of the Public Utilities Code, relating to electrical
restructuring, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect
immediately.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 1201, as amended, Torlakson. Electrical restructuring: BART.
Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory
authority over public utilities, including 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. Existing law authorizes the San
Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District's (BART) system to elect to
obtain electricity from multiple sources, including (1) preference
power purchased from a federal power marketing agency or its
successor, (2) electricity supplied by one or more direct
transactions, and (3) electricity supplied by any electric utility
regulated by the commission that owns and operates transmission and
distribution facilities that deliver electricity at one or more
locations to the BART District's system. Existing law requires any
electrical corporation that owns and operates transmission and
distribution facilities that deliver electricity to BART, upon
request by BART, to deliver preference power purchased from a federal
power marketing agency or its successor, without discrimination or
delay.
This bill would additionally require any electrical corporation
that owns and operates transmission and distribution facilities that
deliver electricity to BART, upon request by BART, to deliver
electricity purchased from a local publicly owned electric utility,
as defined, without discrimination or delay. The bill would
make other conforming changes.
Because a violation of the Public Utilities Act or an order of the
commission is a crime under existing law, the bill would impose a
state-mandated local program by creating a new crime.
The bill would declare that, due to the special circumstances
applicable only to the BART District, a general statute cannot be
made applicable within the meaning of Section 16 of Article IV of the
California Constitution, and the enactment of a special statute is
therefore necessary.
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.
The 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. Section 374 of the Public Utilities Code is
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) The San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) District
provides essential public transit services that are funded by fares
and taxes.
(b) The BART District has qualified under the Reclamation Project
Act of 1939 as amended and supplemented as a preference entity for
purposes of purchasing electricity from the Central Valley Project
(preference power).
(c) The BART system has been continuously served by preference
power, a publicly owned electricity supply, since before electrical
restructuring and before the energy crisis of 2000-01, pursuant to
the terms and conditions established by the enactment of Senate Bill
184 (Chapter 681 of the Statutes of 1995).
(d) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this act, to
authorize the BART District to receive electric service from another
publicly owned supplier of electricity on the same terms authorized
by Chapter 681 of the Statutes of 1995. amended to
read:
374. (a) In recognition of statutory authority and past
investments existing as of December 20, 1995, and subject to the
firewall specified subdivision (e) of Section 367, the obligation to
pay the uneconomic costs identified in Sections 367, 368, 375, and
376 shall not apply to the following:
(1) One hundred ten megawatts of load served by irrigation
districts, as hereafter allocated by this paragraph:
(A) The 110 megawatts of load shall be allocated among the service
territories of the three largest electrical corporations in the
ratio of the number of irrigation districts in the service territory
of each utility to the total number of irrigation districts in the
service territories of all three utilities.
(B) The total amount of load allocated to each utility service
area shall be phased in over five years beginning January 1, 1997, so
that one-fifth of the allocation is allocated in each of the five
years. Any allocation which remains unused at the end of any year
shall be carried over to the succeeding year and added to the
allocation for that year.
(C) The load allocated to each utility service territory pursuant
to subparagraph (A) shall be further allocated among the respective
irrigation districts within that service territory by the California
Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission. An
individual irrigation district requesting such an allocation shall
submit to the commission by January 31, 1997, detailed plans that
show the load that it serves or will serve and for which it intends
to utilize the allocation within the timeframe requested. These plans
shall include specific information on the irrigation districts'
organization for electric distribution, contracts, financing and
engineering plans for capital facilities, as well as detailed
information about the loads to be served, and shall not be less than
eight megawatts or more than 40 megawatts. Provided, however, any
portion of the 110 megawatts that remains unallocated may be
reallocated to projects without regard to the 40 megawatts
limitation. In making such an allocation among irrigation districts,
the Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission shall
assess the viability of each submission and whether it can be
accomplished in the timeframe proposed. The Energy Resources
Conservation and Development Commission shall have the discretion to
allocate the load covered by this section in a manner that best
ensures its usage within the allocation period.
(D) At least 50 percent of each year's allocation to a district
shall be applied to that portion of load that is used to power pumps
for agricultural purposes.
(E) Any load pursuant to this subdivision shall be served by
distribution facilities owned by, or leased to, the district in
question.
(F) Any load allocated pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be located
within the boundaries of the affected irrigation district, or within
the boundaries specified in an applicable service territory boundary
agreement between an electrical corporation and the affected
irrigation district; additionally, the provisions of subparagraph (C)
of paragraph (1) shall be applicable to any load within the Counties
of Stanislaus or San Joaquin, or both, served by any irrigation
district that is currently serving or will be serving retail
customers.
(2) Seventy-five megawatts of load served by the Merced Irrigation
District hereafter prescribed in this paragraph:
(A) The total allocation provided by this paragraph shall be
phased in over five years beginning January 1, 1997, so that
one-fifth of the allocation is received in each of the five years.
Any allocation which remains unused at the end of any year shall be
carried over to the succeeding year and added to the allocation for
that year.
(B) Any load to which the provision of this paragraph is
applicable shall be served by distribution facilities owned by, or
leased to, Merced Irrigation District.
(C) A load to which the provisions of this paragraph are
applicable shall be located within the boundaries of Merced
Irrigation District as those boundaries existed on December 20, 1995,
together with the territory of Castle Air Force Base which was
located outside of the district on that date.
(D) The total allocation provided by this paragraph shall be
phased in over five years beginning January 1, 1997, with the
exception of load already being served by the district as of June 1,
1996, which shall be deducted from the total allocation and shall not
be subject to the costs provided in Sections 367, 368, 375, and 376.
(3) To loads served by irrigation districts, water districts,
water storage districts, municipal utility districts, and other water
agencies which, on December 20, 1995, were members of the Southern
San Joaquin Valley Power Authority, or the Eastside Power Authority;
provided, however, that this paragraph shall be applicable only to
that portion of each district or agency's load that is used to power
pumps which are owned by that district or agency as of December 20,
1995, or replacements thereof, and is being used to pump water for
district purposes. The rates applicable to these districts and
agencies shall be adjusted as of January 1, 1997.
(4) The provisions of this subdivision shall no longer be
operative after March 31, 2002.
(5) The provisions of paragraph (1) shall not be applicable to any
irrigation district, water district or water agency described in
paragraph (2) or (3).
(6) Transmission services provided to any irrigation district
described in paragraph (1) or (2) shall be provided pursuant to
otherwise applicable tariffs.
(7) Nothing in this chapter shall be deemed to grant the
commission any jurisdiction over irrigation districts not already
granted to the commission by existing law.
(b) To give the full effect to the legislative intent in enacting
Section 701.8, the costs provided in Sections 367, 368, 375, and 376
shall not apply to electricity purchased or delivered pursuant to
subdivision (b) of Section 701.8, provided the electricity is used
solely for the customer's own systems load and not for sale. The
costs of this provision shall be borne by all ratepayers in the
affected service territory, notwithstanding the firewall established
in subdivision (e) of Section 367.
(c) To give effect to an existing relationship, the obligation to
pay the uneconomic costs specified in Sections 367, 368, 375, and 376
shall not apply to that portion of the load of the University of
California campus situated in Yolo County that was being served as of
May 31, 1996, by preference power purchased from a federal marketing
agency, or its successor, provided the power is used solely for the
facility load of that campus and not, directly or indirectly, for
sale.
SEC. 2. Section 701.8 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to
read:
701.8. (a) To ensure that the commission regulated electric
utilities do not operate their transmission and distribution
monopolies in a manner that impedes the ability of the San Francisco
Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART District) to reduce its
electricity cost through the purchase and delivery of preference
power, electrical corporations shall meet the requirements of this
section.
(b) Any electric utility regulated by the commission that owns and
operates transmission and distribution facilities that deliver
electricity at one or more locations to the BART District's system
shall, upon request by the BART District, and without discrimination
or delay, use the same facilities to deliver preference power
purchased from a federal power marketing agency or its successor, or
electricity purchased from a local publicly owned electric utility,
as defined in Section 9604.
(c) Where the BART District purchases electric power at more than
one location, at any voltage, from an electric utility under tariffs
regulated by the commission, the utility shall bill the BART District
for usage as though all the electricity purchased at transmission
level voltages were metered by a single meter at one location and all
the electricity purchased at subtransmission voltages were metered
by a single meter at one location, provided that any billing for
demand charges would be based on the coincident demand of
transmission and distribution metering.
(d) If, on or after January 1, 1996, the BART District leases or
has agreed to lease, as special facilities, utility plants for the
purpose of receiving power at transmission level voltages, an
electric utility regulated by the commission may not terminate the
lease without concurrence from the BART District.
(e) When the BART District elects to have electricity delivered
pursuant to subdivision (b), neither Sections 365 and 366, and any
commission regulations, orders, or tariffs, that implement direct
transactions, are applicable, nor is the BART District an electricity
supplier. Neither the commission, nor any electric utility that
delivers the federal power or electricity purchased from a local
publicly owned electric utility to the BART District, shall require
that an electricity supplier be designated as a condition of the
delivery of that power.
(f) The BART District may elect to obtain electric power from the
following multiple sources at the same time:
(1) Electric power delivered pursuant to subdivision (b).
(2) Electric power supplied by one or more direct transactions.
(3) Electric power from any electric utility regulated by the
commission that owns and operates transmission and distribution
facilities that deliver electricity at one or more locations to the
BART District's system.
SEC. 3. The Legislature finds and declares that, because of the
unique circumstances applicable only to the San Francisco Bay Area
Rapid Transit District, a statute of general applicability cannot be
enacted within the meaning of subdivision (b) of Section 16 of
Article IV of the California Constitution. Therefore, this special
statute is necessary.
SEC. 4. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B 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 XIII B of the California
Constitution.
SEC. 5. 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 the continued delivery of electricity to the
San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District at an affordable rate,
it is necessary for this act to take effect immediately.