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PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

ITEM # 25 I.D. # 9364

ENERGY DIVISION RESOLUTION E-4328

RESOLUTION

ESTIMATED COST: The authorized use of up to $1 million comes from SDG&E's CARE balancing accounts. This amount is already funded through the Public Purpose Charge and this resolution does not increase SDG&E's revenue requirements.

By Advice Letter 2151-E/1937-G filed on March 8, 2010 and Supplemental Advice Letter 2151-E-A/1937-G-A filed on March 15, 2010.

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SUMMARY

This Resolution approves SDG&E's request to record and recover up to $1 million in a one-time funding and incremental expense for a new "Utility TANF Leveraging" Program. This new program will be funded through the California Alternate Rates for Energy Balancing Account (CAREA) to provide eligible low-income customers who have experienced an uncontrollable or unforeseen hardship the opportunity to receive a one-time emergency credit on their utility bills, through access to the TANF Emergency Fund. The size of the credit amount is based upon a number of criteria, but its availability depends upon

accompanying TANF Emergency funding. Working in cooperation with a third party administrator and existing county agencies, CAREA funds will be leveraged to the extent possible with the TANF Emergency Fund Program, which allows for a four-to-one match ($4 of TANF funds for every $1 CARE funds) to provide eligible low-income families assistance with their utility bills. Additionally, SDG&E will record activities associated with implementing the TANF Leveraging Program in SDG&E's existing CARE balancing account via a new sub-account.

Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), funds were appropriated for the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) Emergency Contingency Fund (Emergency Fund) over fiscal years 2009 and 2010. This Emergency Fund is in addition to the regular TANF Contingency Fund that needy families in California can access through established agencies. Through this provision of ARRA, every one dollar of CARE contributions will be matched with four dollars from the Emergency Fund for non-recurring short-term payments for such increased expenditures as rental assistance to homeless families and utility assistance.

SDG&E requests authority to record and recover up to $1 million in programmatic contributions toward customer bills plus expanded customer communication and other incremental program expenses from its CAREA to eligible low-income families. These ratepayer funds collected through the CAREA will be used as the 20% match needed to obtain the 80% contribution from the TANF Emergency Fund. SDG&E estimates the administrative costs of this program to be 15% of the funds, pursuant to compliance with Federal TANF guidelines, with 85% providing direct benefits. The CARE balancing sub-account will record the amount of ratepayer funds for payment assistance provided to eligible customers under the new program as well as administrative and marketing costs necessary to implement this new program. SDG&E will give credit to the ratepayers' funding of this program in all of its written marketing and promotion materials related to the Utility TANF Leveraging program.

SDG&E will continue to work in its service territory to offer this program to interested counties and due to the fact that time is of the essence, SDG&E requests that the Commission permit it some flexibility to determine the best information and funding mechanisms for its program.

At the conclusion of SDG&E's Utility TANF Leveraging program, currently projected to be September 30, 2010, any unspent ratepayer funds will be returned to the ratepayer through the CAREA.

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