2. Motions to File Under Seal

By motions filed concurrently with the petitions to modify D.08-04-011 and D.08-09-041, SCE seeks to file under seal contract and contract valuation information contained in those petitions. Specifically, SCE claims confidential treatment pursuant to Matrix Section VII(B) of D.06-06-066 for contract information contained at 3, 6, 9, and 13, Appendices A and C, and portions of Appendices B, D and E of both petitions, and pursuant to Matrix Section VIII(B) for contract valuation information contained at 3, 12 and 13, portions of Appendices B, D and E of both petitions.

Matrix Section VII(B) provides that bilateral electric contract terms and conditions (other than contract summaries) shall be confidential for three years from the date the contract states deliveries are to begin. Matrix Section VIII(B) provides that specific quantitative analysis involved the scoring and evaluation of participating bids in a competitive solicitation for electric resources (other than evaluation guidelines) shall be confidential for three years after the winning bidders are selected. Because this information is overlapping, we will apply the later expiration date of Matrix Section VII(B) to all of this information. This information shall be sealed until August 1, 2016. The information under seal shall not be made accessible or disclosed to anyone other than the Commission and its staff, except upon further order of the Commission.

SCE also claims confidential treatment for information that SCE received under non-disclosure agreements contained at 15, 16, 17 and 18 of Appendix D of both of the petitions. SCE asserts that Ordering Paragraph 4 of D.06-06-066 has found this information to be confidential pursuant to Pub. Util. Code Section 583 and General Order (GO) 66-C. To the contrary, Ordering Paragraph merely states that GO 66-C shall continue to apply to data not addressed in the Matrix. As we stated, Pub. Util. Code Section 583 does not create a right to confidential treatment; rather, it provides a process for handling information for which a utility claims confidential treatment. (D.06-06-066, at 27-28.) SCE's assertion that it "would not normally disclose this information to anyone except Commission staff, who would receive it according to" GO 66-C is not instructive either: GO 66-C does not govern the treatment of information offered into the record of a Commission proceeding; rather, it governs the public release of information provided by utilities to Commission staff. Finally, the fact that SCE has entered into a private non-disclosure agreement does not bind the Commission or determine whether the information in the record of the proceeding should be sealed. The information contained at 15, 16, 17 and 18 of Appendix D of both petitions, under the headings "Water Interconnect" and "Imported Water (Cost Decrease)," will not be sealed.