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California Public Utilities Commission
505 Van Ness Ave., San Francisco
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE PRESS RELEASE Media Contact: Terrie Prosper, 415.703.1366, news@cpuc.ca.gov Docket #: Res E-4250
CPUC CLARIFIES RULES TO BETTER INFORM CUSTOMERS CONSIDERING SERVICE FROM COMMUNITY
CHOICE AGGREGATION ENTITIES
SAN FRANCISCO, April 8, 2010 - The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) today provided additional guidance on the implementation of Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) rules for Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), Southern California Edison, and San Diego Gas and Electric Company (SDG&E) in order to better inform existing and potential CCA customers.
Specifically, the order directs the utilities to:
1. Modify a CCA tariff rule to ensure that the utilities do not provide an opportunity to customers to opt-out of CCA service before a particular CCA has initiated its own opt-out process and provided information about its rate, terms, and conditions to customers.
2. Prevent utilities from refusing to sell electricity to CCAs simply because they are CCAs.
3. Prevent utilities from offering goods, services, or programs as an inducement for a local government not to participate in a CCA.
Assembly Bill 117 (2002, Migden) enables cities and/or counties to implement a CCA program, which allows communities to offer procurement service to electric customers within their boundaries. The CCA rules include a process that allows customers to opt out of the CCA-provided service in order to remain a utility bundled service customer.
"What we've done today is ensure that utilities do not solicit or accept opt-out requests until the necessary information for an informed decision is made available to customers through the initiation of the notification period provided by our Public Utilities Code," said CPUC President Michael R. Peevey. "The decision also promulgates rules preventing utilities from refusing to sell electricity to CCAs and from offering goods, services, or programs as an inducement for a local government not to participate in a CCA."
The Resolution approved today is available at http://docs.cpuc.ca.gov/PUBLISHED/AGENDA_RESOLUTION/115960.htm.
For more information on the CPUC, please visit www.cpuc.ca.gov.
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