3. The OII

The Commission issued this Order Instituting Investigation (investigation or OII) to explore "concerns raised about the legitimacy of charges for water and sewer services imposed on tenants by the owners of multiple unit residential complexes and mobilehome parks." (Investigation 98-12-012, slip. op. at 1.) The preliminary scoping memo included in the OII focused on five aspects of this broad charge:

· Assessing the frequency & legality of current practices.

· Determining whether non-certificated private entities can resell sewer services under existing law.

· Exploring the applicability and enforceability of Pub. Util. Code § 2705.5, which governs water submetering, as it concerns the resale of water.¹

· Examining Rule 19, which is part of the tariff for all CPUC-regulated water utilities, and considering whether any revisions are needed to make it a more useful for monitoring and enforcing § 2705.5.

· Determining the need for other Commission rules or for legislation to deal with any problems identified.

Information obtained in the course of this proceeding has led to the recommendations set out in section 2, above.