Chronology

A short chronology of the events leading to this petition is useful to provide the context for why this petition was filed. On April 4, 1978, the Commission issued Decision (D.) 88651, which required utilities to individually meter living units in newly constructed multi-unit residential buildings. Following that decision, the utilities closed their Master Meter Tariffs to new installations.³ The term new installation is not defined in either D.88651 or the Master Meter Tariff, but D.88651 clearly applied only to newly constructed buildings. (See OPs 2 and 3.)

On October 6, 1981, D.93586 affirmed D.88651 with respect to multi-unit residential buildings, stating:

The issue of master-meter/submetering of apartment houses was not specifically addressed in this proceeding primarily due to the fact that utilities do not install distribution facilities within the apartment houses. The electrical wiring and/or gas [*71] fuel piping from the utility's service point to the individual apartments is installed, owned, and maintained by the apartment house owner irrespective of whether the apartments are individually metered by the utility or are master-metered/submetered by the apartment house owner. D.88651, supra, provided for separate metering by the utility for gas and electric service to multi-unit residential structures and no petitions or protests were received on these restrictions. Consequently, the order that follows will reinstate the restrictions for multi-unit residential structures. (1981 Cal. PUC LEXIS 262, *71; 6 CPUC2d 767.)

In December 1981, following adoption of D.93586, most utilities closed their Master Meter/Submeter Tariffs to new installations. Again, new installation was not defined in the tariffs. Section 780.5 required individual metering in multi-unit residential buildings who received building permits after July 1, 1982.

The Association filed the instant petition for rulemaking stating it sought to modify specific tariff requirements adopted in D.88651 and D.93586 related to provision of submetered gas and electric service in existing buildings in August 2004. On September 30, 2004, the Assigned Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) issued a ruling directing the Association to provide additional service of its petition on other service lists and asking several questions. On October 26, 2004, responses to the Petition and the ALJ Ruling were filed; replies were filed on November 5, 2004.

Because full service of the Petition did not occur until October 6, 2004, we did not begin receiving comments on the petition until two months after it was filed. Therefore, we did not meet the statutory requirement under § 1708.5 to resolve the petition within six months of filing. However, the draft decision was mailed for review and comment just slightly more than six months after the date full service was effected. In order to allow public review and comment pursuant to § 311(g), we extend the six-month period for consideration of the petition, consistent with § 1708.5(b)(2).