Community choice electricity providers say time has come for PG&E to move out of retail energy business—and be restructured as “wires-only” company

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 14, 2019
Press Contact: Leora Broydo Vestel
(415) 999-4757 | leora@cal-cca.org

Community choice electricity providers say time has come for PG&E to move out of

retail energy business—and be restructured as “wires-only” company

To improve safety and reliability, Northern California CCAs urge regulators to focus PG&E on improving its transmission and distribution system—while empowering local governments to procure affordable, clean energy for their communities

Concord, Calif.– In a new filing with the California Public Utilities Commission, community choice aggregators (CCAs) from Northern California urged state regulators to take action to restructure PG&E as a “wires-only” company—moving the utility out of the retail energy business so PG&E management can focus on safely managing the company’s transmission and distribution system, which has been the source of billions of dollars in damage to communities across the state, while empowering CCAs to continue doing their part to meet California’s clean energy goals by serving all members of their communities.

“PG&E’s first bankruptcy in 2001 resulted in the creation of community choice aggregation to serve as a tool to maintain the stability, affordability, and sustainability of California’s electricity system, and with the utility poised to enter yet another bankruptcy, the time has come to expand this approach,” said Beth Vaughan, executive director of the California Community Choice Association (CalCCA). “The joint CCAs strongly endorse a restructuring that allows PG&E to focus where safety improvements are needed most—delivering electricity across the energy grid—while allowing locally-controlled public agencies to safely, reliably, and cost-effectively purchase the energy Californians rely on.”

The CCAs’ recommendations come on the heels of an announcement by Governor Newsom on January 12 that he has created a team to develop a “comprehensive strategy” for updating California’s utility system to better adapt to the rapidly evolving energy market that includes community choice providers. “More and more of our electricity now is procured outside of investor-owned utilities,” the governor said in his State of the State address. “Regulations and insurance practices created decades ago didn’t anticipate these changes. We must map out a longer-term framework, not just for the utilities’ future, but for California’s energy future, to ensure that the cost of climate change doesn’t fall on those least able to afford it.”

The group of CCAs provided a set of detailed recommendations for how the State can build a stronger, greener, and more reliable electric system in their proposals to the California Public Utilities Commission, which has been leading an investigation since 2015 into whether PG&E’s organizational culture and governance adequately prioritize safety. The Commission’s investigation recently expanded to include consideration of the future of PG&E, in light of PG&E’s bankruptcy and the need to improve the safety of its operations after State investigators found PG&E to be responsible for some of California’s worst wildfires.

In comments submitted on behalf of the East Bay Community Energy, Peninsula Clean Energy Authority, Pioneer Community Energy, the City of San José (for San José Clean Energy), Silicon Valley Clean Energy, Sonoma Clean Power, and Valley Clean Energy Alliance, the CCAs highlight four goals for the Commission as it considers opportunities for restructuring PG&E:

  • Improve PG&E’s electric infrastructure safety outcomes by removing PG&E from the retail generation business and concentrating PG&E’s attention and investments on its electric transmission and distribution businesses.
  • Put financial stewardship, responsibility, and control over programs such as demand response, energy efficiency and transportation electrification under local control.
  • Provide communities the opportunity and authority to take affordable clean energy action by ensuring communities have the unhindered ability to proactively pursue full community control of retail generation services through a variety of local governance models. The Commission should work collaboratively with local governments to remove barriers to pursuing full municipalization of the electric system in communities where there is interest.
  • Transform California’s regulatory and legislative framework to concentrate on safety while utilizing existing locally governed, state, or non-profit platforms whenever possible, or new state or non-profit entities, if necessary, to enhance transparency, accountability, and reliability.

“CalCCA and the joint CCAs look forward to working with the Commission and other parties to identify the best path forward for providing Northern California with safe and reliable electric and gas service—at just and reasonable rates,” Vaughan said.

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About CalCCA

Launched in 2016, the California Community Choice Association represents California’s community choice electricity providers before the state Legislature and at regulatory agencies, advocating for a level playing field and opposing policies that unfairly discriminate against CCAs and their customers. There are currently 19 operational CCA programs in California serving an estimated 10 million customers.

For more information about CalCCA, visit www.cal-cca.org.