CPUC Pledges Fast Decision on Unpaid Energy Bills

The California Public Utilities Commission plans to expeditiously handle some $600 million in energy utility bill arrearages that have accumulated since the beginning of the pandemic.

The full commission would make a decision on how to address the late payments by June 24. That would be just days before a moratorium on service shutoffs is due to expire.

CPUC Administrative Law Judge Camille Watts-Zagha outlined the accelerated schedule during a March 8 prehearing conference. She held this conference to organize the proceeding—which includes utilities, community choice aggregators, and consumer advocacy groups—in order to reach a proposed decision by May 21. That is less than three months away.

The CPUC estimates as many as 900,000 customers, including both residents and businesses throughout the state, have been unable to fully pay their energy utility bills since February 2020.

Proposed debt relief

Under a CPUC straw proposal, many customers behind in their bill payments due to the pandemic would be forgiven from paying $200 of their outstanding balances. In addition, they would get up to 24 months to repay the remainder of what they owe.

In comments filed by both utilities and consumer advocates, they largely agreed on the need for relief, but also want the CPUC to carefully craft the planned debt forgiveness.

Typical was David Cheng, staff attorney for The Utility Reform Network. He wrote “that the straw proposals provide too much assistance in some areas and too little in other areas.”

Several others also urged the CPUC to seek federal COVID-19 relief money so the overdue amounts that ultimately are forgiven would not fall on other utility customers. Under the current proposal, the forgiven amount would be spread over the rates paid by all energy utility customers.

The proceeding comes as a state order that put a moratorium on energy utility shutoffs is set to end June 30. Gov. Gavin Newsom and the CPUC ordered the moratorium last spring. It was extended until June 30 in January of this year as the pandemic surged again.