SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 25, 2022 – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), in ongoing efforts to hold utilities accountable for causing catastrophic wildfires, today issued a proposed Order imposing corrective actions and $155.4 million in fines to be paid by the shareholders of Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) for violations related to the 2020 […]
California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC)
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CPUC Awards Second Round of Grants to Local Governments, including Nevada County
SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 21, 2022 – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) today announced it has made its largest award of State broadband funds to local governments to-date by proving $14 million in broadband technical assistance grants to 28 local governments to support efforts to close the digital divide. These are in addition to grants […]
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CPUC Staff Propose Utility Penalties for Poor Execution of Certain 2020 PSPS Events
SAN FRANCISCO – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), in ongoing efforts to hold utilities accountable for safely implementing Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) events, today issued proposed Orders imposing corrective actions and more than $22 million in fines to be paid by the shareholders of Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), Southern California Edison […]
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CPUC acts to increase broadband deployment throughout California
February 24, 2022 – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), in its ongoing commitment to bridging the digital divide, today established a new local agency technical assistance grant program in the California Advanced Services Fund (CASF) for eligible local agencies and Tribal entities to expand broadband deployment. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated affordability challenges and heightened […]
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CPUC Penalizes PG&E for 2019 Kincade Wildfire
SAN FRANCISCO, December 2, 2021 – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) today approved penalties and permanent disallowances against Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) for violations related to the ignition of the 2019 Kincade wildfire. Under a settlement with the CPUC’s Safety and Enforcement Division (SED), PG&E shareholders will pay a $40 million penalty […]
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CPUC Issues Citations to PG&E for Safety Code Violations
SAN FRANCISCO, November 22, 2021 – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) today issued two staff Citations totaling $7.5 million to Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) for safety failures. A $5 million Citation was issued for PG&E’s failure to thoroughly inspect the Ignacio-Alto-Sausalito transmission lines from 2009 through 2018 and complete 22 high-priority repairs […]
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CPUC Issues Affordability Report Highlighting Trends in Affordability of Combined Essential Utility Services
SAN FRANCISCO, April 29, 2021 – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), in its ongoing efforts to address the affordability of utility services, issued its first annual Affordability Report for California. The report shows trends in the affordability of energy, water, and communications. The report provides a methodology for reviewing the affordability of combined utility […]
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CPUC Places PG&E Into Enhanced Oversight and Enforcement Process for Wildfire Mitigation Performance
SAN FRANCISCO, April 15, 2021 – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) today placed Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) into the first step of an enhanced oversight and enforcement process based on the company’s failure to sufficiently prioritize clearing vegetation on its highest-risk power lines as part of its wildfire mitigation work in 2020. […]
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CAISO, CPUC, CEC Issue Final Report on Causes of August 2020 Rotating Outages: Press Release
SACRAMENTO, January 13, 2021 – Today the California Independent System Operator (CAISO), California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), and California Energy Commission (CEC) issued a Final Root Cause Analysis of the August 2020 heat wave and rotating outages. On August 14 and 15, 2020, the CAISO was forced to institute rotating electricity outages in California in […]
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CPUC Adopts Enforcement Policy to Promote Maximum Compliance, Transparency, and Public Safety
SAN FRANCISCO, November 5, 2020 – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) today is taking further action to promote public safety and ensure maximum compliance with CPUC rules, statutes, and other requirements through adoption of a new Enforcement Policy. Today’s action builds on the CPUC’s existing enforcement tools and processes with the goal of better […]
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CPUC Revises CA Lifeline to Better Serve Low-Income Customers Amid COVID-19 Pandemic
SAN FRANCISCO, October 8, 2020 – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), in its ongoing efforts to improve access to affordable communications services for all Californians during this pandemic year, today have taken steps to increase access to broadband services to meet the needs of the California Universal Telephone Service Program (California LifeLine). Amid the […]
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CPUC Orders Deployment of Microgrids and Resiliency Strategies to Support Communities and Infrastructure Threatened by Power Outages
SAN FRANCISCO, June 11, 2020 – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) today required large electric investor-owned utilities to accelerate deployment of microgrids and resiliency projects to minimize the impacts of wildfire-caused power outages and Public Safety Power Shut-off (PSPS) events. Under today’s Decision, utilities must streamline and expedite interconnection processes for microgrids, resiliency, and […]
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CPUC Penalizes PG&E $2 Billion for 2017 and 2018 Wildfires
SAN FRANCISCO, May 7, 2020 – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) today imposed $1.937 billion in penalties against Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), the largest penalty ever assessed by the CPUC, for the utility’s role in the catastrophic 2017 and 2018 wildfires. Resolving this investigation is an important step for PG&E to emerge […]
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CPUC Report Shows Renewable Contract Prices Hit Historic Low
SAN FRANCISCO, May 4, 2020 – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) released its annual report on the Renewables Portfolio Standard (RPS) program, showing contract prices reached a historic low in 2019. In its 2020 Padilla Report to the Governor and the Legislature regarding the costs of all electricity procurement contracts for eligible renewable energy […]
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CPUC Ensures Essential Utility Services for Consumers to Assist in COVID-19 Mitigation
SAN FRANCISCO, March 17, 2020 – The California Public Utilities Commission’s (CPUC) Executive Director today determined that energy, water, sewer, and communications companies under CPUC jurisdiction should halt customer disconnections for non-payment as a result of the State of Emergency called by Gov. Gavin Newsom due to COVID-19. “In these unsettling and unprecedented times, many […]
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CPUC Requires Utilities to Conduct More Robust Public Outreach to Non-English Speaking Communities Before, During, After Wildfires
SAN FRANCISCO, March 12, 2020 – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) today ordered electric utilities to conduct in-language outreach before, during, and after a wildfire to communities with limited English proficiency. The decision requires the utilities to go beyond what is required in statute to ensure communities are properly informed and empowered with critical […]
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CPUC Issues Proposals on Resiliency Planning for Communications Companies
SAN FRANCISCO, March 6, 2020 – California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) President Marybel Batjer today issued proposals for maintaining resilient and dependable communications networks during catastrophic events that will better aid emergency responders and ensure the public’s ability to reliably communicate and receive critical information. CPUC President Batjer’s Assigned Commissioner’s Ruling solicits responses from parties […]
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CPUC Response to Settlement Would Impose Penalties in Excess of $2 Billion Against PG&E for 2017 and 2018 Wildfires
SAN FRANCISCO, February 27, 2020 – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) today issued an Administrative Law Judge Decision imposing $2.137 billion in penalties against Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), the largest penalty ever assessed by the CPUC, for the utility’s role in the catastrophic 2017 and 2018 wildfires. If PG&E agrees to the […]
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CPUC Issues President’s Statement on PG&E’s Proposed Bankruptcy Plan
SAN FRANCISCO, February 18, 2020 – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) today issued the following statement from CPUC President Marybel Batjer regarding proposals issued for comment in the CPUC’s proceeding to consider the ratemaking and other implications of Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s (PG&E) proposed bankruptcy plan: “Today, as the assigned Commissioner in the […]
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CPUC Issues Proposal Requiring Utilities to Conduct Multi-Cultural Outreach for Wildfires
SAN FRANCISCO, February 5, 2020 – The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), in ongoing actions to help utilities mitigate the risks of wildfires, today issued a proposal that, if approved by the CPUC’s Commissioners, would require utilities to conduct outreach to the public before, during, and after a wildfire in all languages prevalent in their […]