STANDARD BUDGET SUB COMMITTEE
NUMBER TWO ON RESOURCES,
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION ENERGY
WILL COME TO ORDER WE ARE
HOLDING OUR HEARINGS HERE IN THE
Ó STREET BUILDING. AND, UM ALL
THE MEMBERS ARE PRESENT, BUT
WE'LL DO THE èC IN A SECOND.
UH, WE'VE 13 ISSUES ON TODAY'S
AGENDA. WE'LL BE DISCUSSING ALL
THE ISSUES LISTED IN THE
DISCUSSION SECTION OF THE AGENDA
AFTER DISCUSSION. WE'LL HAVE
PUBLIC COMMENT ON ALL OF THE
ITEMS. WE WILL NOT HOLD A VOTE
ON THE VOTE ONLY CALENDAR TODAY
THESE ITEMS WILL BE VOTED ON AT
A FUTURE HEARING. BEFORE WE
BEGIN OUR DISCUSSION. LET'S
ESTABLISH A QUORUM CONSULTANT.
PLEASE CALL THE ROLL. BECKER
HERE. ALAN HERE. BLAKESPEAR
DOLLY! A QUORUM HAS BEEN
ESTABLISHED. NOW LET'S START
WITH ISSUE NUMBER 10, THE ENERGY
RESOURCES PROGRAM ACCOUNT, OR
IP. STRUCTURAL DEFICIT RELIEF
TRAILER BILL LANGUAGE FIRST
WE'LL HEAR FROM THE èC èC, WHO
WILL PRESENT THE GOVERNOR'S
PROPOSAL.
THANK YOU. GOOD MORNING. CAN YOU
HEAR ME? GOOD MORNING. MY NAME
IS DAMIEN IMN, CHIEF FINANCIAL
OFFICER AT THE ENERGY COMMISSION
. AND I'M HERE TO PRESENT OUR
ENERGY RESOURCES PROGRAMS
ACCOUNT STRUCTURAL DEFICIT
RELIEF TRAILER BILL LANGUAGE.
THE ENERGY RESOURCES PROGRAMS
ACCOUNT, WHICH WE CALL IRP IS
THE MAIN FUND SUPPORTING THE
COMMISSION. IPA SUPPORTS THE
BULK OF OUR ACTIVITIES IN
LEADING THE STATE TO 100% CLEAN
ENERGY FUTURE. THE REVENUES IN
THE ACCOUNT ARE LINKED TO THE
SALE OF METERED ELECTRICITY THAT
IS RETAIL ELECTRICITY SALES. SIR
CHARGE GENERATED ABOUT $71.6
MILLION IN 2223 AND CURRENTLY
COSTS THE AVERAGE HOUSEHOLD
ABOUT $2 ANNUALLY, SO THAT'S
ABOUT 16 CENTS PER MONTH.
REVENUE GROWTH IN THE ACCOUNT
HAS BEEN STAGNATING IN THE LAST
SEVERAL YEARS, AND THIS IS A
RESULT OF TWO MAIN FACTORS. THE
FIRST FACTOR IS BUILDING AN
APPLIANCE ENERGY EFFICIENCY
MEASURES THAT HAVE REDUCED THE
GROWTH OF ELECTRICITY
CONSUMPTION. THIS IS A DIRECT
RESULT OF THE SUCCESS OF èC S¼
EFFICIENCY MEASURES ON ITEMS
SUCH AS COMPUTERS, CLOTHES,
DRYERS, DISHWASHERS, AND THE
LIST GOES ON AND ON. THESE
POLICIES. EXCUSE ME. THESE
POLICIES, REDUCE ELECTRICITY
CONSUMPTION AND HAVE SAVED
CALIFORNIA CONSUMERS WELL OVER
$100 BILLION OVER THE LAST 40
YEARS. HOWEVER THE REDUCTION IN
ELECTRICITY CONSUMPTION HAS ALSO
IMPACTED REVENUES. THE SECOND
FACTOR IS THE INCREASE IN BEHIND
THE METER ELECTRICITY FROM
SOURCES SUCH AS ROOFTOP SOLAR,
WIND AND NON UTILITY GENERATION.
WE REFER TO THIS AS B Tð M
ELECTRICITY FOR BEHIND THE METER
UNDER CURRENT STATUTE, U Tð M
ELECTRICITY IS EXEMPT FROM THE
ERP SURCHARGE AS B Tð M
ELECTRICITY CAPACITY GROWS AND
REDUCES RETAIL ELECTRICITY
CONSUMPTION. IPA REVENUES
DECLINED CORRESPONDINGLY. THE
SENATE OFFICE OF RESEARCH LOOKED
INTO THIS ISSUE IN 2021 AND
PUBLISHED A REPORT FORECASTING
THAT B Tð M ELECTRICITY WILL
GROW FOR ABOUT 7% IN 2015 TO 17%
OF TOTAL ELECTRICITY CONSUMED BY
2030. COMPARED THAT TO RETAIL
ELECTRICITY SALES, WHICH ARE
ONLY ANTICIPATED TO INCREASE BY
ABOUT 1.6% BETWEEN NOW AND 2035.
THE SENATE REPORT CONCLUDED THAT
THE GROWTH IN BTM ELECTRICITY
RESULTS IN AN INEQUITABLE COST
SHIFT FROM HIGHER INCOME
CUSTOMERS TO LOWER TO MIDDLE
INCOME UTILITY CUSTOMERS. SO
WHILE THE REVENUE AND THE AMOUNT
UH WELL, EXCUSE ME, WHILE THE
REVENUE IN THE ACCOUNT HAS
STAGNATED, THE AMOUNT
APPROPRIATED EACH YEAR HAS
INCREASED. THE GOVERNOR'S BUDGET
PROPOSES EXPENDITURES OF ABOUT
$95 MILLION OUT OF IPA IN 2024
25 AND COMPARE THAT TO REVENUES
OF ABOUT $72 MILLION, SO THIS
CREATES A STRUCTURAL DEFICIT.
NOW THE ADMINISTRATION, THE
DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE HAVE
REDUCED URBAN EXPENDITURES BY
ABOUT $37 MILLION IN THE YEARS
PRIOR TO THE PANDEMIC. UH BUT WE
HAVE EXHAUSTED THE AVAILABLE
OPTIONS TO REDUCE EXPENDITURES,
SO THEREFORE OUR LANGUAGE
PROPOSES TO DO THREE THINGS.
FIRST RAISE THE STATUTORY CAP ON
THE SURCHARGE TO WHAT WOULD HAVE
BEEN IF THE CAP HAD BEEN TIED TO
INFLATION. SECOND TIE THE
STATUTORY CAP TO THE CONSUMER
PRICE INDEX, MOVING FORWARD AND
THIRD EXTEND THE SURCHARGE TO
BEHIND THE METER ELECTRICITY
CONSUMPTION. EXTENDING THE
SURCHARGE BEHIND THE METER
ELECTRICITY CONSUMPTION WOULD
MORE EQUITABLY DISTRIBUTE.
EXCUSE ME EQUITABLY DISTRIBUTE
THE SURCHARGE AMONG CONSUMERS,
AND THIS PROPOSAL WILL ALLOW THE
èC èC TO INCREMENTALLY ADJUST
THE SURCHARGE AS NEEDED TO KEEP
THE FUND SOLVENT, WHICH WOULD
BALANCE REVENUES WITH
APPROPRIATIONS AND EXPENDITURES
APPROVED BY THE LEGISLATURE.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR EXCUSE ME.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR
CONSIDERATION. THANK YOU, UM,
FINANCE. WOULD YOU LIKE TO ADD
ANYTHING? DAVID EVANS WITH THE
DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE. UM I
WOULD JUST LIKE TO ADD THAT IF
SHOULD THE LEGISLATURE APPROVE?
UM, THIS PROPOSAL? UM THE
ADMINISTRATION WOULD NOT BE
SEEKING TO INCREASE THE
SURCHARGE. UM IN THE IN THE
BUDGET ACT. ON IT. OK? HOW ABOUT
L? A Ó? THANK YOU. SARAH CT
WITH THE LEGISLATIVE ANALYST
OFFICE. WE GENERALLY BELIEVE THE
PROPOSAL IS REASONABLE AS IPA IS
IN A STRUCTURAL DEFICIT, AND
THIS ACCOUNT FUNDS. CEC'S
OPERATIONS, UM, EXTENDING THE
SURCHARGE TO BEHIND THE METER
GENERATION WOULD HELP ENSURE
THAT THOSE CUSTOMERS PAY THEIR
FAIR SHARE AS THEY ARE SERVED BY
èC E èC PROGRAMS AND
INITIATIVES. AND WHILE ANY
PROPOSAL THAT COULD INCREASE
RATES SHOULD BE CONSIDERED VERY
CAREFULLY AS CALIFORNIA'S RATES
ARE SO HIGH AND RISING FASTER
THAN INFLATION, THIS PROPOSAL IS
MODEST AND IS EXPECTED TO
INCREASE RATES ONLY BY A FEW
ADDITIONAL CENTS A MONTH AT AT A
GRADUATED PACE. UM SO WE
RECOMMEND THE LEGISLATURE
APPROVE THE PROPOSAL BUT
CONTINUE TO CLOSELY MONITOR UM,
BOTH FUTURE REQUESTS FOR IPA
SPENDING AS WELL AS THE NEED AND
COST EFFECTIVENESS OF EXISTING
EXPENDITURES TO TRY CONSTRAIN
THAT EXPENDITURE GROWTH AND KEEP
THE RATES, UM, CHARGED TO
CUSTOMERS FROM INCREASING TOO
QUICKLY. THANK YOU. UM GREAT.
THANK YOU. UM, I'M GONNA START
OUT. I HAVE A NUMBER OF
QUESTIONS AND CONCERNS ABOUT
THIS, UM AND, UH SO I'LL START
OUT WITH QUESTIONS. UH, FOR THE
èC E èC, UM WHAT GROWING
ELECTRICITY DEMAND FROM
TRANSPORTATION AND BUILDING
ELECTRIFICATION OUTPACE ANY
REDUCTIONS IN DEMAND FROM BEHIND
THE METER GENERATION. THE SO
DAMIAN MINA, CHIEF FINANCIAL
OFFICER AT THE ENERGY COMMISSION
. THE GROWTH ELECTRICITY IS
ANTICIPATED TO ONLY BE ABOUT
1.6% PER YEAR, UH BETWEEN, UH,
2022 AND 2035. THAT'S BASED ON
THE MOST RECENT APER THAT èC
èC PRODUCED, UM AND SO THAT IS
NOT EXPECTED TO KEEP PACE WITH
THE APPROPRIATIONS THAT WILL BE
MADE OUT OF THE FUND, THE
INCREASE IN THE APPROPRIATIONS
MADE OUT OF THE FUND OVER TIME.
YEAH, I'M JUST NOT SURE. I MEAN
THE TABLE PROVIDED SHOWS IPA
FUNDING. UH, SEEMS FLAT REVENUES
. IN SPITE OF THE èC èC
PROJECTIONS FOR A SIGNIFICANT
DEMAND GROWTH, RIGHT? I'VE HEARD
THE CHAIR SAY WE'RE GOING TO
DOUBLE OR TRIPLE. ELECTRICITY
DEMAND, SO IT JUST DOESN'T QUITE
COMPUTE AT A DAVID EVANS WITH
THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE. UM
THE FUN CONDITION STATEMENT THAT
WAS PROVIDED IT PROVIDES A
SNAPSHOT. UM A POINT IN TIME
ESTIMATE BASED ON THE REVENUE
THAT THE COMMISSION IS BRINGING
IN AND THEN THE APPROPRIATE UH,
THE, UM, THE AUTHORIZED
EXPENDITURES THAT THE èC èC
CAN SPIN TOWARDS, UM SUCH AS,
LIKE LEGISLATIVE PROPOSALS. UM
B, èC B, S¼ AND THINGS LIKE
THAT, AND SO WE FLATLINED IT TO
JUST SHOW THE CURRENT, UM,
REVENUE PROJECTIONS AND THEN
ALSO, UM WHAT? THE CURRENT
EXPENDITURES AND THAT SHOWS THAT
THERE'S A STRUCTURAL IMBALANCE
IN THAT THE EXPENDITURES ARE
OUTPACING THE REVENUES THAT'S
COLLECTED IN THE FUND. UM, IT
DOESN'T IT DOESN'T INCLUDE, UM
LIKE PRIOR YEAR EXPENDITURE,
SAVINGS OR EMPLOYEE COMPENSATION
INFORMATION, WHICH CAN HAVE AN
EFFECT ON THE AMOUNT OF SAVINGS
THAT'S APPLIED, AND THAT WOULD
ADJUST THE REVENUES IN THE OUT
YEARS. BUT IT'S VERY DIFFICULT
TO PROJECT THAT INFORMATION. UM
MULTIPLE YEARS OUT, SO WE JUST
TRY TO KEEP IT, UM, AS SIMPLE AS
UM, AND AS CONSTANT AND THAT
WITH THE AVAILABLE INFORMATION
THAT WE HAVE YEAH, I UNDERSTAND
THAT. BUT JUST WITH RESPECT, I
MEAN, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT
DOUBLING OR TRIPLING ELECTRICITY
USE, THEN THOSE REVENUES WILL,
UM, GO UP SUBSTANTIALLY, UM
MORE, THE MORE THAN WHAT IS
REPRESENTED HERE IS REALLY FLAT.
UM POSSIBLY, BUT IT'S JUST VERY
DIFFICULT TO EXTRAPOLATE YOU AND
TO, UM PRESUPPOSE THAT
INFORMATION, UM, WITH THE
INFORMATION THAT WE HAVE
AVAILABLE, UM, WE ARE CONSTANTLY
UPDATING THIS INFORMATION. UM
MULTIPLE TIMES, UM WITHIN THE
YEAR, ESPECIALLY DURING THE MAY
REVISION PROCESS, AND SO, UM,
UPDATES TO THIS FUN CONDITIONS.
THEY WILL BE AVAILABLE AT THAT
TIME. YEAH, GOOD. GET IT AGAIN.
JUST WITH RESPECT, I. I JUST YOU
KNOW TO ME. IT JUST DOESN'T. UM,
THAT DOESN'T COMPUTE. UM
ADDITIONALLY, YOU KNOW THE èC
èC. I JUST WANT TO BE VERY
CLEAR. UH, èC èC IS DOING A
LOT OF CRITICAL WORK TO SUPPORT
OUR ENERGY NEEDS AND HELP THE
STATE TRANSITION TO CLEAN ENERGY
, SO I'M VERY SUPPORTIVE OF
MAKING SURE THE DEPARTMENT IS
ADEQUATELY FUNDED. IT SHOULD BE
ABSOLUTELY CLEAR ABOUT THAT. UM
AND I THINK THAT ADJUSTING THE
IPA CAP TO REFLECT INFLATION,
AND THESE RESPONSIBILITIES SEEMS
JUSTIFIED FOR CERTAIN. IN MY
OPINION, UH, BUT I HAVE A LOT OF
CONCERN ABOUT TRYING TO EXTEND A
SURCHARGE ON ELECTRICITY SALES
TO INCLUDE BEHIND THE METER
METER THAT A SELF, UH, CONSUMED
AND UNMEASURED SO WHAT? WHAT IS
THE RATIONALE FOR EXTENDING TO
BEHIND THE ME AND IF I GROW, UH,
MY ORANGES IN MY BACKYARD. I'M
NOT. I DON'T PAY SALES TAX ON ON
THOSE ORANGES. SO WHAT'S THE
RATIONALE FOR EXTENDING TO
BEHIND THE METER CONSUMPTION?
UM, YEAH, I'D SAY 22 THINGS. ONE
IS, UM, THE WORK THAT THE ENERGY
COMMISSION DOES BENEFITS. UM ALL
CALIFORNIANS WHO CONSUME
ELECTRICITY, SO THE EFFICIENCY
WORK THAT WE HAVE DONE AS SAVE
CALIFORNIANS ABOUT $100 BILLION
MORE THAN THAT, OVER THE LAST 40
YEARS OR SO, UM SO, LIKE I
MENTIONED WE, UH PRODUCE
EFFICIENCY REGULATIONS ON MANY
APPLIANCES, AND SO, UH, CONSUMER
WOULD BE BENEFITING FROM THE
ENERGY COMMISSION'S WORK, EVEN
IF THEY WERE CONSUMING THEIR
ELECTRICITY BEHIND THE METER.
UH, THE SECOND IS MORE OF AN
ISSUE OF EQUITY. UM, SO THE, UH
CONSUMER AND, UH CONSUMING
BEHIND THE METER ELECTRICITY IS
NOT CONSUMED OR NOT PAYING THE
PE SURCHARGE THAT FORCES THE
SURCHARGE BE COLLECTED OR
REQUIRES THE SURCHARGE TO BE
COLLECTED BY OTHER OTHER
CONSUMERS. AND SO, UM IT IS MORE
EQUITABLE FOR THE SURCHARGE TO
BE SPREAD OUT AMONG AS MANY
CONSUMERS AS PO WHO ARE
CONSUMING ELECTRICITY. GO WELL.
AGAIN NOT UM, UH DO YOU MEAN AT
ALL THE IMPORTANT WORK THAT èC
èC DOES? WHICH I AGAIN I STAND
BEHIND 100% BUT AGAIN, I JUST
THINK IF YOU SEND THAT ANALOGY,
IT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE TO TAX
PEOPLE ON THEIR OWN SELF
GENERATION. AND THE OTHER
QUESTION IS, HOW CAN YOU
ACCURATELY MEASURE THE AMOUNT OF
BEHIND THE METER ELECTRICITY
THAT IS GENERATED AND SELF
CONSUMED IN ORDER TO DETERMINE
THE RIGHT AMOUNT OF SURCHARGE TO
COLLECT FROM EACH CONSUMER? UH,
YEAH. THE UH, TRAILER BILL
LANGUAGE INCLUDES A FORMULA TO
CALCULATE THAT, AND THAT'S BASED
ON A COMBINATION OF MULTIPLYING
THE SOLAR ENERGY SYSTEM SIZE,
WHICH WE HAVE BASED ON OUR DATA
BY 8760 HOURS PER YEAR, SO
THAT'S THE NUMBER OF HOURS IN A
IN A NON LEAP YEAR. UM MULTIPLY
THAT PRODUCT, UH BY 17.68% AND
THAT'S A CAPACITY FACTOR BASED
ON UH, THE ANNUAL PERCENTAGE OF
THE SOLAR FULL OF PHOTOVOLTAIC
SYSTEM OPERATES AT ITS MAXIMUM
RATED CAPACITY AND THEN
SUBTRACTING THE, UH, THE NET
ELECTRICITY EXPORTS TO THE GRID
AND KILOWATT HOURS. PRODUCT SO
THAT CALCULATES THE AMOUNT TO
WHICH THE ERP SURCHARGE WOULD BE
APPLIED. AS WE TALKED ABOUT THIS
IS YOU KNOW YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT
CENTS PER BILL. RIGHT? SO I
GUESS THE QUESTION IS, WOULD THE
ADMINISTRATIVE BURDEN OF DOING
THAT CALCULATION FOR EVERY SOLAR
CUSTOMER. UM, BE WORTH THE
REVENUE. IN SHORT, YES. YOU
BELIEVE IT WOULD BE? YES, THAT
IS CORRECT. OK UM DAVID EVANS.
WHAT? DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE. I
WOULD JUST LIKE TO ADD THAT
EVERY INCREMENTAL ADJUSTMENT
THAT HAPPENS. UM, CURRENTLY THE
SURCHARGE RATE IS 0.0003 EVERY
INCREMENTAL ADJUSTMENT THAT
HAPPENS, UM, IT RAISES THE
REVENUE BY $2 MILLION. AND SO
YES, 2 MILLION FOR HOW MANY?
WHAT DO YOU MEAN FOR EACH, UM,
FOR EVERYONE? THAT IS, UM UM,
USING THE, UM METERED ENERGY
RIGHT NOW, SO EVERY EVERY TIME
THE SURCHARGE IS INCREASED BY,
UM BY ONE INCREMENT, IT
INCREASES THE REVENUE FOR THE
FUND BY $2 MILLION, RIGHT.
THAT'S YOU'RE SAYING THAT'S THE
ENTIRE POPULATION TODAY? YES,
AND THAT'S WITHOUT, UM THAT IS
WITHOUT APPLYING IT TO BEHIND
THE METER. RIGHT AS OF YET.
RIGHT, SO ADDING BEHIND THE
METER WOULD BE A FRACTION
OBVIOUSLY OF THAT. 2 MILLION. UM
EXTENDING THE SURCHARGE BEHIND
THE METER GENERATION AND 2425 WE
ANTICIPATE WOULD PRODUCE ABOUT
$4.5 MILLION IN REVENUE. AND
THEN IN 2526 WHEN YOU HAVE A
FULL YEAR OF REVENUE COLLECTION,
ABOUT $9.8 MILLION RIGHT? AND I
DON'T KNOW IF YOU'VE ESTIMATED
THE ADMINISTRATIVE EFFORT, BUT I
WON'T ASK YOU THAT. BUT I THINK
THAT'S THE QUESTION HERE. UM AND
IF IT IS BASED ON UN METERED
ESTIMATES, THEN, UM YOU KNOW? IS
THERE A POS OF LEGAL CHALLENGES
AS WELL TO THAT? AND WE HAVE THE
ADMINISTRATION HAS PUT FORWARD
THIS LANGUAGE IN PREVIOUS YEARS,
AND WE'RE NOT AWARE OF ANY
POTENTIAL LEGAL CHALLENGES. AT
THIS TIME AS I. I WOULD
ANTICIPATE THAT IT WOULD HAVE
BEEN RAISED AS PART OF PREVIOUS
LEGISLATIVE DISCUSSIONS. SO I
WOULDN'T ANTICIPATE IT. BUT I
ALSO DON'T WANT TO PRETEND TO
KNOW WHAT SORT OF LEGAL
CHALLENGES COULD BE COMING. UH,
LAST QUESTION IS ABOUT HOW YOU
PROPOSING THE CHARGE ITSELF. THE
L. A Ó ANALYSIS SAYS THE
CURRENT IPA CHARGE IS ABOUT 16
CENTS A MONTH. FOR AN AVERAGE
CUSTOMER. BUT THE PROPOSED
CHANGE WILL INCREASE COSTS FOR
SOLAR CUSTOMERS BY ABOUT 20
THREE CENTS A MONTH. SO HOW IS
IT? THE INCREASE OF SOLAR
CUSTOMERS IS LARGER THAN THE
TOTAL COST FOR AN AVERAGE
CUSTOMER. UH, YES. THIS REFLECTS
THE ECONOMICS THAT LARGER HOMES
WITH LARGER ENERGY CONSUMPTION
HAVE MORE OF AN INCENTIVE, UH,
HAVE HISTORICALLY HAD MORE OF AN
INCENTIVE TO PUT SOLAR ON THEIR
HOMES. SO UM, THE ELECTRICITY
PRODUCED BY THE THOSE SOLAR
SYSTEMS WOULD BE, UH, WITH THEIR
WOULD THEREFORE BE LARGER AND
WOULD BE, UH, RESULTING IN THE
DISCREPANCY THAT YOU'RE SEEING
THE DIFFERENCE IN THE NUMBERS
THAT YOU'RE SEEING. COULD BE.
BUT AGAIN, THERE'S A SIGNIFICANT
UH INCREASE. UM LAST QUESTION.
CONSIDER IF THEY REQUEST IS
APPROVED. WHAT'S THE TIMELINE
FOR THE èC TO èC TO CONSIDER A
SURCHARGE INCREASE? SO UNDER
UNDER CURRENT STATUTE, WE WOULD,
UM, WE WOULD EVALUATE THE
REVENUE TO BE GENERATED BY IPA
IN THE COMING FISCAL YEAR, AND
WE CAN, UM, LOOK TO INCREASE THE
SURCHARGE, UM, AT A BUSINESS
MEETING IN NOVEMBER OF THE
CALENDAR YEAR, UH, AT THIS
POINT, BECAUSE THE SURCHARGE HAS
BEEN SET AT ITS CAP. UM, WE ARE
NOT DOING THAT. BUT WE LOOK
FORWARD TO GETTING THAT
RESTARTING THAT PROCESS EVERY
NOVEMBER MOVING FORWARD, AND,
UH, RIGHT NOW WE'RE ANTICIPATING
THAT WE WOULDN'T NEED TO. IF THE
PROPOSAL IS ADOPTED, WOULD NOT
NEED TO INCREASE THE SURCHARGE
UNTIL 2027 28. BUT AS MY FROM
THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE NOTED,
WILL BE REVISING THOSE UPDATES.
UH MULTIPLE TIMES PER YEAR. WELL
LET ME OPEN UP TO MY COLLEAGUES.
SEE IF MY COLLEAGUES HAVE ANY,
UH, QUESTIONS ON THIS, SENATOR
DOLLY! THANK YOU, MR CHAIR. IT'S
GOOD TO BE BACK AT THE
COMMITTEE, SO I MISSED THE LAST
ONE. SO I JUST WANNA FIRST. I
HAVE A JUST A COMMENT, I. I
DON'T I'M ASSUMING MY COLLEAGUES
HAVE BEEN BOMBARDED IN THEIR
OFFICES WITH PEOPLE FROM SOLAR
WHO ARE NOT HAPPY ABOUT SOME OF
THE CHANGES IN OUR SOLAR
POLICIES IN CALIFORNIA. BUT WITH
THAT BEING SAID, I MEAN THE
CHAIRMAN BROUGHT UP A GOOD POINT
ABOUT BEHIND THE METER AND THOSE
PEOPLE ARE USING OUR
INFRASTRUCTURE. BEHIND THE METER
, EVEN THOUGH THEY'RE GENERATING
THEIR OWN, AND IT'S THE WEALTHY
THAT CAN AFFORD TO PUT ON UH,
SOLAR AND THE NON WEALTHY ARE
PAYING THE BILL. I THINK WE NEED
TO BE TRANSPARENT ABOUT THAT.
THAT'S A FACT TO THE TUNE OF
ABOUT $6 BILLION A YEAR, NON
SOLAR CUSTOMERS ARE PAYING FOR
SOLAR CUSTOMERS. UH, THERE WAS
AN ARTICLE OUT JUST THE OTHER
DAY. I UH UH THAT I READ. IT WAS
ABOUT $6.8 BILLION, SO I. I
ACTUALLY COME IN WORKING BEHIND
THE METER OPTION BECAUSE THEY'RE
NOT PAYING THEIR FAIR SHARE FOR
THE INFRASTRUCTURE. BUT WHAT I
DON'T, UH, LIKE ABOUT THIS
PROPOSAL IS THAT WE DON'T NEED
TO DO ANYTHING UNTIL 2728 LILY,
YOUR YOUR BUDGET SAYS IT'S GOOD.
UM AND WHAT ARE WE DOING? WE'RE
GONNA GIVE THE AUTHORITY IF WE
PASS THIS TO THE èC E èC TO BE
ABLE TO OPEN UP THEIR RATE AT
THAT POINT, UM IF WE SHOULD COME
BACK IN LATER YEARS, AND IF WE
NEED TO UP THAT RATE, WE'LL UP
THAT RATE. BUT AT THE END OF THE
DAY, UM AGAIN. EVERYBODY'S GONNA
BE CHARGED FOR THE WORK THAT
YOU'RE GONNA DO BEHIND THE METER
AGAIN. YOUR YOUR COMMENTS? HAVE
EVERYBODY'S GONNA GET CHARGED
THAT 16 CENTS OR 2 2.5 CENTS, OR
THREE CENTS, EVERYBODY AND THEN
YOU'RE GONNA GO OUT AND TRY TO
FIGURE OUT THE PEOPLE THAT HAVE
SOLAR WHAT THEY'RE NEEDING TO BE
PAINTING SO AGAIN, THE POOR
PEOPLE ARE PAYING FOR THE
PEOPLE'S UH UH, YOUR WORK FOR
THE BEHIND THE METER STUFF. SO
FOR ME, I THINK WE SHOULD WAIT.
UH, WE HAVE TIME. THERE'S NÓ
REASON TO, UM AND WE SHOULD
MAYBE LOOK AT WAYS TO BE MORE
EFFICIENT. YOU KNOW, GOVERNMENT
DOESN'T EVER THEY'RE GETTING
THEIR COST OF INFLATION. YOU'RE
ASKING FOR THE COST OF
INFLATION. BUT WHAT ABOUT THE
PERSON WHO'S ON A FIXED INCOME?
WHO'S THESE LITTLE INCREMENTAL
BILLS? ARE PILING UP, AND THEY
HAVE NÓ ABILITY TO PASS IT ON
BECAUSE THEY HAVE NÓ INFLATION
FACTOR. THEY'RE ON A FIXED
INCOME AND I'M HEARING FROM THEM
IN MY OFFICE. I'M ASSUMING MY
COLLEAGUES ARE AS WELL, IF
YOU'RE A SINGLE MOM OR YOU'RE A
RETIRED PERSON WHO OWNS THEIR
HOME AND IS ON A SOCIAL SECURITY
OR A RETIREMENT. THEY DON'T GET
AN INFLATION FACTOR IN THAT. BUT
EVERYTHING IS GOING UP AND IT'S
THE POLICIES HERE THAT ARE
MAKING THOSE THINGS GO UP. SO
FOR ME, I THINK WE SHOULD WAIT.
I THINK THAT YOU THERE IS MAYBE
AN OPPORTUNITY TO DO SOME WORK
BEHIND THE METER AND GET THE
PEOPLE THAT ARE BENEFITING FROM
THE FROM THE TRANSMISSION LINES
AND THE INFRASTRUCTURE THAT
AREN'T PAYING FOR IT. I THINK
THERE'S SOME ROOM THERE THAT WE
SHOULD FOCUS ON MORE SO THAN
PASSING ATTACKS ACROSS THE BOARD
FOR EVERYBODY. AND THEN GOING
USING THAT TO FUND FIGURING OUT
WHAT THE PEOPLE THAT ARE WEALTHY
PEOPLE THAT HAVE HAD THE ABILITY
TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF OUR SOLAR
POLICIES IN CALIFORNIA. UH, SO
THOSE ARE MY COMMENTS, AND I
DON'T KNOW IF YOU HAVE ANYTHING
TO ADD WITH IT, BUT YOU JUST
STATED THAT WE HAVE TILL 27 OR
28 BEFORE. WE ACTUALLY HAVE TO
DO ANYTHING. WHY WOULD WE DO IT
NOW? JUST TWO THINGS THAT, UM
ONE IS, UH, IF THEY ADOPT
PROPOSAL IS ADOPTED. WE WOULD
NOT NEED TO UPDATE THIS OR
EXCUSE ME INCREASE. UH, THE
SURCHARGE UNDER CURRENT
PROJECTIONS UNTIL 2027 28. SO
THAT ASSUMES THAT THE PROPOSAL
IS ADOPTED AND THAT THE BEHIND
THE METER REVENUE IS COLLECTED,
STARTING IN 2024 25. THE OTHER
THING I WOULD ADD, IS, UM YOU
KNOW, WE TAKE YOUR CONCERNS
ABOUT EQUITY VERY SERIOUSLY. UM
AND THIS PROPOSAL INCORPORATES
THOSE. THOSE CONCERNS BY, UM,
EXTENDING THE SURCHARGE TO
BEHIND THE METER GENERATION THAT
WOULD HELP SPREAD THE COST. FOR
AMONG MORE CONSUMERS AND LOWER
THE COST FOR EVERYONE. II. I
APPRECIATE THAT. WHAT ABOUT THE
GROWTH? I MEAN, THE CHAIRMAN
BROUGHT IT UP. YOU KNOW YOU'RE
GOING TO HAVE WHAT? WHAT'S THE
ESTIMATES FOR GROWTH, THOUGH FOR
YOUR FOR YOUR REVENUES. THE
GROWTH WOULD BE BASED TO THE
SALES OF ELECTRICITY, WHICH
WOULD GO UP BY ABOUT 1.6% PER
YEAR. THAT'S BASED ON THE MOST
RECENT èC èC, UH, CALCULATION
DONE AS PART OF THE 2022 I WHICH
1.6 EQUATES TO HOW MUCH FOR YOUR
BUDGET. 1.6 WOULD BE UPON A BASE
. UH, OF ABOUT, UH, $72 MILLION
PER YEAR. SO CALL IT ABOUT $1
MILLION. I DON'T HAVE A
CALCULATOR WITH ME, BUT THAT
SEEMS ABOUT RIGHT. AND THE
OTHER. THIS PROPOSAL THAT YOU'RE
PROPOSING WOULD AND WOULD
POSSIBLY GENERATE 10 MILLION.
CORRECT EXTENDING THE SURCHARGE
BEHIND THE METER ELECTRICITY
GENERATION WOULD GENERATE ABOUT
$10 MILLION A YEAR, MOVING
FORWARD $4.5 MILLION IN THE
FIRST YEAR BECAUSE WE WERE ONLY
ABLE TO COLLECT FOR HALF THE
CALENDAR HALF THE FISCAL YEAR IS
COLLECTED ON THE CALENDAR YEAR
BASIS. THANK YOU. II I AM STILL
STUCK ON WHAT THE CHAIR SAID,
AND ALSO WHAT WAS JUST ECHOED
ABOUT IF OUR ELECTRICITY USE IS
SUPPOSED TO DOUBLE AND TRIPLE AS
WE ELECTRIFY LIKE A WHOLE
TRANSIT SYSTEMS AND ALL NEW
BUILDINGS, WHICH AREN'T PLUMBED
FOR GAS AT ALL. IT JUST IT
DOESN'T ADD UP TO ME THAT WE ARE
GONNA HAVE A 1.6 OR OF THE
EXCEEDINGLY LOW PERCENTAGE AND
OF INCREASES, SO AND I DON'T
KNOW IF PART OF WHAT'S HAPPENING
IN THE COMPLEXITY OF THE
ANALYSIS HERE IS THAT THERE'S
THE QUESTION OF DEMAND, WHICH WE
EXPECT TO DOUBLE AND TRIPLE. BUT
THEN THERE'S THE QUESTION OF
SUPPLY. AND WE'RE NOT SURE. UH,
IF WE CAN RELY ON THE SUPPLY
INCREASING AT THO THOSE KINDS OF
RATES, BUT I WAS LISTENING TO
THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE TO
ANSWER AND I UNDERSTAND THERE'S
SOME COMPLEXITY IN THERE, BUT
THERE'S JUST SOMETHING THAT
DOESN'T QUITE PASS THE SMELL
TEST ABOUT THAT PART, SO I'LL
JUST, YOU KNOW, A ASSOCIATE MY
COMMENTS WITH WITH THE CONCERN
ABOUT THAT. NOT BEING, UM
PROPERLY ADDRESSED IN A WAY THAT
MAKES SENSE. THANK YOU. I. I
AGREE WITH MY COLLEAGUE. WELL I
THINK MY COLLEAGUES FOR THEIR
COMMENTS AND WE WILL, UM, WE
WILL MOVE ON. UH, JUST, YOU
KNOW, AGAIN, SUMMARIZE THE
CONCERNS ABOUT UM THE LOW
ESTIMATES IN TERMS OF THE
ELECTRICITY. UM GROWTH. UM AND,
UM I'LL JUST SAY FOR ONE. I'M
GRATEFUL TO OUR CALIFORNIANS WHO
HAVE MOVED TO SOLAR AND HAVE
REDUCED STRESS ON THE GRID. AND
UM UH, WE'VE OBVIOUSLY OBVIOUSLY
WE ALREADY MADE SIGNIFICANT
CHANGES IN, UH, THE NET BILLING.
TARIFF. UM GOING FORWARD. AND,
UM, I JUST, UM YOU KNOW THE KIND
OF PRINCIPLE OF TAXING PEOPLE IN
THEIR OWN SELF GENERATION. I'VE
UH I HAVE A REAL ISSUE WITH SO,
UM, WE'RE NOT GONNA, UM, VOTE AT
THIS TO DO. YEAH, AND I. I DO. I
MEAN, I, I DO WANT TO SAY, GIVEN
OUR JUST WITH A LITTLE BIT OF
RESPECTFUL PUSH BACK TO MY
FRIEND FROM BIEBER. UM, YOU
KNOW, IN THE END OF THE DAY, UH,
WE? WE'VE GOT A CLIMATE CRISIS
ON OUR HANDS AND WE REALLY ARE
TRYING TO DO WHAT WE NEED TO DO
TO ENSURE THAT THAT FOLKS ARE
ARE HELPING OUT AND THAT'S WHAT
THE YOU KNOW FOLKS ARE DOING.
YOU KNOW, ROOFTOP SOLAR ARE
DOING THEIR THEY'RE PROVIDING.
AN ADDITIONAL SOURCE OF ENERGY
THAT IS GOING TO HELP US REACH
THE MASSIVE ELECTRIFICATION
CALLS THAT WE HAVE AS A STATE
AND I. I JUST WANNA KEEP THAT IN
MIND. I KNOW THERE'S A LOT OF
DEBATES ABOUT EQUITY IN THIS
CONVERSATION, BUT WE REALLY DO
NEED TO, UM ENSURE THAT WE NOT
TAKE ACTIONS THAT HARM THEIR
ABILITY TO, UH YOU KNOW, HARM
OUR ABILITY TO, UM TO, YOU KNOW,
CONTINUE TO GENERATE A LOT OF
GOOD CLEAN. ELECTRICITY. GOOD
WELL, THANK YOU FOR THAT. UM I
APPRECIATE YOU RESPONDING, UM,
TO ALL OF OUR QUESTIONS, AND,
UH, WE WILL HOLD THIS OPEN AND
MOVE TO THE NEXT ITEM. THANK
YOU. UH, WE'RE NOT GONNA MOVE ON
TO THE èC P èC BUDGET
PROPOSALS AND BEFORE WE BEGIN,
UH, I JUST WANNA MAKE A COMMENT
ON A VERY CONCERNING PROPOSED
DECISION FROM THE PU èC THIS
WEEK ON COMMUNITY SOLAR. MAYBE
WE'LL BRING UP THE FOLKS FROM
THE èC P èC.
AND WILL YOU BROADBAND FIRST?
WHICH OF THE CONTROVERSIAL
DECISIONS ARE YOU ON? YEAH,
FOCUS ON. YEAH, WE'LL BROADB
COMMENT. YEAH WOULD YOU
BROADBAND FIRST IN TERMS OF THE
QUESTIONS? UM MY COMMENT IS A,
UM IS ENERGY RELATED, BUT IT'S
FOR A FUTURE ITEM. I JUST WANNA,
UM PUT IT ON THE RECORD BECAUSE
THERE WAS A DECISION THIS WEEK
ON COMMUNITY SOLAR AND, UM IN
2022, THE LEGIS LEGISLATURE
PASSED A B TWO THREE 16 FROM
ASSEMBLY MEMBER UH, CHRIS WARD,
REQUIRING THE PU èC TO CREATE A
NEW COMMUNITY SORT OF PROGRAM
THAT ACTUALLY INCENTIVIZE THE
DEVELOPMENT OF COMMUNITY. SOLAR
WARRE. CALIFORNIA HAS LAGGED AS
YOU KNOW. PARTICULARLY FOR
PEOPLE WHO DO NOT HAVE THE
ABILITY TO INSTALL THEIR OWN
ROOFTOP SOLAR. EARLIER THIS
WEEK, THE PUC RELEASED A
PROPOSED DECISION IN RESPONSE TO
THAT BILL, WHICH REJECTS THE, UH
EXACT KIND OF COMMUNITY SOLAR
PROGRAM THAT'S AVAILABLE NOW IN
22 OTHER STATES. UH ALMOST ALL
THE STAKEHOLDERS SEEM TO BELIEVE
THAT THE PROPOSED APPROACH FROM
THE P èC WILL NOT RESULT IN A
VIABLE COMMUNITY SOLAR OPTION IN
CALIFORNIA AND HAVE RAISED
CONCERNS THAT THIS WILL
UNDERMINE THE STATE'S ABILITY TO
COMPETE FOR FEDERAL SOLAR FOR
ALL FUNDING. AND THE PROPOSED
DECISION ALSO SUGGESTS THE P èC
COULD USE MONEY THAT WE BUDGETED
UNDER THE CLEAN ENERGY
RELIABILITY INVESTMENT PLAN TO
MAKE UP FOR NOT OFFERING AN
ECONOMICALLY ATTRACTIVE
STRUCTURE FOR COMMUNITY SOLAR,
SO I JUST WANT TO PUT ON THE
RECORD. I'M I'M PERSONALLY VERY
TROUBLED BY THIS DEVELOPMENT,
AND I WANT TO BE VERY CLEAR THAT
THAT THIS HEARING IS JUST THE
BEGINNING OF OUR OVERSIGHT OVER,
UH èC P èC BUDGET ITEMS, SO
OUR SUBCOMITTEE WILL HAVE A
CHANCE TO DISCUSS THIS AT A
LATER DATE AND DISCUSS COMMUNITY
AT A LATER DATE, BUT I JUST
WANTED TO REGISTER SO THAT JUST
HAPPENED THIS WEEK. JUST WANTED
TO REGISTER. UM, MY STRONG
CONCERN ABOUT IT. WITH THAT
WE'LL MOVE ON TO ISSUE NUMBER 11
. THIS IS THE BROADBAND PACKAGE,
UH, BUDGET SOLUTIONS AND ONGOING
IMPLEMENTATION OF BROADBAND FOR
ALL. UH, FIRST, UM I WOULD
APPRECIATE HEARING FROM THE èC
P èC, WHO WILL PRESENT THE
GOVERNOR'S PROPOSAL. GOOD
MORNING CHAIR BECKER. WITH RED.
IT'S ON COUNTER INTUITIVE. OK
THANK YOU. GOOD MORNING. UH, MY
NAME IS RACHEL PETERSON. I'M THE
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE
CALIFORNIA PUBLIC UTILITIES
COMMISSION. VERY GOOD TO BE HERE
TO HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO
PRESENT TO YOU THIS MORNING. UM
ON A RANGE OF PROPOSALS THAT THE
èC P èC HAS IN OUR BUDGET
CHANGE PROPOSALS I HAVE WITH ME
DIRECTOR ROBERT OSBORNE FROM OUR
COMMUNICATIONS DIVISION. UM WHO
HAS BEEN WORKING ON THE
BROADBAND FOR ALL PROGRAMS
SINCE, UH, AT THE LEGISLATURE
PASSED S¼ B ONE. 56 YOU HAD
PROPOSED A FEW QUESTIONS UP
FRONT. I PREPARED REMARKS
RELATED TO YOUR QUESTIONS. IF
YOU LIKE I, I CAN GO THROUGH
THOSE ALSO, I CAN JUST TOUCH
BRIEFLY ON THE BUDGET CHANGE
PROPOSAL WE HAVE BEFORE YOU I
WON'T GET THE BUDGET CHANGE
PROPOSAL BEFORE FIRST AND THEN
WE GET TO SOME OF THE
DISCUSSIONS. SO REALLY, THERE
ARE, UM TWO CORE ELEMENTS THAT
WERE PROPOSING TO THE
LEGISLATURE THAT ARE PART OF THE
ADMINISTRATION'S BUDGET. ONE IS
THAT WE HAVE 46 POSITIONS THAT
WE PROPOSED IN FISCAL YEAR. UH,
I'LL GET 2021. THANK YOU, DAVID.
UM UH, THAT WE PROPOSED FIRST AS
LIMITED TERM POSITIONS AND WE'RE
COMING TO YOU NOW TO, UH,
PROPOSE THAT WE MAKE THEM
PERMANENT AND WE OFTEN DO THIS
AT THE èC P èC. WE DO A WALK,
THEN RUN APPROACH BECAUSE WE
NEED ESPECIALLY WITH A START UP
PROGRAM LIKE THIS. WE NEED TO
SEE WHETHER OR NOT THE WORK IS
GOING TO BE PERMANENT, AND WE'VE
BEEN WORKING AT SPEED ON
IMPLEMENTING S¼ B 156 SINCE 21.
AND HAVE REALIZED WITH ALL OF
THE COMPONENTS OF THE PROGRAM
THAT ARE GOING TO STRETCH NOT
JUST IN 2024, BUT WELL BEYOND
INTO THE FUTURE, THAT THIS IS
ACTUALLY PERMANENT WORKLOAD. AND
SO WE'VE PROPOSED CONVERTING
THOSE POSITIONS, UM, FROM
LIMITED TERM TO PERMANENT. THE
WE ALSO HAVE A SEPARATE, UM,
PROPOSAL ABOUT EXPANDING OUR
AUTHORITY TO DISTRIBUTE GRANTS
IN THE UM CALIFORNIA ADVANCED
SERVICES FUND. THIS IS A FUND
THAT IS PART OF THE OVERALL
BROADBAND FOR ALL INITIATIVE. WE
HAVE AUTHORITY TO COLLECT AND
ISSUE GRANTS UP TO 72 MILLION
NOW, AND WE'RE PROPOSING TO
EXPAND THAT GRANT MAKING
AUTHORITY UP TO 150 MILLION. UM
THAT ALLOWS US TO MAKE
INFRASTRUCTURE AND ADOPTION. UM
UH, GRANTS IN ORDER, UH TO AN
EXPANDED SET OF TECHNOLOGIES,
AND SO IT'S A COMPLIMENT BOTH
THE FEDERAL FUNDING ACCOUNT
PROGRAM AND THE BEAD BROADBAND
EQUITY ACCESS AND DEPLOYMENT
PROGRAM. THOSE ARE THE TWO CORE
PROPOSALS IN FRONT OF YOU, UH,
IN THIS PROPOSED BUDGET. THANK
YOU, UM SO THIS IS A VERY
IMPORTANT ISSUE WAS, YOU KNOW
HUGE PRIORITY OF THE LEGISLATURE
. A LOT OF MONEY, UM, AT STAKE
HERE AND OBVIOUSLY WE SAW DURING
THE PANDEMIC. UM HOW THE DIGITAL
DIVIDE? UM HAS NOT BEEN, YOU
KNOW, HAD NOT BEEN CLOSED
PREVIOUSLY AND THE REAL
REPERCUSSIONS ON ON STUDENTS,
PARTICULARLY, UM AND, UM, BUT
ALSO BROADLY AFFECTS OUR
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. UH, ACROSS
THE STATE. UM AND, UM ISSUE IN
MY OWN DISTRICT ON THE COAST.
UH, FOR SURE. ON THE CEMETERY
COAST. IT'S BEEN A BIG ISSUE FOR
MANY, MANY YEARS, SO I'LL JUST
START OUT SO THE BROADBAND FOR
ALL INITIATIVE. PROMISED TO
CLOSE THE DIGITAL FIGHT. THAT'S
SO HOW WAS INITIAL THREE YEARS
OF FUNDING PROGRESSED THE STATE
TO MEET THAT GOAL. YES THANK YOU
FOR THE QUESTION CHAIR AND I'LL
MY RESPONSE IS GONNA TOUCH ON
THREE, UM, KIND OF OVERALL IN,
UH, ASPECTS OF HOW THE FUNDING
IS WORKING. SO UH, FIRST I'LL
TOUCH ON THE START UP OF NEW,
PUBLIC ORIENTED INTERNET SERVICE
PROVIDERS. SECOND UM, OUR
GRANTMAKING ACROSS ALL OF OUR
PROGRAMS. ALL OF OUR ACCOUNTS
FOR THE UNSERVED. AND THIRD. UM
THERE'S A SIGNIFICANT TRIBAL,
UM, EFFORT GOING ON IN WHICH OUR
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE IS HELPING
TRIBES LEVERAGE MILLIONS IN
ADDITIONAL FEDERAL DOLLARS SO
BACK TO THE START UP OF NEW
PUBLIC ORIENTED I S¼ P S¼ SO S¼
P S¼ 156 SET A GOAL OF
INTRODUCING AND ASSISTING THE
START UP OF NEW, UM, ENTRANCE TO
THE BROADBAND MARKET. UM IN A
RECOGNITION, JUST AS YOU SAID,
CHAIR THAT THE INCUMBENT
PROVIDERS WERE NOT SERVING THE
UNSERVED AND HAD NÓ PLANS OR
BUSINESS PLANS TO DO SO. AND SO
THE LAW SPECIFICALLY TOLD US TO
MAKE SURE THAT NEW LOCAL
GOVERNMENTS, SPECIAL DISTRICTS,
JOINT POWERS, AGENCIES AND
TRIBES COULD ENTER THIS, UH,
MARKET AREA AND BECOME I S¼ P
S¼. WE STARTED THAT EFFORT WITH
THE LOCAL AGENCY TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE GRANT PROGRAM. IN THE
LAST THREE YEARS. WE ISSUED 106
GRANTS TO LOCAL THOSE TYPES OF
ENTITIES TO DO THE PLANNING AND
PREEN ENGINEERING WORK THAT THEY
NEEDED TO DO IN ORDER TO
IDENTIFY WHERE THEY COULD LOCATE
A NETWORK HOW THEY WOULD DESIGN
IT AND WHAT UNSERVED HOUSEHOLDS
THEY WOULD SERVE. THREE QUARTERS
OF THOSE, UM GRANTEES HAVE NOW
APPLIED TO THE MAIN FEDERAL
FUNDING ACCOUNT PROGRAM. UM IN
SEPTEMBER OF LAST YEAR, WE
RECEIVED THE FIRST TRANCHE OF
APPLICATIONS. THAT'S THIS IS THE
SECOND PRONG OF OUR STRATEGY. WE
RECEIVED 484 APPLICATIONS
TOTALING 4.6 BILLION IN, UM,
REQUESTS THREE QUARTERS OF THOSE
OF THOSE ORIGINAL PUBLIC
GRANTEES, UM, HAVE APPLIED FOR
THESE FUNDS, AND TOGETHER THEY
WOULD SERVE ABOUT 500,000
HOUSEHOLDS IF THEY ARE TO
RECEIVE AWARDS, SO WE'RE WELL
OVERSUBSCRIBED, BUT THE GOOD
NEWS THERE. THAT'S A GOOD NEWS
STORY IN ITSELF. UM BUT IT ALSO
DEMONSTRATES THAT THAT TECHNICAL
SINCE GRANT MAKING HAD THE
INTENDED EFFECT. ON MARCH 12TH
NEXT TUESDAY. WERE OPENING THE
LONE LOSS RESERVE PROGRAM. UH,
FOR ITS FIRST ROUND OF
APPLICATIONS, AND WE EXPECT TO,
UM, MAKE GRANTS IN THAT PROGRAM
BY, UH, MAY OR JUNE AND THAT'S
THE THIRD PRONG OF THIS STRATEGY
. LOAN LOSS RESERVE IS A CREDIT,
UH, ENHANCEMENT TOOL THAT ALLOWS
ALL OF THESE NEW ENTRANTS. A
GREATER SECURITY. UM IN ENTERING
THIS THIS AREA BECAUSE THEIR
FIRST TIME I S¼ P S¼, MANY OF
THEM IT THAT CREDIT ENHANCEMENT
WILL HELP THEM SECURE THE
FINANCING THEY NEED TO BUILD AND
OPERATE THESE NETWORKS. SO
THAT'S THE THREE PRONG STRATEGY
UNDER THE FEDERAL FUNDING
ACCOUNT, THE BROAD S¼ B 150. SIX
DESIGN. GREAT HAD ONE FARM
QUESTION. BUT I REALIZE I
NEGLECTED TO, UM GET COMMENTS
FROM, UH, FINANCE IN L A Ó
FIRST. SO, MR EVANS ANY
COMMENTS? DAVID EVANS DEPARTMENT
OF FINANCE. UM, I WOULD JUST
LIKE TO CLARIFY THAT 46 OF THE
POSITIONS FOR THE BROADBAND FOR
ALL, UM B èC P PROPOSAL. THESE
WERE POSITIONS THAT WERE ALREADY
MADE PERMANENT POSITIONS. UM,
AND THIS WAS THROUGH A CONTROL
SECTION 11.96 THE, UM AJ Ó B
èC NOTIFICATION WAS PROVIDED TO
THE LEGISLATURE AND IN 2022, AND
SO THESE POSITIONS ARE ALREADY
PERMANENT POSITIONS. THE REQUEST
IS TO MAKE 46 OUT OF THE 50
POSITIONS THAT ARE BEING
REQUESTED HERE TO HAVE PERMANENT
FUNDING. UM POSITIONS AND SO
THEY'RE ALREADY PERMANENT
POSITIONS. THERE ARE ALREADY
PEOPLE IN THE IN THIS ROLE AND
ALREADY DOING THIS WORK. UM, AND
THAT THE LEGISLATURE UM BELIEVE
THAT IT WAS, UM AND
DEMONSTRATION BELIEVE THAT WAS
ALSO ONGOING AND PERMANENT. UM
AND SO, UM, THE REQUEST IS TO
JUST HAVE A FUNDS TO PERMANENT
PERMANENTLY, UH, FUND THESE
POSITIONS. GOT IT. THANK YOU.
I'M FROM L, A Ó. GOOD MORNING,
BRIAN METZGER WITH THE
LEGISLATIVE ANALYST'S OFFICE. UM
ON THE PROPOSAL TO, UM MAKE THE
50 POSITIONS PERMANENT. UM, WE
FIND THAT SEVERAL OF THE
BROADBAND PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS
REQUIRE PERMANENT STAFF AND HAVE
LONG AND ONGOING IMPLEMENTATION
PERIODS AND THEREFORE WE
RECOMMEND APPROVAL OF THIS
PROPOSAL AS BUDGETED. I BELIEVE
THE ISSUE ALSO INCLUDES THE
GOVERNOR'S PROPOSED DELAYS AND
REDUCTIONS. UM THAT ARE A PART
OF THE GENERAL FUND SOLUTIONS
THAT ARE THAT ARE PART OF THE
BUDGET. UM SO THERE'S 100.
DOLLARS IN LAST MILE PROJECT
FUNDING THAT'S PROPOSED FOR
DELAY FROM 2024 25 TO 2627, AS
WELL AS A $250 MILLION REDUCTION
IN THE LOAN LOSS. RESERVE FUND
150 MILLION OF WHICH IS IN 2425
AND 100, MILLION OF WHICH IS IN
2526 ON THOSE, UM, BUDGET
SOLUTIONS. WE FIND THE PROPOSED
DELAY OF THE 100 MILLION TO BE
UNSUSTAINABLE IN 2026 27. UNDER
BOTH THE ADMINISTRATION AND OUR
OFFICES, REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE
PROJECTIONS AND THEREFORE THIS
DELAY COULD BE VIEWED REASONABLY
AS A REDUCTION. UM ALSO, WE FIND
THE PROPOSED REDUCTION OF 250
MILLION IN GENERAL FUND FROM THE
LOAN LOSS RESERVE FUND IS A
REASONABLE START. HOWEVER GIVEN
THE SERIOUS BUDGET PROBLEM
FACING THE STATE, WE RECOMMEND
THE LEGISLATURE CONSIDER OTHER
GENERAL FUND BUDGET SOLUTIONS
USING THE REMAINING BROADBAND
INFRASTRUCTURE FUNDING THAT'S
AVAILABLE. UM THIS IS
PARTICULARLY NOTABLE GIVEN THAT
THERE IS 1.86 BILLION IN
ADDITIONAL FEDERAL FUNDS THAT
ARE ANTICIPATED FROM THE
BROADBAND EQUITY ACCESS AND
DEPLOYMENT OR BEAD. UM AND SO,
UM, WE RECOMMEND THAT BASED ON
THAT THERE BE SOME
CONSIDERATIONS OF ADDITIONAL
REDUCTIONS. GOT JUST TO CLARIFY
YOU'RE SAYING BECAUSE OF THE 1.8
BILLION FEDERAL YOU THINK THERE
COULD BE ADDITIONAL REDUCTIONS
IN WHICH PART IN WHICH WE'RE
RECOMMENDING THAT, UM, THE $100
MILLION DELAY THAT'S IN THE
GOVERNOR'S BUDGET BE VIEWED AS A
REDUCTION GIVEN THE
UNSUSTAINABILITY OF THAT IN 2026
27, AND THAT THE LEGISLATURE
CONSIDER ADDITIONAL GENERAL FUND
. UM, REDUCTIONS TO, UM, LAST
MILE PROJECT FUNDING. GIVEN THAT
WE'RE HAVING, UM, WE'RE
ANTICIPATED TO RECEIVE A
SIGNIFICANT INFLUX OF ADDITIONAL
FEDERAL FUNDS. FROM THE BEAT
PROGRAM. AND IS A BEAT PROGRAM
PARTICULARLY COMPLEMENT LAST
MILE. AND HOW DOES THAT UH, YES,
IT YES, IT DOES, SENATOR. UM SO
OUR OUR ADMINISTRATION OF FIRST
LAST MILE AND THEN BEAD IS THAT
THE LAST MILE PROGRAM THAT THAT
THIS LEGISLATURE DESIGNED, UM,
IS REALLY INTENDED TO DISTRIBUTE
EQUITABLY TO EVERY COUNTY ACROSS
THE STATE. A CERTAIN ALLOCATION.
UM AND THOSE ARE THE ALLOCATIONS
THAT WE'RE PREPARING TO. UM WE
WE'RE ASSESSING. NOW WE'RE
PREPARING TO DISPERSE THE FIRST
TRANCHE OF THAT IN JUNE OF THIS
YEAR. IT IS A FIBER FOCUSED
PROGRAM. UM AND IT ALSO IS
INTENDED TO DO TO ACCOMPLISH
THOSE OTHER GOALS THAT I WAS
SPEAKING ABOUT, UH, BRING NEW
ENTRANCE IN THAT ARE PUBLICLY
MINDED, PUBLICLY ORIENTED
TOWARDS SERVING DISADVANTAGED
COMMUNITIES CONNECT TO THE
STATEWIDE MIDDLE MILE, UH,
NETWORK AND WITH A SPECIAL FOCUS
ON EQUITY AND MAKING SURE THAT
DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITIES ARE
SERVED. SO THAT'S S¼ B 156 BEAT
IS COMPLIMENTARY IN THE SENSE
THAT IT ALSO SEEKS TO ACHIEVE
UNIVERSAL SERVICE PER WHAT THE
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS SET OUT
FOR AS A GOAL OF THE PROGRAM. UM
BUT UNIVERSAL SERVICE HAS A
DIFFERENT DEFINITION FOR THE
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, AND, UM IT
ALSO IS AVAILABLE TO A WIDER
ARRAY OF TECHNOLOGIES, WHICH IS
ALSO A GOOD THING. IT'S NOT
FIBER FOCUSED IN THE SAME WAY.
SO COMPLIMENTARY IN THE SENSE
THAT AS S¼ B 156 ACCOMPLISHES
SERVICE TO THE UNSERVED. THOSE
WILL BE MOVED OFF THE TABLE FOR
BEE BEAD. THEN WE WANNA DIRECT
TO REMAINING COMMUNITIES THAT
STILL REQUIRE UNIVERSAL SERVICE.
AND WHERE A DIFFERENT UH, SUITE
OF TECHNOLOGIES CAN ADDRESS
THEIR NEEDS BETTER THAN UH,
PERHAPS S¼ B 156 COULD SO IT'S
COM WE'RE ADMINISTERING THE TWO
PROGRAMS. COMPLIMENTARY WAY. OK,
WELL, I'M SURE AND I KNOW MY I
KNOW SENATOR IS GONNA HAVE LOTS
OF QUESTIONS AND MY OTHER
COLLEAGUE, SO I'LL, UH, JUST
YOU. ONE MORE FOR NOW, UM YOU.
YOU MENTIONED UH, I JUST WHEN IT
WAS GONNA TRY TO GET A STATUS
UPDATE IN THE LAST MILE GRAM
PROGRAM, SO YOU YOU DID, UH,
MENTION THAT, UM AND I THINK YOU
SAID JUNE IS THE FIRST TRANCHE.
NOW, UM UM, OBVIOUSLY, THE
PLANNING IMPLEMENTATION PROCESS
HAS BEEN QUITE LENGTHY. SO WHAT?
LIKE WHAT? UM ONE OF THE MAIN
DRIVERS OF THAT LENGTHY PROCESS.
SURE I CAN GIVE YOU SOME CONTEXT
THERE. I JUST WANNA NOTE THAT AT
THE OUTSET, WE ARE NOT DELAYED.
UM YOU'RE CORRECT THAT IT'S BEEN
LENGTHY. BUT WHAT HAPPENED WAS
WE ACTUALLY FIELDED REQUESTS
FROM, UH, SOME OF THOSE NEW UM I
S¼ P S¼ IN THE IN LATE 2021 AND
2022 AS THEY BEGAN TO UNDERSTAND
OUR PLANNED TIMELINE FOR ISSUING
THOSE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
GRANTS, AND THEN MOVING TO THE
DISTRIBUTION OF THE F FA MONEY.
THEY ACTUALLY ASKED US IN THEIR
PUBLIC LETTERS ABOUT THIS. THEY
ACTUALLY ASKED US TO SLOW DOWN
BECAUSE THEY NEEDED MORE TIME IN
ORDER TO GET ALL OF THEIR
PLANNING AND PREP WORK DONE SO
THAT THEY COULD BE READY TO
SUBMIT A STRONG LAST MILE
NETWORK APPLICATION. AND SO
BASED ON THAT FEEDBACK, WE
SLOWED THE PROCESS DOWN. WE ALSO
RECEIVED ANOTHER PUBLIC LETTER
IN LATE LAST YEAR AS WE WERE
SETTING UP THE TIME. FOR THE DUE
PROCESS. OBJECTION AND REBUTTAL
THAT'S PERMITTED THAT'S REQUIRED
IN FRF FA PROGRAM. WE ACTUALLY
GOT LETTERS FROM PROVIDERS
ASKING US TO SLOW THAT PROCESS
DOWN BECAUSE THEY WANTED THE
OPPORTUNITY TO REVIEW ALL 484
APPLICATIONS, SUBMIT OBJECTIONS
AND WE ENDED UP RECEIVING ABOUT
1000 OBJECTIONS. AND THEN ON THE
ON THE NEXT PHASE, WHERE YOU
OFFER EVERYONE A CHANCE TO
SUBMIT REBUTTALS. WE HAD TO SLOW
THAT DOWN AS WELL ON QUÊ SO THAT
EVERYONE WOULD HAVE A CHANCE TO
RESPOND TO THOSE 1000
OBJECTIONS. SO YOU CAN SEE WE
HAVE BEEN. WE'VE BEEN PRESSING
THE TIMELINE FORWARD, BUT
EVERYBODY ALL THE PROVIDERS AND
POTENTIAL PROVIDERS WHO ARE
INVOLVED IN THIS PROGRAM
THEMSELVES HAVE WANTED US TO
TAKE A MEASURED APPROACH SO THAT
THEY ARE AS PREPARED AS POSSIBLE
AND THAT AND I DO THINK IN THE
END, IT'S GOING TO BE A GOOD
THING BECAUSE WE WILL, UM, BE
DELIVERING NETWORKS THAT ARE
TRULY TO UNSERVED LOCATIONS. AND
WE WILL HAVE, UM, GONE THROUGH
ALL THE OBJECTIONS AND REBUTTALS
THAT ALL OF THESE ENTITIES ARE
SUBMITTING TO US. OK. WELL,
THANK YOU. UM, I WILL HAVE SOME
FOLLOW UPS. PROBABLY, BUT WE'LL
START. UM, SEAL. THANK YOU. I
JUST HAVE, UM, A COUPLE OF
QUESTIONS, I. I AM WAITING
PATIENTLY. AND I KNOW THIS IS A
HUGE TASK. SO I DON'T WANNA BE
BELA THAT. UM BUT I JUST
YESTERDAY SIGNED ONTO A LETTER
OF, UM THAT WE'VE USED ALL
TECHNOLOGY. I KNOW THE FEDERAL
SIDE HAS A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT.
WE ON ON OUR ON THE STATE SIDE,
WE WENT TO FIBER AND THAT'S THAT
LAST MILE FOR FIBER IS VERY
EXPENSIVE AND HARD TO DO,
ESPECIALLY DISTRICTS LIKE MY
OWN. UM AND THERE'S I DON'T WANT
THE PERFECT TO GET IN THE WAY OF
THE GOOD BECAUSE THERE ARE
OPPORTUNITIES AND WE'VE SEEN IT
IN OTHER STATES, UH, WITH
DIFFERENT TECHNOLOGIES TO
ACTUALLY GET THE SAME AMOUNT OF
SERVICE WITHOUT HAVING TO GO
FIBER ALL THE WAY TO THE LAST
MILE, SO I JUST WANT I'M SURE
THAT'S ON YOUR RADAR. I HOPE I'M
HOPING IT IS THAT WE ARE
TECHNOLOGY NEUTRAL THAT WE WANT.
GET THE SERVICE OUT THERE THE
MOST EFFICIENT WAY AND TIMELY
THAT WE CAN. AND IF IT'S NOT
FIBER ALL THE WAY TO THE LAST
MILE, THEN SO BE IT IF IT STILL
WORKS BECAUSE I KNOW, UH, SOME
OF THE FOLKS THAT WERE IN MY
OFFICE OVER THE LAST WEEK, UM,
ARE SHOWING THE TECHNOLOGIES
THAT WORK, UM, WHERE WE GET TO
THE BACKBONE, THE MIDDLE MILE
AND WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO USE.
UH, YOU KNOW, UH, WIRELESS TO
THOSE LAST MILES AND THAT WOULD
DRIVE THE COST DOWN AND ALSO
SPEED UP THE PROCESS. UH AND IN
PLACES WHERE WE HAVE A LOT OF
MILES, LET'S JUST PUT IT THAT
WAY. DISTRICTS LIKE MINE. I
MEAN, I. I REPRESENT 15 COUNTIES
OF THIS STATE, AND A LOT OF THEM
ARE VERY SPREAD OUT LITTLE
COMMUNITIES OUT THERE WHO REALLY
DESPERATELY, UH, WILL CHANGE OUR
ECONOMIES. IF WE CAN GET THIS,
UH, INFRASTRUCTURE PUT IN, SO I
JUST WANNA MAKE THAT NOTE. AND
THEN IS THAT SOMETHING YOU'RE
LOOKING AT? IS THOSE OTHER
TECHNOLOGIES AND DO WE NEED TO
DO SOME CLEAN UP LEGISLATION
THAT WOULD ALLOW YOU USE NOT NOT
TO WOULD ALLOW YOU TO BE ABLE TO
USE THOSE TECHNOLOGIES BECAUSE
THE LEGISLATION WE HAVE SAYS
FIBER IN IT ON THE STATE SIDE.
THAT'S THE QUESTION I HAVE. YEAH
SO, SENATOR, I APPRECIATE THE
POINT AND THE QUESTION AND YOU
KNOW, CALIFORNIA ACTUALLY ON THE
ENERGY SIDE AS WELL HAS ALWAYS
BENEFITED FROM BEING TECHNOLOGY
NEUTRAL, AND SO WE VERY MUCH ARE
ARE IN THE SAME MINDSET. I'LL
NOTE JUST TO START THAT THE TWO
COMPLIMENTARY PROGRAMS, BEAD AND
CAF ARE BOTH TECHNOLOGY NEUTRAL
AND INCLUDE TECHNOLOGIES LIKE
FIXED WIRELESS, WHICH I BELIEVE
YOU'VE SAID SERVES PART OF YOUR
YOUR DISTRICT. UM AND WE JUST
MADE A FEW GRANTS IN THE LAST
FEW MONTHS IN UNDER èC F FOUR
PROJECTS. THEY'RE FURTHER SOUTH
THAN YOUR DISTRICT, BUT, UM,
THEY ARE FOR FIXED WIRELESS BOTH
LAST MILE AND THE PROVIDERS
PROVIDING THEIR OWN MIDDLE MILE
USING FIXED WIRELESS TECHNOLOGY.
SO èC A S¼ F IS ACTIVELY MAKING
GRANTS, UM TO A WIDER ARRAY OF
TECHNOLOGIES. AND THEN, AS WE'VE
ALL NOTED, BEAT IS AVAILABLE AS
WELL. I'LL JUST COMMENT THAT AN
UNDER SB 156 GIVEN THAT WE ARE
NOT EVEN MIDSTREAM, WE'RE
ACTUALLY SLIGHTLY PAST MIDSTREAM
. IN TERMS OF OUR GRANT MAKING.
IT WOULD BE A LITTLE DISRUPTIVE
RIGHT NOW TO MOVE AWAY FROM THE
FIBER FOCUS. UM SO I, I JUST
WOULD SUBMIT IT'S BECAUSE WE'RE
SO FAR ALONG IN BRINGING THOSE
LAST MILE NETWORKS TO FRUITION
THAT FIBER, UM REMAINS KIND OF
THE PRIORITIZED TECHNOLOGY
THERE. IS BECAUSE OF THE
LEGISLATION. HAVE WE SEEN ANY OF
THE BIG PLAYERS IN THIS AREA?
THE HORIZONS AND THE OTHER
INFRASTRUCTURE PE PEOPLE THAT
HAVE INFRASTRUCTURE COME TO THE
TABLE AND ACTUALLY START BECAUSE
ORIGINALLY, THEY WERE LIKE NÓ.
WE'RE NOT GONNA LET YOU GET ON
OUR ON OUR, UH, FOR EXAMPLE. WE
THERE'S A MAIN LINE THAT GOES
ALL THE WAY FROM CALIFORNIA TO
WASHINGTON UP THE I FIVE AND I
AND MY COMMUNITY IT GOES RIGHT
THROUGH THE COMMUNITIES BURIED
FIBER. AND WE CAN'T GET ON IT
BECAUSE THEY JUST DON'T WANT TO
SERVE US AND THAT'S ONE OF THE
REASONS WE DID THE LEGISLATION
AND SAID WE'RE GOING TO PUT THE
FIBER IN SO WE CAN ACTUALLY GET
IT DONE. ARE THEY COMING TO THE
TABLE AT ALL IN THIS IN THROUGH
THIS PROCESS BECAUSE WE FORCED
THEIR HAND, BASICALLY, BY
PASSING THE LEGISLATION AND
GETTING THE, UH, REINVESTMENT
MONEY IS COMING. YES SO, UM,
I'LL GIVE A LITTLE BIT AND THEN,
UH, ROB WILL BE ABLE TO ADD SOME
DETAIL BECAUSE HE'S CLOSER TO
THE OBJECTION AND REBUTTAL
PROCESS. UM ONE PROVIDER A Tð
AND Tð DID SUBMIT A LARGE NUMBER
OF APPLICATIONS AND THEN WE DO
KNOW THAT SOME OF THE OTHER
INCUMBENT PROVIDERS HAVE
SUBMITTED APPLICATIONS AS WELL.
NOW TO YOUR QUESTION ABOUT
WHETHER OR NOT SEPARATELY THERE,
UM, ENABLING IMPROVED ACCESS TO
THEIR OWN FIBER I'M GONNA
ACTUALLY ASK ROB TO THAT. YEAH I
THINK RIGHT NOW OUR MAIN FOCUS
IS GETTING LAST MILE PROVIDERS
ONTO THE MIDDLE MILE. UM BUT
THAT DOESN'T PRECLUDE A LAST
MILE APPLICANT FROM GOING TO A
VERIZON OR ANOTHER COMPANY TO
GET MIDDLE MILE ACCESS. OK?
DOESN'T PRECLUDE BUT WHETHER THE
BUT THEY'RE DOING IT OR NOT.
YEAH I MEAN, THE GOAL WAS TO TRY
TO YOU KNOW IF YOU HAVE IF YOU
OWN ALL THE INFRASTRUCTURE, AND
THEY AND THEY AND IF FROM MY, UM
GETTING EDUCATED MORE ON THE
SUBJECT. THEY DON'T REALLY WANT
YOU TO HAVE THEY. THEY WANT TO
PUT EVERYBODY ON CELL THERE
BECAUSE THEN THEY'RE OUT OF YOUR
REALM AND THEY'RE ON THEIR OWN
AND THEY CAN GO DO WHAT THEY
WANT. UM THAT'S MY OPINION. THEY
DON'T SAY THAT, BUT I I'VE BEEN
WITNESSING SO THEY IT'S BEEN
DIFFICULT TO FORCE THEM TO BE
ABLE TO ACCESS THEIR NETWORK
WHEN IT'S RIGHT IN YOUR BACKYARD
SOMETIMES AND THEN WE'RE GOING
IN AND PUTTING ANOTHER LINE
RIGHT NEXT TO IT. SO WE CAN GET
ACCESS THAT'S JUST DOESN'T MAKE
SENSE, AND IT'S HARD TO GET MY
MIND AROUND FOR THOSE PEOPLE WHO
ARE SUFFERING OUT THERE. THAT
WOULD THAT WOULD CHANGE
COMMUNITIES IF YOU HAVE THE
INFRASTRUCTURE IN PLACE, SO
THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS
OR COMMENTS. ALL RIGHT. WELL,
THANK YOU. UM I. I JUST HAVE A
COUPLE OTHER, UH, LAST ONES. I
DO THINK THAT UH, SOME OF THE
POINTS RAISED WERE IMPORTANT. UM
AND I. I JUST, I GUESS, SORT OF
CLARIFY WHEN YOU SAY SURE IT IS.
TECHNOLOGY NEUTRAL, BUT F IS
PRIORITIZED. I MEAN, WHAT? WHAT
DOES THAT MEAN? EXACTLY IT MEANS
YOU ARE STILL CONSIDERING OTHER
TECHNOLOGIES FOR CERTAIN AREA A
CERTAIN DEPLOY, YOU KNOW
CERTAIN. UH LEGS OF THIS. YEAH
THANK YOU. CHAIR SO UNDER THAT
PROGRAM, SB 156. I BELIEVE THAT
NEARLY ALL OF THE APPLICATIONS
HAVE PROPOSED FIBER. AM I RIGHT
ON THAT? YES. YEAH SO BECAUSE OF
THE WAY THE PROGRAM WAS DESIGNED
, UM THE APPLICANTS HAVE
PRIORITIZED FIBER. I MEAN, FIBER
IS THE GOLD STANDARD AND THE
MOST FUTURE PROOFED, AND SO IF
THERE'S IF THEY'RE SUCCESSFUL,
THEY WILL WANT TO BRING FIBER TO
THEIR LAST MILE NETWORKS. NOW IN
CALIFORNIA, ADVANCED SERVICES
FUND AND BEAD. THOSE ARE THE
ONES WHERE AN ARRAY OF
TECHNOLOGIES CAN BE PROPOSED AND
DEPLOYED. AND WE'VE BEEN DOING
ACTIVE GRANT MAKING UNDER èC A
èC A S¼ F ALREADY, UM, TO
DEPLOY OTHER TECHNOLOGIES LIKE
FIXED WIRELESS. SO FOR THAT 1.8
BILLION FROM BEAD THAT COULD
THAT IS TECHNOLOGY NEUTRAL IN
TERMS OF THE APPROACH. OKAY, I
THINK I'VE GOT IT. UM UH, LET'S
SEE, UM THE QUESTION HERE. ABOUT
HOW THE COMMISSION INTENDS TO
ENGAGE WITH THE LEGISLATURE IN
ADMINISTERING THE BEAD. PROGRAM
IS THAT SOMETHING YOU CAN YOU
CAN GET SOME COMMENT ON? YES UM
SO TO START OFF I WANNA SAY THAT
WE'RE HAPPY TO TAKE FEEDBACK
FROM THIS COMMITTEE FROM THE
LEGISLATURE, UM, ON
ADMINISTERING BEAD THERE. UM IT
IS ACTUALLY ALREADY A PUBLIC
PROCESS A PUBLIC PROCEEDING TO
STAND FOR AGAIN. I'M GLAD YOU
ASKED. I ALWAYS ACTUALLY HAVE
STRUGGLED WITH THE ACRONYM
BROADBAND EQUITY ACCESS AND
DEPLOYMENT. I BE TO SO MUCH.
THAT'S WHY I GO THERE. UM BUT
YOU CAN HEAR EMBEDDED IN THE
NAME EQUITY ACCESS DEPLOYMENT.
YOU KNOW, THOSE ARE THE THREE
KIND OF CORE THINGS THAT THE
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT AND WE ARE
TRYING TO ACHIEVE. UM SO FOR THE
COMMISSION, UM, LIKE COMMISSIONS
AROUND THE COUNTRY BECAUSE WE'RE
A PUBLIC UTILITY COMMISSION WHEN
WE ARE ADMINISTRATING
ADMINISTERING A PROGRAM LIKE
THIS. WE NEED TO HAVE AN OPEN
PROCEEDING SO THAT ANY DECISIONS
THAT REQUIRE COMMISSION APPROVAL
CAN BE FED UP TO THE
COMMISSIONERS AND, UM AND
PROPOSE ON AN AGENDA AND
APPROVED. AND SO AND DOZENS,
POSSIBLY UP TO 100. STAKEHOLDERS
ARE PARTICIPATING IN THAT
PROCESS. AND AS YOU KNOW,
SENATOR, WE, UM ACTUALLY HAVE
LEGISLATORS OFTEN DO PARTICIPATE
IN OUR PROCEEDINGS. AND SO WE
WELCOME THAT ENGAGEMENT THERE.
UM, THE FEDERAL I WILL NOTE THAT
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS A LOT
OF, UM, GOALS AND CRITERIA FOR
BEAT AS WELL. AND SO WE'RE
NAVIGATING THE FACT THAT THE
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS VERY
INVOLVED IN REVIEWING OUR
INITIAL PROPOSAL. WE ACTUALLY
HAVEN'T HEARD FORMALLY FROM THEM
YET ABOUT OUR PROPOSALS. THAT'S
WHY THE ALLOCATION IS AS YET TO
BE DELIVERED AS WELL. UM AND
JUST SO NOTING THAT THE, UM WE
HAVE A LOT OF CRITERIA. TO MEET
UNDER THAT ARE SET OUT IN THE
NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY
FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. OK,
WELL, THAT MAKES SENSE IN THE
ROLE AS YOU SAY, AS A PUBLIC, UH
, COMMISSION BUT APPRECIATE YOUR
WILLINGNESS TO ENGAGE GOING
FORWARD BECAUSE IT IS A TR
AMOUNT OF MONEY AND WE'LL BE
VERY INTERESTED IN IN HOW THAT,
UM IS SPENT, UM I GUESS. MAYBE
LAST YEAR FOR LEO. UM WHAT IS
ELLIOT RECOMMEND AS AN
ALTERNATIVE TO THE BUDGET
CONTROL SECTION PROCESS FOR
BEING WHAT TYPES OF INFORMATION
DO YOU THINK WE SHOULD REQUEST
FROM THE èC PU èC FOR
LEGISLATIVE OVERSIGHT? UM SURE.
THANK YOU FOR THE QUESTION. UM,
AND JUST TO CLARIFY, UM THE OUR
UNDERSTANDING IS THAT èC PUC
èC WILL USE A BUDGET CONTROL
SECTION TO RECEIVE THE BEAT
PROGRAM FUNDING. UM THERE IS A
NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENT. THAT'S
A PART OF THAT PROCESS. UM BUT
WE RECOMMEND THAT THE
LEGISLATURE CONSIDER AN
ALTERNATIVE LIKE PROVISIONAL
BUDGET BILL LANGUAGE OR TRAILER
BILL LANGUAGE THAT ACTUALLY
DICTATES WHAT INFORMATION THE
LEGISLATURE WOULD LIKE TO
RECEIVE ABOUT THE FUNDING THAT
COULD INCLUDE THINGS SUCH AS
WHAT CONDITIONS ARE PLACED ON
THE FUNDING BY NATIONAL
TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND
INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION, AS
WELL AS ANY CHANGES THAT WOULD
BE REQUIRED FOR STATE
ADMINISTERED PROCESSES. UM, AND
THAT COULD BE DONE AGAIN THROUGH
BUDGET BILL LANGUAGE THAT SAYS
ANY AMOUNT ADDITIONAL TO WHAT IS
APPROPRIATED HERE WOULD BE
SUBJECT TO A CERTAIN, UH, SET OF
REQUIREMENTS. OK? RIGHT? UM GOOD
. LISTEN I GOT SOMETHING WE WILL
FOLLOW UP ON. UM EXCELLENT.
WELL, THANK YOU. CRITICALLY
IMPORTANT, UH, PROGRAM AND
EXCITING THAT YOU KNOW WE'RE
GONNA IT SOUNDS LIKE WE WILL
EXPECT TO SEE A LOT OF PROGRESS
THIS YEAR. UM AH, GOOD. WELL,
THERE'S TWO OTHER ISSUES. WANNA
DIVE DEEP INTO, UM, THE NEXT ONE
IS GONNA BE THE INTERVIEW IN OUR
COMPENSATION. UH, PROGRAM CLAIMS
SUPPORT AND ON THAT ONE. AS WE
GET THE APPROPRIATE FOLKS UP
HERE, WE'D, UM LOVE TO HEAR.
FROM YOU, DIRECTOR PETERSON OR
WHOEVER IS APPROPRIATE ON ON
THAT? YEAH. I FLY SOLO ON THIS
ONE CHAIR, OK? UM, HAPPY TO TAKE
YOUR QUESTIONS. UM GREAT. IS
THERE UM I CAN GO THROUGH THE
YOUR PROPOSALS IF YOU'D LIKE.
YEAH. IS THERE? UH, THE UH,
PROPOSAL FIRST? YEAH. HAPPY TO
SORRY. UM SO THE INTERVENOR
COMPENSATION PROGRAM WE WERE
AWARDED SIX POSITIONS IN FISCAL
YEAR. 2223 YES. THANK YOU,
DAVID. UM AND OF THOSE SIX
POSITIONS WERE PERMANENT AT THE
OUTSET AND TWO WERE LIMITED
TERM. THE PROPOSAL WERE COMING
TO YOU, NOW WITH IS TO MAKE
THOSE LAST TWO POSITIONS THEY
ASSOCIATE PROGRAM, GOVERNMENT
ANALYST POSITIONS, CONVERT THEM
TO LIMITED TERM FROM LIMITED
TERM TO PERMANENT, I THINK, UM,
GIVEN ALL THE DIALOGUE AROUND
INTERVENOR COMPENSATION, IT IS
PRETTY CLEAR THAT THAT WORKLOAD
IS PERMANENT AND ONGOING, AND
THAT IS WHAT UM, BRINGS US TO
THAT PROPOSAL TO YOU TODAY, SO
IT'S A SMALL A VERY SMALL BUT WE
HOPE VERY EFFECTIVE REQUEST.
GREAT. ANY COMMENTS FROM MR
EVANS TALKING TO FANS. DAVID
EVANS DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE. UM
NÓ ADDITIONAL COMMENTS. OK,
GREAT. AND, UM WITH LEO. UM YEAH
. SARAH CT WITH THE LEGISLATIVE
ANALYST OFFICE. SO JUST JUST FOR
SOME CONTEXT, YOU ARE ALL ARE
PROBABLY FAMILIAR, BUT, UM, THE
INTERVENER COMPENSATION PROGRAM,
UH, PROVIDES COMPENSATION FOR
PARTIES THAT INTERVENE IN èC P
èC PROCEEDINGS AND WE RECOMMEND
THE LEGISLATURE APPROVE THIS
PROPOSAL WHICH SHOULD HELP THE
èC PU èC, UM, ADDRESS A
BACKLOG OF UNRESOLVED CLAIMS AND
LENGTHY PROCESSING DELAYS. SO AS
DIRECTOR PETERSON NOTED, THE èC
P èC HAS STRUGGLED. TO FILL
THESE TWO POSITIONS THAT WERE
GRANTED AS UM, TEMPORARY BECAUSE
BECAUSE THEY WERE BECAUSE OF
THEIR TEMPORARY NATURE. UM AND
THE ADDITION OF SEVERAL, UH,
PERMANENT STAFF A COUPLE OF
YEARS AGO HAS HELPED THE PU èC
REDUCE THAT BACKLOG OF
UNPROCESSED CLAIMS, BUT THERE
ARE STILL SOME SUBSTANTIAL
DELAYS AND THE èC P èC IS
STILL NOT CLOSE TO MEETING THAT
75 DAY. STATUTORY REQUIRED
TIMELINE FOR, UM FOR RESOLVING
CLAIMS, SO WE RECOMMEND THE
LEGISLATURE APP. THIS POSITION
AUTHORITY BUT REQUIRE THAT THE
èC P èC REPORT BACK, UM,
DURING THE BUDGET HEARINGS NEXT
YEAR. REGARDING ITS PROGRESS, UM
ON RESOLVING THE BACKLOG AND ITS
TIMELINES WITH ITS CLAIMS
PROCESSING, AND IF THE èC PU
èC IS STILL STRUGGLING TO
RESOLVE CLAIMS IN A TIMELY
MANNER CONSISTENT WITH STATUTORY
REQUIREMENTS, THE LEGISLATURE
MIGHT WANNA CONSIDER PROVIDING
ADDITIONAL STAFFING RESOURCES.
UM, AT THAT TIME. OK UH, GOOD.
WELL IT DOES SOUND LIKE THOSE
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES ARE NEEDED.
I DID WANT TO TAKE THIS
OPPORTUNITY TO ASK A FEW
QUESTIONS. UM ABOUT THIS BECAUSE
NUMBER ONE. IT'S OUR
UNDERSTANDING THAT A COALITION
OF èC P èC, UH, INTERVENERS
HAVE REQUESTED THAT A WORKSHOP
BE HELD TO DISCUSS PRACTICES.
UH, CURRENT PRACTICES WHEN
COMPILING AND PROCESSING CLAIMS.
UM NEW COMMENT WHAT STEPS HAVE
BEEN TAKEN TO SCHEDULE AND PLAN
FOR THAT KIND OF WORKSHOP. UH,
THANK YOU. CHAIR THANKS FOR THE
OPPORTUNITY TO TALK ABOUT THIS
VERY IMPORTANT PROGRAM. AND I
REALLY APPRECIATE L A Ó S¼, UM,
COMMENTS ON IT AS WELL. UM SO,
UH, JUST TO START PRESIDENT
ALICE REYNOLDS HAS MADE THIS AN
ORGANIZATION PRIORITY FOR US TO
REDUCE THE QUEUE OF INTERVENOR
COMPENSATION CLAIMS. UM AND SO
THAT ACCELERATION THAT UM UH,
SARAH POINTED OUT IS BECAUSE OUR
ADMINISTRATIVE JUDGE DIVISION
HAS BEEN ABLE TO PLACE MORE
RESOURCES ON WORKING ON THE
QUEUE. AND IN ADDITION, WE HAVE
BEEN ABLE TO HIRE INTO THE
PERMANENT POSITIONS AND THOSE
FOLKS ARE TRAINED AND UP AND
RUNNING. AND OUR PROCESSING
CLAIMS. I ALSO WANT TO POINT OUT
THAT IT IS A COMPLEX. PROCESS
THE WORD PROCESS I THINK DOESN'T
DO IT. JUSTICE. THE COMMISSION.
AS YOU WELL KNOW, CHAIR THE
COMMISSION REACHES COMPLEX
DECISIONS ON FIVE DIFFERENT
REGULATED INDUSTRIES TO RIGHT
NOW, THE COMMISSION IS ABOUT TO
START A VOTING MEETING EASILY.
WE HAVE 50 TO 60 ITEMS ON EVERY
BUSINESS MEETING AGENDA. UM
WITHIN THE COMPLEX DECISIONS, I
WOULD SAY OFTEN WE HAVE 8 TO 15
PARTIES PARTICIPATING. WHEN AN
ANALYST RECEIVES A REQUEST FOR
COMPENSATION AFTER A DECISION IS
COMPLETE. THEY ARE ESSENTIALLY
SAYING TO US PLEASE RECOGNIZE
THAT I THAT OUR PARTY MADE A
SUBSTANTIAL CONTRIBUTION TO THIS
DECISION. SO AN ANALYST TAKES
100 PAGE 150 PAGE, COMPLEX
POLICY FINANCIAL REGULATORY
DECISION. TAKES WHAT THAT, UM
INTERVENOR HAS SAID THEY
CONTRIBUTED. GOES THROUGH THAT
DECISION IN ORDER TO FIND OUT
AND DETERMINE WHETHER THAT
SUBSTANTIAL CONTRIBUTION HAS
BEEN MADE. WE NEED TO BE
RIGOROUS. THAT IS RATEPAYER
FUNDS THAT ARE SUPPORTING THE
PROGRAM. I VERY MUCH VALUE THE
INTERVENOR COMPENSATION PROGRAM
BECAUSE IT BRINGS SUCH A
DIVERSITY AND A SOPHISTICATION
OF PARTIES TO US TO CONTRIBUTE
TO OUR DECISIONS, BUT THEY ARE
BEING PAID RATEPAYER DOLLARS.
AND SO IT IS OUR JOB TO MAKE
SURE THAT WHAT THEY CLAIM IS
ACTUALLY BEING REPRESENTED AND
WAS, IN FACT A SUBSTANTIAL
CONTRIBUTION TO THE DECISION.
ALL OF THAT IS BEING ALL OF THAT
WORK IS BEING PERFORMED BY
JUDGES AND ANALYSTS, AND SO YOU
WANT IT TO BE RIGOROUS. YOU WANT
US TO TAKE TAKE, UH, THE
APPROPRIATE AMOUNT OF CARE IN
LOOKING AT THESE DECISIONS. ALL
OF THAT IS TO SAY NOW TO YOUR
QUESTION, SENATOR BECAUSE THE
PRESIDENT HAS MADE THIS AN
ORGANIZATIONAL PRIORITY TO WORK
ON THE QUEUE. THAT IS WHERE
RESOURCES ARE FOCUSED. IF WE,
UM, DECIDE TO HOLD A WORKSHOP.
WE APPRECIATE THE FACT THAT
STAKEHOLDERS HAVE SUGGESTED THIS
HOLDING A WORKSHOP MEANS HOLDING
A WORKSHOP TAKING COMMENT,
TAKING REPLY COMMENTS AND THEN
GOING THROUGH, UM, A PUBLIC
PROCESS IN ORDER TO DETERMINE
WHETHER OR NOT TO MAKE ANY
CHANGES TO PROCESS OR PROCEDURE.
THOSE ARE WOULD BE THE SAME
PEOPLE WHO ARE RIGHT NOW WORKING
ON PROCESSING THOSE CLAIMS. AND
SO FOR THE MOMENT AS PRESIDENT
REYNOLDS HAS DIRECTED US, WE ARE
PRIORITIZING WORKING ON THAT
QUEUE. UM UH, ALL THE PEOPLE WE
CAN WE CAN DEVOTE TO THAT QUEUE
AND WE WILL ABSOLUTELY CONSIDER
HOLDING A WORKSHOP. BUT WE'RE
PRIORITIZING AT THE MOMENT.
UM GREAT WINNER. UNDERSTAND WELL
, OBVIOUSLY, WE NEED TO GET YOU.
UM AND I'M SUPPORTIVE OF GETTING
SUPPORT TO, UM FOR THE FOLKS YOU
SAY TO FOCUS ON THE CLAIMS AND
REDUCE THE BACKLOG. UM BUT, UM
YEAH, FROM MY UNDERSTANDING. MY
DISCUSSION DOES SEEM LIKE THAT
WORKSHOP. WOULD, UH, YOU KNOW,
BE HELPFUL, AND HOPEFULLY WE CAN
, YOU KNOW, FIGURE OUT A WAY
OVER TIME TO DO BOTH, UM, TO
HAVE THAT WITHOUT, YOU KNOW,
SLOWING DOWN. THE PROCESS. UH,
YOU DID MENTION I THINK THAT THE
PROCESS HAS ACCELERATED IN
RECENT MONTHS, AND WHEN YOU WERE
MENTIONED A COUPLE CHANGES. WHAT
WERE THE CHANGES? YOU THINK THAT
ATTRIBUTE TO MOVING FASTER? IT'S
ALL ABOUT STAFFING. UM, IT IS
ABOUT HAVING BEEN ABLE TO HIRE
INTO THOSE PERMANENT POSITIONS.
WE FIND THAT IT TAKES THREE OR
FOUR MONTHS FOR SOMEONE TO GET
TRAINED. AS YOU KNOW, WE DEAL IN
COMPLICATED MATTERS. AND SO YOU
CAN'T NÓ ONE CAN JUST DROP IN
AND ASSESS. UM, AN INTERVENORS
CLAIM AGAINST A PROPOSED
DECISION, SO WE KNOW IT TAKES
THREE OR FOUR MONTHS FOR THEM TO
GET TRAINED. WE'VE WE, UH, WERE
ABLE TO HIRE LAST YEAR. THOSE
FOLKS ARE TRAINED AND, UM, ARE
WORKING AWAY IF YOU CAN TELL US
ABOUT THE SUPERVISION AND OR
CONTROLS TO MAKE SURE THERE'S
CONSISTENT CONSISTENCY. SURE
YEAH, SO, UM, THERE'S A THERE'S
A UNIT. YOU KNOW, AS WE PROPOSED
IN OUR, UM 2223. THERE'S A
MANAGER, AND THERE ARE ANALYSTS
WHO ARE, UH, THE UNIT WORKING ON
THESE CLAIMS. THE MANAGER IS
RESPONSIBLE, LIKE ALL MANAGERS
ARE FOR MAKING SURE THAT FOLKS
ARE MAKING PROGRESS ON THEIR
DELIVERABLES, UM, COMPARING, UH,
NOTES, KEEPING A KIND OF A
STANDARD DECISION BANK SO THAT
WE MAKE SURE THAT, UM UH UH.
SORRY UH, RESULTS ARE CONSISTENT
. AND UM, JUST, YOU KNOW,
RESPONSIBLE FOR MAKING SURE THE
UNIT IS DELIVERING. YOU ARE
THERE PLANS TO REVISIT THE
HANDBOOK. MY UNDERSTAND WAS THE
HANDBOOK HASN'T BEEN UPDATED IN
A WHILE. THE INTERVENOR
COMPETITION HANDBOOK. SO AT THE
MOMENT, UM, THAT WOULD ACTUALLY
GO IN THE SAME CATEGORY AS A
WORKSHOP TO MY MIND. IT'S AGAIN.
UH, ANYTIME WE DO SOMETHING, WE
TRY TO DO IT IN A TRANSPARENT
AND PUBLIC WAY. AND SO IT WOULD
REQUIRE, UH, DEVELOPING A, UH,
POTENTIAL PROPOSED CHANGES,
PROBABLY HOLDING A WORKSHOP,
TAKING COMMENT, TAKING REPLY,
COMMENT AND COMING OUT WITH A
REVISED VERSION AT THE MOMENT.
FOCUSED ON THE QUEUE WILL
DEFINITELY TAKE THAT INTO
CONSIDERATION, THOUGH. UM
LASTLY, THE EXTENT THAT POLICIES
REGARDING AWARD COMPENSATION
HAVE BEEN OTHER CHANGED
INTERNALLY OR NEWLY APPLIED, UM
CAN YOU COME IF YOU PROVIDE
INTERVENERS WITH AN OPPORTUNITY
TO UPDATE CLAIMS FILED BEFORE?
TO CHANGE. SO I TO MY THERE HAVE
NOT BEEN ANY STATUTORY CHANGES
TO THE ICOM STATUTE. NOR HAVE WE
INTRODUCED ANY POLICY CHANGES,
SO I'M NOT, UM I SAW THAT
QUESTION, AND I'M NOT CERTAIN
WHAT IT IT'S IN REFERENCE TO UM,
BUT, YOU KNOW AGAIN, SAME SAME
PROCESS. IF WE WERE TO TRY TO
UPDATE PROCEDURES, WE'D ISSUE A
PROPOSAL. TAKE COMMENT, ET
CETERA. UM AS FAR AS, UH, FOLKS
BEING ABLE TO TAKE A WHAT
HAPPENS IS UM, WHEN WE ARE
PROPOSING IT'S INEFFECTIVE,
PROPOSED DECISION ON A CLAIM
THAT IS ISSUED 30 DAYS AHEAD OF
THE VOTING MEETING WHERE THE
COMMISSIONERS VOTE ON IT. THEY
VOTE ON 2025 CLAIMS. EVERY
MEETING, UM THAT ONCE IT'S
ISSUED PUBLICLY, THE INTERVENOR
OR ANYONE ELSE HAS A CHANCE TO
COMMENT ON THE PROPOSED DECISION
ON THAT CLAIM. SO THERE IS THAT
MOMENT OF TRANSPARENCY WHEN THEY
GET TO, UM, SAY UH, PRESENT
THEIR COMMENTS. OK, GOOD. YEAH
IT'S MORE. JUST MAKE SURE THAT
IF YOU MAKE ANY CHANGES THAT
THERE'S THAT THAT THERE IS THAT,
UM, OPPORTUNITY TO UPDATE
CLAIMS. YOU KNOW, I APPRECIATE
THAT. THANKS UM, GOOD. UM, MY
COLLEAGUE, CHRISTIAN CENTER,
ALLEN. YEAH, THANK YOU. UM, YOU
KNOW, I'M GETTING INTERESTED IN
THIS ISSUE. I I'VE I'VE SPENT A
LITTLE TIME LOOKING INTO IT AND
III. I WAS LISTENING CAREFULLY
TO YOUR, UM YOUR ANSWERS. UH,
I'D LOVE JUST A BETTER, UH I. I
DON'T KNOW THE EXTENT TO WHICH
YOU CAN PROVIDE MORE DETAILS AS
TO HOW THE CLAIMS ARE ASSESSED.
I MEAN, YOU TALKED ABOUT THERE'S
A NUANCE AND DELIBERATIVE
PROCESS, WHICH MAKES TOTALLY
SENSE. TOTAL SENSE. I, I GUESS.
DO WE HAVE I MEAN SOME CONCRETE
CRITERIA THAT ARE USED TO, UH,
TO DETERMINE IF YOU KNOW
CONTRIBUTIONS ARE SUBSTANTIAL.
UH, I I'M SURE IT'S A FACT
BASED, DID YOU SOMEWHAT
ADJUDICATORY PROCESS, BUT UM YOU
KNOW WHAT? WHAT IS THE WHAT IS
THE ASSESSMENT PROCESS LOOK LIKE
EXACTLY SURE, SURE. UM SO FIRST
OFF, THE STATUTE ITSELF IS
ACTUALLY PRETTY INSTRUCTIVE
BECAUSE IT IS A VERY, UM IT'S A
DETAILED STATUTE AND IDENTIFIES
THE CATEGORIES OF WHO IS
PERMITTED TO BE AN INTERVENOR ON
WHAT BASIS AND THEN IT
IDENTIFIES SUBSTANTIAL
CONTRIBUTION. FOR US IF YOU'VE,
UM OUR DECISIONS. THANK YOU,
SENATOR. UM AFTER THANK YOU,
SENATOR DOLLY. UM THE COMMISSION
DECISIONS AFTER THE BODY OF THE
DECISION THAT DISCUSSES SORT OF,
UH, WHAT'S THE POLICY? WHAT IS
THE REGULATORY? UH,
DETERMINATION HERE? IT'S
FOLLOWED BY IT WITHIN THAT
DISCUSSION. WHAT YOU'LL NOTICE
IS THAT OUR METHOD OF BRINGING
IN THAT INTERVENOR PARTICIPATION
IS TO SAY. THIS INTERVENOR
PROPOSED THAT WE TREAT THIS
ISSUE IN THE FOLLOWING WAY. AND
THEN AT THE END OF THAT
DISCUSSION, IT'LL SAY WE AGREE.
WE DISAGREE. WHEN WE'RE
ANALYZING A CLAIM AND PART OF
WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR, IN THAT
DECISION IS TO SEE THOSE MOMENTS
WHERE WE AGREE, AND THEN THAT
FLOWS INTO THE FINDINGS AND THE
CONCLUSIONS AND FINALLY THE
ORDERS IN THE DECISION. THAT'S
THE CORE ELEMENT OF WHERE YOU
CAN LOCATE A SUBSTANTIAL
CONTRIBUTION. SO TO ANSWER YOUR
QUESTION. THOSE ARE SOME OF THE
CRITERIA OUR TEAM ARE USING.
IT'S NOT ALWAYS THAT SIMPLE. THE
DISCUSSION OFTEN WILL
INCORPORATE ELEMENTS OF WHAT AN
INTERVENOR, UM DISCUSSED IN
THEIR BRIEFS OR THEIR TESTIMONY.
UM AND SO, BUT IT WON'T
NECESSARILY SAY UH, THE LAW, THE
OFFICE OF RACHEL PETERSON SAID
THIS AND THEREFORE BUT THAT'S
WHERE OUR ANALYSTS HAVE TO BE
TRAINED TO LOOK FOR THOSE
NUANCES WITHIN THE BODY AND THE
FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS TO NOTE
OK, THE OFFICE OF RACHEL
PETERSON HAS SAID THEY MADE THIS
CONTRIBUTION. CAN WE FIND IT IN
THIS DECISION? IF WE CAN GREAT
IF WE CAN'T. THEN WE START THEN
WE'RE IN THAT GRAY AREA. OK, JU
JUST FOR MY EDIFICATION. WHAT DO
YOU HAVE? A GENERAL SENSE OF
WHAT PERCENTAGE OF THE CLAIMS
ARE ARE ARE, YOU KNOW, PAID OUT
OR APPROVED. I WOULD. I'M SURE
WE HAVE THAT DATA. I DON'T HAVE
IT WITH ME. WE ABSOLUTELY GET
BACK TO YOU ON THAT. BUT I MEAN,
I ALSO IMAGINE IT IF I MAY. IF
IT CHANGES OVER TIME, YOU KNOW,
DEPENDING ON UM YEAH, IT JUST
WILL JUST BALLPARK. I MEAN, DO
THEY TEND TO BE APPROVED OR THEY
TEND NOT TO BE APPROVED. OR IS
IT A YEAH, IF YOU WERE TO LOOK
ON THE AGENDA OUT OF 20 CLAIMS
THE MAJORITY ARE BEING APPROVED.
OK, ALL RIGHT, UM OK NOW. HOW
DOES THIS SYSTEM DIFFER FOR
UTILITIES, RIGHT? I MEAN, ARE
THEY REIMBURSED SIMILARLY? OR,
UM YOU KNOW, AND IF SO, I MEAN,
ARE THEY ARE THEY SEEING A
SIMILAR DELAY IN IN IN, YOU KNOW
THEIR ABILITY TO RECOUP COSTS.
THEY'RE NOT. THEY'RE NOT
REIMBURSED IN THE SAME WAY. IN
FACT, WHAT HAPPENS IS THEY'RE
THE, UM THEY'RE THE ENTITIES
THAT HAVE TO POST EFFECTIVELY A
BOND. INTO AN INTERVENE OR
COMPENSATION FUND. UM, THAT IS
RATEPAYER DOLLARS. THAT'S IN
THAT FUND. AND THEN WHEN OUR
COMMISSION ORDERS A PAYMENT TO
AN INTERVENOR, IT COMES FROM
THAT FUND AND IS PAID TO THE
INTERVENOR. UM WITHOUT TAKING US
INTO AN ENTIRELY OTHER AREA OF
ENERGY POLICY, THE OR UTILITY
REGULATION. UM THE UTILITIES
HAVE GENERAL RATE CASES. I'M
SPEAKING MOSTLY ABOUT
ELECTRICITY AND GAS. UM
UTILITIES. THAT'S WHERE THEY
PROPOSE A BUDGET TO THE
COMMISSION. THE COMMISSION
REVIEWS UH, ALSO WITH INTERVENOR
PARTICIPATION REVIEWS THAT
BUDGET AND THAT BUDGET UH WHICH
IS, UH, FOUR YEAR FORECAST WOULD
INCLUDE, UM POSTING TO THE
INTERVENOR COMPENSATION BOND.
GOT YOU, BUT BUT IN TERMS OF, UM
UM THE PROCESS BY WHICH THEY, UM
THERE. I MEAN, DID DID DO THEY
DO THEY HAVE I MEAN, IS THERE?
DO YOU THINK THAT THERE'S A
LEVEL PLAYING FIELD WHEN IT
COMES TO UM, THE WAY THAT THEIR
CLAIMS ARE ARE ANALYZED. UH, YOU
KNOW, THEY'RE THEY'RE THEY'RE
BEING ASKED. I MEAN, THEY
THEY'RE THEY'RE THEY'RE YOU'RE
KIND OF GIVING THIS SPECIAL
PLACE IN THE ENERGY PROVISION.
WORLD. UM AND THEN YOU KNOW THEY
THEY'RE BASICALLY THEN ASKING
FOR, UH, RATE PAYERS TO PAY FOR
THEM TO DO. SOME OF THEIR
BUSINESS WORK BEFORE THE
COMMISSION. UM YOU KNOW, ARE
THEY GIVEN? UH UH YOU KNOW, ARE
ARE THEY ARE THEY, UM YOU KNOW
IS THERE IS THERE III I, YOU
KNOW, MAYBE WE COULD TALK ABOUT
THIS LATER. BUT BUT IS THE SORT
OF UM ARE ARE ARE ARE THE ARE
THE PUBLIC SERVING INTERVENERS?
UM LIKE, TURN IN, OR DO YOU SEE
THOSE TYPES GIVEN THE SAME KIND
OF, UM OR OR ANYONE WHO WANTS TO
GET IN GI, GIVEN THE SAME KIND
OF, UM, THE SAME KIND OF
COMPENSATION? I GUESS. I MEAN, I
UNDERSTAND THE REIMBURSEMENT
PROCESS IS DIFFERENT BECAUSE OF
THE BOND. I GET THAT. THANK YOU
FOR THAT ANSWER. UH BUT BUT IS
IT AN APPLES TO APPLES? UM,
ANALYSIS? I SUPPOSE WHEN IT
COMES TO ASSESSING THE VALIDITY
OF A CLAIM AND THE PHALANX OF
PEOPLE THEY BRING IN TO, UH, TO
ADVOCATE ON ON THEIR BEHALF AND
ALL THE ALL THE COSTS ASSOCIATED
WITH THAT. APPLES TO APPLES
BETWEEN BETWEEN THE UTILITIES
AND THE SORT OF RATEPAYER
ADVOCATE. INTERVENOR I SEE. IT'S
A GREAT QUESTION. UM I THINK
THAT I DON'T KNOW WHICH
LEGISLATURE SET UP THE
INTERVENOR COMPENSATION PROGRAM.
I THINK IT'S A BRILLIANT
PROGRAM. BECAUSE WITHOUT IT,
YOU'RE EXACTLY RIGHT. THERE
WOULD BE NÓ LEVEL PLAYING FIELD.
THE UTILITIES ARE A MONOPOLY.
THEY HAVE A NATURAL INTEREST IN
BRINGING AS MUCH TO AS MUCH
GUARANTEED RATE OF A PROFIT. YOU
KNOW, THEY HAVE A INTEREST IS
BRING IN BRINGING AS MANY
RESOURCES AS POSSIBLE TO
PROPOUND. WHATEVER IT IS,
THEY'RE PROPOUNDING. INTERVENE
OR COMPENSATION LIKE THE PRIVATE
ATTORNEY GENERAL DOCTRINE. IT IS
A WAY OF BRINGING THOSE BRINGING
ALTERNATIVE PERSPECTIVES INTO
THE PROCESS. WE BENEFIT FROM IT.
RATEPAYERS BENEFIT FROM IT. THE
PUBLIC IN CALIFORNIA BENEFITS
FROM THIS PROGRAM. I THINK IT'S
QUITE BRILLIANT. I WOULDN'T BE.
HONEST IF I SAID THAT UTILITIES
AND N R Dð èC ARE ON THE SAME
PLAYING FIELD, THEY'RE JUST
UTILITIES ARE VERY WELL
RESOURCED. AND THEY HAVE A
NATURAL INCENTIVE TO ADVOCATE
FOR THEMSELVES AS STRONGLY AS
POSSIBLE. NONPROFIT
ORGANIZATIONS SIMPLY DON'T HAVE
THE SAME RESOURCES. I DO TAKE
PRIDE IN THIS PROGRAM BECAUSE I
BELIEVE THAT UM IT DOES OFFER A
WAY FOR THE NONPROFITS AND THE
SMALL, UH, ORGANIZATIONS.
COMMUNITY BASED ORGANIZATIONS TO
PARTICIPATE. ON GETTING CLOSER
TO A LEVEL PLAYING FIELD AND
BRINGING THAT REALLY IMPORTANT
PERSPECTIVE. UM I THINK OUR WE
HAVE A PROLIFERATION OF GROUPS
THAT ARE PARTICIPATING WITH US.
AND SO I THINK THEY THEY, UH,
SEEING THE BENEFIT AND SEEING
THE IMPACT THAT THEY CAN HAVE
AND RECEIVING COMPENSATION IS
JUST REALLY TERRIFIC. JUST ONE
THING, IF I MAY, UM SARAH CORNET
WITH THE L Ó. I THINK SOMETHING
THAT, UM THAT DIRECTOR PETERSON
MENTIONED THAT I. I THINK I
WANNA, UH MAYBE JUST A NOTE, UM,
THAT WITH WITH THAT WITH INTRA
OR COMPENSATION PROGRAM THINKING
WE DID HAVE SOME, LIKE LI LI
LIMITED CONVERSATIONS WITH SOME
INTERVENERS TO TRY TO UNDERSTAND
THE ISSUE AND DUE TO THE
PROCESSING DELAYS AND THE
BACKLOG THAT IS HAVING AN IMPACT
ON SOME INTERVENER
PARTICIPATION. SO WHILE THIS
PROGRAM IS, YOU KNOW, VERY
IMPORTANT PART OF CPC'S WORK HAS
BEEN A LONG STANDING PROGRAM,
THE EXISTING DELAYS AND THE
BACKLOG ARE FROM WHAT FROM THE
LIMITED CONVERSATIONS. WE'VE HAD
, UM, HINDERING PARTICIPATION
FROM SOME INTERVENERS WHO JUST
CAN'T WAIT FOR THEIR FOR THEIR
WORK TO BE REIMBURSED, UM, ARE
ARE RUNNING ARE PAYING THEIR
STAFF ON LINES OF CREDIT, YOU
KNOW, WAITING FOR THESE
REIMBURSEMENTS TO COME. YEAH,
NÓ. I MEAN, AND THAT ACTUALLY,
IN SOME RESPECTS IT. IT
UNDERSCORES THIS KIND OF
DIFFERENT ROLE. IIIIII I
APPRECIATE YOUR COMMENTS. UM YOU
KNOW, THEY THEY THEY THEY DO
BRING SOMETHING IMPORTANT TO THE
TABLE. AND THERE IS SOMETHING
THAT I UNDERSTAND, BUT I CAN'T
HELP FEEL A LITTLE BIT STRANGE
ABOUT THAT. WE'VE GOT RATEPAYERS
PAYING EFFECTIVELY FOR BIG
COMPANIES THAT ARE GUARANTEED A
RATE OF RETURN TO ADVOCATE FOR
THEMSELVES. YOU KNOW, I'M I'M
JUST GETTING MY HEAD AROUND IT.
UH, YOU KNOW, I UNDERSTAND
THERE'S A APPROPRIATE DEGREE TO
WHICH THEY'RE HELPING. THE
DECISION MAKING PROCESS OF THE
PU èC AND, UM YOU KNOW, THAT'S
THAT THAT MAKES SENSE. UM, BUT,
UM THEY'RE IN A VERY DIFFERENT
THEY'VE GOT A VERY DIFFERENT
PROFIT MOTIVE HERE THAN THAN THE
OTHERS, AND SO I. I APPRECIATE
THAT. YOU YOU, UM YOU'RE GOING
TO THE REGULATORY COMPACT. WHAT
WE CALL THE REGULATORY COMPACT,
WHICH IS THAT THE UTILITIES ARE
A MONOPOLY. UM BUT THE PURPOSE
OF A UTILITY COMMISSION. LIKE
OURS AND IN EVERY STATE AROUND
THE COUNTRY IS THAT THAT
MONOPOLY BECAUSE IT'S PROVIDING
AN ESSENTIAL SERVICE ALSO
SUBMITS TO HEAVY PUBLIC
REGULATION AND APPEARANCE BEFORE
US IN PROCEEDINGS IS PART OF
THAT HEAVY PUBLIC REGULATION.
SO, ROBERT, THEY'RE BEING
COMPENSATED. TO WEIGH IN TO
IMPACT THE HEAVY PUBLIC
REGULATION BY RATE PAIRS. BUT
ANYWAY, I THIS IS NOT THE TOPIC
WE'RE TALKING ABOUT TODAY. BUT
HAPPY TO CONTINUE THE
CONVERSATION WITH YOU. YOU'RE
ASKING EXCELLENT QUESTIONS. UM
UH, IT IS THE STRUCTURE IN WHICH
WE'RE WORKING TO SARAH'S POINT.
UM AGAIN. THE FACT OF THE IMPACT
ON SOME OF THE INTERVENERS IS
THE REASON THAT WE HAVE
PRIORITIZED, UM, WORKING ON THE
QUEUE. IT'S WHY WE'RE THROWING
ALL AVAILABLE RESOURCES TOWARDS
THAT. AND JUST JUST WENT ONE.
MAYBE QUICK, OTHER THING TO NOTE
AS DIRECTOR PETERSON MENTIONED,
YOU KNOW, UTILITIES ARE
COMPENSATED FOR THEIR ENGAGEMENT
AND A VERY DIFFERENT MANNER AS
AS THE INTERVENERS THAT THEY
THEY, UM THROUGH THROUGH THROUGH
THEIR GENERAL RAPE CASES, SO
THAT THE INTERVENING PARTIES,
YOU KNOW THESE, YOU KNOW, UH,
NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS,
RATEPAYER ADVOCATES. THEY THEY
ARE NOT ON THE SAME PLAYING
FIELD IN TERMS OF THE UTILITIES
BOTH IN TERMS OF THE RESOURCES
THEY'RE RECEIVING, BUT ALSO IN
TERMS OF THE TIMELINESS IN WHICH
THEY REIMBURSED FOR THEIR WORK.
SO THE LEGISLATURE IN ITS IN ITS
STATUTE, WITH WITH ICON HAS, UM
INCLUDED A 75 DAY REQUIRED
DEADLINE THAT THE èC P èC HAS
HAS NOT BEEN MEETING. UM FOR
INTERVENERS, SO JUST TO KIND OF
TEASE THAT OUT THERE, THERE'S
NOT REALLY AN EQUAL PLAYING
FIELD TO YOUR QUESTION. UNDER
THE CURRENT SYSTEM IN TERMS OF
UTILITIES VERSUS UM INTERVENING
PARTIES. YEAH, WELL, THANK YOU
AND I. I MEAN, THIS. I THINK
THIS MAY REQUIRE SOME WORK. SO
I, I REALLY DO APPRECIATE IT AND
I LOOK FORWARD TO FUTURE
DIALOGUE ON THIS, AND I
CERTAINLY SUPPORT THIS ITEM. UM,
FOR ALL THE REASONS, STATED
GREAT. THANK YOU, UM I
APPRECIATE ALL THE COMMENTS AND
WE'RE GONNA MOVE ON TO ISSUE 13.
THIS IS THE ONGOING SUPPORT FOR
CLEAN ENERGY RESILIENCY. UM YOU
KNOW? ARE YOU SEEING? THANK YOU,
SENATOR. I GET TO STAY I. I GET
TO BRING OUR SUBJECT MATTER.
EXPERT LOAM TESFAY WHO? I KNOW,
YOU KNOW. YES SO WE'RE JUST
REARRANGING THE CHAIRS?
ABSOLUTELY. THANK YOU. THIS IS
THE LAST ONE. I THINK WE'LL DIVE
IN DEEP BEFORE PUBLIC COMMENT.
UM. GREAT WE'D LOVE TO HEAR WHEN
YOU'RE WHEN YOU'RE READY. I'LL
BEGIN. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. UM
AND SO, UM, UH, ISSUE 10, THE
PRIMARY BUDGET CHANGE PROPOSAL
WE HAVE BEFORE YOU IS, UM
SIMILAR TO WHAT WE'VE BEEN
SPEAKING ABOUT IS A PROPOSAL TO
MAKE S¼ B 100 POSITIONS, CONVERT
THEM FROM LIMITED TERM TO
PERMANENT. UM, WE, UM UH, AGAIN,
TOOK A, UH, WALK, THEN RUN
APPROACH WITH THESE AND WHEN
ORIGINALLY PROPOSED AFTER S¼ B
100 WAS PASSED. WE PROPOSE
LIMITED TERM POSITIONS IN ORDER
TO DISCOVER ALONG THE WAY
WHETHER THE WORKLOAD WAS
PERMANENT. UM, AS I THINK WE'LL
DISCUSS TODAY. UH THE PROGRAM IS
EXTENSIVE. CALIFORNIA HAS VERY
AMBITIOUS GOALS FOR ITS CLEAN
ENERGY TRANSITION AND THE WORK
THAT, UM, OUR INTEGRATED
RESOURCE PLAN STAFF, OUR
RESOURCE ADEQUACY PROGRAM STAFF
AND A NUMBER OF CLEAN ENERGY
PROGRAM. UH, DISTINCTIVE PROGRAM
STAFF ARE DOING IS ABSOLUTELY
PERMANENT. WE KNOW THAT, UM AND,
UH, ARE ACTUALLY VERY HAPPY WITH
THE PROGRESS THAT WE'VE BEEN
MAKING SO FAR, WHICH I BELIEVE
WE'RE GONNA BE SPEAKING ABOUT A
LITTLE BIT TODAY. SO THAT'S THE
CORE BUDGET PROPOSAL IN FRONT OF
YOU. UM IF I CAN JUST SPEAK A
LITTLE BIT ABOUT SB 100 TO START
OFF AND THEN I'LL PROBABLY TURN
TO DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Tð
F, WHO'S OUR DEPUTY EXECUTIVE
DIRECTOR FOR ENERGY AND CLIMATE
POLICY FOR MORE DETAIL, SO IN
2018 S¼ B 100 SET OUT AMBITIOUS
GOALS. UM WE HAVE BEEN REGULARLY
ISSUING BOTH PROCUREMENT ORDERS
AND TRACKING RELIABILITY ISSUES,
AND WE'VE BEEN, UM, PREPARING AN
ISSUING QUARTERLY PROGRESS
REPORT. IN WHICH WE'VE BEEN
DISCUSSING CHALLENGES AND
LEARNINGS ALONG THE WAY AS WE,
UM, MOVING FORWARD. IT IS A VERY
LARGE, UM, AND INTENSIVE STAFF
UNDERTAKING. UM WE ARE GOING TO
HAVE TO SUSTAIN OUR EXPANSION OF
CLEAN ELECTRICITY GENERATION
CAPACITY AT A RECORD BREAKING
RATE FOR THE NEXT SEVERAL YEARS.
JUST IN FEBRUARY, THE COMMISSION
APPROVED AN ORDER THAT WILL
RESULT IN PROCURING 58,000
MEGAWATTS OF CLEAN ENERGY. UM IN
ORDER TO HELP US ACHIEVE OUR
2045 GOALS. UM, WE HAVE BOTH
GENERATION BUILD OUT RATES AND
TRANSMISSION DEVELOPMENT RATES
THAT ARE PRACTICALLY
UNPRECEDENTED THAT WE NEED TO DO
AND THE STAFF WHO ARE WORKING ON
THIS AT THE COMMISSION ARE, UM,
LIVING AND BREATHING. THIS WORK.
UM DAY IN AND DAY OUT. LET ME
PAUSE THERE AND SEE IF YOU HAVE
QUESTIONS, UM, THAT EITHER
MYSELF OR LIAM CAN ADDRESS
THANKS AND LET ME FIRST FORWARD
YOU THAT LET'S UM SEE IF WE HAVE
A DIGITAL COMMENTS. UH, MR
EVANS. DAVID EVANS WITH THE
DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE. UM I
WOULD JUST LIKE TO ADD THAT, UM,
THAT THE POSITIONS THEY WERE
FUNDED FOR THREE YEARS. UM, AND
THEN THE IMPETUS NECESSITY FOR
THIS, UM B èC P. IS THAT THE,
UM ENCUMBRANCE PERIOD ASSOCIATED
WITH THESE POSITIONS? THEY'RE
GONNA EXPIRE JUNE 30TH 2024. AND
SO THAT'S UM IN THESE POSITIONS
ARE, UM, CURRENTLY FAILED, AND
THEY'RE ACTIVELY DOING THE WORK.
AND SO I JUST WANT TO ADD THAT
ALSO, UM UM, TO THE COMMENTS
THAT I MADE OK? EXCELLENT. UH,
WE DON'T HAVE CONCERNS OR
COMMENTS FOR YOU ABOUT THIS
PROPOSAL. GREAT. UM WELL, GOOD.
IT GIVES US A CHANCE TO JUST
DISCUSS, UM JUST FOR A LITTLE
BIT. SOME OF THE LESSONS LEARNED
AND REFLECT, I GUESS FOR ABOUT
THREE YEARS, UM OF
IMPLEMENTATION SO FAR, UM IT
FEELS LIKE MORE BUT, UM, SO CAN
YOU COMMENT? WHAT ARE SOME OF
THE KEY LESSONS LEARNED? UH FROM
THE èC P èC S¼. IMPLEMENTATION
DURING THOSE THREE YEARS AND, UH
WHAT ARE SOME KEY CHALLENGES
THAT WILL BE THE FOCUS OF THE
REQUESTED ONGOING FUNDING. SURE,
YES, AND ACTUALLY LET ME GO
STRAIGHT TO DEPUTY EXECUTIVE
DIRECTOR TESTIFY FOR THAT. THANK
YOU. THAT'S FINE. THANK YOU.
THANK YOU, CHAIR BECKER AND GOOD
TO SEE YOU AGAIN AND THANK YOU
TO THE OTHER MEMBERS AS WELL. SO
UH, A COUPLE OF THE CHALLENGES
THAT WE'VE SEEN ARE REALLY IN
DETERMINING THE CORRECT TIMING
AND THE TYPE OF RESOURCE
PROCUREMENT TO MEET THE S¼ B 100
GOALS AS OUR OUR SYSTEM
CONTINUES TO GROW, UM AND IS
VERY DYNAMIC. UM, AND SO THIS IS
GONNA REALLY REQUIRE A
CONTINUOUS PROCESS OF
STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT, ANALYSIS
AND DELIBERATION AND WILL
CONTINUE THROUGH 2045. UM A FEW
OF THE OTHER TASKS THAT WE'VE,
UM DETERMINED ARE NEEDED, UM AND
HAVE BEEN, YOU KNOW, CHALLENGING
, BUT WE'RE WORKING THROUGH OUR
DEVELOPMENT, IMPLEMENTATION AND
REFINEMENT OF WHAT WE CALL OUR
RESOURCE PROCUREMENT PROGRAMS
SUCH AS INTEGRATED RESOURCES
PLANNING, AS UM, DIRECTOR
PETERSON MENTIONED AS WELL AS
RESOURCE ADEQUACY, WHICH IS A
VERY COMPLEX EXERCISE. THAT'S
REALLY TAKING A LOT OF STAFF
TIME AND CO ORDINATION ACROSS
STAFFS AND ACROSS AGENCIES,
WHICH I'LL GET INTO SO, IN
ADDITION TO THAT WORK, IT'S THE
TRACKING AND COMPLIANCE WORK, SO
WE KNOW THAT THERE ARE HUNDREDS
OF PROJECTS ACROSS THE STATE AND
OUTSIDE OF THE STATE THAT ARE
WORKING TO COME ONLINE AND
THROUGH THE REQUIREMENTS OF S¼ P
100, WE ARE NEEDING TO BE ABLE
TO TRACK THOSE PROJECTS
UNDERSTAND WHERE THEIR PROGRESS
IS, AS WELL AS ANTICIPATING THE
TRANSMISSION THAT'S GOING TO BE
NEEDED TO BE ABLE TO SERVE THESE
PROJECTS THAT ARE COMING ONLINE.
UM, IN THIS 2045 RESOURCE
HORIZON, AND NOT ONLY THAT WE'RE
DOING IT ACROSS OVER 40 LOAD
LOAD SERVING ENTITIES, SO THOSE
ARE THE INVESTOR OWNED UTILITIES
, BUT ALSO MANY COMMUNITY CHOICE
AGGREGATORS, AS WELL AS ELECTRIC
SERVICE PROVIDERS, WHICH CREATES
AN ADDITIONAL CHALLENGE THAT WE
HAVE BEEN WORKING TO WORKING
THROUGH. UM AND THEN THROUGH
THAT PROCESS, WE'RE ALSO ANOTHER
CHALLENGE WE'VE SEEN IS BEING
ABLE TO UNDERSTAND NEW TYPES OF
RESOURCES. SO YES, WE HAVE A LOT
OF SOLAR ON THE SYSTEM WIND ON
THE SYSTEM, BUT WE'RE ALSO
TRYING TO, UM UNDERSTAND NEW
TECHNOLOGIES THAT WE'RE GOING TO
NEED. SO NEWER TECHNOLOGIES LIKE
LONG DURATION, ENERGY STORAGE
OFFSHORE WIND, UM, MORE ADVANCED
GEOTHERMAL AS WELL. AND BEING
ABLE TO, YOU KNOW, ALSO, UH,
LOOK AT EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES
THAT YOU KNOW, I'M NOT LISTING
THAT WE HAVEN'T EVEN THOUGHT OF
THAT WE MIGHT AS WE TRY TO GET
TO OUR 2045 GOALS AND BUILDING
OUT THAT INSTITUTIONAL KNOWLEDGE
HAS REALLY BEEN A KEY
UNDERTAKING AT THE PUC, AND THEN
I JUST WANTED TO END REALLY ON
THAT COLLABORATION PROCESS I
MENTIONED EARLIER ACROSS THE èC
èC, THE ENERGY COMMISSION, THE
AIR RESOURCES BOARD, THE
CALIFORNIA INDEPENDENT SYSTEM
OPERATOR, UM AS WE WORK TOGETHER
ON TRANSMISSION, PLANNING,
DEMAND FORECASTS AND REALLY
OTHER KEY PLANNING ACTIVITIES,
AND ALL OF THAT IS REALLY
TANTAMOUNT TO REACHING VÆ B 100
GOALS. YEAH WELL, THANK YOU. I
MEAN, THIS IS A I'M GRATEFUL FOR
THIS OPPORTUNITY. JUST BECAUSE
THIS IS THIS IS YOU KNOW SUCH A
PART OF WHAT WE'RE ALL TRYING TO
DO HERE RIGHT IS, UH, GETS 100%
CLEAN ENERGY, SO IT'S GREAT TO
BE ABLE TO DISCUSS THIS, UM THE
UM, A FEW THINGS WANTED TO SORT
OF JUST DIVE SPECIFICS JUST TO
KIND OF DIVE INTO, UM DOES THE
èC P èC EXPECT TO CONSIDER THE
CENTRAL PROCUREMENT FUNCTION
THAT WE PASSED LAST YEAR? UM, IN
THE UPCOMING RP PROCESS. YES UH,
SENATOR, WE DO. WE HAVE ACTUALLY
HAVE A STATUTORY DEADLINE OF
SEPTEMBER. 1ST UM AND SO, UM, WE
ARE STUDYING THAT AND ARE, UM,
GOING TO BE ISSUING A, UM, AN
ORDER RELATED TO THAT BEFORE
THAT STATUTORY DEADLINE. CAN YOU
COMMENT ON ANY FACTORS? THE
COMMISSION WILL BE CONSIDERED
AND DEPLOYING. THAT OPTION. UM
WELL AS DEPUTY EXECUTIVE
DIRECTOR, TEST FIVE POINTED OUT,
UM AND ALSO KIND OF ASSOCIATED
WITH THE STATE OF THE MARKET. IN
CALIFORNIA, WE HAVE A FRAGMENTED
ENERGY PROCUREMENT MARKET. UM
THAT WAS THE ONE OF THE CORE
ELEMENTS THAT I THINK WE
DISCUSSED WITH YOU AT THIS TIME
LAST YEAR, UM, IN THIS VENUE AND
WITH A FRAGMENTED MARKET, IT'S
HARD TO, UM, IF NOT IMPOSSIBLE,
FOR ALL OF THIS DIFFERENT ACTORS
TO SOMEHOW COALESCE AROUND,
PROCURING, UM, THE LARGE, LONG
TIME RESOURCE THAT THE STATE
NEEDS. AND SO THAT IS A MAJOR
CONSIDERATION THAT WE'RE WE'RE
THINKING ABOUT AND OUR MODELING
IN INTEGRATED RESOURCE PLANNING
IS EXAMINING, AND SO WHEN WE
ISSUE THIS ORDER, IT WILL TAKE
THAT ANALYSIS AND SAY HERE'S WHY
, UM, IN THIS MARKETPLACE AT
THIS TIME, CALIFORNIA SHOULD
CONSIDER AN INVESTMENT IN A LONG
LEAD TIME RESOURCE. UM, GOOD.
WELL, THAT'S GOOD TO HEAR. AND,
UM UH, VERY HELPFUL IN THAT AS
YOU MENTIONED FOR THOSE, UM
LARGELY TIME. RESOURCES AND UH,
SPEAKING OF ONE SO IT MAY BE 525
, THE èC èC èC ESTABLISHED A
TARGET OF FIVE GIGAWATTS OF
OFFSHORE WIND BY 2030 25
GIGAWATTS PER 2045. BUT I
BELIEVE THE PUC'S NEW PREFERRED
SYSTEM PLAN FORECAST ONLY 4.5
GIGAWATTS BY 2035 AND NÓ
INCREASE AFTER THAT, SO WHAT CAN
YOU TELL US? WHY THE PU èC S¼
PLANS AND THE CCS. TARGETS SO
FAR APART. YEAH, I'LL START AND
THEN, UM LUAN WILL DEFINITELY
HAVE MORE TECHNICAL DETAILS SO
THE èC E S¼ RESPONSIBILITY WAS
TO SET UP PLANNING RANGE. UM AND
SO THAT'S THE RANGE THAT THEY
ESTABLISHED WHEN WE LOOK AT
RESOURCES WHEN WE ARE EXAMINING,
UM, CONDUCTING THE MODELING AS
FAR AS WHAT DOES THE SYSTEM NEED
GOING OUT INTO THE FUTURE WE'RE
LOOKING AT, UM, COST RELIABILITY
AND AVAILABILITY. UM, OF A AND
THAT ONCE THE MODEL PERFORMS ITS
WORK THAT TRANSLATES INTO A NEED
, UM AND THAT'S WHAT KIND OF
UNDERGIRDS THE PROCUREMENT
PROCUREMENT PORTFOLIOS THAT THE
èC P èC IS ISSUING EVERY ONCE
IN A WHILE, UM OR ARE ACTUALLY
ON A PRETTY STEADY PACE. GIVEN
THE AMOUNT OF PROCUREMENT WE
NEED TO DO, UM, AND SO, OUR
MODEL RIGHT NOW TO UNDERSTAND
WHAT WE'VE SAID IS NEEDED FROM
OFFSHORE WIND. THAT'S CURRENTLY
WHAT THE MODEL IS PROJECTING
THAT THE STATE NEEDS LET ME SEE
IF THERE'S ANY TECHNICAL DETAIL
TO ADD. YEAH, I CAN HAVE A
LITTLE BIT MORE DETAIL. SO YOU
JUST BEFORE YOU DO IT. JUST A
CLEAR ONE. YOU YOU SAID THE
MODEL IS YOU SO IT'S NOT WHAT
THE RESOURCE IS CAPABLE OF.
YOU'RE SAYING THAT'S WHAT YOU
BELIEVE WILL BE NEEDED. OK YEAH.
SO TO GET INTO A LITTLE BIT MORE
DETAIL, UM, THE MODELING PROCESS
LOOKS AT A LOT OF DIFFERENT, UM,
ISSUES AND COST IS A BIG ONE. A
BIG CHANGE THAT WE'VE SEEN OVER
THE LAST FEW YEARS IS REALLY THE
COST RELATED TO OFFSHORE WIND
GOING UP VERY HIGH, EVEN HIGHER
THAN WHEN WE WERE HAVING THE
CONVERSATIONS ABOUT CENTRAL
PROCUREMENT. WE DO THINK THAT
THE CENTRAL PROCUREMENT ENTITY
IS A KEY TOOL FOR MANAGING THOSE
COSTS. BUT AS UM WE COMPARE
DIFFERENT RESOURCE COSTS. IT WAS
DETERMINED THAT THIS IS THE
LEVEL OF OFFSHORE WIND THAT WE
WERE ABLE TO LOOK AT RIGHT NOW.
AGAIN THIS PROCESS IS ITERATIVE.
WE DO IT EVERY YEAR AND SO THERE
WILL LIKELY BE ADDITIONAL
MEGAWATTS LOOKED AT WE LOOK AT
THOSE COSTS BY LEVERAGING THE N
R NATIONAL RENEWABLE ENERGY LAB,
UH, RESOURCE COST NUMBERS THAT
THEY DO ACROSS ALL DIFFERENT
TYPES OF RESOURCE TYPES. SO IT'S
AGNOSTIC, UM, TO TYPE OF
RESOURCE. IT'S NOT SPECIFIC TO
ANY SPECIFIC TYPE, BUT IT DOES
SPECIFICALLY MENTION VERY HIGH
COSTS COMING IN FOR OFFSHORE
WIND. SO WE'RE LOOKING AT WAYS
THAT WE CAN MITIGATE THOSE COSTS
BY LEVERAGING THINGS LIKE
CENTRAL PROCUREMENT, BUT, UH YOU
KNOW, SOMETHING I WANNA GO BACK
TO IS WE HAVE DETERMINED THAT WE
DO NEED THESE. SOURCES SO WE'RE
CREATING, UM, AN AFFORDABLE PATH
TO BE ABLE TO GET THERE, BUT WE
HAVE DETERMINED THAT WE DO NEED
A RESOURCE LIKE OFFSHORE WIND TO
HELP BALANCE OTHER RESOURCES WE
HAVE ON THE SYSTEM LIKE SOLAR,
AND WE ARE VERY COMMITTED TO
CREATING A PATHWAY TO GET THERE.
UM OK, UM YEAH, IT'S
INTERESTING, I. I JUST WHAT YOU
SAYING ABOUT THE GROUP
PROJECTING SOME OF THOSE COSTS
BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY THERE'S A
PROJECT. YOU KNOW THAT WE DON'T
HAVE A LOT OF. IN FACT, THIS
WOULD BE THE FIRST UH, YOU KNOW,
FLOATING OFFSHORE WIND THAT
WE'VE HAVE HERE IN THE IN IN
THE, UH IN THE UNITED STATES, UM
AND UM YEAH, JUST SORT OF TO
REALLY FURTHER NOTE THAT THAT UM
, YOU KNOW THAT THAT THIS WAS
THE LEGISLATION, RIGHT? IT
WASN'T I. I DON'T THINK THE WERE
YOU REFERRED TO IT SORT OF AS A
RANGE, BUT, UM, BUT THE
LEGISLATION REALLY SETS VERY
SPECIFIC TARGETS. UM AND, UM AND
SO I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE THAT
AND MAYBE WE CAN DO THIS IN SORT
OF FOLLOW UP. MAKE SURE I
UNDERSTAND HOW THE PREFERRED
SYSTEM PLAN. UM THEN YOU KNOW,
KIND OF HOW THAT PLAYS OUT IN
TERMS OF OUR URGENCY IN PURSUING
IT. AND, UM UH, OUR EXPECTATIONS
FROM IT, UM BUT, UM, SO YOU KNOW
, I KNOW WE'RE GONNA A CHANCE TO
DIVE IN OFFSHORE AND PROBABLY AT
SOME OTHER OTHER HEARINGS. JUST
WANTED TO NOTE THAT, UM YOU KNOW
, I. I THINK THE FROM EVERYTHING
I'VE HEARD WAS SO THE SOME OF
THE HIGHER RANGES ARE POSSIBLE
AND WANT TO MAKE SURE WE CAN
DON'T LOSE OUR FOCUS ON THAT.
ANY COMMENTS? I APPRECIATE THE
POINTS CHAIR AND, UM I WILL NOTE
THAT MEMBERS OF THE
ADMINISTRATION ARE ON REGULAR
STUDY TOURS FOR THE OF THE
OFFSHORE WIND THAT IS INSTALLED
IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE WORLD,
AND WE ARE ALSO TRACKING VERY
CLOSELY ON THE COST ISSUE, AS UM
, UH, M TEST FIVE POINTED OUT
THERE IS IT IS A NEW TECHNOLOGY.
IT'S BEING DEPLOYED FOR THE
FIRST TIME IN PLACES AROUND THE
GLOBE AND COSTS ARE HIGH AT THE
MOMENT, BUT THAT'S ACTUALLY A
BENEFIT OF OUR ANNUAL WE ALWAYS
INCORPORATE THE MOST RECENT
COMMERCIAL INFORMATION THAT WE
HAVE FROM OTHER SIMILAR
PROJECTS. SO IF THOSE, UM YOU
KNOW, WITH THANKS TO THE
GOVERNMENTS OF SCOTLAND AND
DENMARK FOR GOING IN ON THIS
TECHNOLOGY. IF THAT MANAGES TO
BRING SOME OF THE COSTS DOWN,
WE'LL INCORPORATE THAT INTO
FUTURE MODELING RUNS. OK, I
THINK IT'S PROBABLY, UM ENOUGH
ON THAT FOR RIGHT NOW. I GOT A
FEW OTHER QUESTIONS BEFORE YOU
TURN OVER. MY COLLEAGUES DO
ANYTHING ELSE SO ON THIS. UM OK.
JUST TWO OTHER AREAS WANTED TO
JUST, UH DIVE INTO FOR NOW, AND
THEN WE CAN FLAG UM UH, ONE IS
YOU MENTIONED WE SHOULD ADEQUACY
AND THERE ARE, UM, NUMBER OF
ENTITIES EXPRESS CONCERN, UH, TO
ME AND OTHERS IN MEETING THE R A
REQUIREMENTS DUE TO THE
TIGHTNESS OF THE MARKET AND
DIFFICULT OF PROCURING. RESOURCE
ADEQUATE, EVEN AT PRICES THAT
ARE MULTIPLE TIMES HIGHER THAN
IN PAST YEARS. I THINK 5 TO 10
TIMES HIGHER PROBABLY IS WHAT
YOU'VE SEEN AND THERE ARE WELL
ABOVE THE PENALTIES FOR NON
COMPLIANCE, BUT THEY STILL WANT
TO DO IT BECAUSE THEY DON'T WANT
TO BE A NON COMPLIANCE. UM SO
HOW IS THE èC P èC ADDRESSED?
THESE CONCERNS AND HAS THE èC P
èC INCORPORATED CONCERNS ABOUT
AFFORDABILITY AND MANAGING THESE
ISSUES? SURE YES. SO THE
RESOURCE ADEQUACY PROCEEDING HAS
BEEN OPEN FOR PROBABLY AT LEAST
10 YEARS AND IS OUR CONSTANT
VENUE FOR STAKEHOLDERS TO BRING
CONCERNS. UM AND FOR US TO
DEVELOP SOLUTIONS THERE FOR
THESE MARKET ISSUES. YES WE'RE
EXPERIENCING A TIGHTNESS IN THE
MARKET. UM, RIGHT NOW, THE
FACTORS OF THAT ARE AS YOU, UH,
SPOKE ABOUT WITH YOUR FIRST
ISSUE. TODAY THERE IS AN
INCREASE IN THE èC E. FORECAST
WE RELY ON THAT TO PROJECT OUT
WHAT CALIFORNIA IS GOING TO NEED
. THERE IS A DECREASE IN HOW
RESOURCES THAT ARE VARIABLE ARE
GETTING, UH, COUNTED BECAUSE WE
NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE
RELYING ON THE AMOUNT OF ENERGY
THAT THEY ACTUALLY PRODUCE. UM
FOR THE PERIODS OF SCARCITY. UM
THERE IS AN INCREASE IN WHAT WE
CALL THE PLANNING RESERVE MARGIN
. WHICH IS THE CUSHION THAT THE
CALIFORNIA I S¼ Ó ALSO HELPS
ESTABLISH THAT GIVES US ALL
GREATER CERTAINTY THAT, UM, WE
HAVE ENOUGH RESOURCES, AND THEN
THERE HAS BEEN A DECREASE IN THE
AVAILABILITY OF IMPORTS IN THE
WEST. AND THAT'S PARTLY BECAUSE
OUR NEIGHBORS IN THE WEST ARE
ALSO DEALING WITH THESE, UM,
THESE GRID CONDITIONS AND THE
HEAT CONDITIONS THAT WE ARE OVER
THE SUMMER AND THEN, LIKE I
SAID, THAT MARKET FRAGMENTATION
HAS MEANT THAT, UM ALL SORTS OF
DIFFERENT UH, ENTITIES ARE
SEEKING TO PROCURE SO ALL OF
THAT IS LEADING TO TIGHTNESS IN
THE MARKET. WE USE OUR RESOURCE
ADEQUACY PROCEEDING TO FLOAT AND
VET PROPOSALS TO ADDRESS THE
MARKET RATHER CONSTANTLY AND ALL
, UH MANY STAKEHOLDERS,
INCLUDING THE COMMUNITY CHOICE
AGGREGATORS ARE VERY ACTIVE
PARTICIPANTS IN THAT, UM, IN
THAT PROCEEDING. I'D LIKE TO ASK
LU WANG TO ADDRESS SOME OF THE
SOLUTIONS. SOME OF THE IDEAS
THAT WE'VE BEEN FLOATING THERE
TO ADDRESS THE TIGHTNESS RIGHT
NOW. RIGHT? UM SO AS UH
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, UH PETERSON
MENTIONED WE REALLY HAVE SEEN
THE R A MARKET TIGHTENING. UM
SOME LOAD SERVING ENTITIES THAT
WERE NOT SUFFICIENTLY FORWARD
HEDGED. AND WHAT I MEAN BY THAT
IS PROCURED, UM, HAVE
EXPERIENCED RESOURCE BILL DELAYS
, FOR EXAMPLE, AND SO SOMETHING
SOME, UH, LOAD SURFING ENTITIES
HAVE DIFFERENT LEVELS OF
SOPHISTICATION. SOME OF THEM ARE
PROPERLY HEDGED WHERE THEY HAVE
A BACKUP PLAN OF ONE RESOURCE
DOESN'T COME THROUGH, AND WE'VE
BEEN REALLY WORKING CLOSELY WITH
ALL OF THOSE LOAD SERVING
ENTITIES TO HELP ADVISE THEM ON
THAT KIND OF THING AND ENCOURAGE
THEM TO MAKE SURE THAT ARE
PROPERLY HEAD SO THEY DON'T HAVE
ALL OF THEIR EGGS IN ONE BASKET
WHEN IT COMES TO RESOURCES
COMING ONLINE BECAUSE THERE
MIGHT BE DELAYS FOR SUPPLY CHAIN
OR CONSTRUCTION ISSUES, OR
WHETHER THAT KIND OF THING AND
SO IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT FOR ALL
OF OUR LOAD SERVING ENTITIES TO
BE PROPERLY HEDGED, AND I THINK
THAT'S A WAY FOR US TO HELP MAKE
SURE THAT, UM THE LOADS OF RING
ENTITIES ARE ABLE TO MEET THEIR
REQUIREMENTS. UM, IN ADDITION TO
THAT, UM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR,
PETERSON MENTIONED THAT THERE
HAD BEEN IN THE LAST FEW YEARS
AN INCREASE IN THE CEC'S LOAD
FORECAST. ACTUALLY THE MOST
RECENT èC èC LOAD FORECASTED
SHOWS A SLIGHT DECREASE, AND I
DO EXPECT THAT TO BE ABLE TO
SHOW SOME SOFTENING IN THE A
MARKET IN THE NEAR TERM. UM AS
WE WORK THROUGH, UM ADDITIONAL,
UM, MECHANISMS TO IMPROVE
RESOURCE ADEQUACY. GREAT I. I
GET THE SECOND POINT FOR SURE.
THE FIRST POINT ARE YOU YOU
MENTIONED THEM BEING PROPERLY
HEAD. DID YOU SAY THAT YOU WERE
GONNA HELP THEM? SORT OF DO
THAT? OR WHAT WAS THE FIRST
POINT? WELL YOU KNOW, AS UM SO
WITH RESOURCE ADEQUACY, THEY'RE
SUPPOSED TO DO PROCUREMENT FOR
ALL OF THE MONTHS OF THE YEAR,
BUT ESPECIALLY IN THE SUMMER,
AND THERE HAVE BEEN SOME LOAD
SURFING ENTITIES WHO HAVE BEEN
STRUGGLING, UM, TO GET SOME OF
THOSE LAST MEGAWATTS, SO WE DO
HAVE A LOT OF COMMUNICATION WITH
THEM TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY
UNDERSTAND. YOU KNOW WHAT
OPPORTUNITIES THERE ARE OUT
THERE FOR THEM TO GET THOSE LAST
FEW MEGAWATTS. OK? UM YEAH,
THAT'S GOOD. IT WAS STUFF THAT
THEY DIDN'T KNOW. I MEAN, YOU
WOULD HOPE THAT THEY WOULD
PROBABLY KNOW ABOUT SOME OF
THOSE, BUT BUT IF IT'S IF IT'S
HELPFUL, SO THEY DO KNOW ABOUT
THEM. BUT SOMETIMES THE PRICES
ARE STILL HIGH. AND SO THERE CAN
BE A CHALLENGE THERE. IF YOU
KNOW THERE IS A RESOURCE
AVAILABLE, BUT A LOAD SERVING
ENTITY DOES NOT WANT TO PAY A
HIGH PRICE FOR IT. UM AND THAT
GOES TO THE MARKET FRAGMENTATION
ISSUE THAT WAS MENTIONED
EARLIER. UM WE USED TO HAVE
THREE. I Ó IT WAS A BUYER'S
MARKET. THREE I Ó U. MANY
GENERATORS NOW WE HAVE OVER 40
LOAD SERVING ENTITIES OUT THERE
IN THE MARKET, COMPETING WITH
EACH OTHER TO DO PROCUREMENT,
AND THAT CREATES AN ADDITIONAL
CHALLENGE. IT'S JUST THE
ECONOMICS OF THE MARKET. UM AND
THAT HAS BEEN A BIG DEVELOPMENT
THAT WE'VE SEEN OVER THE LAST 10
YEARS. AND THIS IS THE IMPACT
THAT THAT HAS. BUT AGAIN, AS I
SAID EARLIER, WE ARE WORKING ON
TRACKING MANY PROJECTS AND
WORKING, UM, WITH THROUGH OUR
TED TASK FORCE TO HELP GET THOSE
PROJECTS ONLINE. IF DEVELOPERS
HAVE ISSUES WITH, UM YOU KNOW,
PERMITTING ISSUES WE TRY AND
COME IN AND HELP THEM THROUGH
THOSE ISSUES TO MAKE SURE THAT
WE JUST GET MORE, UH, RESOURCES
IN THE MARKET. IT'S A SEPARATE
ADDITIONAL DUTY THAT THE èC P
èC, ALONG WITH GOBI AND èC, E
èC HAVE TAKEN ON TO TRY AND
HELP. UM GET RESOURCES ONLINE.
UM, BUT THAT THERE IS AN ISSUE
RIGHT NOW OF MARKET POWER WHERE
THERE ARE FEWER, UH MANY, MANY
BUYERS, UM AND, UM, A CERTAIN
NUMBER OF SELLERS OUT THERE,
WHICH CREATES THIS COMPETITION
AND HIGH PRICES. OK, GOOD. WELL,
SOMETHING CERTAINLY KEEP TRACK
OF, UM MY LAST QUESTION IS JUST
AROUND THE HOW IS THIS? UH HOW
èC P èC ASSESSING THE VARIOUS
DEMAND RESPONSE, UH, PROGRAMS.
UM AND WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT
WHICH PROGRAMS ARE ARE MORE
EFFECTIVE. UM AND HOW CAN THE
STATE YOU KNOW? FINE TUNE THIS
STRATEGY. THANK YOU. THANKS
CHAIR FOR THE QUESTIONS, SO I'M
DEMAND RESPONSE DOES PLAY A
CRITICAL ROLE IN ENSURING THAT
THE GRID STAYS RELIABLE? UM AND
THAT ALSO WE WE'RE PURSUING ALL
POSSIBLE COST EFFECTIVE
TECHNOLOGIES THAT CUSTOMERS CAN
USE. WE DO NEED TO ASSESS DEMAND
RESPONSE RESOURCES IN THE SAME
WAY WE ASSESS ALL OF THEM. UH,
EVERY TYPE OF RESOURCE. WHAT
DOES THE GRID NEED? UM HOW CAN
THE RESOURCE DELIVER IT? HOW CAN
WE BE BE SURE THAT IT'S
DELIVERED? UM, AND WHAT IS THE
COST EFFECTIVENESS OF IT OVERALL
IN OUR PORTFOLIO, AND SO WE'VE
BEEN PILOTING AND LOOKING AT
PROGRAM DESIGNS AND PROCUREMENT
MECHANISMS FOR DEMAND RESPONSE
OVER ABOUT TWO DECADES NOW, AND
WE DO. UM, HAVE ASSESSMENT
REPORTS THAT SHOW A RANGE OF
OUTCOMES AND JUST, I BELIEVE
SHOW THE ONGOING NEED FOR US TO
MAKE SURE THAT DEMAND RESPONSE
CAN DELIVER WHAT RATEPAYERS ARE
AND THE GRID ARE RELYING ON IT.
UM TO DELIVER, ESPECIALLY DURING
THOSE MOMENTS OF GRIT, STRESS.
UM AND SO, LIKE I SAID, WHEN
IT'S CORRECTLY DESIGNED WHEN
IT'S CORRECTLY DEPLOYED, IT
REALLY DOES PLAY A CRUCIAL ROLE.
UM OK, UM THAT'S PROBABLY GOOD
FOR NOW. BUT WHAT IS A èC P èC
DOING TO CREATE A MORE LEVEL
PLAYING FIELD BETWEEN IU AND
THIRD PARTY PROVIDERS FOR
SIGNING UP DEMAND RESPONSE
CUSTOMERS? THAT'S A TECHNICAL
QUESTION. LET ME GO TO LUAN.
THANK YOU. UM SO THE èC P èC
RECENTLY ADOPTED THE DEMAND
RESPONSE PROGRAMS IN DECEMBER OF
LAST YEAR, AND THE NEW BUDGETS
FOR THE 2024 AND 2027 CYCLE AND
SO THIS IS BOTH. I Ó U AND
THIRD PARTY. UM, IN ADDITION TO
THAT, AS PART OF THE ADOPTION
THESE, UH, BUDGETS, UH, ACROSS
THE STATE ARE AT 1.55 BILLION
BETWEEN 2024 AND 2027 RATEPAYER
DOLLARS, UM, OF AUTHORIZED
FUNDING FOR THESE DEMAND
RESPONSE PROGRAMS. UM, YOU HAD
ALSO ASKED, YOU KNOW WHICH OF
SOME OF THESE PROGRAMS THAT ARE.
DOING THE BEST. AND SO AN
EXAMPLE OF THAT IS THE BASE
INTERRUPTIBLE PROGRAM. AND SO
THIS IS A PROGRAM THAT WAS
FUNDED AT $473 MILLION AS PART
OF THAT $1.55 BILLION BUDGET,
JUST A PROGRAM THAT HAS
CONTINUALLY HAD A VERY HIGH
LEVEL OF PERFORMANCE CAN REALLY
BE COUNTED ON, UM, FOR RE
RELIABILITY NEEDS. THE
COMMISSION IS ALSO CURRENTLY
EXPLORING A NOVEL FRAMEWORK FOR
THE FUTURE OF DEMAND RESPONSE,
WHICH INCLUDES THE WIDESPREAD
ADOPTION OF DYNAMIC RATES ON A
REAL TIME MARKET PRICE CONDITION
. UM AND SO THIS INITIATIVE IS
CALLED CAL FUSE. WE'VE ISSUED A
STAFF WHITE PAPER, AND NOW WE'RE
GOING THROUGH THE STAKEHOLDER
PROCESS, BUT THAT'S REALLY
SOMETHING THAT'S GONNA UNLOCK
THE DEMAND RESPONSE MARKET TO A
WIDE VARIETY OF PARTICIPANTS
THROUGH, UM, SOFTWARE AS A
SERVICE AS WELL AS OTHER, UM,
CUSTOMER RELATED INTEGRATIONS
WITH APPLIANCES, FOR EXAMPLE, UM
TO BE ABLE TO REALLY UNLOCK THE
NEXT LEVEL OF DEMAND. RESPONSE,
UH FOR THE STATE. YEAH AND
THERE'S NEW. I THINK THEY'RE
STARTING TO HAPPEN. AND THAT'S
REALLY YEAH. THE NEXT WE HAVE
SOME PILOTS. YOU'RE RIGHT. THE
NEXT WAVE. UM WHERE WE CAN,
REALLY, YOU KNOW, COUNT ON THIS
AND HAVE BE A SUBSTANTIAL PART.
EVEN I THINK MORE SO OF OUR
PORTFOLIO. SO CAL FUSE IS THE
NAME OF THAT PRODUCT. THAT'S THE
WHITE PAPER THAT WE'VE ISSUED ON
THAT AND THEN THAT WAS THE START
OF OUR STAKEHOLDER PROCESS. AND
WHAT ABOUT DATA SHARING WITH
THIRD PARTIES? THAT'S A HUGE
PART OF THAT. SO BECAUSE, FOR
EXAMPLE, WE WANNA BE ABLE TO
LEVERAGE. UM THE, UH, APPLIANCES
TO BE ABLE TO LEVERAGE THE RATE.
ARE GONNA BE CLOUD BASED RATES
THAT WE'RE WORKING ON WITH THE
èC èC. AND SO, UM, THAT'S HOW
WE'RE ABLE TO, UM UH, LEVERAGE
ALL OF THESE ADDITIONAL
TECHNOLOGIES AND HAVE DATA
ACCESS SO THAT APPLIANCES CAN
CONNECT WITH THE GRID AND KNOW
WHAT THE CURRENT GRID CONDITIONS
ARE. AND FOR EXAMPLE, A
REFRIGERATOR DEFROSTS AT A TIME
WHEN YOU KNOW THERE'S LOW STRESS
ON THE GRID, LOWEST PRICES AND
SO IT IT. NOT ONLY IS THERE A
GRID RELIABILITY ELEMENT, WHICH
IS CLASSIC FOR DEMAND RESPONSE,
BUT THERE'S A REAL ENHANCEMENT
OF AFFORDABILITY FOR CUSTOMERS
AS WELL. GREAT. I THINK THERE
WAS JUST WE WERE JUST
CLARIFYING. SO AGAIN. CAL FUSES
WAS THE NAME OF THE WHITE PAPER.
SO CALF STANDS FOR, UM, CAL,
CALIFORNIA BUT IT'S THE UNIFIED
DEMAND SIGNAL. UH, THAT, UH, IS
GOING TO CUSTOMERS APPLIANCES UM
, ELECTRIC VEHICLES, FOR EXAMPLE
, AS WELL, UM, FROM THESE CLOUD
BASED RATES. OK, AND THAT JUST
CAME OUT THAT WHITE PAPER JUST
THE WHITE PAPER CAME OUT
ACTUALLY IN 2022, AND IT'S BEING
DONE ACTUALLY IN A DEMAND
FLEXIBILITY PROCEEDING, SO THE
FIRST PART OF THE PROCEEDING IS
FOCUSED ON THE INCOME GRADUATED
FIXED CHARGE. IT'S ALSO, UM
APPROVED CERTAIN PILOTS LIKE YOU
HAD MENTIONED AND THEN UM, RIGHT
NOW WE'RE GOING THROUGH THE
STAKEHOLDER PROCESS AND VETTING
OF THE WHITE PAPER. OK BUT AGAIN
WHEN YOU SAY DATA YOU TALK ABOUT
THE DATA CONNECTION CONNECTIVITY
WITH DEVICES BUT ALSO ABOUT YOU
KNOW, CUSTOMER DATA. THE THIRD
PARTY SHARING WITH I Ó U S¼
MAKE SURE THAT IT'S NOT A NOT
ONLY I WHO CAN SIGN UP CUSTOMERS
, AND THAT'S BECAUSE WE ARE
WE'RE REALLY GOING TO NEED NOT
JUST THE I Ó U S¼. WE'RE GONNA
NEED A WHOLE HOST OF INNOVATORS
TO BE ABLE TO, UM, LEVERAGE
THESE RATES AND THE CUSTOMER
DATA TO BE ABLE TO BRING THAT
AFFORDABILITY TO CUSTOMERS AS
WELL AS THE GRID. UM, THE GRID
NEEDS AS WELL. YEAH, GOOD AND
WITH INTEGRATED THERMOSTATS AND
ALL THAT AS WELL. THEY'VE BEEN
IMPORTANT PART. OK UM, GREAT.
THAT'S ALL. I REALLY HAD.
ANYTHING ELSE. UM, OK. WELL,
THANK YOU, UM FOR STICKING WITH
ME IN THOSE, UH QUESTIONS AND,
UH, DISCUSSION TOPICS AND, UH,
SOME GOOD STUFF FOR FUTURE.
THANK YOU, DE LEO AND TORRENT. F
AS WELL. UM N èC SECRETARY,
PETER SANON, UH, DEPUTY
SECRETARY. THANK YOU FOR THE
OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE BEEN HERE.
GREAT. UM, THE YEAH, VERY MUCH.
SO UH, SO WE'LL MOVE NOW TO A
PUBLIC COMMENT AND, UM WE'RE
TAKING PUBLIC COMMENT FOR THOSE
HERE, UH, IN THE ROOM AND YOU
CAN START WHEN READY. YEAH,
THANK YOU. MISTER, ARE WE ON? AM
I JUST TOO SHORT. YEAH. ALL
RIGHT, UH, MR CHAIR, SENATOR
ALLEN. THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR
THE OPPORTUNITY. BETH OLAS ON
BEHALF OF I'M SORRY, SENATOR
BLAKESPEAR, UM, ON BEHALF OF THE
AGRICULTURAL ENERGY CONSUMERS
ASSOCIATION. WE'RE HERE ON THE
INTERVENOR COMPENSATION ITEM.
UM, WE ARE THE ONLY AG
INTERVENER TO GET I COMP. UM SO
IT'S A REALLY IMPORTANT PROGRAM
FOR US. UM, YOU KNOW, SOME OF
OUR SMALL FARMER MEMBERS PAY US
$25 A YEAR, SO OBVIOUSLY A VERY
BIG BANG FOR THE BUCK. UM, IN IN
WHAT WE WHAT? THEY GET IN
REPRESENTATION AT THE PU èC. UM
WE HAVE SEEN A REMARKABLE
DIFFERENCE IN GETTING OUR ICON
REQUESTS BACK. UM THE TURNAROUND
WITH THE NEW STAFF, THE
TEMPORARY STAFF. IT'S WORKING.
UM YOU KNOW, WE HAD SEVERAL
$100,000 IN OUTSTANDING. WE JUST
GOT THREE BACK WITHIN A MATTER
OF A COUPLE WEEKS. UM SO WE URGE
THE PERMANENT STAFF AND THANK
YOU FOR REALLY TAKING A DEEP
DIVE AND LOOK AT THIS PROGRAM.
UM, TO YOUR QUESTION, SENATOR.
UM DOES OUR INTERVENTION REALLY
MAKE UP FOR THE BITE OF THE
UTILITIES NÓ. BUT IT MAKES A
DIFFERENCE. UM, WE DO SEE
INCREMENTAL CHANGE, ESPECIALLY
ON THE AG SIDE. WE'RE ABLE TO DO
WHAT WE CAN. SO WE REALLY
APPRECIATE YOUR SUPPORT OF THIS
PROGRAM AND URGED URGE ADOPTION.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU. GOOD
MORNING, MR CHAIR SENATORS
AMANDA GALDERMA WITH Kò
BROADBAND WITH RESPECT TO ISSUE
11. WE'D LIKE TO NOTE OUR
AGREEMENT WITH THE L Ó S¼
RECOMMENDATIONS. THE èC P èC
SHOULD PROVIDE THE LEGISLATURE
WITH DETAILED INFORMATION
REGARDING THE BILLIONS OF
DOLLARS IN INVESTMENT TOWARD
BROADBAND, INCLUDING THE
ESTIMATES OF THE NUMBER OF
UNSERVED HOUSEHOLDS THAT WILL BE
CONNECTED, UH, WHEN THOSE
RESOURCES ARE EXHAUSTED.
LEGISLATURES OVERSIGHT OF THE
IMPLEMENTATION OF THE BROADBAND
PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS WILL BE
CRITICAL TO THEIR SUCCESS. AND
JUST A NOTE. UM ON THE
DISCUSSION TODAY WITH REGARDS TO
THE DELAYED IMPLEMENTATION OF
THE F FA THE REQUEST TO SLOW
DOWN THE PROCESS SO THAT
POTENTIAL SUBMITTERS CAN BE GET
READY IS SUBSTANTIALLY DIFFERENT
THAN UH, PROVIDER SEEKING TO
EXERCISE THEIR DUE PROCESS RIGHT
, SLOWING DOWN THE POTENTIAL
SLOWING DOWN THE PROCESS FOR
POTENTIAL SUBMITTERS WAS A
POLICY DECISION. TO WAIT FOR
POTENTIAL NEW MUNICIPAL
BROADBAND NETWORKS TO SUBMIT
APPLICATIONS RATHER THAN MOVING
FORWARD. THE CHALLENGE PROCESS
IS A DUE PROCESS RIGHT INCLUDED
IN THE èC P èC TO ENSURE
DOLLARS ARE SPENT ON CONNECTING
UNSERVED LOCATIONS. WE JUST
THOUGHT THAT CLARIFICATION WAS
IMPORTANT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU.
GOOD AFTERNOON CHAIR AND MEMBERS
MAR GER ON BEHALF OF THE
BUILDING DECARBONISATION
COALITION. WE REQUEST THE STATE
MAINTAIN FUNDING FOR THE CEC'S
EQUITABLE BUILDING
DECARBONISATION PROGRAM. AS YOU
KNOW, THIS PROGRAM IS FIRST OF
ITS KIND AND HELPS LOW INCOME
INDIVIDUALS RECEIVE HOME
RETROFITS THAT IMPROVE INDOOR
AIR QUALITY HEALTH, COMFORT AND
ENERGY AFFORDABILITY. WE ALSO
SUPPORT ANY FINAL CLIMATE BOND
PACKAGE THAT INCLUDES AT LEAST
$400 MILLION IN FUNDING FOR THIS
IMPORTANT PROGRAM THAT WILL HELP
CALIFORNIA MEET ITS CLIMATE
GOALS. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. GOOD
MORNING CHAIR AND COMMITTEE
MEMBERS. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR
THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK TODAY.
MY NAME IS ALISON HILLIARD AND I
AM REIMAGINED POWERS, SENIOR
POLICY ANALYST. UM IN REGARD TO
RATE INCREASES, I'D LIKE TO FLAG
THE èC P C'S OWN REPORT FROM
2021 ON AFFORDABILITY OF THE
GRID OF THE FUTURE. IT FOUND
THAT TRANSMISSION SPENDING SORRY
I'M SO TALL. I GOTTA FIX THE
MIC. UM IT FOUND THAT
TRANSMISSION SPENDING IS THE
MAIN CAUSE OF RATE INCREASES,
ALONG WITH THE CALIFORNIA IOU'S
RETURN OF EQUITY, WHICH IS THE
HIGHEST IN THE NATION AND
WILDFIRE MITIGATION. UM THE BIG,
UH, OF THOSE THREE THAT I'M
GONNA FLAG TODAY IS BIG
TRANSMISSION. THE SOLUTION TO
THAT IS DISTRIBUTED ENERGY
RESOURCES LIKE ENERGY EFFICIENCY
AND ON SITE SOLAR. UH, THE
LEGISLATURE NEEDS TO FOCUS ON
DEPLOYING MORE Dð ER S¼
DISTRIBUTED ENERGY RESOURCES AND
LESS SPENDING ON TRANSMISSION
INFRASTRUCTURE. THIS SHIFT WILL
BRING RATES DOWN FOR EVERYONE
AND MAKE EVERY UM AND MAKE
ENERGY MORE AFFORDABLE WHILE
ALLOWING THE STATE TO ADOPT. TO
CHANGING THE CHANGING CLIMATE
AND ALSO MEET DECARBONIZATION
ELECTRIFICATION AND RELIABILITY
GOALS. WE ALSO URGE THE
LEGISLATURE TO FOCUS ON THE
LOCALIZATION OF ENERGY
INFRASTRUCTURE, UM, AND TO ADOPT
POLICIES THAT HELP ADVANCE LOCAL
AND COMMUNITY ENERGY SOLUTIONS.
WE'RE EXCITED ABOUT THE DIBA
PROGRAM AND LOOK FORWARD TO
SEEING HOW THAT EVOLVES. THANK
YOU SO MUCH. THANK YOU. SENATORS
UH, MY NAME IS BILL JULIAN. I'M
A RETIRED LEGISLATIVE STAFF. I'M
HERE AS A MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC.
UH I WAS HAPPY TO, UH, HEAR, UH,
EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS, UH,
COMMENTS ABOUT THE INTERVENOR
COMPENSATION PROGRAM. I STAFFED
THE UTILITIES AND COMMERCE
COMMITTEE WHEN THAT PROGRAM WAS
CREATED IN 1984, I STAFFED MS
MOORE, UH, WHO CHAIRED IT WHEN
SHE CARRIED THE LEGISLATION THAT
PUT IT IN ITS PRESENT FORM. I
HAVE BEEN A LEGAL ADVISOR AND
LEGISLATIVE DIRECTOR FOR THE
PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION. AND
PARTICIPATED IN THE, UH,
DECISIONS AND DECISIONS ON
INTERVENOR COMPENSATION, AND
I'VE LITIGATED CASES, INCLUDING
GENERAL RAPE CASES IN FRONT OF
THE COMMISSION AND RECEIVED, UH,
INTERVENOR COMPENSATION AWARDS.
SO I'VE WATCHED THIS PROGRAM
EVOLVE OVER 40 YEARS, AND I
GUESS I WOULD SAY I'M PART OF
THE INSTITUTIONAL MEMORY, UH, ON
THIS PROGRAM. THIS PROGRAM IS
INTENDED TO INSTITUTIONALIZE THE
ALL THE DIFFERENT AND VERY
DIVERSE PERSPECTIVES ON THE
PUBLIC INTEREST AND UTILITY
REGULATION. AND IF YOU READ THE,
UH, PURPOSE SECTION OF THE
EXISTING STATUTE, IT SAYS IT'S
TO SUPPORT PARTICIPATION AS WELL
AS INTERVENTION. AND THE
COMMISSION'S UH UH UH, PRACTICE.
UNFORTUNATELY UH, OVER A NUMBER
OF YEARS HAS BEEN TO UH
UNNECESSARILY. CONSTRAIN AND
RESTRICT, UH, THAT THOSE
OPPORTUNITIES FOR PARTICIPATION
FOR, UH, THE UNDERREPRESENTED
MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC. IN THE
UTILITY FIELD AS SENATOR ALLEN,
UH, HAS OBSERVED, UH UH THE
BASIC INSTITUTION IS THE UTILITY
AND THE UTILITIES PARTICIPATION
IN THE REGULATORY PROCESS, BOTH
INFORMALLY AND FORMALLY IS THE
IS THE BASIS FOR, UH HUNDREDS OF
MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN RATEPAYER
OR PUBLIC PROVIDED FUNDS AS IT
SHOULD BE, UH, UTILITIES ARE
REQUIRED A REGULATED THEY'RE
REQUIRED TO PARTICIPATE, BUT THE
PUBLIC ALSO NEEDS TO HAVE ITS
VOICE INSTITUTIONALIZED. AND
THAT WAS THE PURPOSE OF THE
INTERVENOR COMPENSATION PROGRAM
WHEN IT WAS FIRST CREATED IN
1984, AND AS IT HAS BEEN
REVISED. THE COMMISSION. NEEDS
TO REVISIT. HOW IT ADMINISTERS
THAT PROGRAM AND THE LEGISLATURE
. I'M VERY HAPPY TO SAY IS NOW
ALSO OBSERVING HOW THE
COMMISSION MANAGERS THAT TH
THOSE INSTITUTIONAL PROGRAMS THE
REVISIONS INCLUDE, UH THIS
OVERLY LEGALISTIC AND
CONSTRAINED APPROACH TO
SUBSTANTIAL CONTRIBUTION. A
SUBSTANTIAL CONTRIBUTION CAN BE
MADE BY A PUBLIC INTEREST
ORGANIZATION OR BY PUBLIC
REPRESENTATIVES WHO PARTICIPATE
IN WAYS THAT DON'T NECESSARILY
IMPACT FORMAL PROCEEDINGS.
YOU'RE SEEING THIS IN THE
BROADBAND FIELD AND REMEMBER THE
COMMISSIONS OF APPROACH. UH OR
THE COMMISSION'S OBLIGATIONS,
UH, EXTEND BOTH TO ENERGY AND TO
TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND THE
TELECOMMUNICATIONS FIELD IS ONE
IS ONE PLACE WHERE, UH UH, THE
PUBLIC REALLY NEEDS. TO HAVE
THEIR VOICE INSTITUTIONALIZED.
NOT BE EPISODIC, NOT BE
CONSTRAINED BUT NEEDS TO BE
HEARD. WE ARE ALL BENEFIT ALL
RATEPAYERS. THE PUBLIC ARE ALL
BENEFITED BY THIS KIND OF ROBUST
PARTICIPATION AND THE FACT THAT
YOU'RE FOCUSING ON IT, UH, THE
FACT THAT THE COMMISSION IS
BEGINNING TO DEAL WITH, UH, AN
OVERLY LEGALISTIC AND FRANKLY
POLITICIZED PROCESS, UH, THAT
THAT'S COME TO YOUR ATTENTION
AND YOU'RE STANDING UP FOR THAT,
I THINK IS VERY, VERY IMPORTANT.
UH I'VE UH UH, I I'M I'M AS I
SAY. I'M SORT OF INSTITUTIONAL
MEMORY ON THIS PROGRAM. UH AND
I'M OFFERING. MY UH I I'M
RETIRED. I'M NOT A LOBBYIST. I'M
NOT. BUT I'M A MEMBER OF THE
PUBLIC. I'M OFFERING MY
EXPERIENCE IN, UH, LEGAL
EXPERTISE ON THIS, SO THANK YOU
VERY MUCH FOR TAKING IT UP, AND
I HOPE TO SEE THE KINDS OF
STATUTORY PROVISIONS AS WELL AS
YOUR BUDGET SUPPORT FOR THIS
VERY IMPORTANT, UH, EFFORT TO
INSTITUTIONALIZE PUBLIC VOICES,
THOSE VOICES THAT ARE NOT HEARD
AS EFFECTIVELY AS THEY NEED TO
BE IN THE REGULATORY PROCESS.
THANK YOU. THANK YOU, UH, VERY
MUCH. UM WELL WITH THAT. I WANT
TO THANK ALL INDIVIDUALS WHO
PARTICIPATED IN PUBLIC TESTIMONY
. I WANT TO THANK ALL THE
ADMINISTRATION AND, UM
DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE IN L A Ó.
IF YOU'RE NOT ABLE TO TESTIFY
TODAY, WE CAN HAVE COMMENTS
SUBMITTED. UH IN WRITING TO THE
BUDGET AND FISCAL REVIEW
COMMITTEE OR VISIT OUR WEBSITE.
COMMENTS ARE IMPORTANT TO US,
AND WE WANT TO INCLUDE YOUR
TESTIMONY IN THE OFFICIAL
HEARING RECORD. UH, THANK YOU
AGAIN. APPRECIATE YOUR
PARTICIPATION AND THANK YOU FOR
ALL THE PANELISTS AND FOR
EVERYONE'S PATIENCE AND
COOPERATIONS. SENATE BUDGET
SUBCOMITTEE. NUMBER TWO IS
ADJOURNED.