Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including gas corporations. An existing commission order requires the commission to investigate the causes and impacts of the winter 2022–2023 natural gas price spikes and the potential for recurrence, the impact of the price spikes on natural gas and electric prices and customer bills, the potential threats to gas and electric reliability and price volatility in summer 2023 and beyond, potential mitigations, and utility communications to customers to determine whether they were sufficient or require modifications.
This bill would require the commission, on or before February
August 1, 2024, and in consultation with the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to the extent necessary to analyze the natural gas wholesale market and trends, to submit a report to the relevant legislative policy committees on the status, outcomes, and recommendations, if any, of the commission order described above and the status and any findings of any related investigations by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.