Pacific Gas & Electric should not be required to pay a $200-million fine for causing catastrophic wildfires in California that killed more than 100 people, according to a filing by California Public Utilities Commission member Clifford Rechtschaffen.
Residential electric customers in portions of California will have their monthly bills reduced in coming months due to the state's shelter-in-place order, the California Public Utilities Commission decided on April 2.
The California Public Utilities Commission is working on revised public-safety power shut-off guidelines that would incorporate shelter-in-place orders due to the outbreak of COVID-19, according to CPUC spokesperson Terrie Prosper.
The California Public Utilities Commission unanimously approved a package that changes the state's greenhouse gas emissions target and adopts a new reference system portfolio during a virtual meeting that included dropped calls, audio problems, restless children and barking dogs.
California's grid operator approved contracts that will keep three natural gas-fired generation units putting power on the grid past their scheduled retirements, decisions that have not been without controversy in the past.
Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed significant cuts to the state's clean-vehicle rebate program, potentially leaving half of future clean-vehicle drivers at the curb and empty-handed, according to staff with the California Air Resources Board.
The California Public Utilities Commission rejected plans by San Diego Gas & Electric to raise its residential customers' rates by roughly 255 percent.
Southern California Edison, which had been planning to construct six microgrid projects this year, told the California Public Utilities Commission that moving forward so quickly resulted in cost-prohibitive projected construction expenses, causing the utility to reassess its approach to publ…
The California Public Utilities Commission on March 12 certified an electric transmission line project that would permanently alter lush farmland near a disadvantaged community, but potentially reduce the need to turn on natural gas-fired power generation plants near the community as well.
Telecommunications companies operating in California would be required to have 72 hours of backup power at critical facilities to retain emergency service and other communications under a proposal from state regulators.
Researchers with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and other institutions say that greenhouse gas emissions from the building industry can be reduced not only with advances in science and technology, but also by providing access to temperature-control systems to people working inside sha…
The Bay Area Air Quality Management District recently announced it is making $5 million in Volkswagen Environmental Mitigation Trust funding available for hydrogen refueling stations.
The California Department of Public Health on March 10 posted its first report on radiation data collected at the independent spent-fuel storage installation at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station.
Fifteen million light bulbs have gone missing in California, costing electricity customers about $55 million, according to a ruling by the California Public Utilities Commission.
The California Energy Commission is refining a multiyear investment plan for its Clean Transportation Program with the help of its largest-ever advisory committee.
There are some key barriers to offshore wind adoption in California, many of which are related to existing infrastructure such as limited transmission capacity to deliver offshore wind energy to load centers, according to a new report being reviewed by state energy regulators.
State utility regulators this week started their expedited review of Pacific Gas & Electric's reorganization plan, which must be approved by the end of June in order for the bankrupt utility to participate in California's wildfire fund.
Pacific Gas & Electric would pay $2.1 billion for wildfires it sparked in 2017 and 2018 under a settlement proposed Feb. 27 by a state administrative law judge.
California energy regulators have proposed to decrease greenhouse gas emissions caused by the state's electricity sector, but will need to rely on natural gas plants in the coming years in order to do so, according to the California Public Utilities Commission.
The California Energy Commission is looking to tackle two of the biggest problems the state faces—climate change and housing affordability—simultaneously, with $48 million in funding for affordable, zero-emission mixed-used development.
State energy regulators approved a new community solar program proposed by the Sacramento Municipal Utility District that environmentalists and residential solar developers strongly opposed as a slippery slope that will lead to more requests for exemptions from the rooftop-solar mandate.
The California Energy Commission on Feb. 20 announced proposed awards of almost $8 million in grants through its Advance to Next-Generation Wind Energy Technology (Next Wind) program [GFO-19-302].
Two California agencies moved forward with programs targeting the building-decarbonization goals the state wants to meet by 2045.
The California Public Utilities Commission on Feb. 3 opened its new biomethane incentive reservation system, which makes roughly $32 million in incentive funding available for biomethane interconnection projects in the state until the funds are depleted or until Dec. 31, 2026, whichever come…
California's investor-owned utilities told state regulators they have stepped up efforts to prevent wildfires and ease the impact of public-safety power shut-offs, after a 2019 fire season that left the public, state lawmakers and regulators frazzled and angry.
Pacific Gas & Electric has agreed to pay an additional $45 million for violating underground utility marking laws that are meant to prevent accidents when digging occurs near pressurized gas pipelines and other equipment.
The California Public Utilities Commission denied $5.24 million of PacifiCorp's $78.59-million test year 2019 rate request for the accelerated depreciation of its coal generation units, reducing retail rates for California customers [A18-04-002, I17-04-019].
The California Air Resources Board new regulations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions caused by trucks and other large vehicles in the state, but stakeholders in the rulemaking process say that CARB is moving too slowly and falling short of what is needed.
The California Public Utilities Commission on Feb. 6 moved forward with a long-disputed $677-million project to repair an old, brittle gas transmission pipeline in Southern California.
The California Energy Commission in a Feb. 5 public webinar introduced a draft "roadmap" outlining future potential CEC investments in utility-scale renewable generation technologies.
A $44-million voucher program designed to accelerate usage of zero-emission freight equipment at California's ports, rail yards, airports, warehouses and terminals was launched Jan. 31 at the Port of San Diego.
The California Public Utilities Commission proposed a set of new rules to accelerate the development of microgrids and self-generation electricity projects—from virtual inspections to unlimited power storage to allowing customers with battery systems to import grid electricity—in an effort t…
The California Public Utilities Commission is considering new rules for public-safety power shut-offs that investor-owned utilities would be required to follow to ensure improved communication with customers and minimize the impacts of the events.
An in-depth analysis of California's emissions targets finds the state will likely not meet its 2030 objective without strengthening current policies and enacting new ones.
A California Public Utilities Commission judge ruled to increase Pacific Gas & Electric's locate-and-mark penalty from $65 million to $110 million, saying the bankrupt utility knew it had severe problems with its program for more than four years but chose to take no action.
The California Public Utilities Commission's Wildfire Safety Advisory Board on Jan. 21 held its inaugural meeting in Sacramento, which was largely devoted to educating the newly appointed board members about the organization and the status of its development.
The California Energy Commission at its Jan. 22 meeting granted Trinity Public Utility District an exemption from new state building codes mandating that solar-photovoltaic systems be installed on newly constructed low-rise residential buildings.
Electric-vehicle charging stations could be required at existing buildings undergoing major renovations in California, according to a report by the California Air Resources Board. Currently, Level 2 EV charging stations must be installed at new-building construction sites, but not at existin…
The California Public Utilities Commission at its Jan. 16 meeting approved a $16.5-million electric undergrounding project that will deviate from a state tariff rule and place distribution lines underground in a high-fire-hazard zone in the Piedmont area of Oakland.
A joint settlement agreement regarding the decommissioning of the Diablo Canyon Power Plant was filed Jan. 10 with the California Public Utilities Commission.
The California Air Resources Board is considering new regulations to curb greenhouse gas emissions from a transportation sector that has grown heavily over the past decade: on-demand ride-sharing companies, such as Lyft and Uber.
California Public Utilities Commission Administrative Law Judge Sofia Park issued a long list of strong questions to Pacific Gas & Electric about its proposed $1.7-billion wildfire settlement agreement with the CPUC and other stakeholders, including why the utility said it needs up to fi…
Assm. Mark Levine (D-Marin County) is proposing expanded oversight of Pacific Gas & Electric in the aftermath of last year's public-safety power shut-offs that caused "economic losses estimated in the billions," he said Jan. 6.
Power shut-offs in California have resulted in a new point of contention between Pacific Gas & Electric and community choice aggregators: Who should be allowed to purchase electricity for CCA customers during shut-offs?
Energy storage technology is getting a boost from the California Energy Commission, which issued an $11-million solicitation supporting non-lithium-ion battery storage research.
Energy experts are concerned that the California Public Utilities Commission has arbitrarily changed its estimate of how much electricity will be imported into the state in the future, and that the change will lead to excess capacity and higher ratepayer bills.
Many load-serving entities in California are seeking to incorporate energy storage into their portfolios, but what remains an unknown for organizations—namely, community choice aggregators—is the role that California Public Utilities Commission oversight might play in future storage developm…
The California Public Utilities Commission on Dec. 24 notified Southern California Edison it would suspend the utility's Dec. 4 advice letter [AL 4122-E] seeking authorization of $405.5 million in disbursements from SCE's nuclear decommissioning trust fund for SCE's share of forecast costs f…
Federal energy regulators approved the California Independent System Operator's request to make permanent certain tariff changes to deal with system constraints caused by ongoing reduced access to the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility.
Zero-emission-vehicle zones might be coming to the Golden State in the next decade and could be implemented at the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles to "show the world what is possible," according to the California Air Resources Board.
