A state bill that would renew payments made by PG&E to San Luis Obispo County schools and other agencies has been altered to draw from a new funding source.
Senate Bill 931 was amended last month while in the Assembly Utilities and Energy Committee.
Matt Freedman, an attorney with The Utility Reform Network, agreed with the decision to source the funding from “volumetric performance fees” — money that PG&E already collects from ratepayers.
“Any additional payments to the local governments should be taken out of the existing incentives and slush funds that PG&E collects in rates already, rather than raising rates further to cover this cost,” Freedman told KCBX.
What would SB 931 do?
SB 931, authored by State Senator John Laird, would revive payments made by PG&E to local governments and agencies near the Diablo Canyon Power Plant.
Those payments expired last year, even though the state negotiated a deal to keep the nuclear plant running until 2030.
One former recipient was the San Luis Coastal Unified School District, which went through $5 million worth of budget cuts last year after losing the revenue.
In an email, a PG&E representative told KCBX that decisions on tax policy belong to the state legislature, and the company will implement the changes if SB 931 is enacted.
Where would the money come from?
The volumetric performance fees PG&E receives for operating Diablo Canyon were established by SB 846, the bill that extended the plant’s operations.
Those fees are paid by ratepayers across the state, but the price is set by the California Public Utilities Commission.
Freedman argues that means the fees won’t increase if some of the pie is given to the communities near Diablo Canyon.
In a statement to KCBX, Laird said he introduced SB 931 in order to continue support for local services in the communities near Diablo Canyon. He also said that the Assembly Utilities and Energy Committee requested amendments to the bill, changing both the funding source and the length of the payments.
“While these Assembly amendments might not have been my first choice, they will better position this bill to be passed and signed into law,” Laird wrote. “We will then work to make sure this support continues through the life of the power plant."
Assemblymember Dawn Addis coauthored the bill. She said there’s a case to be made that the money should actually come from PG&E shareholders.
“Ultimately, where this money comes from is less important,” Addis said. “Our community has really been left without needed funds for four-year-olds and five-year-olds.”
The bill has been referred to the State Assembly’s Committee on Appropriations.
Disclosure: PG&E is a financial supporter of KCBX.
