PUC rate proposal draws fire

Critics say plan shows commission is too cozy withmajor utilities

California electricity customers — including residential ratepayers served by PG& E — could face sweeping changes in their monthly bills following a state regulatory proposal issued by two law judges with the state Public Utilities Commission that would increase the amount that low- usage customers pay each month.

“This reform is intended to make rates more understandable to customers and more costbased,” PUC law judges Jeanne McKinney and Julie Halligan wrote in their proposal. “Residential rates neither reflect cost of service nor provide a useful price signal to customers.”

The full five- member PUC will now review the proposal before making a final decision, likely this year.

It was immediately denounced by advocacy groups suggesting the proposal shows the PUC maintains a cozy relationship with all three of California’s major utilities. Close ties between Pacific Gas & Electric and the PUC have been fiercely criticized in connection with the state agency’s oversight of PG& E before and after a fatal explosion in San Bruno.

“This decision might as well have been written on utility stationery,” said Evan Gillespie, a director with the Sierra Club, in comments that were a reminder of previous accusations that the PUC engages in lax oversight of major utilities such as PG& E. “The PUC basically handed the utilities exactly what they have been lobbying for.”

The key issue before the PUC is whether the proposed rate structure favors the wealthy and reduces incentives for customers to save electricity.

A centerpiece of the plan is a minimum $ 10 monthly electricity bill for residential customers, potentially starting this summer, depending on the PUC’s final de-

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