If you’re from California, you have probably noticed that your monthly gas bill (from PG&E, San Diego Gas & Electric, or Southern California Gas, depending on where in the state you live), has a number of fees and surcharges tacked on after the actual energy charges. One of these fees is generally labeled "PPP," and it goes to support a number of so-called "public purpose programs." These public purpose programs are well worth supporting; they include direct assistance to low-income customers and an efficiency program for low income customers, which installs energy-saving measures, ranging from CFLs to high-efficiency furnaces, for people who couldn’t afford them. These programs are known as California Alternative Rates for Energy (CARE) and the Low-Income Energy Efficiency (LIEE) programs. Other programs, including efforts to expand use of solar power and reduce greenhouse gases in California are also supported by the PPP Fund.
These programs are now being threatened. More information and an action item after the jump.
Right now, the PPP Fund is supported by a surcharge that is applied equally to every unit of natural gas used in the state, without regard to who uses it. (If you are a policy geek, the formula is referred to as "Equal Costs per Therm" or ECPT, where a therm is a unit of measurement for natural gas.) However, some of the big industrial users of natural gas have persuaded the energy companies to ask for this formula to be restructured so that residential customers (renters and homeowners) pay more, and the big corporate interests pay less. The energy companies have asked the California Public Utilities Commission, which is a little known but extremely powerful state agency, to enact this change.
If the proposed funding formula change is adopted, all residential customers will pay more for these surcharges, in addition to expected increased costs for natural gas. This will be particularly harmful to people who are just above the income line to qualify for the CARE Program; the cutoff is 200% of the federal poverty line. These are the people who are already struggling to pay for increased food and gasoline costs, and they don’t need to be hit even harder on energy costs too.
People on CARE do not pay the CARE portion of the surcharge, though they pay to support the other programs. In theory, the changed formula will not affect the overall amount paid into the program fund, so people on CARE will only be directly affected in a limited way. However, any one who has worked in the area of public policy knows that, if this change is adopted, other business interests will flock to the program demanding that their costs be reduced too. There is a real risk that the very foundation of the program will be threatened, right when people need it the most.
Even if the program itself remains sound, the pending request specifically asks for reductions in the amount paid by big corporations, with the difference to be made up by individual renters and homeowners. The utilities and the corporate entities behind the request have argued that this is necessary to prevent businesses from leaving the state, while also arguing that it won't make a difference to residential customers.
If this doesn’t sound right to you, here’s the action item:
Please contact the Administrative Law Judge who is overseeing the utilities’ application for the funding change, and let him know that you believe the existing funding formula should be maintained. The ALJ is Michael J. Galvin. You can contact him via email at mfg@cpuc.ca.gov, or by mail at:
ALJ Michael J. Galvin
California Public Utilities Commission
Division of Administrative Law Judges
505 Van Ness Avenue, Room 5015
San Francisco, CA 94102-3214
Please include the proceeding number for the utilities’ request to increase charges to renters and homeowners. This number is A.07-12-006.
If you are a renter or homeowner in California, say whether or not you receive the low income discount on your energy bill. The name of the discount program is CARE, which stands for California Alternative Rates for Energy. (If you qualify for CARE and you don’t currently receive it, contact your energy company directly to enroll. Contact information is at this link. Explain how high energy bills are hurting you or people you know in the current tough economic times. In looking into this application, I have heard of people who have sacrificed purchases of prescription medication to pay their utility bills, or of people who have not heated their home in winter because they could not afford to pay. If you have done anything like this, or you know someone who has, please include the story of your experience in your letter. Even if you are not from California, let the PUC know that they should not change the public purpose funding formula.
This may be a small thing, but now is not the time to shift costs from big businesses to individuals. Your help can make a difference. The PUC is likely to issue a decision shortly after Labor Day. Please help.