The California Public Utilities Commission on April 30 took up Application 24-03-009, a proposed decision that would let PG&E use a financing structure involving lease entitlements on transmission projects with Citizens Energy Corporation.
Commissioners Douglas and Baker supported the proposal, describing it as a novel, time-limited framework that could help fund infrastructure and return customer benefits through bill-paying assistance and revenue sharing. The meeting summary indicates the plan includes safeguards such as a five-year filing limit, added data requirements, reporting on Citizens Energy’s spending, and staff discretion to refer advice letters to a full application if substantive issues arise.
Other commissioners raised due-process and ratepayer-risk concerns, arguing the matter should have been handled through a formal application rather than a tier 3 advice-letter process. The summary also notes that the structure could affect how major transmission funding is arranged and how much benefit or risk reaches ratepayers.
The commission’s discussion did not make clear in the available summary whether the proposed decision was adopted exactly as discussed or whether amendments were added later in the meeting.
