Electricity: dynamic pricing: advanced metering infrastructure.

Plain English Breakdown

The bill summary and digest do not mention making the theft of gift cards illegal as part of its main provisions related to electricity pricing and metering. This claim was removed because it is unrelated to the primary focus of the bill.

Electricity Pricing and Metering

The bill requires electricity companies to offer dynamic pricing plans and analyze the feasibility of deploying advanced metering infrastructure.

What This Bill Does

• Requires electrical corporations to offer optional dynamic pricing tariffs by January 1, 2028.
• Requires each electrical corporation and local publicly owned electric utility governing board to analyze the feasibility of deploying advanced metering infrastructure to all customers by January 1, 2028.
• Requires each electrical corporation and local publicly owned electric utility governing board to develop a plan for complete deployment of advanced metering infrastructure where feasible by January 1, 2029.

Who It Names or Affects

• Electricity customers who may choose dynamic pricing plans.
• Electrical corporations that must offer dynamic pricing tariffs and analyze the feasibility of deploying advanced metering infrastructure.
• Local publicly owned electric utilities that need to develop a plan for complete deployment of advanced metering infrastructure.

Terms To Know

Dynamic Pricing

A system where electricity prices change based on the time of day or how much is being used.

Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI)

Smart meters and systems that allow utilities to collect data about energy use in real-time.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill does not specify who will pay for installing new meters.
• It is unclear how many customers will choose the dynamic pricing plans.
• Local publicly owned electric utilities must decide if deploying advanced metering infrastructure makes sense, but there are no details on what 'feasible' means.

Official Summary Text

AB 710, as amended, Irwin.
Theft of a gift card.
Electricity: dynamic pricing: advanced metering infrastructure.
Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory jurisdiction over public utilities, including electrical corporations, while local publicly owned electric utilities are under the direction of their governing boards. Existing law authorizes the commission to fix the rates and charges for every public utility and requires that those rates and charges be just and reasonable.
This bill would require the commission, on or before January 1, 2028, to require each electrical corporation to offer optional dynamic pricing tariffs, as specified.
This bill would require the commission to require each
electrical corporation, and the governing board of each local publicly owned electric utility, on or before January 1, 2028, to analyze the feasibility of deploying advanced metering infrastructure to all customers. Based on that analysis, the bill would require each electrical corporation and the governing board of each local publicly owned electric utility, on or before January 1, 2029, to develop a plan for complete advanced metering infrastructure deployment, where feasible.
Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act or any order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime.
Because certain provisions of this bill would be part of the act and a violation of a commission action implementing the bill’s requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
Additionally, by imposing new duties on local publicly owned electric utilities, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for specified reasons.
Existing law makes every person who, with intent to defraud, sells, transfers, or conveys an access card, as defined, without the cardholder’s or issuer’s consent guilty of grand theft. Existing law makes every person who, with the intent to defraud, designs, makes, alters, or embosses a counterfeit access card or utters or otherwise attempts to use a counterfeit access card guilty of forgery. Existing law makes every person who, with the intent to defraud, uses a forged or altered card guilty of theft.
This bill would make a person who, with the intent to defraud, acquires or retains possession of a gift card or gift card redemption information, as defined, or uses an acquired or forged card, without the consent of the cardholder, card issuer, or gift card seller, or, with the intent to defraud, devises a scheme to obtain a gift card or gift
card redemption information from a cardholder, card issuer, or gift card seller by means of false or fraudulent pretenses, representations, or promises guilty of theft, punishable as a misdemeanor, and, if the things of value that are acquired or used exceed $950, guilty of grand theft, punishable as a misdemeanor or a felony. The bill would make a person who, with the intent to defraud, alters or tampers with a gift card guilty of forgery, punishable as a misdemeanor or a felony. By creating new crimes, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Current Bill Text

Download Bill PDF