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Sen. Scott Wilk (R-Santa Clarita) has announced he is coauthoring the Cost of Living Reduction Act, Senate Bill 1326 (Jones), which would repeal a 2022 law authorizing an income-based charge on electrical bills.
“Too many Californians struggle to afford their electricity bills at a time when energy is already unreliable, and yet the legislature thought it was a good idea to rip people off more?” said Senator Wilk. “You should be charged for how much energy you actually use; it should not be based on how much money you make. This bill stops a bad policy before it starts, and I am proud to be a coauthor.”
Senate Bill 1326 (SB 1326) repeals the problematic provisions of Assembly Bill 205 (2022), which enables the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to approve new fixed charges for Investor Owned Utilities (IOUs) customers based on income.
Assembly Bill 205 (AB 205) was never heard, vetted, or voted on in any policy committee and was rammed through the Legislature in a budget trailer bill at the last minute.
Despite the supermajority pushing the bill forward, many Democrats who initially supported AB 205 are reversing course and now calling to stop the income-based charge.
Given that AB 205 mandates the implementation of the income-based fixed charge by July 1, 2024, SB 1326 has an urgency clause to take effect immediately upon being signed into law.