Article 2 - Rates

California Public Utilities Code — §§ 727-758

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Sections (89)

Amended by Stats. 1996, Ch. 1042, Sec. 18. Effective September 29, 1996.

It is the policy of the state that the use of all waterways, ports, and harbors of this state shall be encouraged, and to that end the commission is directed in the establishment of rates for water carriers applying to business moving between points within this state to fix those rates at such a differential under the rates of competing land carriers that the water carriers shall be able fairly to compete for such business. In fixing the rates there shall be taken into consideration quality and regularity of service and class and speed of vessels.

Amended by Stats. 2022, Ch. 890, Sec. 2. (SB 1469) Effective January 1, 2023.

(a)In establishing rates for water service, the commission shall consider, and may establish, separate charges for costs associated with customer service, facilities, variable operating costs, including fixed and variable costs associated with supplying the water, or other components of the water service provided to water users.
(b)The commission shall consider, and may authorize, a water corporation to assess a fee for future water service, or a reservation charge for future water service, for persons or entities occupying or owning property within the service territory of the water corporation.
(c)The commission shall consider, and may authorize, a water corporation to establish a balancing account, rate stabilization fund, or other contingency fund, the purpose of which shall be the long-term stabilization of water rates.
(d)(1) The commission shall consider, and may authorize, a water corporation to establish programs, including rate designs, for achieving conservation of water and recovering the cost of these programs through the rates.
(2)(A) Upon application by a water corporation with more than 10,000 service connections, the commission shall

consider, and may authorize, the implementation of a mechanism that separates the water corporation’s revenues and its water sales, commonly referred to as a “decoupling mechanism.”

(B)An authorized decoupling mechanism shall be designed to ensure that the differences between actual and authorized water sales do not result in the overrecovery or underrecovery of the water corporation’s authorized water sales revenue.
(C)An authorized decoupling mechanism shall not enable the water corporation to earn a revenue windfall by encouraging higher sales.
(D)The water corporation may only submit an application to the commission pursuant to this paragraph as part of

its triennial general rate case application described in Section 455.2, unless the commission and the water corporation mutually agree for the application to be otherwise submitted.

(e)In establishing rates for recovery of the costs of used and useful water plant, the commission may use a capital structure and payback methodology that maintains the reliability of water service, minimizes the long-term cost to ratepayers, provides equity between present and future ratepayers, and affords the utility an opportunity to earn a reasonable return on its used and useful investment, attract capital for investment on reasonable terms, and ensure the financial integrity of the utility.

Amended by Stats. 1963, Ch. 1948.

Whenever the commission, after a hearing, finds that the rates or classifications, demanded, observed, charged, or collected by any public utility for or in connection with any service, product, or commodity, or the rules, practices, or contracts affecting such rates or classifications are insufficient, unlawful, unjust, unreasonable, discriminatory, or preferential, the commission shall determine and fix, by order, the just, reasonable, or sufficient rates, classifications, rules, practices, or contracts to be thereafter observed and in force.

In determining and fixing rates for a telephone corporation pursuant to this section or

pursuant to Section 455, or in determining whether or not a proposed rate increase is justified pursuant to Section 454, the commission shall, among other things, take into consideration any evidence offered concerning the quality of the particular telephone corporation’s services as compared with that of telephone corporations in adjacent territory, and the permissible rates for comparable service charged by telephone corporations in adjacent territory.

Amended by Stats. 1986, Ch. 1204, Sec. 1.

(a)For purposes of this section, “plant held for future use account” means account number 105 of the Uniform System of Accounts Prescribed for Public Utilities and Licensees, as adopted by the commission.
(b)The commission shall review the status of all property owned by a gas or electrical corporation and held within the plant held for future use account at least once every three years or during a proceeding conducted pursuant to Section 728, for the purpose of determining and fixing the rates of that gas or electrical corporation, as determined by the commission.
(c)If a gas or electrical corporation sells property which was carried within the plant held for future use account and which was included in determining the rates of the corporation, the commission shall determine what portion of any gains from the sale shall be allocated to the customers of the corporation in a manner consistent with the procedures specified in account number 105 of the Uniform System of Accounts Prescribed for Public Utilities and Licensees. The portion of the gains allocated to customers shall not be less than the amount the corporation has recovered through rates for the carrying costs and other expenses of the property during the period it was carried in the plant held for future use, and shall not exceed the gain on the sale, net of any tax, resulting from the sale.

Amended by Stats. 1982, Ch. 1175, Sec. 1. Effective September 20, 1982.

(a)Except as provided in subdivision (b), the commission shall have no jurisdiction or control over classified telephone directories or commercial advertising included as part of the corporation’s alphabetical telephone directories, including the charges for and the form and content of such advertising, except that the commission shall investigate and consider revenues and expenses with regard to the acceptance and publication of such advertising for purposes of establishing rates for other services offered by telephone corporations.
(b)If the

commission determines, after a hearing, that any federal action would impair its ability to investigate and consider revenues and expenses with regard to the acceptance and publication of telephone directory advertising for the purpose of establishing rates for other services offered by any telephone corporation, the commission shall have the jurisdiction to regulate commercial advertising in alphabetical and classified directories of telephone corporations, except as provided in this subdivision.

(1)The commission’s jurisdiction to regulate commercial advertising in alphabetical and classified directories of telephone corporations under this subdivision shall be limited to the rates and charges for commercial directory advertising, except that the commission shall investigate and consider revenues and expenses of telephone corporations related to that advertising for purposes of establishing rates for other services offered by telephone

corporations.

(2)The commission shall also have no jurisdiction over the following:
(i)The form and content of the advertising in alphabetical and classified directories of telephone corporations.

(ii) The form and content of the directories in which that advertising appears.

(iii) Directory advertising practices.

(iv) The determination of the geographic areas served by those directories.

(v)Complaints by any corporation or person regarding directory advertising.
(3)The commission, by its own motion or on petition of any telephone corporation, may, after a

hearing, issue an order relinquishing the jurisdiction assumed under this subdivision, except its jurisdiction to investigate and consider the revenues and expenses specified in paragraph (1) if the commission determines that relinquishing the jurisdiction will not affect its ability to investigate and consider those revenues and expenses. As used in this subdivision, “federal action” means the introduction of a bill in Congress, an order of the Federal Communications Commission, or an order or decision of any federal court which would prohibit state regulatory agencies which have no jurisdiction over directory advertising from considering revenues from this source for ratemaking purposes.

Added by Stats. 1987, Ch. 1172, Sec. 2.

(a)No telephone corporation operating within a service area shall remove any public telephone unless it has posted on the public telephone for not less than 30 days a notice, in a manner and form approved by the commission, indicating that the public telephone is to be removed and containing the appropriate telephone number of the commission which a customer may call for further information.
(b)This section shall not apply when a public telephone is removed for public safety or public nuisance purposes or at the request of the owner or lessee of the property on which the

public telephone is located.

Added by Stats. 1990, Ch. 973, Sec. 2.

A telephone corporation shall list a telephone number as the number for a facsimile machine in its alphabetical or classified directory only if requested to do so by the subscriber.

Amended by Stats. 1999, Ch. 1005, Sec. 35. Effective January 1, 2000.

(a)The commission may establish rates or charges for the transportation of passengers and freight by railroads and other transportation companies, except motor carriers of property, and no railroad or other transportation company under its jurisdiction, except motor carriers of property, shall charge or demand or collect or receive a greater or less or different compensation for that transportation of passengers or freight, or for any service in connection therewith, between the points named in any tariff of rates established by the

commission than the rates, fares and charges which are specified in that tariff. The commission may examine books, records and papers of all railroad and other transportation companies, except motor carriers of property; may hear and determine complaints against railroad and other transportation companies; and may issue subpoenas and all necessary process and send for persons and papers. The commission and each of the commissioners may administer oaths, take testimony and punish for contempt in the same manner and to the same extent as courts of record. The commission may prescribe a uniform system of accounts to be kept by all railroad and other transportation companies, except motor carriers of property.

(b)Subdivision (a) is not applicable to network railroad transportation.

Added by Stats. 1986, Ch. 1047, Sec. 2.

(a)Prior to authorizing any change in the amount of the payment required of a telephone corporation which provides service between service areas to a telephone corporation which provides service within a service area for the use of its telephone lines, and prior to assigning to subscribers of a telephone corporation operating within a service area any charge, surcharge, or rate increase that is a result of a decrease in the amount of that payment, the commission shall do all of the following:
(1)Require the telephone corporation requesting authorization to increase

subscriber rates or to impose a charge or surcharge on subscribers as a result of a change in the payments, to notify its subscribers, whenever the commission commences a proceeding on its own motion or in response to a petition to authorize a change in the amount of those payments or to impose that charge, surcharge, or rate increase as a result of a change in the amount of those payments.

(2)Require the telephone corporation to provide its subscribers with an exact description of, and explanation for, the change in the amount of the payment or the imposition of a charge, surcharge, or rate increase, within 90 days of the authorized change in the amount of payment or charge, surcharge, or rate increase. The description and explanation shall include a reasonably accurate quantitative assessment of the results of, and the reasons for, the change in the amount of payment or imposition of a charge, surcharge, or rate increase for each class of

subscriber.

(b)The commission shall provide the Legislature with the information required of a telephone corporation pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (a), for any change in payments, or imposition of a charge, surcharge, or rate increase as a result of a change in payment, made prior to January 1, 1987, within 60 days after that date.

Enacted by Stats. 1951, Ch. 764.

The commission may, upon a hearing, investigate a single rate, classification, rule, contract, or practice, or any number thereof, or the entire schedule or schedules of rates, classifications, rules, contracts, and practices, or any thereof, of any public utility, and may establish new rates, classifications, rules, contracts, or practices or schedule or schedules in lieu thereof.

Added by Stats. 1993, Ch. 739, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 1994.

A public utility, other than one-way radio paging services, shall not change a group of customers from one rate schedule to another rate schedule, if the change would result in an increase of more than 10 percent in the rate charged to the affected customers, without first notifying customers of the change. Upon the request of an affected customer, the commission may hold a hearing on the change.

Amended by Stats. 1999, Ch. 1005, Sec. 36. Effective January 1, 2000.

(a)The commission shall, upon a hearing, determine the kind and character of facilities and the extent of the operation thereof, necessary reasonably and adequately to meet public requirements for service furnished by common carriers between any two or more points, and shall fix and determine the just, reasonable, and sufficient rates for such service. Whenever two or more common carriers are furnishing service in competition with each other, the commission may, after hearing, when necessary for the preservation of adequate service and when

public interest demands, prescribe uniform rates, classifications, rules, and practices to be charged, collected, and observed by all such common carriers.

(b)Subdivision (a) is not applicable to network railroad transportation.

Amended by Stats. 1982, Ch. 1031, Sec. 3.

The commission shall notify every state and local public agency and corporation operating a passenger transit system making a written request for such notification before approving any rate increase for the passenger transportation services of any railroad or passenger state corporation within the territory served by such public transit system.

Repealed and added by Stats. 1982, Ch. 732, Sec. 5. Effective September 8, 1982.

In determining reimbursement to railroad corporations for the operation of rail passenger service, the commission shall not exceed that compensation which would be payable if calculated pursuant to the standards of the Rail Services Planning Office of the Interstate Commerce Commission contained in Title 49 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 1127.

Added by Stats. 1982, Ch. 732, Sec. 6. Effective September 8, 1982.

Whenever a state agency files with the commission an application for an increase in rates or fares or for any change in the level of service for passenger transportation by a railroad corporation and the state agency has prior to the application held a public hearing on the matter which the commission finds to be complete and adequate, the commission may determine not to hold any further hearing on the matter and in this event shall approve, modify and approve as so modified, or disapprove the application within 90 days of the date of filing with the commission.

Added by Stats. 2022, Ch. 840, Sec. 2. (SB 1208) Effective January 1, 2023.

(a)(1) On or before June 30, 2024, the commission, in coordination and consultation with the Department of Community Services and Development and other relevant state agencies that provide low-income electric or gas utility customer assistance programs, shall develop a process that, to the extent

possible, enables customers to concurrently apply, or begin to apply, to multiple low-income customer assistance programs using data collected during the original application process, including, but not limited to, all of the following programs:

(A) The California Alternate Rates for Energy (CARE) program described in Section 739.1.

(B) The Family Electric Rate Assistance program described in Section 739.12.

(C) The Energy Savings Assistance program described in Section 2790.

(2)The process developed pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be known as the concurrent application process.
(b)The commission shall work with state agencies, electrical corporations, and gas corporations to notify, to the extent possible, eligible individuals that they have been successfully enrolled or are in the process of being enrolled into other programs.
(c)The concurrent application process shall complement, rather than replace, other application processes.
(d)Before sharing data, an electrical corporation or gas corporation shall receive consent from its low-income applicants to use already-obtained application information to begin the enrollment process for other low-income electric or gas utility customer assistance programs.

Amended by Stats. 1999, Ch. 1005, Sec. 38. Effective January 1, 2000.

(a)Whenever the commission, after a hearing finds that the rates, fares, or charges in force over two or more common carriers, between any two points in this state, are unjust, unreasonable, or excessive, or that no satisfactory through route or joint rate, fare, or charge exists between such points, and that the public convenience and necessity demand the establishment of such a through route and joint rate, fare, or charge, the commission may order such common carriers to establish such through route and may establish and fix a joint rate,

fare, or charge which will be fair, just, reasonable, and sufficient, to be charged and collected in the future, and the terms and conditions under which such through route shall be operated. The commission may order that freight moving between such points shall be carried by the common carriers participating in such through route and joint rate, without being transferred from the originating cars.

(b)Subdivision (a) is not applicable to network railroad transportation.

Amended by Stats. 1999, Ch. 1005, Sec. 39. Effective January 1, 2000.

(a)If the common carriers do not agree upon the division between them of the joint rates, fares, or charges established by the commission over through routes, the commission shall, after hearing, by supplemental order, establish that division. Where any railroad, or passenger stage corporation that is made a party to a through route has itself over its own line an equally satisfactory through route between the termini of the through route established, that railroad, or passenger stage corporation may require as its division of the joint rate,

fare, or charge its local rate, fare, or charge over the portion of its line comprised in the through route, and the commission may, in its discretion, allow to that railroad or passenger stage corporation, more than its local rate, fare, or charge if the commission determines that it will be equitable so to do. The commission may establish and fix through routes and joint rates, fares, or charges over common carriers and stage or auto stage lines which may not be otherwise subject to the provisions of this part, and may fix the division of those joint rates, fares, or charges.

(b)Subdivision (a) is not applicable to network railroad transportation.

Amended by Stats. 2014, Ch. 144, Sec. 51. (AB 1847) Effective January 1, 2015.

When complaint has been made to the commission concerning a rate for a product or commodity furnished or service performed by a public utility, and the commission has found, after investigation, that the public utility has charged an unreasonable, excessive, or discriminatory amount therefor in violation of any of the provisions of this part, the commission may order that the public utility make due reparation to the complainant

therefor, with interest from the date of collection if no discrimination will result from that reparation. No order for the payment of reparation upon the ground of unreasonableness shall be made by the commission when the rate in question has, by formal finding, been declared by the commission to be reasonable, and no assignment of a reparation claim shall be recognized by the commission except assignments by operation of law as in cases of death, lack of legal capacity to make decisions, bankruptcy, receivership, or order of court.

Amended by Stats. 1953, Ch. 702.

If the public utility does not comply with the order for the payment of reparation within the time specified in the order, suit may be instituted in any court of competent jurisdiction to recover the payment within one year from the date of the order, and not after. All complaints for damages resulting from a violation of any of the provisions of this part, except Sections 494 and 532, shall either be filed with the commission, or where concurrent jurisdiction of the cause of action is vested by the Constitution and laws of this State in the courts, in any court of competent jurisdiction, within two years from the time the cause of action accrues, and not

after.

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