Under AB 1890, (September 1996), and reconfirmed in recent legislation, the CPUC's energy efficiency programs are funded by the electric Public Goods Charge (PGC) and natural gas Demand Side Management (DSM) charge applied to each customer's bill within each utility's service territory. These surcharges comprise approximately 1.0% and 0.7%, respectively, of each customer's bill and provide the CPUC and the California Energy Commission with a total of approximately $540 million to fund public purpose programs.
Sample Bill: Here the PGC is listed as the Public Purpose Programs
The PGC refers to specific funds set aside in AB1890 for public purposes. Electricity energy efficiency funds are only one component of the PGC, comprising approximately $220 million per year. The natural gas DSM funding, however, was not addressed in AB 1890. The Commission has continued to direct that these funds be used consistently with electric funds to meet energy efficiency goals. AB1002 signed in September 2000 establishes a gas surcharge for public purposes, including energy efficiency, beginning in 2001.
The CPUC oversees the allocation of these energy efficiency funds for program implementation to each of the four utilities in California: Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E), Southern California Edison (SCE), Southern California Gas Company (SCG), and San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E). Every year, the CPUC approves each utility's plan for efficiency programs, which the utility then carries out within its service territory. A number of programs are also coordinated on a statewide basis.
Energy efficiency programs are designed to provide a fair distribution of funds among residential and nonresidential customers, while maximizing energy savings. There are special programs (not included on this site) overseen by the Low-Income Oversight Board (LIOB), to provide energy efficiency services specifically for low-income households.