Governor energizes solar-panel effort
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill he hopes will result in the installation of solar electric panels on 1 million California homes over the next decade.
Senate Bill 1, by state Sen. Kevin Murray, D-Culver City, will expand the state's $3.2 billion solar subsidy program to include municipal as well as investor-owned utilities, with the goal of producing 3,000 megawatts of electricity from the sun.
Switching to solar power from traditional electricity production by that amount would represent the equivalent of taking a million cars off the road, Schwarzenegger said.
Murray said the bill helps move the state toward a semblance of energy independence.
"No one can game the sun," Murray said, in reference to allegations that large energy trading companies such as Enron manipulated the state's energy crisis earlier this decade for their own profit. "No trader can play games with the cost of your energy once you've got solar panels on them."
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California lawmakers plan to overturn income-based utility charges
SACRAMENTO - Efforts are being made across California's political landscape to derail a legislative initiative that introduced income-based utility charges for customers of Southern California Edison and other major utilities.
Legislators from both the Democratic and Republican parties have proposed bills aimed at nullifying the 2022 legislation that established a sliding scale for utility charges based on customer income, a decision made in a late-hour session and subsequently endorsed by Governor Gavin Newsom.
The plan, pending final approval from the state Public Utilities Commission (PUC) — all of whose current members were appointed by Governor Newsom — would enable utilities like Southern…
