San Diego Community Power staff told the Community Advisory Committee on April 10 that they are engaging in multiple California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) proceedings with potential operational effects for the CCA and its customers.

Ayesha, senior policy manager, summarized the CPUC’s new order instituting rulemaking on long‑term gas system planning, explaining that the proceeding aims to establish policies to ensure safe and reliable gas systems while facilitating decarbonization and planning for load shifts as gas infrastructure is decommissioned. She said a priority for Community Power and the joint CCA group is obtaining gas distribution planning data to support electric load planning and to weigh in on implementation of Senate Bill 1221’s priority zones for neighborhood decarbonization pilots.

Policy staff also reported on CPUC activity affecting customer‑side renewable programs, noting ongoing reviews of programs that target priority communities: the Solar on Multifamily Affordable Housing (SOMAH) program, the Disadvantaged Communities‑Single Family Affordable Solar Homes (DAC‑SASH) program, and the Renewable Energy Self-Generation Bill Credit Transfer (RES-BCT) program. Dean Kimports and others said Community Power is providing data and pilot results to inform commission decisions so program changes align with local offerings such as the Solar Battery Savings pilot.

Staff described a joint petition for modification seeking interim CPUC clarification that would preserve customer access to real‑time home‑area‑network data from SDG&E meters that had been part of earlier smart‑meter value propositions; that petition was filed with California Efficiency Alliance and a vendor, Mission:data, and staff said the petition awaits a CPUC ruling. Steven Gunther, registered manager, briefed the committee on a recently opened PCIA rulemaking intended to revisit the market‑price benchmark and to reduce year‑to‑year volatility. He said Community Power and its trade association, CalCCA, filed comments urging transparent data analysis and warning that adjustments to PCIA benchmarks can shift costs between bundled and unbundled customers without reducing total system costs.

Why it matters: CPUC outcomes may affect program eligibility, how the CCA plans for electrification load, customers’ access to meter data for new offerings, and price components that appear on customer bills. Committee members asked procedural and substantive questions about access to information, timeline expectations and next steps for participation.