California's energy crisis ended seven years ago, but electricity customers are still paying for it, lawyers are arguing over it and regulators are reigniting debate over the policies that led up to it.
The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments today about whether the high-priced energy contracts signed amid the crisis can be reopened to make sure the rates are fair.
And later this month, state utility regulators are expected to move toward allowing Californians to buy electricity from companies other than the traditional utilities -- a central feature of the previous deregulation effort.
"All this stuff that got put on the side burner for a while is all coming back," said Michael Shames, executive director of San Diego-based Utility Consumers' Action Network.
If you're wondering why these things matter, check your utility bill. Customers of Southern California Edison, San Diego Gas & Electric and Pacific Gas & Electric are still paying for the energy mess circa 2000-01.
A sample bill from Edison lists the ways.
There's the "DWR bond charge" to repay bonds the state Department of Water Resources issued so it could buy power during the crisis. And there's the cost of the electricity the agency bought -- and is still buying -- under long-term contracts. Edison's bill lists that as "DWR generation."
Then there's the "trust transfer amount," earmarked for repaying 10-year bonds that funded rate reductions for the first four years of the deregulation plan. The utilities' customers are paying an estimated $3.4 billion more than they will have gotten from the rate rollback.
Finally, there's the competition transition charge, which Edison calls "ongoing CTC." That reimburses the utilities for expensive energy contracts and power plant investments that weren't fully recovered when the companies sold them as part of deregulation.
The CTC is getting smaller but will be on Edison bills until 2028. There's little chance of relief on the bond charges. But the cost of DWR's power contracts is another matter. The state believes it is due between $1.45 billion and $3.08 billion on four contracts that were never renegotiated -- money that could go back to electric customers in some form, possibly by reducing or eliminating future charges.
That's what the Supreme Court fight is about.
