The Assembly Appropriations Committee on Thursday killed a highly watched bill that would have required legislators to study and review a controversial new electric charge recently approved by the Newsom administration. The committee members didn’t discuss their concerns about the bill known as AB 1999 or why they decided to stop the bill from proceeding. In a roll call, two Democratic committee members — Timothy Grayson of Concord and Gail Pellerin of Santa Cruz — voted for the bill.
9 million households will pay $65 to $225 more a year under the new billing structure. People who have solar panels on their homes will also be subject to the monthly charge. The new fee affects customers of investor-owned power companies, including Pacific Gas & Electric, Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric. It does not apply to customers of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power or other municipal utilities.