California SB 1098 — Public Utilities Commission: memorandum and balancing accounts.

California, 20252026. SB 1098: Public Utilities Commission: memorandum and balancing accounts.

Plural source record ↗

Official legislative source ↗

Latest action

September 30, 2026 — Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 1008, Statutes of 2026.

Summary

Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations and gas corporations. Existing law authorizes the commission to fix the rates and charges for every public utility and requires that those rates and charges be just and reasonable. Existing law requires the commission, whenever the commission authorizes a change in rates reflecting and passing through to customers specific changes in costs, to require a public utility to establish and maintain a balancing account to reflect the balance between the related costs and revenues. Existing law further directs the commission to authorize public utilities to establish catastrophic event memorandum accounts, as provided. Existing law authorizes each electrical corporation to establish a memorandum account to track costs incurred for wildfire risk mitigation that are unforeseen and incremental to the wildfire risk mitigation programs and activities authorized in the electrical corporation's revenue requirements, as specified. This bill would provide that it is the policy of the state that the regularly scheduled general rate case process is the preferred and primary method of establishing authorized revenue requirements for electrical corporations and gas corporations. The bill would require the commission, in exercising its ratemaking authority, to apply specified principles and requirements, including a requirement that memorandum accounts and balancing accounts, as defined, be authorized and maintained only when necessary to address costs that cannot reasonably be anticipated in the general rate case process, as provided. The bill would require each memorandum account or balancing account authorized by statute, or by the commission, before January 1, 2027, to be included and reviewed in the subsequent general rate case proceeding cycle or at a similar cyclical review interval to the general rate case proceeding, as provided. The bill would require the commission, as part of its review, to close any memorandum account or balancing account if the commission determines that the account is no longer necessary, as specified. The bill would authorize the commission to establish exceptions to those principles and requirements for categories of costs not reviewed pursuant to that requirement, as provided. The bill would require the commission to prepare a report to post on its public website about the process and outcome of the review of each utility's memorandum accounts and balancing accounts. The bill would further require that the ratemaking treatment of memorandum accounts or balancing accounts that are in effect on January 1, 2027, remain unchanged until the commission reviews the account pursuant to that requirement. Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act or any order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime. Because the above requirements would be a part of the act, and a violation of a commission action implementing those requirements would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Sponsors

• Pérez — primary sponsor
• Boerner
• Connolly
• Harabedian

Bill text

SB1098 Read version ↗

02/13/26 - Introduced Read version ↗

03/24/26 - Amended Senate Read version ↗

06/29/26 - Amended Assembly Read version ↗

08/20/26 - Amended Assembly Read version ↗

08/28/26 - Amended Assembly Read version ↗

09/04/26 - Enrolled Read version ↗

09/30/26 - Chaptered Read version ↗

Recorded votes

Legislative history

1. September 30, 2026Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 1008, Statutes of 2026.
2. September 30, 2026Approved by the Governor.
3. September 9, 2026Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 2 p.m.
4. August 31, 2026Assembly amendments concurred in. (Ayes 30. Noes 10.) Ordered to engrossing and enrolling.
5. August 31, 2026Unanimous consent granted to take up without reference to file.
6. August 31, 2026In Senate. Concurrence in Assembly amendments pending.
7. August 31, 2026Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 50. Noes 15. Page 7071.) Ordered to the Senate.
8. August 28, 2026Ordered to third reading.
9. August 28, 2026Read third time and amended.
10. August 28, 2026Joint Rule 61(b)(16) suspended. (Ayes 57. Noes 1. Page 6819.)
11. August 20, 2026Ordered to third reading.
12. August 20, 2026Read third time and amended.
13. August 13, 2026Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
14. August 13, 2026From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 11. Noes 3.) (August 13).
15. August 13, 2026Assembly Rule 63 suspended.
16. August 5, 2026August 5 set for first hearing. Placed on suspense file.
17. June 29, 2026Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
18. June 25, 2026From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 11. Noes 3.) (June 24).
19. June 4, 2026Referred to Com. on U. & E.
20. May 27, 2026In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.
21. May 27, 2026Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 30. Noes 9. Page 4485.) Ordered to the Assembly.
22. May 14, 2026Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
23. May 14, 2026From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 5. Noes 2. Page 4264.) (May 14).
24. May 8, 2026Set for hearing May 14.
25. May 4, 2026May 4 hearing: Placed on APPR. suspense file.
26. April 24, 2026Set for hearing May 4.
27. April 22, 2026From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 12. Noes 3. Page 3973.) (April 21). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
28. April 16, 2026Set for hearing April 21.
29. April 8, 2026Re-referred to Com. on E., U & C.
30. March 24, 2026From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on RLS.
31. February 26, 2026Referred to Com. on RLS.
32. February 17, 2026From printer. May be acted upon on or after March 16.
33. February 13, 2026Introduced. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.

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