The sad story of SB938 bill

Wired for Corruption: The PG&E Chronicles

SB 938, the Utility Accountability Act, aimed to protect California's ratepayers by stopping investor-owned utilities from using customer funds for political lobbying and advertising. These utilities had been charging their customers for activities like lobbying legislators and running promotional ads disguised as public service messages. The bill, introduced by Senator Dave Min and co-authored by Senator Henry Stern, garnered widespread support from consumer advocacy groups who argued that such practices unfairly burdened Californians, driving up energy costs.

Despite the strong public backing, SB 938 faced heavy opposition from utilities such as PG&E and SoCalGas, as well as from labor unions. These entities lobbied against the bill, arguing that it would interfere with the utilities' operations. As a result, the bill failed to pass the Senate Energy, Utilities, and Communications Committee in April 2024. During the first hearing on April 16, it received 8 votes in favor and 4 against but did not pass. After reconsideration, it was brought back on April 22 with amendments, but once again failed, this time with 9 ayes and 3 noes.

Key supporters included Senators Becker, Durazo, Eggman, Gonzalez, Limón, Min, Skinner, and Stern—all Democrats. However, opposition came from Republican Senators Dahle, Grove, Seyarto, and Wilk. Six members, including Democrats Ashby, Bradford, Caballero, Dodd, Newman, and Rubio, chose not to vote, which contributed to the bill's defeat​.

These abstentions and the intense lobbying efforts by utilities ultimately killed the bill, allowing utilities to continue passing the costs of lobbying and advertising onto ratepayers.

We will be reaching out to the key players on how we can get this bill moving again …….

Tune in next week for more