CTA is supporting a new bill aimed at helping to protect schools and businesses from the potentially devastating fiscal impact of skyrocketing electrical rates.
CTA-backed AB 24X, introduced by Assembly Members Thomas Calderon and Lynn Daucher, would protect these entities from any penalty costs resulting from their withdrawal from interruptible power contracts. The bill also wraps in provisions of a measure by Assembly Member Sally Havice addressing school energy concerns.
The measure could prevent utilities from levying as much as $200 million in penalties throughout Southern California. The bill covers some 94 schools, colleges and trade schools.
CTA's letter of support for the measure notes, "California's teachers are backing this proposal because it would help limit the energy crisis's impact on students and the learning process." It would keep the lights, heat and air-conditioning on at schools and help preserve for instructional purposes the education appropriations that could be diverted to pay for power costs.
For example, school savings could amount to nearly $1.6 million for the Mt. San Antonio College District, nearly $699,000 for the North Orange County Community College District, $164,000 for the Montebello school district, $121,000 for the El Monte Unified School District, $90,000 for the Bonita Unified School District, $86,000 for the Murrieta Valley Unified School District and up to $60,000 for the Corona-Norco Unified School District.
"AB 24X makes entities whole, but it doesn't provide them with a windfall," says Daucher.
"I have schools in my district that have accrued thousands of dollars in penalties because they were forced to choose between conserving energy and educating our kids," says Calderon. "This bill puts an end to the hypocrisy of telling businesses and educators that we want them to succeed, only to place the burden of a statewide energy crisis on their ledgers."
Tony Ortego, an assistant superintendent in the El Monte school district, says his district has been hit hard by the energy crisis. "Classrooms have been darkened by 50 percent. We've had to close the media center, and rooms have had no heat. We've eliminated computer usage except for the computer education classes. There are no hot meals in the cafeteria for breakfast and lunch. There are health and safety concerns and security concerns with no lights on in parking lots at night."
Interruptible contracts allow energy providers to shut off the customers' power during crises, in exchange for lower rates. While the Public Utilities Commission has allowed customers to withdraw from these contracts and blocked power providers from charging certain penalties, the legislators say the commission has not prevented the utilities from charging customers retroactively for energy cost reductions last fall linked to these contracts.