Assembly Bill 1761 – Improving Energy Bill Transparency Updated: February 18, 2026
Assemblymember Chris Rogers, 2
nd Assembly District
Bill Summary
AB 1761 improves transparency to how the Power Charge
Indifference Adjustment (PCIA), a charge on nearly all
energy bills, is calculated.
Background
Electricity bills in California are on the rise, in part due to challenging market conditions and outdated and
inefficient regulatory policies. Families and businesses are feeling the impact. Lawmakers and regulators need
practical, consumer-focused solutions that ensure
customers do not pay more than their fair share.
One tool to ensure customers receive energy bill that are fair and accurate is increased transparency in how PCIA charges are calculated. The PCIA is a fee designed to
ensure customers who leave utility generation service,
like customers of a Community Choice Aggregator
(CCA) or Energy Service Provider (ESP), pay their
portion of legacy power costs. But since the PCIA was
implemented, there has been no consistent standard for
what data must be made available in any California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) process or proceeding
where the PCIA, or a related charge, is set.
Problem
CCAs, ESPs, and their customers must pay the PCIA
charge but often lack access to the data, assumptions, and methods used to set it. This transparency problem leads to disputes, inefficiencies, and unexpected rate impacts for customers. More specifically:
• Disclosures vary by utility and by CPUC
proceeding, resulting in repeated fights between
CCAs and Investor-Owned Utilities (IOUs) over
data access and increased administrative
inefficiencies as the CPUC resolves disputes on a
case-by-case basis.
• Utilities sometimes make mistakes. In a 2019
PG&E proceeding, CalCCA identified $73
million in errors (including a $16 million increase
for CCA customers). In a recent proceeding,
PG&E identified an accounting error that would
have cost CCA customers $217 million.
• In an ongoing PCIA Rulemaking, the
Commission withheld information on the
evidence underlying their proposal and the rate
impacts of a proposed change. The CPUC did not
respond to a Public Records Act request for the
information.
Without adequate transparency, CCAs and ESPs are
unable to verify the accuracy of the PCIA charges that
their customers must pay and cannot confidently forecast rates – both of which are affordability tools needed to protect customers from unexpected rate increases.
Solution
AB 1761 proposes amending the Public Utilities Code to
require the CPUC and IOUs to disclose all data used to
calculate PCIA costs, including cost inputs, forecasting assumptions, and methodologies. The bill would also
ensure that when parties make proposals in a proceeding to change the PCIA they provide all the underlying data informing that proposal. Sensitive information would
remain protected through Commission-approved
nondisclosure agreements – a practice already used to
protect sensitive information in other compliance areas.
Greater transparency allows CCAs and ESPs to better
advocate for their customers and assess proposals to
change the PCIA. It also can inform cost forecasts and
shield customers from sudden rate swings. It reduces
repeated fights over information, improves regulatory
efficiency, and encourages utilities to verify calculations since the underlying data would be open to review. Costs to implement the proposal are miniscule, as most of this information already exists, while the benefits for rate, accuracy, stability, and consumer protection are
substantial. This proposal strengthens confidence that
customers pay their fair share — and not more.
For More Information:
Logan Pitts, Legislative Director
[email protected]
(916) 319-2002
Support
California Community Choice AssociationCalCCA(sponsor)