California restricts utility shutoffs as dangerous heat ripples across state

California utility regulators have moved to shield customers from losing power during dangerous heat. CalMatters reports that the Public Utilities Commission, in a four-to-zero vote on Thursday, rejected the major utilities' weaker plan and wrote tougher rules itself. The commission lowered the temperature at which utilities must stop cutting off power to customers behind on their bills, from one hundred degrees down to ninety, and ordered a more protective, region-specific heat standard within six months. Consumer advocates had pushed for the change, noting that a ninety-degree day might be routine in Bakersfield but atypically dangerous in coastal or mountainous towns where fewer homes have air conditioning. The protections apply only to shutoffs for unpaid bills, not to outages from equipment failures or wildfire-prevention measures.

Listen to this story

Hear this and more stories in a personalized audio briefing.

Open The Chonkerton