AB 1100

Bill Subjects

Abstract

Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory authority over public utilities, including telephone corporations, electrical corporations, and water corporations. Existing law requires the commission to establish standards for disaster and emergency preparedness plans, as specified, and requires an electrical corporation and a water company regulated by the commission to develop, adopt, and update an emergency and disaster preparedness plan, as specified. Existing law requires the commission, in consultation with the Office of Emergency Services, to identify the need for telecommunications service systems not on customers' premises to have backup electricity to enable telecommunications networks to function, and to enable customers to contact a public safety answering point operator during an electrical outage, to determine performance criteria for backup systems, and to determine whether specified best practices for backup systems have been implemented by telecommunications service providers operating in California. Existing law requires that a facilities-based mobile telephony services provider undertake specified steps in preparation for receiving notifications regarding the deenergization of electrical lines. Existing law requires the commission to report certain information to the Legislature. This bill would, following a state or local disaster for which the Governor has issued a declaration of emergency, require the commission, within 12 months of the declaration of the emergency, to collect specified information from telecommunications service providers relating to the provider's efforts to restore, repair, or replace communications infrastructure that was damaged as a result of the disaster. The bill would require that the information collected from telecommunications service providers by the commission be broken down by each disaster and be submitted annually in a report by the commission to the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature, and posted in a conspicuous area on the commission's internet website. The bill would additionally require the president of the commission to annually present a summary of the information to the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature. The bill would authorize the commission to require a telecommunications service provider to collect and forward to the commission any relevant information required to be collected by the commission and to make this information public, unless making the information public would present a security threat to the public, a threat to the property of the telecommunications service provider, or a threat to the employees of the telecommunications service provider. The bill would require a telecommunications service provider to identify any information the disclosure of which might present a security threat to the public, a threat to the property of the telecommunications service provider, or a threat to the employees of the telecommunications service provider, when submitting information to the commission. Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest. This bill would make legislative findings to that effect. 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 provisions of this bill would be a part of the act and because a violation of an order or decision of the commission implementing its requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program by creating a new crime. 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.