California Alternate Rates for Energy program: public housing authority owned or administered Homekey housing facilities.

Existing law vests the Public Utilities Commission with regulatory authority over public utilities, including electrical corporations and gas corporations. Existing law requires the commission to establish a program of assistance to low-income electricity and gas customers with annual household incomes that are no greater than 200% of the federal poverty guidelines levels, referred to as the California Alternate Rates for Energy or CARE program. Existing law establishes the Multifamily Housing Program administered by the Department of Housing and Community Development. Existing law requires that specified funds appropriated to provide housing for individuals and families who are experiencing homelessness or who are at risk of homelessness and who are inherently impacted by or at increased risk for medical diseases or conditions due to the COVID-19 pandemic or other communicable diseases be disbursed in accordance with the Multifamily Housing Program for specified uses. This disbursement scheme is referred to as Homekey. This bill would require that the CARE program include public housing authority owned or administered Homekey housing facilities where the residents of the facility substantially meet the CARE program's income eligibility requirements, as determined by the commission, and the account is in the name of Homekey, a nonprofit funded by Homekey, or the public housing authority that owns or administers the facility. The bill would require the commission to authorize electrical corporations and gas corporations to offer discounts to those facilities and to establish a feasible process for certifying that the assistance is used for the direct benefit of the residents of those facilities. Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act, or of an 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 a commission action implementing its requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. 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.