Virtual power plants: load shifting: integrated energy policy report.

The document was reformatted from the formal enrolled bill layout (with page numbers, signature blocks for the Chief Clerk, Secretary of the Senate, and Private Secretary of the Governor) to a web-page presentation that includes site navigation, a bill status timeline, version history, and a digest key showing Vote: MAJORITY, Appropriation: NO, Fiscal Committee: YES, Local Program: NO. No changes to the statutory text itself.

The deadline for adopting the virtual power plant deployment plan changed from a standalone requirement by November 1, 2026 to being included in the next update to the biennial integrated energy policy report after January 1, 2027. This pushes the effective deadline later and ties it to an existing reporting process.

The plan adoption is now embedded within the biennial integrated energy policy report (Section 25302) rather than being a separate standalone action, though the November 1, 2026 date is still referenced as a reference point in the text.

Removed Section 25302.8(a), which previously required the Energy Commission to include modeling of VPP effects on electricity costs and rate reduction in the integrated energy policy report, and to submit a separate virtual power plant implementation plan with goals and milestones to the Legislature.

Added detailed sub-requirements (paragraphs 2(A)-(E)) requiring the plan to assess VPP costs relative to alternative resource adequacy sources, evaluate data needs for state agencies and the ISO to value VPP resources, and provide recommendations to resolve policy barriers for VPP qualification for resource adequacy.

Added an entirely new paragraph (3) with subparts (A)-(E) requiring the plan to analyze VPPs as load-modifying resources that reduce a load-serving entity's resource adequacy obligations, including cost comparisons to other load-modifying resources, identification of the most cost-effective VPP resources for this purpose, and data needs assessment.

Expanded the data access barrier assessment (now paragraph 4) to specifically reference 'customer energy data access' and added language about barriers that limit 'the operation and value of virtual power plants at scale.'

Added new paragraph (5) requiring the plan to evaluate how VPP operational configuration can be optimized for specific objectives (cost savings, GHG reduction, congestion relief), provide recommendations on aligning incentive structures, and ensure that VPP deployment does not increase costs for nonparticipating ratepayers.

Renamed the required document from 'strategy' to 'plant deployment plan' throughout the bill, including in Section 25561(a) and all cross-references.

Added 'subject to available funding' as a condition to the Energy Commission's obligation to adopt a virtual power plant deployment plan by November 1, 2026. This means the commission is no longer unconditionally required to adopt the plan if funding is insufficient.

Fixed several typos in the statutory text: 'a load-serving entities' entity's' corrected to 'a load-serving entity's', 'cost-effective cost effective' corrected to 'cost effective', and 'nonparticipation nonparticipating' corrected to 'nonparticipating'.

Removed Section 25562 entirely, which required the Energy Commission to complete a study by July 1, 2026 analyzing 2030, 2035, and 2045 scenarios of virtual power plant deployment effects on electrical system costs, rate reduction, and greenhouse gas emissions, including avoided transmission/distribution/generation costs and reporting results to the Legislature within 30 days.

Removed the requirement that the plan estimate the size of the resource potential of virtual power plant resources by 2030, 2035, and 2045 (former paragraph (1) of subdivision (c)).

Removed the standalone requirement that the plan include 'a recommended pathway and policy and regulatory changes to resolve the policy and regulatory barriers identified,' though recommendations to resolve barriers remain embedded within subparagraphs (2)(C) and (3)(B).

Removed the standalone requirement that the plan 'maximizes cost savings to ratepayers' as a separate paragraph, though cost savings optimization is still addressed within the operational configuration evaluation in paragraph (5)(A).

Changed the term 'strategy to enable virtual power plants to be deployed at scale' to 'virtual power plant deployment plan' throughout the bill, simplifying the naming convention.

Added Senators Archuleta and Stern as coauthors of the bill.

Added a new Chapter 6.6 (Sections 25560-25562) to Division 15 of the Public Resources Code, expanding the bill from a single section to an entire chapter covering virtual power plants.

Added statutory definitions for 'smart' (a device that adjusts energy use, is internet connected, remotely controllable with customer consent, and reports operating status) and 'virtual power plant' (an actively coordinated aggregation of behind-the-meter distributed energy resources including EVs, water heaters, smart thermostats, battery storage, and flexible commercial/industrial loads that are dispatchable).

Required the Energy Commission to adopt a strategy by November 1, 2026, at a publicly noticed voting meeting, to enable virtual power plants to be deployed at scale. The strategy must include milestones and be included in the integrated energy policy report.

Required the Energy Commission to consult with the Public Utilities Commission, Independent System Operator, and disadvantaged community advisory group; hold at least two public workshops; and convene stakeholder sessions when developing the VPP strategy.

Required the VPP strategy to estimate resource potential by 2030, 2035, and 2045; identify policy and regulatory barriers for VPPs to qualify for resource adequacy; include a recommended pathway to resolve those barriers; assess current RA eligibility; recommend a compensation framework; assess data access barriers; and maximize cost savings to ratepayers.

Required the Energy Commission to complete a study by July 1, 2026, including 2030, 2035, and 2045 scenarios of VPP deployment effects on electrical system costs, rate reduction, and greenhouse gas emissions, including avoided transmission, distribution, and generation costs.

Required the Energy Commission to report the results of the VPP study to the Legislature within 30 days of completion, in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.

Clarified in Section 25302.8(b) that the annual load-shift reporting requirement applies to 'corporation, as defined in Section 218 of the Public Utilities Code,' rather than just 'electrical corporation.'