Ongoing RPS Implementation

Integrated Resource Planning (IRP)

Integrated Resource Planning (IRP) is an “umbrella” planning proceeding to consider all of the CPUC's electric procurement policies and programs and ensure California has a safe, reliable, and cost-effective electricity supply as stipulated by Senate Bill (SB) 350 (Public Utilities Code (PUC) Sections 454.51 and 454.52). It will implement a process for integrated resource planning that will ensure that retail sellers meet targets that allow the electricity sector to contribute to California’s economy-wide greenhouse gas emissions reductions goals. 

Although no formal order of coordination of scheduling or issues with the IRP proceeding is required, retail sellers consider IRP's impact in their RPS procurements, including reporting on the alignment of IRP and RPS portfolios and planning assumptions when reporting their procurement plans.  Additionally, the RPS proceeding may make joint or simultaneous rulings with the IRP proceeding as appropriate.

For more information on the development of the IRP process, please see the IRP and Long Term Procurement Plan here.

RPS Procurement Plans

To ensure RPS program targets are met, PUC Section 399.13(a)(1) directs retail sellers to prepare annual energy procurement plans for the CPUC to review and accept, modify, or reject. These reporting requirements are further detailed in D.04-06-014 and subsequent decisions, with the specific requirements for a year's RPS Plan set out in the CPUC’s assigned Commissioner and assigned Administrative Law Judge Ruling (AC/ALJR) for the year.

For additional information on RPS Procurement Plans, including this year's AC/ALJR, please click here.

RPS Cost Containment

Senate Bill (SB) 1078 (Statues of 2002, Chapter 516, Sher) and SB 107 (Statues of 2006, Chapter 464) established the supplemental energy payments (SEPs) program to contain the total costs of the RPS program.  SB 2 (1X) (Statues of 2011, Chapter 1), modified the statutes such that the CPUC was to "establish a limitation for each electrical corporation on the procurement expenditures for all eligible renewable energy resources used to comply with the renewables portfolio standard."  More recently, SB 350 (Statutes of 2015, Chapter 547) revised Section 399.15(c) such that the cost limitation "be set at a level that prevents disproportionate rate impacts."

For additional information on Cost Containment, please click here.

Community Solar

California has dedicated significant funds towards supporting community solar via a variety of programs.  These include subsidized programs such as the Disadvantaged Communities (DAC) Green Tariff and the Community Solar Green Tariff, as well as market-rate programs like the Green Tariff Shared Renewables Program, and additional programs for specific circumstances, such as disadvantage communities single-family solar homes (DAC-SASH), renewable energy self-generation bill credit transfer (RES-BCT), solar on multifamily affordable housing (SOMAH) and virtual net energy metering or virtual net billing tariffs (VNEM or VNBT).

 For information on the various Community Solar programs, please click here.