CPUC Ensures Energy Reliability for Santa Nella Community
The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) today took action to ensure energy reliability and customer choice in Santa Nella, a small community in the San Joaquin Valley. As a result of today’s decision, residents who otherwise stand to lose natural gas service will receive new energy service upgrades with the option for full-home electrification.
SNME, Inc., a private corporation that owns the underground natural gas pipelines and customer meters in Santa Nella and provides sub-metered natural gas service to customers, informed the CPUC in May 2022 that it intends to cease operations. The CPUC promptly opened a proceeding to explore safe and reliable energy options, ranging from new direct gas service to full electrification for the entire community.
The decision directs Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), which already provides electric service to the community, to install new natural gas and electric infrastructure, and to also give each homeowner the option to fully electrify their home and forgo natural gas service. At a community meeting held in Santa Nella in February, scores of residents expressed the desire for new, safe energy investments to replace their existing, aging infrastructure.
“Providing new, safe, and reliable energy upgrades – and allowing each household to choose whether to receive natural gas or to go all-electric instead – is a remarkably positive outcome to a very tough situation,” said Commissioner John Reynolds, who is the Assigned Commissioner for the proceeding and whose Alternate Proposed Decision was unanimously approved today. “Our decision will ensure that no Santa Nella resident is left without the energy they need, and that residents wishing to decarbonize their homes have the option to do so. With this decision, we make clear that we are committed to meeting the needs of all Californians. Our staff will work closely with PG&E in the months ahead to make sure that Santa Nella’s new energy infrastructure gets installed as quickly as practicable.”
“Most importantly, this decision assures that the residents of Santa Nella will have access to safe, reliable natural gas and electricity without disruption in service,” said CPUC President Alice Reynolds. “I am pleased to see this decision also gives customers the choice to electrify, which is consistent with the state’s overarching strategies to decarbonize the building sector with a focus on disadvantaged communities.”
“I am satisfied that this decision will not result in delays in meeting the serious safety and energy needs faced by the community in Santa Nella,” said Commissioner Genevieve Shiroma. “This decision ensures that every resident will continue to have energy for their homes and appliances. I appreciate it will also give a choice to households who indicate they would like full electrification of their household energy systems.”
“I am glad that we have been able to act quickly to ensure that the Santa Nella community receives safe and reliable energy service while also advancing customer choice by allowing impacted community members the opportunity and incentives to fully electrify consistent with state goals,” said Commissioner Karen Douglas.
Full-home electrification would entail replacing all existing appliances with new, efficient, all-electric appliances, as well as any additional in-home remediation work necessary to accommodate those appliances. Homeowners and residents will not bear any direct costs associated with full-home electrification.
Santa Nella is an unincorporated community of 1,981 people located on the western edge of Merced County within PG&E service territory. SNME serves sub-metered natural gas to all 280 lots in the affected subdivision, on which 270 manufactured homes are located, in addition to 10 vacant lots. Currently, 47 of the manufactured homes belong to a mobilehome park, while the remaining 233 parcels are individually owned. SNME receives natural gas from a PG&E master meter located in the center of the subdivision in the area that is not part of the officially registered mobilehome park lots. Santa Nella falls within Census Tract 6047002100 and is designated as a Disadvantaged Community in the 85th percentile under CalEnviroScreen 4.0. More than half of all homes in the subdivision currently participate in either the California Alternative Rates for Energy or Family Electric Rate Assistance programs.
The proposal voted on is available at docs.cpuc.ca.gov/PublishedDocs/Published/G000/M507/K240/507240626.PDF.
Documents related to the proceeding are available at apps.cpuc.ca.gov/p/I2209011.
The CPUC regulates services and utilities, protects consumers, safeguards the environment, and assures Californians’ access to safe and reliable utility infrastructure and services. For more information on the CPUC, please visit www.cpuc.ca.gov.
###