When the clock strikes midnight tonight on the West Coast,California’s state legislature, which has been known to stop theCapitol clocks at 11:59 p.m. in similar occasions, will eitherprovide some ways out of the state’s electricity problems or watchits efforts turn back into the pumpkin that has represented thissummer’s high bills and short power supplies.

Two legislative energy initiatives could fizzle — one at thehands of the lawmakers themselves and the other in the governor’soffice. Rate relief for San Diego electricity consumers, fast-trackprocessing of new power plants and the state’s three-decade-oldenergy efficiency programs all hang in the balance.

“The situation changes by the minute,” said CPUC CommissionerCarl Wood, responding to questions about proposed state legislationto provide rate relief. “There is so much maneuvering going onabout the content of the legislation, and there are some questionsabout what exactly the governor would be willing to sign, so itseems to be breaking down along partisan lines.

“This is one of those things where there is no point infollowing it in real time because what you see at any point will be180 degrees different from what happens in the end.”

Wood on Tuesday expressed doubts whether legislation would getout in the waning hours of the legislative session, although henoted that just a few days earlier he was sure some form of a newlaw would be sent to the governor.

“Some of the problems the CPUC has been wrestling with (limitedauthority over the FERC-regulated wholesale market) the legislatureis now addressing, and they (the lawmakers) haven’t come out withany elegant solutions as far as I have seen,” Wood said. “They arefacing the same problems that we were, although they have moretools with which to deal with the problems.”

One Sacramento observer involved in the state electric industrysaid the legislative proposals aren’t addressing the basic questionof the difference between capped retail rates and peak-periodwholesale electric prices paid by the state’s three majorinvestor-owned utilities, which are estimated to total about $1.5billion when the summer power surges are completed this year. “Thatis a pretty tough pill to swallow,” the observer said. “SDG&Edoesn’t want that hanging over its head.”

The other issue ripening with the wind-up of the statelegislative session involves unanimously approved 10-yearextensions of California’s 3% surcharge on consumer electricitybills to fund research, conservation and renewable energy projectsthroughout the state. While garnering widespread support from allfactions, Gov. Gray Davis reportedly is having doubts aboutperpetuating what he views as a “tax” on the consumers in the midstof this summer’s power controversy.

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