Section 1702.5 Of Article 1. Hearings From California Public Utilities Code >> Division 1. >> Part 1. >> Chapter 9. >> Article 1.
1702.5
. (a) The commission shall, in an existing or new proceeding,
develop and implement a safety enforcement program applicable to gas
corporations and electrical corporations which includes procedures
for monitoring, data tracking and analysis, and investigations, as
well as issuance of citations by commission staff, under the
direction of the executive director. The enforcement program shall be
designed to improve gas and electrical system safety through the
enforcement of applicable law, or order or rule of the commission
related to safety using a variety of enforcement mechanisms,
including the issuance of corrective actions, orders, and citations
by designated commission staff, and recommendations for action made
to the commission by designated commission staff.
(1) When considering the issuance of citations and assessment of
penalties, the commission staff shall take into account voluntary
reporting of potential violations, voluntary removal or resolution
efforts undertaken, the prior history of violations, the gravity of
the violation, and the degree of culpability.
(2) The procedures shall include, but are not limited to,
providing notice of violation within a reasonable period of time
after the discovery of the violation.
(3) The commission shall adopt an administrative limit on the
amount of monetary penalty that may be set by commission staff.
(b) The commission shall develop and implement an appeals process
to govern the issuance and appeal of citations or resolution of
corrective action orders issued by the commission staff. The appeals
process shall provide the respondent a reasonable period of time,
upon receiving a citation, to file a notice of appeal, shall afford
an opportunity for a hearing, and shall require the hearing officer
to expeditiously provide a draft disposition.
(c) The commission shall, within a reasonable time set by the
commission, conclude a safety enforcement action with a finding of
violation, a corrective action order, a citation, a determination of
no violation, approval of the corrective actions undertaken by the
gas corporation or electrical corporation, or other action. The
commission may institute a formal proceeding regarding the alleged
violation, potentially resulting in additional enforcement action,
regardless of any enforcement action taken at the commission staff
level.
(d) The commission shall implement the safety enforcement program
for gas safety by July 1, 2014, and implement the safety enforcement
program for electrical safety no later than January 1, 2015.
(e) This section does not apply to an exempt wholesale generator,
a qualifying small power producer, or qualifying cogenerator, as
defined in Section 796 of Title 16 of the United States Code and the
regulations enacted pursuant thereto. Nothing in this section affects
the commission's authority pursuant to Section 761.3.