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outages. The prolonged power outages are the focus of this request, because they adversely affect <br />residents in a variety of ways, particularly: <br />Residents who have a variety of physical challenges and rely on a constant source of power for <br />medical devices; <br />Residents who are senior citizens and are particularly susceptible to injury if power outages <br />persist for a long period of time into the evening hours; and, <br />Residents who suffer financial burdens as a result of losing food, medication and other perishable <br />items during prolonged power outages. <br />The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has the authority to impose penalties on utilities, <br />including for prolonged power outages, and did so inconnection with an extreme wind event that <br />occurred in the Los Angeles area in 2011. However, the CPUC is not authorized to award claims to <br />residents for prolonged electrical power outages. If a resident has a claim he or she wishes to pursue, the <br />resident must file a claim with SCE, along with documentation of the financial loss that was incurred. If <br />the claim is rejected, the resident then must file a lawsuit against SCE (probably in small claims court). <br />Most residents will not want to spend the time and effort to pursue small claims for monetary damages <br />arising from extended power outages. <br />SCE only awards claims for damages caused by its own negligence. This means that if an extended <br />power outage is caused by a weather-related event, the claim will be denied. The SCE website also states <br />that it will not cover claims for power surges. Since SCE often moves power from one line to another to <br />enable repairs and maintenance, SCE can be the cause of the power surge, but residents still will not <br />receive compensation for those claims. <br />Prnriosed Le2UIation <br />The proposed resolution calls upon the Governor and Legislature to enact legislation (or take other action) <br />that will provide rebates in flat amounts to SCE customers for extended power outages under specified <br />conditions. The proposed legislation could be modeled on the "Safety Net" and "Service Guarantee" <br />programs offered by Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), another California-based investor-owned utility, <br />which provides specific rebates to its customers based upon the type, cause and duration of service <br />interruptions. These penalties are designed to provide direct compensation to SCE's customers who are <br />adversely affected by prolonged power outages, and to incentivize SCE to restore the power as quickly as <br />possible. They also will eliminate the frustration that SCE's customers experience as a result of SCE's <br />existing claim process. <br />flfi!ll��r <br />Leaeue of California Cities Staff Analysis on Resolution No. 4 <br />Staff: Jason Rhine <br />Committee: Environmental Quality <br />su im iioary: <br />Resolution No. 4 calls upon the Governor and the Legislature to work with the League of California <br />Cities to enact legislation or to otherwise compel Southern California Edison (SCE) to create a program to <br />automatically provide direct compensation to its customers affected by a prolonged electrical power <br />outage under specified circumstances. <br />Backeround: <br />City of Rancho Palos Verdes asserts that the South Bay region of Los Angeles County has longstanding <br />concern regarding the ineffective process by which SCE addresses residents' claims associated with <br />iN <br />