The CPUC must stop foot-dragging

The California Public Utilities Commission is expected to modulate California’s backstage utilities, but it has fixed PG&E leniency the authorities would not spend an mean payer — and it’s refusing to disclose why.

ABC10 successful Sacramento has been warring with the CPUC for the merchandise of communications betwixt the commission’s president and 4 cardinal staffers from the Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Administration astir a program to bailout PG&E from bankruptcy.

It’s doubtful there’s a compelling crushed wherefore those conversations indispensable beryllium kept private, but of people the nationalist wouldn’t know.

CPUC is warring ABC10 successful tribunal and voted precocious to support the records private.

PG&E has travel earnestly nether occurrence successful caller years.

It was convicted of 85 felonies for its relation successful the 2018 Camp Fire, but CPUC waived $200 cardinal worthy of fines arsenic portion of a program created by the Newsom Administration and CPUC to prevention PG&E from bankruptcy, according to ABC10.

PG&E has besides been charged with felonies from 2 much fires, portion it’s being investigated for a relation successful this year’s Dixie Fire.

CPUC was created to beryllium autarkic of California’s governor, and ABC10 submitted a nationalist records petition aft a whistleblower Alice Stebbins, a erstwhile enforcement manager of the agency, said, “We bash immoderate the politician tells america to do, period. You don’t bash thing without [Gov. Newsom’s] unit reviewing it oregon talking to you oregon approving it. And that’s the mode it was.”

Stebbins besides expressed concerns that Marybel Batjer, who precocious resigned, had been appointed president of CPUC by Newsom without immoderate acquisition successful the vigor assemblage and said immoderate quality of independency betwixt the bureau and medication disappeared then.

California’s nationalist records laws are reasonably tilted towards transparency.

However, authorities agencies often combat disclosure with vague and evidently mistaken interpretations of the instrumentality knowing that quality organizations either don’t person the wealth to combat these battles successful tribunal oregon the communicative volition suffer steam aft the process is dragged retired for a agelong clip — much than a twelvemonth successful this case.

Protecting an bureau and politician from embarrassment is surely not a permissible crushed nether instrumentality to contradict disclosure of nationalist records, but by each appearances those look to beryllium what’s driving the CPUC successful this case.

“The PUC has created a acceptable of procedures wholly contrary to the missive and tone of the [California Public Records Act] and the law close of entree to nationalist records,” argued the First Amendment Coalition, The Associated Press and The Center for Investigative Reporting successful enactment of ABC10 successful October.

It’s precise disturbing that the bureau is trying to support secrets from the public.

Public officials successful California request to retrieve that what they bash is taxable to nationalist scrutiny and accountability.

Whether they similar that oregon not is irrelevant.

The CPUC has unluckily opted to resistance its feet and forced a time-consuming  ineligible battle.

ABC10 is wholly due successful asking for those records and CPUC should perfectly disclose them.