California faces rising electricity prices, surging energy demand and ambitious clean energy goals. To stabilize costs and reliably power its economy, the state needs to be able to bring new clean power online quickly and efficiently.

Right now it’s difficult, costly and slow to add new power to the grid. Clean energy projects often wait years for investor-owned utilities to make equipment upgrades needed to accommodate the new power. The California Public Utilities Commission these delays affect nearly two-thirds of upgrades in two investor-owned utilities’ territories.

AB 2493 would require an independent auditor to assess the utilities’ progress in resolving the delays and would employ a mix of carrots and sticks to get utilities to prioritize the upgrades. It would prioritize upgrades where clean energy projects are waiting, speeding new power to the grid, saving money and making it easier for California to stay on top of rising demand.

Regulatory Advocacy

ACP-CA advocates for smart implementation in key regulatory proceedings including the Integrated Resource Planning and Resource Adequacy processes at the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). We participate in stakeholder processes at the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) covering transmission planning, interconnection reform and market design.

Legislative Advocacy

We champion legislative proposals that benefit the utility-scale clean energy industry and fight those that would harm it. We successfully promoted bills to create a California central procurement entity, to accelerate transmission expansions, and to create a roadmap for offshore wind.

Events

ACP-CA hosts lawmakers, policymakers and advocates at annual events including a legislative reception, a solar symposium, a summer social, and a holiday party. Our advocacy includes an annual lobby day and reception, our Energy Leader Award events, and occasional off-site functions.

Update: The expanded regional market proposed in SB 540 was transferred to a new legislative vehicle, . Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the bill in September 2025.

The legislation would clear the way for California utilities to participate in expanded regional markets with the potential to save ratepayers $1 billion per year. With access to a bigger market, California could sell more of its abundant daytime solar, helping keep utility bills down, while expanding its access to competitively priced clean resources such as New Mexico wind.

The California Independent System Operator would operate the expanded markets with oversight from an independent body with representation from around the West. California would retain its authority over its own clean energy goals. SB 540 is backed by an expansive coalition of supporters in California including labor, business, climate advocates, clean energy advocates, public utilities, community choice aggregators and consumer advocates.

Utilities and power suppliers around the West have pledged to join the California-based markets if they’re independently governed, unlocking projected savings of as much as $1 billion per year. 

If California doesn’t act now, many of those organizations will instead join a competing market based in Arkansas. Californians would lose out on the benefits and the state’s grid could become isolated, making energy prices and supplies more volatile.

Battery storage is a cornerstone of California’s energy future because the technology delivers clean power when the sun isn’t shining and the wind isn’t blowing.

Battery storage capacity has grown to more than 15,000 megawatts in California, enough to keep the state’s power grid operating smoothly even amid record heat waves in 2024. But state plans call for 52,000 megawatts by 2045 to reliably power millions of homes during peak demand.

A 2025 fire at an older battery storage site at Moss Landing raised safety concerns. Battery fires are rare, but in large enclosed facilities that aren’t built to the latest code, they can spread quickly.

SB 283 requires the California Building Standards Commission and the Office of the State Fire Marshall to adopt provisions that comply with the most recent edition of the National Fire Protection Association’s battery storage standards. Under the latest standards, batteries would be situated within individual modules resembling shipping containers or in noncombustible buildings in addition to complying with a range of other requirements.

Update: Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law in October 2025.

California is one of only five states that taxes an Inflation Reduction Act benefit that reduces clean energy development costs.

The added tax increases electricity prices paid by residents.

SB 302 would eliminate the tax, aligning California’s tax code with the federal code and saving ratepayers money.

Federal IRA tax incentives are set to expire for wind and solar power in the coming years under the megabill that President Donald Trump recently signed into law, making it even more important to pass SB 302 now to capture savings for Californians.