An Encinitas lawmaker is trying to hardwire bill relief into California's constitution, taking direct aim at the powerful California Public Utilities Commission. Assemblymember Tasha Boerner’s ACA 9 would require the CPUC to factor in how affordable utility bills are when it signs off on rate changes, expand the commission from five voting members to nine, and spin telecom oversight into a new broadband-focused office outside the CPUC. Backers say the shakeup would pull the regulator’s gaze back to kitchen-table costs. Critics warn it could drag technical decisions on safety and reliability into a more political arena.
Last Monday, the Assembly signed off on ACA 9 with a wide bipartisan vote, clearing a major hurdle toward sending the measure to voters, as reported by the The San Diego Union‑Tribune. E&E News noted that the vote revived a proposal that had previously stalled and that the measure still needs to clear the Senate before it can land on the ballot.
What the amendment would change
ACA 9 would add “affordability” to the list of factors the CPUC must consider when it sets rates, alongside existing constitutional priorities, and would grow the commission to nine members while reshuffling who gets to pick them. Under the proposal, the Assembly speaker and the Senate Rules Committee would each appoint two commissioners, according to Assembly analysis. The measure would also delete old telephone and telegraph references from the constitution’s definition of public utilities and create an Office of Telecommunications, Broadband and Digital Equity outside the CPUC to oversee broadband policy. Put together, those changes would alter who sits at the table when the state decides what Californians pay for electricity, gas, and communications services.
Rising bills and the affordability case
The state’s Public Advocates Office reports that residential average electricity rates have soared over the last decade. Between January 2016 and March 2026, rates rose about 101% for Southern California Edison, 98% for San Diego Gas & Electric, and 69% for PG&E, figures supporters lean on when they argue affordability should be written into the constitution. A first-quarter 2026 report from the Public Advocates Office also finds that nearly one in five households is behind on an energy bill, a sign, advocates say, of real-time strain on California families.
Supporters' pitch
Boerner and other supporters argue the CPUC is juggling too many roles and lacks clear direction to keep ratepayer affordability at the forefront when it approves major spending and infrastructure plans. In Assembly floor remarks, Boerner said, “ACA 9 is about structural change at the CPUC for the benefit of consumers,” according to CALMATTERS. Backers say adding commissioners and creating a separate broadband office would let the CPUC zero in on technical safety and reliability work while other entities focus more squarely on affordability and digital equity.
Opposition and concerns
Utility representatives told lawmakers they are uneasy with locking an affordability mandate into the constitution and expanding the commission with more legislative appointees. They argue that it could politicize complex rate cases and complicate long-term safety planning. Opponents also cautioned that elevating affordability in the constitution could collide with other state policy goals and potentially shift costs among different groups of ratepayers.
What happens next
To reach the ballot, ACA 9 still needs a two-thirds vote in the state Senate. Constitutional amendments that clear the Legislature automatically go to voters and are not subject to the governor’s veto, according to the Assembly analysis. Boerner’s office has said she aims to push the measure through the Legislature by June 25 and, if lawmakers go along, to place it before voters in the November 2026 general election, as reported by The San Diego Union‑Tribune.
For San Diego ratepayers, the fight is unfolding against a backdrop of already steep bills and rising arrears, and the outcome could redefine who draws the guardrails on energy and broadband costs across California. Whether voters ultimately get to decide on a constitutional affordability mandate, and how the courts, the Legislature, and the CPUC interpret that language, will shape what actually shows up on monthly bills in the years ahead.
