Chapter 5Privacy Protections for Energy Consumption Data

Section § 8380

Explanation

This California law deals with how electrical and gas companies must handle customer data. It says companies can't share or sell your electricity or gas usage data without your consent, verified through an electronic signature. They also can't offer you discounts or incentives to access your data without your permission.

Customers should be able to access their data without having to agree to share it with others. If a third party uses your data, they must tell you what it's for and get your consent. Companies need to protect your data from being hacked or accessed without permission. They can't share your data with immigration authorities unless there's a court order.

Utilities can use anonymous data for things like system management and reporting but must keep it secure and can't use it for other purposes without asking you first. If you share your data with someone else, the utility isn't responsible for what happens to it after that.

(a)CA Public Utilities Code § 8380(a) For purposes of this section, “electrical or gas consumption data” means data about a customer’s electrical or natural gas usage that is made available as part of an advanced metering infrastructure, and includes incremental and monthly meter-specific electricity data, to the extent produced by that infrastructure, and the name, account number, and address of the customer.
(b)Copy CA Public Utilities Code § 8380(b)
(1)Copy CA Public Utilities Code § 8380(b)(1) An electrical corporation or gas corporation shall not share, disclose, or otherwise make accessible to any third party a customer’s electrical or gas consumption data, except as provided in subdivision (f) or upon the consent of the customer. Customer consent may be verified through an electronic signature authorization process pursuant to the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (Title 2.5 (commencing with Section 1633.1) of Part 2 of Division 3 of the Civil Code).
(2)CA Public Utilities Code § 8380(b)(2) An electrical corporation or gas corporation shall not sell a customer’s electrical or gas consumption data or any other personally identifiable information for any purpose.
(3)CA Public Utilities Code § 8380(b)(3) An electrical corporation or gas corporation or its contractors shall not provide an incentive or discount to the customer for accessing the customer’s electrical or gas consumption data without the prior consent of the customer.
(4)CA Public Utilities Code § 8380(b)(4) An electrical or gas corporation that utilizes an advanced metering infrastructure that allows a customer to access the customer’s electrical and gas consumption data shall ensure that the customer has an option to access that data without being required to agree to the sharing of the customer’s personally identifiable information, including electrical or gas consumption data, with a third party.
(c)CA Public Utilities Code § 8380(c) If an electrical corporation or gas corporation contracts with a third party for a service that allows a customer to monitor the customer’s electricity or gas usage, and that third party uses the data for a secondary commercial purpose, the contract between the electrical corporation or gas corporation and the third party shall provide that the third party prominently discloses that secondary commercial purpose to the customer and secures the customer’s consent to the use of the customer’s data for that secondary commercial purpose prior to the use of the data.
(d)CA Public Utilities Code § 8380(d) An electrical corporation or gas corporation shall use reasonable security procedures and practices to protect a customer’s unencrypted electrical or gas consumption data from unauthorized access, destruction, use, modification, or disclosure.
(e)CA Public Utilities Code § 8380(e) An electrical corporation or gas corporation shall not share, disclose, or otherwise make accessible to any immigration authority, as defined in Section 7284.4 of the Government Code, a customer’s electrical or gas consumption data without a court-ordered subpoena or judicial warrant.
(f)Copy CA Public Utilities Code § 8380(f)
(1)Copy CA Public Utilities Code § 8380(f)(1) This section does not preclude an electrical corporation or gas corporation from using customer aggregate electrical or gas consumption data for analysis, reporting, or program management if all information has been removed regarding the individual identity of a customer.
(2)CA Public Utilities Code § 8380(f)(2) This section does not preclude an electrical corporation or gas corporation from disclosing a customer’s electrical or gas consumption data to a third party for system, grid, or operational needs, or the implementation of demand response, energy management, or energy efficiency programs, provided that, for contracts entered into after January 1, 2011, the utility has required by contract that the third party implement and maintain reasonable security procedures and practices appropriate to the nature of the information to protect the personal information from unauthorized access, destruction, use, modification, or disclosure, and prohibits the use of the data for a secondary commercial purpose not related to the primary purpose of the contract without the customer’s prior consent to that use.
(3)CA Public Utilities Code § 8380(f)(3) Except as provided in subdivision (e), this section does not preclude an electrical corporation or gas corporation from disclosing electrical or gas consumption data as required or permitted under state or federal law or by an order of the commission.
(g)CA Public Utilities Code § 8380(g) If a customer chooses to disclose the customer’s electrical or gas consumption data to a third party that is unaffiliated with, and has no other business relationship with, the electrical or gas corporation, the electrical or gas corporation is not responsible for the security of that data, or its use or misuse.
advanced metering infrastructure customer consent electrical usage data gas consumption data electronic signature authorization personal data security unauthorized access secondary commercial purpose immigration authority customer privacy data sharing restrictions data protection anonymized data energy management programs customer data rights
(Amended by Stats. 2020, Ch. 188, Sec. 2. (AB 2788) Effective January 1, 2021.)

Section § 8381

Explanation

This law governs how local publicly owned electric utilities in California handle customer electrical consumption data, which includes information about how much electricity a customer uses and personal details like their name and address. Utilities cannot share or sell this data to third parties without the customer's consent, except in specific situations such as grid management or under a court order. If a utility does work with a third party, any use of data must be disclosed to the customer, and the third party must get consent for any secondary commercial uses. Utilities must also protect this data with proper security measures. If a customer decides to share their data with a third party on their own, the utility isn't responsible for what happens to that data.

(a)CA Public Utilities Code § 8381(a) For purposes of this section, “electrical consumption data” means data about a customer’s electrical usage that is made available as part of an advanced metering infrastructure, and includes the name, account number, or residence of the customer.
(b)Copy CA Public Utilities Code § 8381(b)
(1)Copy CA Public Utilities Code § 8381(b)(1) A local publicly owned electric utility shall not share, disclose, or otherwise make accessible to any third party a customer’s electrical consumption data, except as provided in subdivision (f) or upon the consent of the customer.
(2)CA Public Utilities Code § 8381(b)(2) A local publicly owned electric utility shall not sell a customer’s electrical consumption data or any other personally identifiable information for any purpose.
(3)CA Public Utilities Code § 8381(b)(3) A local publicly owned electric utility or its contractors shall not provide an incentive or discount to the customer for accessing the customer’s electrical consumption data without the prior consent of the customer.
(4)CA Public Utilities Code § 8381(b)(4) A local publicly owned electric utility that utilizes an advanced metering infrastructure that allows a customer to access the customer’s electrical consumption data shall ensure that the customer has an option to access that data without being required to agree to the sharing of the customer’s personally identifiable information, including electrical consumption data, with a third party.
(c)CA Public Utilities Code § 8381(c) If a local publicly owned electric utility contracts with a third party for a service that allows a customer to monitor the customer’s electricity usage, and that third party uses the data for a secondary commercial purpose, the contract between the local publicly owned electric utility and the third party shall provide that the third party prominently discloses that secondary commercial purpose to the customer and secures the customer’s consent to the use of the customer’s data for that secondary commercial purpose prior to the use of the data.
(d)CA Public Utilities Code § 8381(d) A local publicly owned electric utility shall use reasonable security procedures and practices to protect a customer’s unencrypted electrical consumption data from unauthorized access, destruction, use, modification, or disclosure, and to prohibit the use of the data for a secondary commercial purpose not related to the primary purpose of the contract without the customer’s consent.
(e)CA Public Utilities Code § 8381(e) A local publicly owned electric utility shall not share, disclose, or otherwise make accessible to any immigration authority, as defined in Section 7284.4 of the Government Code, a customer’s electrical consumption data without a court-ordered subpoena or judicial warrant.
(f)Copy CA Public Utilities Code § 8381(f)
(1)Copy CA Public Utilities Code § 8381(f)(1) This section shall not preclude a local publicly owned electric utility from using customer aggregate electrical consumption data for analysis, reporting, or program management if all information has been removed regarding the individual identity of a customer.
(2)CA Public Utilities Code § 8381(f)(2) This section shall not preclude a local publicly owned electric utility from disclosing a customer’s electrical consumption data to a third party for system, grid, or operational needs, or the implementation of demand response, energy management, or energy efficiency programs, provided, for contracts entered into after January 1, 2011, that the utility has required by contract that the third party implement and maintain reasonable security procedures and practices appropriate to the nature of the information to protect the personal information from unauthorized access, destruction, use, modification, or disclosure, and prohibits the use of the data for a secondary commercial purpose not related to the primary purpose of the contract without the customer’s prior consent to that use.
(3)CA Public Utilities Code § 8381(f)(3) Except as provided in subdivision (e), this section shall not preclude a local publicly owned electric utility from disclosing electrical consumption data as required under state or federal law.
(g)CA Public Utilities Code § 8381(g) If a customer chooses to disclose the customer’s electrical consumption data to a third party that is unaffiliated with, and has no other business relationship with, the local publicly owned electric utility, the utility shall not be responsible for the security of that data, or its use or misuse.
electric utility data sharing customer consent data privacy advanced metering infrastructure personally identifiable information third party contracts data security practices secondary commercial use grid management energy efficiency programs data anonymization immigration authority restrictions customer data access data protection utility data disclosure
(Amended by Stats. 2020, Ch. 188, Sec. 3. (AB 2788) Effective January 1, 2021.)