California gave millions of utility customers a new safeguard against losing power during dangerous heat on Friday, July 17. Palo Alto residents aren't among them.
The California Public Utilities Commission voted 4-0 to lower the temperature threshold at which investor-owned utilities must stop disconnecting customers for unpaid bills, dropping it from 100 degrees Fahrenheit to 90 degrees. The commission also ordered PG&E, Southern California Edison, and San Diego Gas & Electric to adopt region-specific heat standards using a new state tool called CalHeatScore within six months of the July 17 vote.
But the rules apply only to utilities the CPUC regulates. Palo Alto runs its own municipal electric utility, governed by the City Council, and the CPUC has no jurisdiction over it. The commission's own website lists the City of Palo Alto among municipal utilities it does not regulate.
What Palo Alto customers get instead
Palo Alto Utilities' Rule 9, the city's official disconnection policy effective June 1, 2026, contains no temperature-based shutoff protection. The rule does not mention heat, temperature, or weather as a factor in disconnection decisions, according to the document posted on the city's website.
What the rule does require: a 10-day late notice followed by a 48-hour disconnect notice before any shutoff for nonpayment. That 48-hour notice must include information about financial assistance and how to request a payment plan. Residential disconnections are prohibited on Fridays, weekends, legal holidays, or any time the Utilities Customer Service office is closed.
No public statement from CPAU addressing heat-wave disconnection policy beyond Rule 9 could be found.
A wider safety net for low-income customers
The City Council expanded one financial protection effective July 1, 2026. The income threshold for Palo Alto's Rate Assistance Program rose from 50% to 80% of area median income. According to the city's Rate Assistance Program page, qualifying customers receive a 35% discount on electricity charges and 25% on gas. Residents can check eligibility or enroll by calling CPAU Customer Service at (650) 329-2161 or visiting MyCPAU.org.
Why the state acted
The CPUC's resolution noted that extreme heat thresholds already fall below 100 degrees in 41 of California's 58 counties. San Francisco defines extreme heat as anything above 85 degrees; Del Norte County's threshold is 76.8 degrees.
"When electricity is shut off to a home, it can have a sort of a cascading effect of problems on tenants," said Jason Zeller, an attorney with the Utility Consumers' Action Network, in comments reported by CalMatters. "If tenants don't have electric service, they can be subject to eviction; if they have children, they can lose child custody."
The new state protections apply only to shutoffs for unpaid bills. They do not prevent outages from equipment failures, wildfire-prevention shutoffs, or grid emergencies.
What Palo Alto residents can do
Customers who have a billing dispute with Palo Alto Utilities cannot file a complaint with the CPUC. Their options are to contact CPAU directly, attend a City Council meeting, or reach out to their council representative.
