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Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB 2493, requiring utilities and independent transmission developers to submit schedules for major upgrades that need a California Public Utilities Commission permit. The law also creates a CPUC monitor and allows the commission to order remedial action when projects fall behind. The scale and timing of that oversight are not yet clear.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed Assembly Bill 2493, a law requiring utilities and independent transmission developers to provide schedules for major grid upgrades that need a permit from the California Public Utilities Commission. The law creates a new CPUC monitor to track progress and requires the commission to order remedial actions when projects fall behind, addressing delays that can hold up clean-energy and battery projects.
Under AB 2493, covered companies must submit project schedules for major transmission upgrades requiring a CPUC permit. The commission will appoint a transmission development monitor to assess whether utilities and developers are meeting those schedules. If they are not, the CPUC must order remedial actions. The source report does not specify what those actions could include.
The measure responds to a backlog affecting proposed generation and storage. A November 2025 CPUC report said nearly 22 gigawatts of renewable generation and battery installations depended on transmission projects that had already been delayed. It said 13.2 gigawatts had been delayed or were at risk of delay because of transmission timelines. Those figures describe projects affected or potentially affected; they do not mean that all 22 gigawatts have been canceled or are unable to connect.
AB 2493 was sponsored by the state branch of the American Clean Power Association and the Union of Concerned Scientists, according to the report. Alex Jackson, executive director of American Clean Power–California, said the measure is intended to increase oversight, rather than punish utilities. The law applies to investor-owned utilities and independent transmission developers, but its requirements are tied to major upgrades that need a CPUC permit.
Delays Put Clean Power Connections at Risk
Transmission upgrades determine whether new wind, solar and battery facilities can deliver electricity to the grid. When a required line or substation project slips, developers may have to revise their plans, wait longer to connect or reassess a project. The report includes an anonymous developer’s account of learning that a long-anticipated substation upgrade would be delayed by five years or more. That account illustrates the uncertainty developers say they face; it is not evidence that every project experiences the same delay.
California’s clean-energy targets add pressure to the issue. The source report says the state needs to add 7 to 8 gigawatts of capacity annually for the next two decades, roughly double its current pace of growth. The law does not itself build transmission or guarantee that projects will finish on time. Its immediate purpose is to give regulators more visibility into schedules and a formal means to respond when work falls behind.
For electricity customers, transmission is also a planning and cost issue. New infrastructure can bring near-term costs, while delays can constrain the connection of new power sources. AB 2493 changes oversight of project delivery, but the source material does not quantify its effect on electricity bills, construction timelines or the amount of clean energy ultimately connected.
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A Wider Gap Between Plans and Delivery
The California Independent System Operator has approved just under $28 billion in new transmission projects over the five years cited in the report. Approval is not the same as completion: the report describes utilities as lagging in carrying projects through. AB 2493 addresses that follow-through for projects requiring a CPUC permit, rather than replacing the planning and approval process.
Transmission construction is difficult across the country, the report notes, because projects face multiple obstacles. California’s need is especially pressing because of its climate targets and the volume of generation and storage waiting on grid work. The report also notes that a U.S. Senate permitting bill focused in part on obstacles to new transmission had emerged the previous week; its eventual status is not established in the supplied material.
Before AB 2493, the report says utilities largely controlled which projects moved forward and on what timelines. Clean-energy developers wanted earlier notice when upgrades were delayed or canceled so they could plan around the change. The new schedule and monitoring requirements are meant to address that information gap, although the report does not describe how the CPUC will publish or share schedule information.
“The goal is not to punish utilities, but “simply to provide more oversight.””
— Alex Jackson, executive director of American Clean Power–California
How the CPUC Will Enforce Schedules
The source report does not give an implementation timetable for the new monitor or explain how the CPUC will define an acceptable schedule, measure missed milestones or select remedial actions. It is also unclear whether the commission will make project schedules and delay findings public, and how often it will report on progress.
The reported figures cover renewable and battery projects that depend on transmission upgrades already delayed or at risk; the source does not break them down by project, technology, expected connection date or ultimate outcome. The law’s effect on the pace of construction, clean-energy connections and customer costs remains unknown. The anonymous developer’s account is one example, not a statewide measure of delay.
Project Schedules and CPUC Oversight
The next steps are for the CPUC to establish the monitor role and put the law’s schedule and oversight requirements into practice. Utilities and independent developers covered by the measure will need to submit schedules for major upgrades requiring a commission permit. The commission will then have to determine whether projects are on track and order remedial actions when they are not.
The source material gives no deadlines for those steps or a date for the first review. Future CPUC decisions and reporting should show which projects are covered, how delays are assessed and what remedies regulators use. Until those details emerge, the law’s practical effect on the transmission backlog cannot be measured.
Key Questions
What does California’s AB 2493 require?
It requires utilities and independent transmission developers to submit schedules for major upgrades that require a CPUC permit. It also creates a CPUC monitor to track progress and requires the commission to order remedial actions when projects fall behind.
Which clean-energy projects could be affected by transmission delays?
The source report says nearly 22 gigawatts of renewable generation and battery installations depended on transmission projects already delayed. It identifies 13.2 gigawatts as delayed or at risk because of transmission timelines, but does not provide a project-by-project breakdown.
Does the law build new power lines or guarantee on-time completion?
No. The law adds schedule reporting and regulatory oversight; the supplied information does not say it directly funds construction or guarantees completion dates.
What happens if a transmission project falls behind?
The CPUC must order remedial actions, according to the report. The source material does not specify which remedies the commission may choose.
When will the new monitoring system begin?
The source report gives no implementation date or first review deadline. The CPUC’s next steps and any published schedules will clarify how the law is applied.
Source: rss
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