On June 24, 2026, the California Assembly Utilities and Energy Committee voted to advance SB 913 (Becker), the Clean Local Power Act. SB 913 ensures that the millions of California homes and businesses that already have smart technologies can help make energy more affordable for everyone.
The following testimony was given to the committee by Allison Hilliard, Government Affairs Director for The Climate Center:
Good afternoon, Madam Chair Petrie-Norris and Committee Members. Thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony today in support of SB 913. My name is Allison Hilliard, Government Affairs Director at The Climate Center, a proud cosponsor of SB 913. The Climate Center is a think-tank, do-tank working to turn bold ideas into action for a climate-safe future.
We are cosponsoring SB 913 because, as we all know, the state is in an affordability crisis and everyday Californians are paying the price. We believe that SB 913 can help address this crisis. Unlocking the value of customer-sited solar, storage, smart thermostats, and other flexible appliances and devices through SB 913 can help lower Californians’ utility bills by allowing these resources to fairly compete and ensuring our grid is being fully utilized. This would save money because these aggregated resources would only be selected if they are the least-cost option in the Resource Adequacy market.
We also know that the climate crisis is accelerating, and along with the projected Super El Niño, we are expected to experience the hottest year ever. Instead of firing up polluting gas peaker plants in overburdened communities to meet increased electricity demand, we can rely on the clean, local resources that are already available in homes, businesses, schools, and government buildings. Currently, these resources are limited from fully participating in the Resource Adequacy market. SB 913 would level the playing field for these resources to meet that demand and maintain a reliable electricity grid (when they are the lowest cost resource in the market).
California’s Demand Side Grid Support program — the nation’s largest virtual power plant — has demonstrated that aggregated distributed energy resources can help the state avoid grid emergencies reliably and cost-effectively. SB 913 would give these clean, small-scale resources a long-term pathway to participate in the state’s energy market, acting as a tool in the toolbox to address our affordability crisis.
For these reasons, The Climate Center is in support of SB 913 and I respectfully ask for your aye vote.
Related resources
