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Opinion
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- Written by: By Pedro Nava, David Beier and José Atilio Hernández
By Pedro Nava, David Beier and José Atilio Hernández
Artificial intelligence and California have been intertwined from the beginning, and the technology is poised to deliver significant benefits - if consumers and workers are protected. We serve on the Little Hoover Commission - an independent bipartisan entity that has in the past two years released three major reports on AI, the most recent of which focuses on AI data centers.
Our central recommendation is to protect electricity rate payers and tell AI firms to pay their own way.
Our report comes at a time of an emerging national consensus on AI. The American people want the potential benefits of AI in health care and better services. But they are deeply worried about the costs. In the last year AI and electricity has gone from a third tier --even obscure --debate to being a top shelf concern across the country. California can cement its leadership role in AI when the Governor and the Legislature link arms to enact into law a set of comprehensive and enforceable -- and equally applicable statewide -- new laws that protect electricity rate payers and require the truly giant users in AI to pay for their own electricity.
There is understandable concern that data centers could raise electricity prices. Because of the centers’ enormous power use, they often require massive transmission projects that will be added to the grid – a cost that, under current rules, all ratepayers would have to bear.
But we believe there is an alternative vision that could help protect average consumers from shouldering the electricity burden created by data centers -- if the state takes certain steps to ensure that data center developers pay their share. In the best of circumstances, it’s even possible that data centers might lower electricity costs for average families.
That’s because a lot of your electric bill reflects the basic cost of building and maintaining the electrical grid, rather than generating the power you use. Those built-in costs of the grid are shared by everybody, and the more broadly they are spread, the less each individual or company has to pay.
Our report includes a series of recommendations to help ensure that data centers don’t push up electric bills for regular families, but we’ll focus here on just four.
First, data center developers should be on the hook to cover the costs they impose on the system. There are various ways to do this – Ohio requires that they buy at least 85 percent of the electricity they predict they will use, for example – but the exact mechanism is less important than the concept. If a data center says it will need a lot of power for the next 10 years, the company behind the facility – not other ratepayers – should bear the risk. If a data center requires expensive upgrades to the transmission system but then closes up shop a year later – economists call this a “stranded asset” – everybody else’s rates will go up, not down. California must make sure that doesn’t happen.
Second, California regulators should have access to all relevant information from data centers, such as how much power is used and when. That will help assess local impacts and improve planning for the future. Some reporting is required now, but the Legislature should ensure that regulators have access to the data they need.
Third, data centers should be integrated into the grid in a way that ensures the reliability of the system. For example, during grid emergencies – think of a hot summer day that spikes demand and pushes the grid to the breaking point – data centers should be required to curtail their power use.
And fourth, California should make sure we don’t sacrifice our clean-energy goals because of data centers. Climate change remains a critical challenge, and Californians are justly proud that we have led the way in transitioning to a cleaner electrical supply. That must remain a priority. One example: require that data centers have clean back-up power supplies, so that if they must temporarily shift away from using power off the grid, they don’t rely on, say, polluting diesel generators. That shift away from diesel may take some time, but the system needs to move in that direction.
The AI data center boom is the biggest and fastest capital construction project in American history -- bigger than the space program and the Interstate highway system and occurring in a shorter time frame. Alternatively, think of data centers that require the electricity of Seattle and build hundreds of them simultaneously. We owe all Californians a strong, sustainable future where the risks to electricity rates are not borne by rate payers.
Pedro Nava is Chair of the Little Hoover Commission. David Beier and José Atilio Hernández are members of the Commission, and served on the subcommittee that oversaw the study on data centers.
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- Written by: Drs. Nicki Thomas and Becky Salato
Drs. Nicki Thomas and Becky Salato
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — You might be wondering what dragonflies and monarchs have in common. In this context, they refer to programs that serve students with special needs and the partnership between Kelseyville Unified and Konocti Unified school districts.
Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), public schools are required to provide a free appropriate public education to eligible children with disabilities in the least restrictive environment. But it can be challenging to provide certain types of services in small, rural communities like ours.
This is why Kelseyville Unified and Konocti Unified decided to pool our resources and work together. Our collaboration allows us to split costs, so we can better support local children. It also avoids the need to send some students out of town for specialized support.
Monarch Program (Transition Program)
The Monarch Program serves students ages 18-22 with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) who have not received a high school diploma. An IEP makes students eligible for additional services under the Special Education umbrella. Monarch students learn independent living skills, including job skills, to help them reach their full potential for independence. The program allows students to participate in community settings and build meaningful connections.
Monarch staff walk students through each step required for various daily living tasks. For example, to prepare meals, students learn everything from calculating their food budget to grocery shopping, meal planning, and cooking. They also learn job skills by working in local businesses or by creating their own business. Currently, students work at restaurants, preschools, food banks, and other community organizations. Previously, students learned entrepreneurial skills by starting a dog biscuit business.
Not only does Monarch help students to be as independent as possible and play a meaningful role in their homes, it also allows community members to recognize the ability of students with disabilities to be productive, contributing members of society.
Dragonfly Program
The Dragonfly Program serves elementary students with active IEPs who have significant behavioral challenges, including physical aggression. The program targets the underlying cause of behaviors rather than simply responding to the disruption they cause.
Dragonfly provides support from a Board-Certified Behavior Analyst, or BCBA, who conducts observations, creates behavior plans, trains staff, and oversees the Registered Behavior Technicians, or RBTs.
RBTs work directly with students to implement their behavior plans, empowering students to manage their emotions so they can reduce problematic behaviors. While many RBTs work with individuals with autism, they also support those with other developmental or mental health challenges.
The classroom is specially designed for these students, with a sensory calming section that includes a swing and other supports that have proven effective. Our dragonflies (students) also benefit from a high staff-to-student ratio and Educationally Related Mental Health Services, or ERMHS, counselors who support students’ social-emotional needs.
As with all students who have an IEP, the goal is for our dragonflies to spend as much time as possible in general education classrooms (with support). Our expectation is that early intervention in elementary school will reduce the need for intensive support later.
As students learn coping skills in the specialized classroom and gradually integrate back into general education, some will no longer need the specialized classroom at all. They will continue to receive support, but spend their class time with their general education peers.
Historically, we have tried to keep students with even the most severe needs on campus. Integration teaches acceptance, tolerance, and understanding among all students, and students with special needs can learn how to behave better when they see those behaviors modeled by their general education peers. Through integration, we’ve seen students with special needs form genuine friendships and become valued members of their school communities.
Teamwork Makes the Dream Work
We are very proud of this collaborative partnership we have developed between our two districts, one that is made possible by our shared philosophy that we will go out of our way to take care of local kids. We look forward to continuing to work together as we expand our programs and services to support more students.
Before we close, we want to thank our amazing Special Education directors and staff who make this partnership possible. They’ve worked together for years and would be the first to tell you that when you trust and respect the people you work with, so much becomes possible. We are so grateful for this beautiful relationship that truly benefits local kids and all the communities we serve.
Dr. Becky Salato is superintendent of the Konocti Unified School District. Dr. Nicki Thomas is superintendent of the Kelseyville Unified School District.
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- Written by: Becky Salato
In December, Konocti Unified School District presented the “biggest little concert ever.” I am quite certain we gathered the most student musicians in a single room that Lake County has ever seen.
About 150 students played together. It was wonderful. Lower Lake High School, or LLHS, and Obsidian Middle School combined their musical programs to entertain friends and family, led by LLHS music teacher (and alumna) Molly Silva and OMS music teacher Fernando Silveira.
All the audience seats in the high school gym were full and people lined the walls–it was literally standing room only.
One of the most impressive things about this concert was that our music program began the school year in a “rebuilding” phase.
Since COVID, the music programs at our schools have struggled for various reasons. Yet this year, the high school’s beginning band class has increased in size, the concert band has almost doubled from 17 students to 32, and the middle school program has increased from 45 to 92 with a waitlist.
Three students are learning instruments outside of school so they can join the marching band mid-year. Still others are taking lessons outside of school to skip beginning band and move straight to concert band.
Enthusiastic music teachers
I credit this growth to our two music teachers. Their enthusiasm and determination is inspiring. This is Ms. Silva’s first year with our district and Mr. Silveira’s second. Although they are decades apart in age, they are very much aligned when it comes to growing their programs.
They are both adamant that anyone can play. Some people are under the misconception that students must choose between being an athlete and a musician – not so! Years ago when Mr. Silveira was a high school student, he was both an athlete (football player) and a musician, and Ms. Silva has already coordinated with LLHS athletic coaches to ensure students can play sports and be in the marching band if they choose.
Really, the main thing in the way of growing our music program is a need for more instruments. We’ll continue to add music classes as our resources allow. Districtwide, we have grant funding to offset the cost of providing music instruction to students of all ages. In our elementary schools, our music program is integrated with other classes, so students get about an hour of music a week. Secondary students can enroll in music classes that meet daily.
Five-year plans
Both Ms. Silva and Mr. Silveira have five-year plans to dramatically expand their programs. They both want to create marching bands that attend festivals, parades and competitions. They both want to develop programs that welcome new students into music and provide a pathway to elevate their skills so they can participate in concert band, marching band, and/or jazz band.
LLHS has a show choir and Mr. Silveira would love to start a choir at the middle school. Mr. Silveira also talks about holding a future concert at Austin Park, open to the public for all to enjoy. Ms. Silva wants to provide college tours, allowing students to participate in Band Day at UC Berkeley and UC Davis to give students a sense of what could be next in their music career.
One way to fund some of this expansion is to create band booster clubs, similar to those for athletics, to help pay for uniforms, instruments, and travel expenses.
Another is to seek additional grant funding to support our music students. The music teachers also asked me to mention that if there are any community members with band instruments in good condition they no longer use, we’d be happy to accept them as donations.
Music makes us better
Music provides so many benefits, from a life-long ability to play an instrument to academic and social-emotional benefits. Learning music has been linked to improved test scores, enhanced math and language skills, and expanded cognitive development, as well as increased self-confidence, more developed social skills, and healthy emotional expression.
And maybe one of the most important benefits is the way the music community serves as a safe haven when kids are figuring themselves out. Middle school and high school can be difficult times when students struggle to find a place to belong. For many, music is that place.
Dr. Becky Salato is superintendent of the Konocti Unified School District.
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- Written by: Pedro Nava, Anthony Cannella and José Atilio Hernández
California’s electricity rates are the second highest in the country, behind only Hawaii. The state’s residential and commercial rates – charged to homeowners, most businesses, schools, and hospitals – are about twice the national average. Industrial rates charged for manufacturing, construction, and agriculture are more than two-and-a-half times the U.S. mark.
Why? There are several reasons: wildfire damage is expensive to prevent and repair, the state’s system for setting rates is overly complicated, guaranteed fixed returns for utilities add cost, and as more people generate their own power through rooftop solar panels, the fixed costs of running the grid are spread over fewer customers.
The high prices have consequences. One in five households is behind on their energy bill in California, and industries that consume large amounts of electricity are wary about doing business here. Affordability is now the number one policy concern of residents, potentially undercutting confidence in the value of our clean energy goals.
The Little Hoover Commission – an independent watchdog agency on which we serve – spent months examining the reasons for California's high electricity bills and searching for solutions. We held four public hearings at which we heard testimony from utilities, consumer advocates, academic experts and others. We looked to other states and even other countries for lessons that might be adopted here. We combed through hundreds of research papers, public records and other documents.
At the conclusion of our study, we released a report, The High Cost of Electricity in California, with 10 recommendations to ease the burden. We believe our proposals would bring down costs for all, but we worked hard to ensure that our ideas also reflect a concern for fairness. High electricity bills don’t fall equally on all; they’re a greater challenge for those who are less fortunate economically or who live in portions of the state where summertime temperatures make air conditioning a near necessity.
So one of our key recommendations is tailored to address that issue. California ratepayers get a small credit on their utility bill from the state’s climate programs. Instead of giving everyone the same amount at the same time, we should direct that money to low-income families and people living in the hottest parts of the state. Furthermore, the credits should be focused during the summer months when the heat – and the bills – hit the hardest. Using our resources to help the most vulnerable families where and when they need it will make a real difference. This is about equity.
But electricity has become so expensive that even middle-income families are struggling. We should raise the income limits on assistance programs so more households qualify for relief.
Next, in addition to helping families who are struggling, the state needs to put its regulatory house in order. The complicated process by which the state considers the utilities’ request for rate increases should be streamlined and condensed. The State Auditor should assess whether the California Public Utilities Commission has the expertise needed to regulate such a vast and complicated system.
Last, the state needs to address the proliferation of rooftop solar panels. In recent years, many Californians have invested heavily in rooftop solar to save money and support clean energy. That’s good for the environment, but it also means those households pay less into the shared costs of running the grid, shifting the burden onto fewer customers and driving bills up. California should revise these incentives in a way that allows homeowners to recover their investment but is still fair to households paying the full cost of keeping the grid running.
The good news is we don’t have to sacrifice our values to save our pocketbooks. Our Commission has identified clear, actionable solutions that will reduce costs while ensuring equity for all while staying true to our commitment to fight climate change and protect the environment. Adopting these recommendations will deliver real relief, strengthen public trust, and ensure that every dollar on a customer’s bill is justified. Californians deserve no less.
Pedro Nava is chair of the Little Hoover Commission. Anthony Cannella is vice-chair of the Commission, and he and Commissioner José Atilio Hernández served on the subcommittee overseeing the Commission’s work on electricity prices.