Bill > SB1011

This bill, titled the Utility Infrastructure AI Safety, Oversight, and Workforce Protection Act, aims to regulate the use of automated decision systems (ADS) by utility companies, which are defined as "covered utilities" and include both privately owned (electrical and gas corporations) and publicly owned (local electric and gas utilities) entities. The Public Utilities Commission (PUC) will oversee privately owned utilities, while the Energy Commission will oversee publicly owned utilities, with a mandate for them to coordinate their efforts for consistency. The bill requires covered utilities to ensure that qualified personnel can modify or override the output of any ADS used in mapping, designing, operating, or maintaining their infrastructure, and that "high-risk" ADS, which are those involved in critical functions like modifying system records, prioritizing safety decisions, or controlling operational actions, cannot be deployed in live operations without a detailed safety plan filed with the relevant commission. This plan must include information on the ADS's model, training data, limitations, bias testing, cybersecurity, and human override capabilities, and the system must undergo a minimum 18-month "staging mode" (a testing environment) before full deployment. Furthermore, any ADS that creates or modifies system records must operate in staging mode, store proposed changes separately for human review, maintain a detailed "provenance log" (a traceable record of its actions and human interactions), and have a rollback mechanism. Covered utilities must report any event where a high-risk ADS contributed to a service interruption affecting over 500 customers, equipment damage, or a safety hazard within 24 hours, followed by a detailed root-cause report within 30 days. They must also continuously monitor these systems and submit annual reports. Crucially, the bill mandates that utilities provide at least 180 days' advance notice to labor organizations before implementing technological changes involving ADS that significantly affect job duties, classifications, staffing, or training, and they must develop retraining programs. Layoffs resulting from high-risk ADS deployment are prohibited unless retraining, redeployment, or reclassification options have been exhausted. Violations by privately owned utilities can lead to penalties, while publicly owned utilities must annually certify their compliance. The bill also clarifies that it does not supersede existing labor rights or collective bargaining agreements.

Transportation and Infrastructure

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260SB1011