Utilities pour millions into campaign against Steyer for governor Play

Southern California Edison is spending some of its profits to defeat Tom Steyer, the billionaire financing his own candidate to become governor. So is the Southern California Gas Company.

SCE has donated at least $2 million to the California Chamber of Commerce's political action committee. Another $2 million has come from Sempra — the parent company of SoCalGas and San Diego Gas & Electric.

The chamber's committee, in turn, has donated $9.75 million toward a campaign that is trashing Steyer. PG&E has plowed at least $13.5 million into efforts to oppose Steyer, according to state campaign contribution reports.

Steyer is one of four or five top Democrats and two Republicans duking it out in the jungle primary. Voting is open now.

Steyer has accused the big three California utility companies — PG&E, San Diego Gas & Electric Co. and Southern California Edison — of "raking in" record profits at the expense of their customers. He blames the utilities for high consumer bills and for causing deadly wildfires with their faulty utility equipment.

Steyer promises to put reform-focused appointees on the California Public Utilities Commission. He also wants more battery storage for renewable energy, as well as additional rooftop and community solar. So do some of the other Democrats.

Republican front runner Steve Hilton wants to throttle back solar and wind, saying they are more expensive than burning oil, gas or coal for power. But the fact is, wind and solar are cheaper.

Chad Bianco wants more oil drilling as the centerpiece of his energy platform.

The current front runner, Xavier Becerra, is campaigning on a clean energy platform. But Becerra has also been the recipient of small contributions from SCE and PG&E in his past political campaigns. Those amounts are just a tiny percentage of the political cash being funneled by the electric monopolies against Tom Steyer in this election.

Another politician who has attracted the attention of Southern California Edison is Sion Roy, a Democrat running for California State Senate District 24. He was recently the target of political attack advertisements funded by a corporate PAC — which included Edison International — bankrolling over $400,000 for mailers that he and local coalitions have strongly condemned.