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Business Taxes Law Guide—Revision 2024
Energy Resources Surcharge Annotations
Electric Utility
The California Energy Resources Surcharge Law imposes a surcharge on the charge for electricity provided a consumer by an electric utility. For purposes of the surcharge, the term "electric utility" does not include a person, such as a mobilehome park owner, who redistributes electrical energy solely for the use of tenants. The park owner is the consumer of the electricity and the surcharge is imposed on the electric utility's sale to the park owner, not on the park owner's sale to the residents.
The park owner should not itemize the energy surcharge as a "state tax" because that would indicate that the park owner is the electric utility collecting the surcharge from the residents and remitting it to the state. The park owner should itemize the surcharge as a "business expense" and may bill the surcharge to the residents as a "energy surcharge reimbursement" or "state tax reimbursement". 10/24/89.