The Brief

State regulators are poised to vote on how much profit utility companies can make, a decision with big implications for Californians’ bills and the aging power grid.

The California Public Utilities Commission, which regulates privately owned utilities in the state, will vote on a proposed decision to lower the payout to shareholders from the state’s investor-owned utilities — Southern California Edison, San Diego Gas & Electric, Southern California Gas Co. and Pacific Gas & Electric.

Unlike public utilities, such as the L.A. Department of Water and Power, investor-owned utilities are private companies that operate as government-regulated monopolies.

California’s electricity rates are the second-highest in the nation, behind only Hawai’i. As the state works to transition to a cleaner energy economy that runs largely on electricity, those high bills threaten to derail progress.

Experts say lowering utility profits is just one piece, albeit a big one, in the puzzle to address energy affordability.

The background

Every three years,  the CPUC, which is made up of five commissioners appointed by the governor, oversees applications from the state’s private utilities during which they ask for a certain “rate of return” — essentially their amount of expected profits above the cost of operations — to attract the capital they say they need to make necessary investments in California’s aging power grid. That includes building new power plants, transmission lines and other infrastructure.

These profits are also important to ensure the utilities don’t go into bankruptcy and can maintain reliable service.

Over the last two decades, the amount of profits allowed has only gone up — it hovers at a little over 10% for the state’s big three investor-owned electric utilities, which is slightly higher than the industry average across the nation.

Mark Ellis — a former executive at Sempra Energy (the parent company of SoCal Gas and SDG&E) turned ratepayer advocate — estimates that profit, plus income taxes on profit, which are passed through to ratepayers, accounts for about one-quarter of Californians’ utility bills.

The CPUC is expected to vote on whether to approve a slight decrease to those returns at a meeting Thursday.

What the proposal says

The proposed decision would lower the return on equity for each utility by about 0.35% — even such a small change can mean millions of dollars in reductions for ratepayers.

If approved, SoCal Edison’s maximum return on equity would be 9.98%, down from 10.33%, and San Diego Gas & Electric would be 9.88%, down from 10.23%.

What critics say

Some stakeholders say the return percentage should be far lower. Ellis, who provided testimony in the proceeding on behalf of the Sierra Club and Protect Our Communities Foundation, argues the return should be as low as 6%. He estimates that could reduce Californians’ electric bills by as much as 10%.

“There's no other industry that really has that type of return that's virtually guaranteed,” Ellis said. “We haven't touched their profits for decades, and what has it gotten us? It's gotten us really expensive electricity and a very brittle system.”

He says current returns on equity incentivize the state’s monopoly utilities to overinvest, raising rates for customers and the expense of the energy transition.

“So I'm saying, the first step is, get the incentives right and see how they behave,” Ellis said.

The Little Hoover Commission, the state’s independent watchdog agency, cited Ellis’ work in a recent report on lowering electricity rates, as well as two UC Berkeley studies showing how “utility regulators often approve profit levels that exceed what is truly needed to attract investment.”

In the report, the commission recommends shifting the initial proposal of the rate of return on equity to the state Treasurer’s Office, instead of the utilities themselves. The report also calls for an audit of California Public Utilities Commission staffing to assess whether the agency has enough capacity to provide rigorous oversight of these proceedings.

“We want to make sure that the rate of return isn't so high that this is just a cash grab from everyday customers and rate payers to big corporate interests,” said Katherine Ramsay, a senior attorney with the Sierra Club. “You want to make sure the number is no more and no less than what is necessary for the utilities to remain financially healthy.”

What the utilities say

The utilities had asked to increase or maintain their current rates of return. They’ve called on the commissioners to reject the proposed reduction.

They argue that their return on equity has to be competitive with nationwide utilities or else investors will go elsewhere, which could slow long-term investments in public infrastructure to improve wildfire safety and boost clean energy and hurt the companies’ credit.

And, especially since the 2025 L.A. wildfires and other catastrophic fires in the last decade, they say California electric utilities are seen as riskier, increasing costs of equity.

“We are disappointed that the proposed decision does not fully reflect current market conditions or the unique risks California utilities face,” a spokesperson for SDG&E wrote to LAist.

David Eisenhauer, a spokesperson for Southern California Edison told LAist that “when investors view the rate established by the CPUC as not commensurate with the risk, that impacts investor willingness to invest in California, which then drives up the cost of capital and increases customer costs over time.”

In their latest comments to the commission, Edison said the company has already not been meeting the return approved by the CPUC “since at least 2017, with 2024 actual earnings at 6.38% as compared to 10.75% authorized, in part due to financing of wildfire claims and SCE’s contributions to the Wildfire Fund.”

“The commission’s objective is not to maximize customer savings by setting the authorized [return on equity] as low as possible,” they write, but rather to set a rate “commensurate with market returns on investments” so that company can attract investors to finance infrastructure and “fulfill its public utility service obligation.”

How to share your comments ahead of the vote

The CPUC is expected to vote Thursday. You can submit a comment by calling into the meeting, or submitting one online ahead of time. To submit online, you’ll have to enter the proceeding’s docket number, which is A2503010, then click the tab that says “Add public comment.”

Happy Hanukkah to all celebrating the festival of lights. I am obsessed with this NY Times Cooking recipe for pickle latkes and plan to break all rules of tradition by attempting to make them.

If you, too, are jumping on the pickle latke trend this year, brush your teeth before heading out to one of the many options on the music menu. On Monday, popera icon Sarah Brightman is at the Dolby Theatre. On Tuesday, the Cool Kids play the Echo, and Robert Glasper begins his six-night residency at the Blue Note. On Wednesday, Death Angel is at the Belasco, Ariel Pink is at the Regent, Ella Mai plays the Roxy and Okkervil River is at Scribble. On Thursday, Queensrÿche and Accept bring some hard rock to Anaheim’s House of Blues, and Electric Guest plays the Regent. Licorice Pizza has even more music listings here.

Elsewhere on LAist.com, read up on NPR’s pick for best album of the year, find the best local last-minute gifts with our gift guides and choose your early Oscar favorites with our film aficionados.

Events

Ben Platt: Live at the Ahmanson

Through December 21
Ahmanson Theatre
135 N. Grand Ave., Downtown L.A.
COST: FROM $44.85; MORE INFO

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Courtesy Center Theatre Group

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From waving through a window to waving from the stage, musical theater wunderkind-turned-pop star Ben Platt hits the Ahmanson for a week of shows featuring Broadway favorites — and some of his famous friends. A surprise guest will join him each night, and while we don’t know who yet, the 2024 Broadway residency featured the likes of Cynthia Erivo, Jennifer Hudson, Sam Smith and more.

4 Non Blondes

December 15-16, 8 p.m. 
The Roxy 
9009 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood
COST: MORE INFO 

INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 13: Linda Perry of 4 Non Blondes performs onstage during the 2025 KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas at The Kia Forum on December 13, 2025 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for Audacy)

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Kevin Winter

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One of the (only?) good things about social media is its ability to introduce classic hits to a new generation of fans (see: Kate Bush). The 4 Non Blondes' iconic 1993 hit “What’s Up” has been showing up in TikTok mashups — and the Linda Perry-led band is reuniting for two shows at the Roxy on their current tour.

Broadway Brass Band Hanukkah Party 

Tuesday, December 16, 8 p.m.
The Venice West
1717 Lincoln Blvd., Venice
COST: $20; MORE INFO 

Showtunes, Hanukkah and brass bands — pretty much my trifecta of fun. If it’s yours, too, head to the Venice West and celebrate the festival of lights Westside-style with musician Benny Lipson, who gives a New Orleans spin to Tom Lehrer’s “Hanukkah in Santa Monica” (oh the rhyming). Happy hour goes till 7:30, so get there early!

Read to a rescue dog 

Tuesday, December 16, 4 p.m.
Wilshire Branch Library 
149 N. Saint Andrews Place, Mid-Wilshire
COST: FREE; MORE INFO 

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Rhiannon Elliott

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Rescue dogs like a good book, too! All ages are invited to read books to therapy dogs at the Wilshire Branch Library. Who’s helping whom here, I wonder…

Jane Lynch’s A Swingin’ Little Christmas

Wednesday, December 17, 7:30 p.m. 
Broad Stage
1310 11th Street, Santa Monica 
COST: SOLD OUT, WAITLIST AVAILABLE; MORE INFO

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Courtesy Broadstage

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It’s no secret that Glee star Jane Lynch knows how to belt it out, and she brings friends Kate Flannery, Tim Davis and the Tony Guerrero Quintet together for comedy and classic holiday tunes at the Broad Stage in Santa Monica.

Gimme Shelter: Songs for LA Fire Relief Launch Party

Tuesday, December 16, 5 p.m. 
Amoeba Hollywood 
6200 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood
COST: FREE; MORE INFO 

We’re fast approaching the one-year anniversary of the fires, and there’s never a better time than the holidays to support the ongoing relief efforts. Flood Magazine is hosting this in-store launch and listening party at Amoeba for the new double vinyl benefit album, Gimme Shelter: Songs for LA Fire Relief. The album features rare tracks from Elliott Smith, Flaming Lips, Rilo Kiley, Local Natives, Chromeo, Norah Jones and more — on double gatefold red vinyl, with a cover by Shepard Fairey.

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Robert Therrian: This is a Story

Through April 5
Broad Museum 
221 S. Grand Ave., Downtown L.A.
COST: $19; MORE INFO

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Joshua White

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The Broad

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If you’ve been waiting since Thanksgiving to get down to the Broad to see the larger-than-life installations by Robert Therrian, wait no longer to book your tickets for the quiet holiday week. You know his big chair and table from visits to the permanent collection, but This is a Story features over 120 works that inspire wonder and awe, including enormous hanging beards and stacked dishes that create an optical illusion.

Jeopardy! Bar League

Tuesday December 16, 8 p.m.
Brennan’s
4089 Lincoln Blvd., Marina del Rey 
COST: FREE; MORE INFO 

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Courtesy Jeopardy! Bar League

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Test your knowledge with fellow Jeopardy! fans at the (show-sanctioned) Jeopardy! Bar League night at Brennan's in Marina Del Rey. If you’ve ever thought about auditioning for the classic trivia game show, members of the Jeopardy! team will be on hand to answer questions about the contestant journey and offer a mini contestant test. Try out — take it from this Jeopardy! loser — you won’t regret it!

Hammer Museum: "MoMA Contenders" screenings

December 15-18
10899 Wilshire Blvd., Westwood
COST: $10 members, $20 general admission; MORE INFO 

Head to the Hammer for four more nights of screenings of potential awards nominees at the annual “MoMA Contenders” series. On Monday, you can catch the George Clooney Hollywood drama Jay Kelly; Tuesday has art heist film The Mastermind; on Wednesday, director Scott Cooper joins for a screening of his film, Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere; and Thursday’s feature is Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another.

ShrimpMas

Through December 23
San Pedro Fish Market 
760 S. Harbor Blvd., San Pedro 

And 
6550 E. Marina Drive, Long Beach
COST: VARIES; MORE INFO

It’s not hard to come up with an excuse to go to San Pedro Fish Market, and this is an especially easy one. Through December 23, they’re featuring 12 days of World Famous Shrimp Trays, holiday offerings and exclusive seasonal specials at both the Long Beach restaurant and the newly opened Landing in San Pedro.

Hanukkah at Miznon 

Through December 22
Grand Central Market, Downtown L.A. 
COST: $16; MORE INFO 

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Courtesy Miznon

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It’s always overwhelming choosing where to eat at Grand Central Market. To celebrate Hanukkah, the popular Miznon is serving up latkes for $16, with four golden potato latkes served with rich, tangy Runover Cream.

Hollywood director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele Singer Reiner were found dead Sunday at their home in Brentwood. LAPD officials said they are investigating “an apparent homicide” at the residence, but declined to give additional details.

Their deaths were confirmed in a statement released by the family to the media — and in social media posts by L.A. Mayor Karen Bass and Gov. Gavin Newsom Sunday evening.

The family statement said: "It is with profound sorrow that we announce the tragic passing of Michele and Rob Reiner. We are heartbroken by this sudden loss, and we ask for privacy during this unbelievably difficult time."

A police officer blocks off a street near the Brentwood home of Rob Reiner and his wife Michele Singer.

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Ethan Swope

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AP

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The Associated Press was among numerous media outlets reporting that sources, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said investigators believe the couple suffered stab wounds. The AP also reported the same source said investigators were questioning a family member.

Reiner, 78, became a household name playing Michael "Meathead" Stivic on TV’s All In The Family — but went on to eclipse that early success with a decades-long career in film. He directed dozens of movies including such legendary romantic comedies as When Harry Met Sally and The American President, as well as revived the art of the mockumentary with This Is Spinal Tap. Other beloved films include Stand By Me and The Princess Bride.

He was nominated for an Oscar for directing A Few Good Men.

Michele Singer Reiner, 68, was a photographer who met her husband while he was filming When Harry Met Sally. He said he changed the ending of the film after their meeting.

The couple have three children together. Reiner was previously married to the late Penny Marshall and adopted her daughter.

Reactions

Bass issued a statement calling the deaths "a devastating loss." She recalled Reiner for a career in Hollywood that spanned roles as an actor, director, producer and writer, but also as a political activist who "always used his gifts in service of others."

Reiner helped to create an early childhood education initiative — dubbed First 5 California — paid for by a tax on tobacco sales. He and his wife were also “true champions for LGBTQ+ rights,” Bass said.

Newsom also released a statement expressing heartbreak over the news, calling Reiner "the big-hearted genius behind so many of the classic stories we love."

He added: "That empathy extended well beyond his films. Rob was a passionate advocate for children and for civil rights — from taking on Big Tobacco to fighting for marriage equality to serving as a powerful voice in early education. He made California a better place through his good works."

Reiner’s father, comedy legend Carl Reiner, died at age 98 in 2020. When his father died, Rob Reiner called him "my guiding light."

This is a developing story. It will be updated as LAist learns more.

A Rolex Deepsea diver's watch can withstand water pressure at depths of more than 12,000 feet.

"Basically, the most bulletproof, toughest watch that Rolex makes," says Marshall Sutcliffe, who runs a popular YouTube channel on watch restoration.

But what about fire?

About seven months ago, Sutcliffe received an intriguing request from a viewer and his father to restore a Rolex that was recovered in the rubble of the Palisades Fire.

The watch's owner had lost everything, the two said, save for a husk of that 2015 Deepsea wristwatch.

" The idea of these fires, even though it was very much in my mind, was distant," said Sutcliffe, who lives in Seattle. "Getting something that came out of one of those fires and having it sitting in front of me was an emotional experience."

'It was annihilated'

A viewer of Marshall Sutcliffe's YouTube channel asked if he could fix a Rolex recovered in the rubble of the Palisades Fire.

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Courtesy Marshall Sutcliffe

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Even for Sutcliffe, the state of the timepiece was a shock.

 "It was annihilated  to a level that even I couldn't have imagined until I opened up the watch," he said.

The outside structure, despite having been cooked for weeks, was surprisingly intact. The case and the metal bracelet, discolored and ashen, were still there. The dial, too, had survived but was unreadable. Gone were the crystal, as well as the bezel with numbers that go around the exterior.

" My assumption is that [they] popped off because of the extreme heat," Sutcliffe said.

Then he went in.

The movement of the Rolex was all but unrecognizable.

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Courtesy Marshall Sutcliffe

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" I had a little bit of my brain thinking that maybe part of the movement inside would've survived," he said. "I don't know why I thought that."

Some of the metal had melted into other parts, morphing into one big rusty gunk.

"There's basically no moving parts anymore left," he said.

One of Sutcliffe’s biggest challenges in the restoration was to get the movement itself out of the case.

"I  tried to undo a screw on it," Sutcliffe said. "It turned into a pile of dust."

Finally, he had to just dig into it, using the biggest screwdriver in his toolbox of tiny watch repair instruments.

"Piece by piece," Sutcliffe said. " They just flaked off."

After that, the rest of the work was relatively straightforward, but no less painstaking. Sutcliffe took a movement from a similar Rolex and replaced it wholesale. The other parts, he tried to retain as much as possible.

The movement of the Rolex was completely destroyed by the Palisades Fire

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Courtesy Marshall Sutcliffe

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Sutcliffe wanted to retain as many original parts from the destroyed Rolex as possible.

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Courtesy Marshall Sutcliffe

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What is original?

But that led to a philosophical question.

"You know, what makes a thing a thing, right?” he asked. “If you replace a bunch of parts on it, what does that end up being? What I decided to do was I kept every part that I could."

And there's one part he kept that carries special meaning.

In the middle of the restoration, an idea hit Sutcliffe to keep an inner ring of the Deepsea — a detail you can see but something that most people probably wouldn’t notice.

During restoration, Sutcliffe had the idea to retain a burnt, darkened inner ring from the original watch.

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Courtesy Marshall Sutcliffe

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Normally, that part is bright silver with black letters on it. The one on the damaged Rolex was charred to a dark brown, verging on black.

Sutcliffe contacted the owner.

"I asked him if I could leave that in there so that it could kind of be a subtle symbol to him," he said. "That he made it and it made it, and he's going to continue on.”

The owner agreed.

After the video of the restoration was posted, Sutcliffe got an email.

The owner thanked the watch repairer, telling him that seeing the Deepsea, a gift that was given to him, being slowly put back together was emotional.

Sutcliffe feels it, too. He still remembers first holding the watch with the marks of incredible destruction in his hand. After the monthslong process, he is struck by what it has now become — "functional again, beautiful again... ready to live a long life."

They say there are no seasons in L.A. That’s just wrong. There are, it’s just they don’t make any sense. In the U.K., where I’m from, the seasons are pretty predictable. A period of lots of rain (winter), then a little less rain (spring), rain when you don’t want it (summer) and back to lots of rain (autumn). And yes, as far as I’m concerned, it’s autumn. Not fall. Fall is a verb, not a noun.

But here in L.A., as I look up at a tree with maroon leaves next to a palm tree, it’s like someone picked up all the seasons and threw them up in the air and let them fall as they will. (See what I did there?)

So yes, in winter the air is cold, but the sun is hot. There’s hot chocolate and iced latte, sometimes at the same time. There’s woodfire smoke in the evening and lunchtime outdoor dining. Sit inside or out? Um, can we do both? Like my top half is in the sun, but my bottom half is in the shade, and then I flip like a burger?

A palm tree in downtown L.A.

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Julia Wick

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Newcomer confusion

It’s certainly confusing for new arrivals. We got here in January some years ago, leaving a cold rainy East Coast behind. I spent the first Sunday sitting at a beachfront cafe as the sun shone gorgeously down from the heavens.

But as we went down to the ocean, my then-5-year-old daughter looked about, panicking, and said, “Mommy, we mustn’t be here, there’s nobody here!”

I looked about and realized she was right. There was no one on the beach, even though it was pretty warm. Definitely as warm as I remember summer vacations being in the U.K., where you’d put up wind breaks on the sand and huddle next to them as the North wind blew across the beach and the sun apathetically glanced down every now and then.

“No,” I said soundlng like the love child of Mary Popppins and Steven Fry. “Come on! I’d have given anything to be on a beach like this as a kid! Lovely weather!”

So we walked along on the deserted sand as I shook my head at the waste of it all. These wide, wide beaches...and no one on them? These Californians need to build character. Make them go on beach walks when it’s below 70 degrees! It’s a shame, I said, shame.

Lying thermostats

Now I’ve been here over a decade and have acclimatized. I think going to the beach past November is the mark of a mad person, and I feel the cold in my bones. Not from the swirling snow outside, or from the freezing winds hurtling down a city block, but in my home. Yes .... it’s often colder inside than out. At least it feels that way. The thermostat cheerfully tells me it’s 71 degrees and I want to yell at it: “You’re lying! How is this 71 degrees when my feet at my desk are iceblocks and I’m burrowing my nose in the scarf that apparently I’m wearing indoors even though it’s blazing sunshine outside?”

Sometimes I need to sit in my puffer coat on top of a heater just to keep my body temperature higher than a reptile.

Look, I know it’s because they didn’t put insulation in most L.A. houses last century, and my feet are resting on a few inches of wooden floor and then nothing — just a massive hole in the ground — but it just seems odd. I go outside to warm up in the middle of the day, and turn my face up to the sky to absorb the liquid gold, and all is good .... until I go inside again and scream at the thermostat.

But a confused California winter season is still better than most other places. The air doesn’t attack you when you’re outside, like New York or Chicago. And snow is for mountains only. There’s no scraping ice off windshields, only a mild condensation. It doesn’t take 30 minutes to dress your kids when you’re about to go out, and you can get wonderfully sweet strawberries, freshly picked, at the farmers market. Or a persimmon. Or a plum. In December.

So as I head out in a fleece, shorts and flip flops to get wood for my fireplace while picking up more sun tan lotion, let’s hear it for SoCal’s crazy seasons, confused as hell and making it up as they go along — like most of us.