The CA Industry Assistance Credit is part of the State of California’s Cap-and-Trade Program developed because of a landmark legislation called the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (AB 32). The program aims to address climate change by limiting the total amount of greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted by the largest sources.

The State of California provides the CA Industry Assistance Credit to protect against emissions leakage—a decrease in in-state GHG emissions that results in an increase in out-of-State GHG emissions. AB 32 requires that the State minimize emissions leakage to the extent feasible. This credit protects eligible industrial sectors against emissions leakage and transitions them into the Cap-and-Trade Program by compensating affected businesses for a portion of the GHG emission costs associated with the electricity they buy.

CA utilities such as Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) will distribute this credit during April annually through 2030.

The amount of the credit is determined through the use of emissions-efficiency benchmarks that reward businesses who have taken early action to reduce their GHG emissions. This approach will also ensure that these industries will have an incentive to continue producing products in California in the most greenhouse gas-efficient way possible.

For more information, visit CPUC’s CA Industry Assistance website.

The CA Industry Assistance Credit is open to all eligible CA utility customers, including those who get electricity from Community Choice Aggregation Programs (CCAs) or other electric service providers.

Per California Air Resources Board’s (CARB) Cap-and-Trade Regulation, facilities that derive most of their revenue from a product, activity, or service covered by a specific North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code are eligible for Industry Assistance.* CPUC refers to these as “emissions-intensive and trade-exposed” (EITE) entities.

• A list of eligible entities by NAICS codes may be found in the “How do I determine my NAICS Code?” FAQ below. This list is provided for convenience only.
• Official EITE NAICS Codes Table 8-1 of the California Air Resource Board’s (CARB) Cap-and-Trade Regulation. CARB’s Table 8-1 remains controlling.

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) determines eligibility for the CA Industry Assistance Credit at the facility level. A facility is a physical structure(s) located on one or more contiguous properties. For example, a campus, factory, plant or company headquarters with multiple buildings would be considered one facility if all structures are involved in (or support) the production of the same product or service. If a company owns multiple facilities throughout the state, each facility may (or may not) be eligible depending on each facility’s NAICS code.

*If you are unsure which NAICS code applies to your facility, this information can be found on company’s federal income tax return, such as IRS Form 1120, or the U.S. Census Bureau’s guidelines

The amount of the CA Industry Assistance Credit will vary from facility to facility. The amount of the credit is determined through the use of emissions-efficiency benchmarks which reward businesses that have taken early action to reduce their GHG emissions. This approach ensures that these industries will have an incentive to continue operating in California in the most greenhouse gas-efficient way possible.

Amounts may also vary from utility to utility, based on the amount of greenhouse gas emissions in each energy provider’s supply. Amounts even vary from year to year, based on greenhouse gas prices.

For these reasons, your credit amount cannot be accurately predicted by your utility.

Here are some guidelines to give you a general idea of what you might be able to expect.

The estimated bill credit represents the annual savings a facility could receive. The CA Industry Assistance amount depends on the price of GHG allowances in the prior year and can go up or down as allowance prices change. The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) will calculate the actual credit amount based on the rules outlined in Decision D.14-12-037 and D.21-08-026.

Important notes:

• If your facility successfully submits an eligibility claim by September 30 of each year or your facility automatically qualifies. Your CA Industry Assistance Credit will be applied to your April bill.
• If your company received the Small Business California Climate Credit, you would stop receiving the bi-annual California Climate Credit and will start receiving the annual CA Industry Assistance Credit.
• The CPUC calculates your credit amount, not PG&E. To protect your privacy, PG&E does not have access to all the data that the CPUC uses to determine your credit amount. PG&E cannot accurately predict your credit amount or answer detailed questions about why you received a specific amount. Facilities can reach out to industry.assistance@cpuc.ca.gov for help estimating the value of future credits.

For complete rules about how the CPUC calculates the CA Industry Assistance Credit, please refer to page 67 of D.14-12-037 and D.21-08-026.

If your business has one utility service account
The California Public Utilities Commission concluded that the monetary difference between the small business California Climate Credit and the CA Industry Assistance Credit would be minimal for businesses that have only one utility service account and that already receive the California Climate Credit. Your business may be better off sticking with the California Climate Credit.

If your business has more than one utility service account
It’s a little harder to provide guidance on which bill credit may be better for you, because the results will vary from company to company and facility to facility.

• If ALL your facility’s service accounts receive the California Climate Credit for Small Businesses, you may be better off sticking with the California Climate Credit for the reasons outlined above.
• If at least one of your facility’s service accounts does NOT receive the California Climate Credit for Small Businesses, it all depends on your electricity usage. You will need to estimate how much you might receive from the CA Industry Assistance Credit and determine for yourself whether it’s in your best interest to switch.

If your facility operates in one of the eligible EITE NAICS codes, you must determine which category your facility falls in based on your annual direct emissions. Depending upon the category that your facility falls in, you either qualify automatically for the credit (but must opt-in to receive the credit), or you must provide information to verify your eligibility.

*Mandatory Reporting of Greenhouse Gas Emissions (MRR)

PG&E will verify the information submitted and will reach out if additional information is needed. If you successfully attested, you will receive your annual CA Industry Assistance Credit in April as a credit on your PG&E Energy Statement, unless you are eligible to receive a check.*

*Only MRR facilities with emissions greater than 25,000 MTCO2 are eligible to select a check credit option.

NOTE: Customers receiving a bill credit may "cash out" any remaining bill credit by calling the Business Customer Service Center (1-800-468-4743) to request a check, if their credit amount exceeds their total bill amount.

If you are unsure which NAICS code applies to your facility, review your company’s federal income tax return, such as IRS Form 1120, or use the U.S. Census Bureau’s guidelines.

Eligible NAICS codes and Descriptions (Updated December 2022): Facility’s qualify if its NAICS Code match the first three digits of CARB’s 5-digit eligible NAICS Codes.*

* Per Decision D.14.12.037, section 5.1.1: "Some entities that are now covered facilities under Cap-and-Trade had emissions that fell below CARB’s inclusion threshold prior to 2012 and are also not among the industries explicitly listed by NAICS Code in CARB Table 8-1. However, ARB determined that if the first three digits of such an entity’s NAICS Code match the first three digits of a NAICS Code in CARB Table 8-1 of CARB Regulation, these covered entities should be classified as having a low leakage risk, and they should be eligible for an energy-based allocation. CARB exempts food processors from this classification. These new amendments only affect ARB’s definition of eligibility for Industry Assistance for covered entities. D.12.12.033 concluded that ARB’s modifications to the eligibility criteria for Industry Assistance should extend to the Commission’s revenue allocation for EITE entities; therefore, the Commission’s allowance revenue allocation should mirror these new eligibility criteria."

• Your facility would have a 6-digit Facility ID assigned by ARB if you report emissions data to ARB. You should check with your facility staff to verify whether your facility has an ARB ID. If your facility is assigned an ARB ID and you operate in an eligible NAICS sector, your facility automatically qualifies but you must provide your facility's information for PG&E to process your credit.
• If your facility does not have a 6-digit ARB ID and you have received the credit for this facility in the past, then your facility is assigned a 10-digit Facility ID by PG&E. You can use this Facility ID to submit an attestation for your facility.
• If your facility has never received a CA Industry Assistance Credit in the past, then you must follow the directions on the website to submit an attestation.

Customers are required to attest for eligibility once per compliance period. Once successfully attested, eligibility will last for the entire compliance period (3-year window).

PG&E will conduct outreach to notify eligible customers at the start of each compliance period (e.g.: 2020, 2023, 2026).

Your PG&E Energy Statement (bill) lists the 10-digit Service Agreement ID(s) under the Details of Electric Charges section. Please note, you may have more than one bill for a facility. Make sure to list all electric Service Agreement IDs associated with the facility when you are completing the online attestation form.

The purpose of assigning Service Agreement IDs to a facility is to determine the total electricity usage associated with a specific facility. This will allow you to receive the credit based on the total electricity usage that is related to your facility’s production.

The address associated with each electric Service Agreement ID is listed under the Details of Electric Charges section of your Energy Statement (bill). If you have more than one meter providing electric service to your facility or multiple facilities, you must determine all applicable electric Service Agreement ID(s) that are part of a facility based on the address listed. If you have more than one facility, you must complete an attestation form for each facility separately.