Latest news with #PacificGasAndElectric
Yahoo
19-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Homeowner confused by 'surprise' energy bill after installing solar panels: 'This is the payback I get?'
Homeowner confused by 'surprise' energy bill after installing solar panels: 'This is the payback I get?' A confused homeowner whose electricity payments hadn't dropped as much as expected after they installed solar panels was shocked to discover a massive negative balance on their energy bill. They turned to Reddit to ask whether they were right in assuming that their power company had essentially refunded the built-up value of their solar contribution all at once. "I just installed solar last September and have noticed my PGE bill hasn't adjusted much due to the electricity I have been generating," the homeowner posted to r/solar. "However, logging into PGE today I see a negative balance. Did they finally catch up and this is the payback I get?" Along with their post, the OP shared an image showing a negative balance of nearly $1,400. PG&E, or Pacific Gas and Electric Co., is the electricity and natural gas provider for large parts of Northern and Central California. The homeowner's situation illustrated that, while installing solar panels can drop your energy bill to nearly (or even below) zero, understanding how it works in your area can sometimes get complicated. EnergySage offers free tools to help simplify the process, from comparing quotes among vetted local installers to taking maximum advantage of incentives and rebates. In the comments, Redditors agreed that the OP had received their entire solar payout in one lump sum. "New solar installs in PGE areas are on TOU plans with yearly true-up," one person explained. "The balance on your bill looks like they finally caught up on your billing and you'd been overpaying. Since you've got such a big balance, I'd call them and ask for them to refund your money." Whatever the reason, the OP was pleased with the outcome. "Regardless, it was a nice surprise this morning!" they said. What's the biggest concern you'd have about getting solar panels? The cost The efficiency How they look No concerns here! Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. With electricity production accounting for one-third of all planet-heating pollution generated in the United States, installing solar panels is a great way to help your wallet and the environment. Plus, installing solar panels in conjunction with a home battery system can make your home more resilient in the event of a power outage. EnergySage offers a free, easy-to-use mapping tool that makes it simple to see what the average solar installation costs in your state and what incentives are available in your area. The 30% federal tax credit on residential solar installations ends Dec. 31, so if you've been thinking about installing solar panels, the time to act is now. Join our free newsletter for easy tips to save more and waste less, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet. Solve the daily Crossword
Daily Mail
12-07-2025
- Daily Mail
California lakeside oasis is overrun by outsiders
A gorgeous California lakeside oasis has turned into everything but that after being overrun by rowdy and disruptive outsiders causing 'apocalyptic' scenes. Pinecrest Lake, a stunning body of water and outdoor site located in the Sierra Nevada , has long been known as a hotspot for swimming, hiking and camping - but it has turned into somewhat of a warzone in recent years. The 300-acre lake, owned and operated by Pacific, Gas and Electric Company, is tucked away in Tuolumne County's Stanislaus National Forest that has long been visited by tourists and even called home for locals. The locals, who live in cabins at the lake, have noticed a surge in visitation from outsiders since the pandemic, as well as in the summer months and weekends. What they weren't prepared for was what tourists brought with them, including violent fights, drugs, illegal camping, parking, letting dogs roam around free, graffiti-covered bathrooms, among other disturbances. 'Personally, I rarely go to the lake on weekends anymore because we know what a mess it is,' said Martha Geiszler, who owns a cabin near the lake and manages the Friends of Pinecrest Facebook Group, told the San Francisco Chronicle. 'There's very little visitor information given and very little law enforcement presence, so every rule is broken,' she added. Geiszler (pictured) isn't the only one who's noticed the uptick in chaos, as Tuolumne County Supervisor Anaiah Kirk told the outlet: 'There have been some apocalyptic weekends.' Locals and park workers have also had to deal with an influx of traffic, trash, cars parked in fire lanes, and even drownings. In October 2023, a 59-year-old man drowned while swimming in Pinecrest Lake. When officers with the Tuolumne County Sheriff's Office got to the lake, they questioned witnesses and reviewed video footage from the man's boat. It was later determined that the man, Brian Campbell, jumped into the water without a lifejacket on, his friend told police. The friend managed to drag him back to shore after jumping in after him. Medics then performed life-saving measures on Campbell, but he was pronounced dead at the scene. With chaos at an all time high at the lake, the county has set up new measures to try and decrease the troubling behavior. Kirk (pictured) said if those fail to help stop it, he is prepared to implement stricter rules that would make it harder not just for victors, but for locals, to enjoy the area. 'I'm ready to go full-bore and do a lot more things,' Kirk said. 'But we're slowing down and going to implement a few things at a time.' First and foremost, Kirk said the county will crack down on the slew of illegal parking around the lake. Just last summer, a number of emergencies were slowed down due to illegally parked cars lined up along Pinecrest Lake Road, Tuolumne County Sheriff David Vasquez told the outlet. Hundreds of citations were written last year, with most of them related to parking violations, Vasquez added. In March, just before the summer months hit, the Tuolumne County Board of Supervisors approved new parking violation fees for the lake to try to get the problem under control. A $35 ticket has since been hiked up to $100 for the first offense, and $200 for the second. The county has also gone on to install dozens of 'No Parking' signs along Pinecrest Lake Road to deter people from leaving their vehicles on the roadsides. 'People were looking at a $35 citation as an acceptable tradeoff. We need to create a psychological deterrent,' Vasquez said. Kirk, along with other supervisors, is keen about increasing the first offense penalty to $250 if parking issues persist. While staff has tried to crack down on the parking dilemma, furious locals have called for more beach patrols and rule enforcement at the lake. So far this summer, Geiszler said she has seen a lack of staffing at the lake - something she attributes to the recent cuts to federal land workers. Pinecrest Lake is under the supervision of the U.S. Forest Service, an agency within the U.S. Department of Agriculture. President Donald Trump has slashed U.S. Forest Service operations and funding for National Forest management by about $800 million. Shawn Winstead, the district ranger for the Forest Service's Sugar Pine District, said two staffers are assigned to patrol Pinecrest and clean the bathrooms there. Locals, including Geiszler, said that there are not at all enough employees to take care of the area. She recalled the approximately six bathrooms looking 'absolutely disgusting' during Memorial Day Weekend. 'You can't just have one or two people patrolling the beach every weekend with all those people,' she added. According to Vasquez, staffing in his office has increased over the past year and he is making sure his deputies are prioritizing calls from Pinecrest this summer to try and crack down on the mayhem. 'I stand behind everyone's constitutional rights to access that land, but we were receiving astronomical amounts of complaints about overcrowding and illegal parking,' he said. While many locals have brought up implementing restrictions across the park and lake at local town hall meetings, Winstead said the county has not decided on that just yet. 'Right now, we're not looking at restricting access in any way. We're trying to keep everything open for everybody,' he explained. 'But if there were some kind of restriction in that area, we'd have a carrying capacity and that would affect everybody — cabin owners, visitors, everybody.' Kirk said they have also considered bringing in metered parking spaces into the beach area, installing a gated tollbooth at the entrance that would not allow cars in when capacity is reached, and offering a parking shuttle to the beach. 'There are a lot of potentials. We'll have an evaluation after this summer,' Kirk said.
Daily Mail
08-07-2025
- Daily Mail
Gorgeous lakeside paradise is overrun by horribly-behaved outsiders leaving locals outraged
A gorgeous California lakeside oasis has turned into everything but that after being overrun by rowdy and disruptive outsiders causing 'apocalyptic' scenes. Pinecrest Lake, a stunning body of water and outdoor site located in the Sierra Nevada, has long been known as a hotspot for swimming, hiking and camping - but it has turned into somewhat of a warzone in recent years. The 300-acre lake, owned and operated by Pacific, Gas and Electric Company, is tucked away in Tuolumne County's Stanislaus National Forest that has long been visited by tourists and even called home for locals. The locals, who live in cabins at the lake, have noticed a surge in visitation from outsiders since the pandemic, as well as in the summer months and weekends. What they weren't prepared for was what tourists brought with them, including violent fights, drugs, illegal camping, parking, letting dogs roam around free, graffiti-covered bathrooms, among other disturbances. 'Personally, I rarely go to the lake on weekends anymore because we know what a mess it is,' said Martha Geiszler, who owns a cabin near the lake and manages the Friends of Pinecrest Facebook Group, told the San Francisco Chronicle. 'There's very little visitor information given and very little law enforcement presence, so every rule is broken,' she added. Geiszler isn't the only one who's noticed the uptick in chaos, as Tuolumne County Supervisor Anaiah Kirk told the outlet: 'There have been some apocalyptic weekends.' Locals and park workers have also had to deal with an influx of traffic, trash, cars parked in fire lanes, and even drownings. In October 2023, a 59-year-old man drowned while swimming in Pinecrest Lake. When officers with the Tuolumne County Sheriff's Office got to the lake, they questioned witnesses and reviewed video footage from the man's boat. It was later determined that the man, Brian Campbell, jumped into the water without a lifejacket on, his friend told police. The friend managed to drag him back to shore after jumping in after him. Medics then performed life-saving measures on Campbell, but he was pronounced dead at the scene. With chaos at an all time high at the lake, the county has set up new measures to try and decrease the troubling behavior. Kirk said if those fail to help stop it, he is prepared to implement stricter rules that would make it harder not just for victors, but for locals, to enjoy the area. 'I'm ready to go full-bore and do a lot more things,' Kirk said. 'But we're slowing down and going to implement a few things at a time.' First and foremost, Kirk said the county will crack down on the slew of illegal parking around the lake. Just last summer, a number of emergencies were slowed down due to illegally parked cars lined up along Pinecrest Lake Road, Tuolumne County Sheriff David Vasquez told the outlet. Hundreds of citations were written last year, with most of them related to parking violations, Vasquez added. In March, just before the summer months hit, the Tuolumne County Board of Supervisors approved new parking violation fees for the lake to try to get the problem under control. A $35 ticket has since been hiked up to $100 for the first offense, and $200 for the second. The county has also gone on to install dozens of 'No Parking' signs along Pinecrest Lake Road to deter people from leaving their vehicles on the roadsides. 'People were looking at a $35 citation as an acceptable tradeoff. We need to create a psychological deterrent,' Vasquez said. Kirk, along with other supervisors, are keen about increasing the first offense penalty to $250 if parking issues persist. While staff has tried to crack down on the parking dilemma, furious locals have called for more beach patrols and rule enforcement at the lake. So far this summer, Geiszler said she has seen a lack of staffing at the lake - something she attributes to the recent cuts to federal land workers. Pinecrest Lake is under the supervision of the U.S. Forest Service, an agency within the U.S. Department of Agriculture. President Donald Trump has slashed U.S. Forest Service operations and funding for National Forest management by about $800 million. Shawn Winstead, the district ranger for the Forest Service's Sugar Pine District, said two staffers are assigned to patrol Pinecrest and clean the bathrooms there. Locals, including Geiszler, said that there are not at all enough employees to take care of the area. She recalled the approximately six bathrooms looking 'absolutely disgusting' during Memorial Day Weekend. 'You can't just have one or two people patrolling the beach every weekend with all those people,' she added. According to Vasquez, staffing in his office has increased over the past year and he is making sure his deputies are prioritizing calls from Pinecrest this summer to try and crack down on the mayhem. 'I stand behind everyone's constitutional rights to access that land, but we were receiving astronomical amounts of complaints about overcrowding and illegal parking,' he said. While many locals have brought up implementing restrictions across the park and lake at local town hall meetings, Winstead said the county has not decided on that just yet. 'Right now, we're not looking at restricting access in any way. We're trying to keep everything open for everybody,' he explained. 'But if there were some kind of restriction in that area, we'd have a carrying capacity and that would affect everybody — cabin owners, visitors, everybody.' Kirk said they have also considered bringing in metered parking spaces into the beach area, installing a gated tollbooth at the entrance that would not allow cars in when capacity is reached, and offering a parking shuttle to the beach. 'There are a lot of potentials. We'll have an evaluation after this summer,' Kirk said.
Yahoo
21-06-2025
- Yahoo
Lawyer Tom Girardi sentenced to 7 years for stealing millions from clients to fund Bravo star wife's career
Disbarred attorney Tom Girardi, 86, was sentenced to seven years and three months in prison for embezzling millions from former clients, according to NBC News. The former husband of the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and a high-profile lawyer was once celebrated for his role in the landmark 1993 lawsuit against Pacific Gas and Electric Co.—the case that inspired the Oscar-winning film Erin Brockovich, starring Julia Roberts. Thanks to Jeff Bezos, you can now become a landlord for as little as $100 — and no, you don't have to deal with tenants or fix freezers. Here's how I'm 49 years old and have nothing saved for retirement — what should I do? Don't panic. Here are 6 of the easiest ways you can catch up (and fast) Nervous about the stock market in 2025? Find out how you can access this $1B private real estate fund (with as little as $10) "This self-proclaimed 'champion of justice' was nothing more than a thief and a liar who conned his vulnerable clients out of millions of dollars," said U.S. Attorney Bilal Essayli. In addition to prison time, Girardi was ordered to pay $2.3 million in restitution and a $35,000 fine. His lawyers argued he was mentally unfit to stand trial due to Alzheimer's disease, but a federal court ruled he was competent. Girardi was convicted of four counts of wire fraud in August 2024. Prosecutors said he stole tens of millions of dollars in settlement funds from clients over a decade. Victims included people who suffered severe burns, widows of accident victims and families of those killed in high-profile disasters, like the 2018 Lion Air crash that killed 198 people. He often misled clients, telling them their settlement money was delayed due to tax issues, debt obligations or the need for a judge's approval. "Girardi sent lulling communications to the defrauded clients that, among other things, falsely denied that the settlement proceeds had been paid and falsely claimed that Girardi Keese [lawfirm] could not pay the settlement proceeds to clients until certain purported requirements had been met," said the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California in a news release. According to Business Insider, one client was awarded $53 million in a settlement after a 2010 natural gas pipeline explosion in California caused severe burns. They ultimately received just $2.5 million. Prosecutors said Girardi diverted more than $25 million from his law firm's operating account to EJ Global, a company created to fund the entertainment career of his now-estranged wife, Erika Jayne, a star on Bravo's Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. Jayne, 53, has denied any involvement and was dismissed from a related lawsuit in 2022. She filed for divorce in 2020 after the allegations surfaced and has maintained she did not know about her husband's crimes. Read more: Want an extra $1,300,000 when you retire? Dave Ramsey says — and that 'anyone' can do it Girardi wasn't just any lawyer — he was one of the most prominent personal injury attorneys in the country. That's what made his fraud so devastating. But there are still ways to protect yourself when hiring a lawyer, no matter how impressive their resume is. Red flags to watch out for: Lack of transparency: If a lawyer avoids sharing documentation or gives vague answers about your case, that's a warning sign. Payment delays: Once cleared, settlement checks should be disbursed promptly. Unexplained delays are cause for concern. No written agreements: Always get a written retainer agreement that outlines fees, responsibilities and expectations. Pressure tactics: Be cautious if a lawyer pushes you to make decisions without giving you time to understand your rights. Even savvy clients can still be taken advantage of. If you suspect fraud or misconduct, here's what to do: Request documentation: Ask for a detailed breakdown of your settlement and where the money went. Check the bar association: Make sure the lawyer is licensed and review any disciplinary actions through your state's bar association. File a complaint: Every state has a grievance or disciplinary board. In Ohio, for example, grievances are filed with the Ohio Bar. Hire a second lawyer: If something doesn't feel right, get a second opinion. Even a seasoned, high-profile attorney can betray their clients' trust. Staying informed, asking questions and knowing your rights can help you avoid becoming the next victim. Rich, young Americans are ditching the stormy stock market — here are the alternative assets they're banking on instead Robert Kiyosaki warns of a 'Greater Depression' coming to the US — with millions of Americans going poor. But he says these 2 'easy-money' assets will bring in 'great wealth'. How to get in now This tiny hot Costco item has skyrocketed 74% in price in under 2 years — but now the retail giant is restricting purchases. Here's how to buy the coveted asset in bulk Here are 5 'must have' items that Americans (almost) always overpay for — and very quickly regret. How many are hurting you? Like what you read? Join 200,000+ readers and get the best of Moneywise straight to your inbox every week. This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
Yahoo
19-06-2025
- Yahoo
PG&E shuts off power in these Bay Area cities
The Brief A small area of Clayton was the first area PG&E turned off power in to prevent wildfires. Later in the day, areas near Livermore, Discovery Bay, and Lake delete Vale had their power shut off too. PG&E proactively shuts off its power lines after the utility paid millions in fines and was criminally convicted of causing deadly wildfires. CLAYTON, Calif. - As the utility forewarned, Pacific Gas & Electric turned off power to a portion of customers, mostly in the East Bay, on Thursday in a preventive measure to reduce the risk of wildfires as high winds and dry conditions are expected through Saturday. Power was shut off in Clayton, a city in Contra Costa County at the base of Mount Diablo State Park, at 4:47 a.m. and PG&E told the 73 customers affected that it would be restored as soon as it is safe. By noon, PG&E had also shut off power to areas near Livermore, Lake del Valle, Byron, Altamont Pass Road, Sycamore Grove Regional Park, an area along Interstate 580 west of Tracy, and homes south of Discovery Bay. PG&E warned earlier this week that customers in parts of Alameda, Contra Costa, Napa, Santa Clara and Sonoma counties may also be temporarily shut off during these high-risk fire conditions. As of now, the areas identified for potential shutoffs are primarily in remote regions. To check for your neighborhood, PG&E has provided an outage map. PG&E has paid millions in fines and was criminally convicted of involuntary manslaughter stemming from at least 30 wildfires since 2017 that have wiped out thousands of homes and killed more than 100 people. Some of those fires were caused by the utility's power lines that sparked while electricity was running through them.
