Who Are We?

In May 1988, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) issued General Order 156 (GO 156). Under GO 156, the CPUC required all investor-owned electric, gas, water and telecommunication utility companies with gross annual revenues in excess of $25 million and their regulated subsidiaries and affiliates, to develop and implement programs to increase the utilization of WMBES. Procurement goals of 5% for women and 15% for minorities were initially established, and later expanded to include a goal of 1.5% for service-disabled veterans.

Certification of eligible suppliers was designed to encourage, recruit, and utilize WMBEs by participating utilities.

The Clearinghouse is a Commission-supervised entity whose primary purpose is to audit and verify the status of WMBEs, and to establish and maintain a database of WMDVBEs that is accessible to the CPUC and to participating utilities. The Clearinghouse audit and verification program precludes the need for individual utilities to audit and verify WMBEs with whom they do business.