CA 91326: A Public Choice Mystery Investigation
Carl Danner writes to me with a political economy mystery. On Sept 9, 2026, The California Public Utilities Commission announced a set of clean energy grants but only “for eligible organizations headquartered in ZIP Code 91326.” I decided to investigate with ChatGPT. The first thing we discovered is that: The ZIP-code restriction is about the […] The post CA 91326: A Public Choice Mystery…
On September 9, 2026, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) announced clean energy grants, but only for organizations headquartered in ZIP Code 91326. This ZIP code restriction is directly related to the Aliso Canyon gas leak, which occurred between 2015 and 2016 and resulted in the evacuation of thousands of families. The money is intended to benefit residents of Porter Ranch and nearby communities affected by the disaster, not a generic clean-energy grant.
Using ChatGPT, reporter Carl Danner investigated the situation and discovered that the Round 3 rules appear tailored to make Save Porter Ranch, an organization based in ZIP Code 91326, a likely recipient. The strongest facts include the legislature appropriating $2 million from the Aliso Canyon Recovery Account for CBO outreach in Los Angeles County, with a focus on the "Aliso Canyon Disaster Area," which contains 11 communities—not just Porter Ranch alone.
The CPUC's first round distributed roughly $1.3 million through a competitive process across multiple organizations, but Round 3 suddenly restricted eligibility to organizations headquartered in 91326, with a maximum award of $75,000 and exclusion of previous recipients.
Three possibilities for the restriction are considered: a benign geographic set-aside, a de facto earmark, or a quid pro quo/payoff. ChatGPT investigated the legislative history and found that the 91326 restriction originated in the 2026 budget cleanup bill, inserted by the Legislature. The evidence supporting a payoff is stronger than initially thought, with a strong link between Save Porter Ranch and the California Democratic Party, particularly through Richard Mathews, a director of Save Porter Ranch and a senior Democratic Party insider.
Mathews is closely connected to legislators involved in the relevant legislative machinery. The investigation reveals a tight network connecting Save Porter Ranch, its director Mathews, and political figures within the Democratic Party, raising questions about the origin of the ZIP-code restriction.
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