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REGULATORY ASSETS, LIABILITIES, AND BALANCING ACCOUNTS (Tables)
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2020
Regulated Operations [Abstract]  
Long-Term Regulatory Assets
Long-term regulatory assets are comprised of the following:
 Balance at December 31,Recovery
Period
(in millions)20202019
Pension benefits (1)
$2,245 $1,823 Indefinitely
Environmental compliance costs1,112 1,062 32 years
Utility retained generation (2)
181 228 6 years
Price risk management204 124 19 years
Unamortized loss, net of gain, on reacquired debt
49 63 23 years
Catastrophic event memorandum account (3)
842 656 
1 - 3 years
Wildfire expense memorandum account (4)
400 423 
1 - 3 years
Fire hazard prevention memorandum account (5)
137 259 
1 - 3 years
Fire risk mitigation memorandum account (6)
66 95 
1 - 3 years
Wildfire mitigation plan memorandum account (7)
390 558 
1 - 3 years
Deferred income taxes (8)
908 252 51 years
Insurance premium costs (9)
294 — 
1 - 4 years
Wildfire mitigation balancing account (10)
156 — 
1 - 3 years
General rate case memorandum accounts (11)
376 — 
1 - 2 years
Vegetation management balancing account (12)
592 — 
1 - 3 years
COVID-19 pandemic protection memorandum accounts (13)
84 — TBD years
Other942 523 Various
Total long-term regulatory assets$8,978 $6,066  
(1) Payments into the pension and other benefits plans are based on annual contribution requirements. As these annual requirements continue indefinitely into the future, the Utility expects to continuously recover pension benefits.
(2) In connection with the settlement agreement entered into among PG&E Corporation, the Utility, and the CPUC in 2003 to resolve the Utility’s 2001 proceeding under Chapter 11, the CPUC authorized the Utility to recover $1.2 billion of costs related to the Utility’s retained generation assets.  The individual components of these regulatory assets are being amortized over the respective lives of the underlying generation facilities, consistent with the period over which the related revenues are recognized. 
(3) Includes costs of responding to catastrophic events that have been declared a disaster or state of emergency by competent federal or state authorities. As of December 31, 2020, $49 million in COVID-19 related costs was recorded to CEMA regulatory assets. Recovery of CEMA costs is subject to CPUC review and approval.
(4) Includes incremental wildfire liability insurance premium costs the CPUC approved for tracking in June 2018 for the period July 26, 2017 through December 31, 2019. Recovery of WEMA costs is subject to CPUC review and approval.
(5) Includes costs associated with the implementation of regulations and requirements adopted to protect the public from potential fire hazards associated with overhead power line facilities and nearby aerial communication facilities that have not been previously authorized in another proceeding. Recovery of FHPMA costs is subject to CPUC review and approval.
(6) Includes costs associated with the 2019 WMP for the period January 1, 2019 through June 4, 2019. Recovery of FRMMA costs is subject to CPUC review and approval.
(7) Includes costs associated with the 2019 WMP for the period June 5, 2019 through December 31, 2019 and the 2020 WMP for the period of January 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020. Recovery of WMPMA costs is subject to CPUC review and approval.
(8) Represents cumulative differences between amounts recognized for ratemaking purposes and expense recognized in accordance with GAAP.
(9) Represents non-current excess liability insurance premium costs recorded to RTBA and Adjustment Mechanism for Costs Determined in Other Proceedings, as authorized in the 2020 GRC and 2019 GT&S rate cases, respectively.
(10) Includes costs associated with certain wildfire mitigation activities for the period January 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020. Long-term balance represents costs above 115% of adopted revenue requirements, which are subject to CPUC review and approval.
(11) The General Rate Case Memorandum Accounts record the difference between the gas and electric revenue requirements in effect on January 1, 2020 and through the date of the final 2020 GRC decision as authorized by the CPUC in December 2020. These amounts will be recovered in rates over 17 months, beginning March 1, 2021.
(12) The 2020 GRC Decision authorized the Utility to modify the existing one-way VMBA Expense Balancing Account to a two-way balancing account to track the difference between actual and adopted expenses resulting from its routine vegetation management and enhanced vegetation management activities previously recorded in the FRMMA/WMPMA, and tree mortality and fire risk reduction work previously recorded in CEMA. Recovery of VMBA costs above 120% of adopted revenue requirements is subject to CPUC review and approval.
(13) On April 16, 2020, the CPUC passed a resolution that established the CPPMA to recover costs associated with customer protections, including higher uncollectible costs related to a moratorium on electric and gas service disconnections for residential and small business customers. The CPPMA applies only to residential and small business customers and was approved on July 27, 2020 with an effective date of March 4, 2020. As of December 31, 2020, the Utility had recorded an aggregate under-collection of $76 million, representing incremental bad debt expense over what was collected in rates for the period the CPPMA is in effect. The remaining $8 million is associated with program costs and higher accounts receivable financing costs. Recovery of CPPMA costs is subject to CPUC review and approval.
Long-Term Regulatory Liabilities
Long-term regulatory liabilities are comprised of the following:
 Balance at December 31,
(in millions)20202019
Cost of removal obligations (1)
$6,905 $6,456 
Recoveries in excess of AROs (2)
458 393 
Public purpose programs (3)
948 817 
Employee benefit plans (4)
995 750 
Other1,118 854 
Total long-term regulatory liabilities
$10,424 $9,270 
(1) Represents the cumulative differences between the recorded costs to remove assets and amounts collected in rates for expected costs to remove assets.
(2) Represents the cumulative differences between ARO expenses and amounts collected in rates.  Decommissioning costs related to the Utility’s nuclear facilities are recovered through rates and are placed in nuclear decommissioning trusts.  This regulatory liability also represents the deferral of realized and unrealized gains and losses on these nuclear decommissioning trust investments.  (See Note 11 below.)
(3) Represents amounts received from customers designated for public purpose program costs expected to be incurred beyond the next 12 months, primarily related to energy efficiency programs.
(4) Represents cumulative differences between incurred costs and amounts collected in rates for Post-Retirement Medical, Post-Retirement Life and Long-Term Disability Plans.
Current Regulatory Balancing Accounts Receivable
Current regulatory balancing accounts receivable and payable are comprised of the following:
Receivable
Balance at December 31,
(in millions)20202019
Electric transmission$— $9 
Gas distribution and transmission102 363 
Energy procurement413 901 
Public purpose programs292 209 
Fire hazard prevention memorandum account121 — 
Fire risk mitigation memorandum account
33 — 
Wildfire mitigation plan memorandum account161 — 
Wildfire mitigation balancing account27 — 
General rate case memorandum accounts313 — 
Vegetation management balancing account115 — 
Insurance premium costs135 — 
Other289 632 
Total regulatory balancing accounts receivable$2,001 $2,114 
Current Regulatory Balancing Accounts Payable
Payable
Balance at December 31,
(in millions)20202019
Electric distribution$55 $31 
Electric transmission267 119 
Gas distribution and transmission76 45 
Energy procurement158 649 
Public purpose programs410 559 
Other279 394 
Total regulatory balancing accounts payable$1,245 $1,797