California Regulators Reopen San Onofre Settlement

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — California regulators are re-opening a settlement that left consumers responsible for paying $3.3 billion in costs for closing the San Onofre nuclear power plant.

The Public Utilities Commission on Monday said parties involved in the 2014 agreement can submit new comments on whether the deal should be amended or is still reasonable and in the public interest.

That follows revelations that the plant's primary owner, Southern California Edison, spoke privately with a PUC president before the agreement was reached. Edison was fined $16.7 million last year for failing to disclose the talks.

Edison says it still believes the agreement is in the public interest.

The deal allotted $3.3 billion in closure costs to ratepayers and $1.4 billion to shareholders of Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric.