OUR MISSION: To provide our customers with high-quality, efficient and reliable water, power and sewer services in a manner that values environmental and community interests and sustains the resources entrusted to our care.
525 Golden Gate Avenue, 13th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94102
T 415.554.3155
F 415.554.3161
TTY 415.554.3488
San Francisco Public Utilities Commission
Correspondence Log
February 21, 2023 through February 28, 2023
Date Received From Subject
February 21, 2023 Eileen Boken With all this rain and snow, can California really still be in a
drought? Look deeper
February 22, 2023 Supervisor Connie
Chan
Memorandum of Understanding
between LAFCo and the SFPUC
February 28, 2023 John Goldberg Drought Surcharge
City Hall • 1 Dr. Carlton B.Goodlett Place • Room 244 • San Francisco, California 94102-4689 Office (415) 554-7410 • TDD/TTY (415) 554-5227 • E-mail: [email protected]
February 22, 2023
Subject: Memorandum of Understanding between LAFCo and the SFPUC Dear General Manager Dennis Herrera and SFPUC Commissioners, As District 1 Supervisor and Chair of LAFCo, I’m writing to respectfully request that you agendize and authorize the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCo) and the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) at your next meeting. My resolution urging the approval of the MOU passed unanimously at the January 24 meeting of the Board of Supervisors, with Board President Aaron Peskin and Supervisors Preston, Walton, Melgar, Ronen, and Safai as cosponsors.
The resolution requests that LAFCo continue to monitor CleanPowerSF and advise the SFPUC and Board of Supervisors regarding its implementation. The Board of Supervisors understands LAFCo’s oversight is critical to CleanPowerSF’s continued success, and that the agency is the main venue for members of the Board to have insight into the complex, rapidly evolving issues around renewable energy.
San Francisco’s LAFCo was formed in 2000, when, in response to California’s electricity deregulation debacle, a voter petition proposed creating a Municipal Utility District to take over the City’s electricity service from PG&E. LAFCo continued to focus on electricity service with a series of studies on topics such as the financial feasibility of acquiring PG&E’s infrastructure and its valuation. LAFCo was a critical partner in the launch of the City’s community choice aggregation (CCA) program. In 2007, the Board of Supervisors unanimously passed ordinance 146-07, which created the CCA program and requested that LAFCo “assist with the startup of the CCA Program and advise the Board of Supervisors, SFPUC and other agencies regarding all aspects of development, implementation, operation and management of the CCA Program.” The Board of Supervisors sees continued LAFCo oversight and the studies in this MOU as critical to CleanPowerSF’s continued success.
The MOU explicitly allows for the list of studies to be modified, subject to approval from the LAFCo Executive Officer and the SFPUC’s Assistant General Manager for Power. And there is urgent need for us to move quickly on the studies we agree on.
City Hall • 1 Dr. Carlton B.Goodlett Place • Room 244 • San Francisco, California 94102-4689 Office (415) 554-7410 • TDD/TTY (415) 554-5227 • E-mail: [email protected] I appreciate you being good stewards of the CleanPowerSF rate payer fund, which will provide a $800,000 reimbursement for the list of studies indicated in the MOU. The MOU requires SFPUC approval of all spending and biannual reporting from LAFCo, but if you would like to add additional accountability measures, I urge you to provide specific language to amend the MOU.
Our climate crisis is too urgent for further delay on the MOU, and oversight and diverse opinions based on the best data available is critical. Therefore, I urge for your support in agendizing and approving the MOU.
Sincerely,
Connie Chan
District 1 Supervisor
San Francisco LAFCo Chair
From:
To: Commission
Subject: Drought Surcharge
Date: Tuesday, February 28, 2023 3:35:04 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe.
Commissioners,
In light of the year's rainfall and snowpack, when will the drought surcharge end? John Goldberg
Midtown Terrace
OUR MISSION: To provide our customers with high-quality, efficient and reliable water, power and sewer services in a manner that values environmental and community interests and sustains the resources entrusted to our care.
525 Golden Gate Avenue, 13th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94102
T 415.554.3155
F 415.554.3161
TTY 415.554.3488
San Francisco Public Utilities Commission
Correspondence Log
March 3, 2023 through March 7, 2023
Date Received From Subject
March 3, 2023 Ed Hillard Change to Item 4 – February 28, 2023 Agenda
March 6, 2023 Eileen Boken A foundation of racism': California's antiquated water rights system faces
new scrutiny
March 7, 2023 SFPUC Citizens’
Advisory Committee
Resolution in Support of Continuing
Remote Public Comment
Tom Schwertscharf Implementing Source-Sea Approach
From: Ed Hillard
To: Commission
Cc: edhillard
Subject: Change to Item 4 - Feb. 28.2023 Agenda
Date: Thursday, March 2, 2023 7:24:03 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe.
Dear SFPUC Commissioners:
In a paraphrase of William Hewlett (as we at HP got it): you can't manage something that you are not measuring. By completely ignoring river water quality (and quantity for that matter) while harping on drought the Commission intrinsically ignores one half of its stewardship. You could wonder if we had numerous wet years how long it would take for "drought" to be a constant, solitary agenda item dealing with the river itself for the Commission's meetings. It has been proposed that a permanent agenda item for the Commission’s meetings would address this topic but to date that has gone nowhere. Why is there still a sole item, “Drought,” that addresses the quality of the river? When will the Commission live up to its actual stewardship to the Bay, the waters that flow into it, and its population? Respectfully submitted,
Ed Hillard
Palo Alto
February 3, 2023
President Newsha Ajami
San Francisco Public Utilities Commission
525 Golden Gate Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94102
Re: Resolution Adopted by the SFPUC Citizens’ Advisory Committee Dear President Ajami,
This letter is to inform you that the SFPUC Citizens’ Advisory Committee voted at their February 21, 2023, meeting, to pass a Resolution in Support of Continuing Remote Public Comment. Please see the attached adopted resolutions.
The SFPUC Citizens’ Advisory Committee was established by ordinance to publicly discuss and make recommendations to the General Manager of the Public Utilities Commission, the Public Utilities Commission, and the Board of Supervisors on the agency's long-term strategic, financial, and capital improvement plans. Our seventeen members are appointed by each of the Supervisors, with additional appointments by the Board President and the Mayor.
We appreciate the opportunity to comment on this important topic and look forward to having staff report back on the progress made towards the recommendations.
S
incerely,
E
mily Algire
Full CAC Secretary
cc: Dennis Herrera, SFPUC General Manager
Ronald Flynn, SFPUC Deputy General Manager
M
asood Ordikhani, Assistant General Manager, External Affairs PROPOUNDED BY: Jennifer Clary
Resolution in Support of Continuing Remote Public Comment Sponsors: Jennifer Clary
WHEREAS, During the COVID-19 pandemic, San Francisco Board and Commission meetings have largely been held remotely, and provided the public the ability engage with those bodies through remote public comment; and
WHEREAS, On March 1, 2023, the statewide COVID-19 emergency declaration will expire and all San Francisco Boards and Commissions must resume public meetings, in compliance with the Bagley-Keene Public Meeting Act; and
WHEREAS, A resolution (File #221008) has been introduced at the San Francisco Board of Supervisors to limit remote participation by the public at meetings of the Board and its committees, except to the extent required by law to accommodate persons with disabilities; and
WHEREAS, The SFPUC Citizens’ Advisory Committee (CAC) has found remote public comment to be beneficial to achieving its goal of reflecting and supporting public awareness of and engagement with the affairs of the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the SFPUC CAC supports maintaining remote public comment at the meetings of all San Francisco Boards and Commission as a way to encourage civic engagement and participation with City government; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED, That if the Board of Supervisors votes to end remote public comment at its meetings, that it not extend that decision to all Boards and Commissions; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED, That the SFPUC CAC intends to continue to allow remote public comment at its public meetings, and we urge the SFPUC to continue remote public comment to ensure engagement with community stakeholders.
As adopted by the Full Citizens’ Advisory Committee on February 21, 2023.
From:
To: Commission
Date: Tuesday, March 7, 2023 6:10:19 PM
Attachments: text 0.txt
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I recently read an article entitled Implementing the source-sea-approach A Guide For Practioners developed by the Stockholm International Water Institute. I would advise that you or a member of your staff read this guide in order to develop a more holistic approach to managing the Tuolumne River. Sweden has done a good job managing their rivers and lakes economically and environmentally while enhancing fish populations. One of the principles is that you do not manage one portion of the river to the detriment of another portion. In the case of the Tuolumne River there has been too much attention given to farming activities at the expense of the salmon fishery. Rather than shutting down the salmon season again, Sweden advertises its healthy fisheries as a tourist attraction and healthy food source. One other key component to a healthy river is the dumping of garbage into certain portions of the river. A master plan to address this situation above and beyond current practices (even if it means fencing off portions of the river and/or roads allowing access) needs to be hammered out. Thank you for your consideration. Tom Schwertscharf Past certifications: Grade 3 Water Quality Analyst Grade 3 Water Treatment Operator Registered Environmental Health Specialist