PUC approves officer elections, code changes and ratepayer assurance policy; dozens of contracts on consent calendar

The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission on Oct. 23 elected Commissioner Torres as president and Commissioner Vince Courtney as vice president and approved a slate of administrative and policy measures, including changes to the local business enterprise (LBE) definition and a ratepayer assurance policy the commission amended to add an "operating cost containment" objective.

In officer votes during Item 6, the commission nominated and unanimously approved Commissioner Torres as president and then approved Vince Courtney as vice president. The chair transferred the gavel to President Torres after the vote.

The commission approved the consent calendar (Item 9AK), which included multiple contract awards and actions: award of Job Order Contracts (JOC 42 and JOC 43) each not to exceed $5,000,000; modifications and final acceptance payments for multiple water and wastewater construction contracts including increases of $186,613 (modification for WW455) and $344,118 (WD2634); execution of a revocable permit for SFPUC land at 1155 Junipero Serra Boulevard with a $500 per month fee; authorization for a joint funding agreement with the U.S. Geological Survey not to exceed $335,520 for one year; and extension of a memorandum of agreement with the City of San Bruno…