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SFPUC updates LAFCO on Clean Power SF enrollment, delinquencies and PCIA; public urges local build‑out
Summary
SFPUC Director Michael Himes told LAFCO that Clean Power SF now serves more than 409,000 accounts, reported about 16,250 residential accounts 90+ days delinquent, and outlined PCIA‑driven bill pressure and staff proposals for rate adjustments and SB 612. Public commenters urged LAFCO to push for a local clean‑energy build‑out and debt relief.
Michael Himes, director of the Clean Power SF program at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, told the Local Agency Formation Commission on May 21 that Clean Power SF has completed citywide enrollment and serves more than 409,000 customer accounts.
“Since we started serving customers in February, Clean Power SF has maintained a 96% retention rate or a cumulative opt‑out rate of 4.1%,” Himes said. He presented ZIP‑code maps and said about 16,250 residential Clean Power SF accounts were 90 days or more delinquent on their electricity charges; he also showed increases in average past‑due balances and noted the displayed Clean Power SF balances do not include PG&E transmission and distribution charges, which can multiply total arrears.
Himes described protections the SFPUC and the city put in place early in the COVID‑19 pandemic — at the mayor’s direction the SFPUC suspended shutoffs and the California PUC later ordered investor‑owned utilities to suspend disconnections. He said the state moratorium was scheduled to end at the end of June, the SFPUC extended some protections through March 31, 2022, and the Board of Supervisors adopted a resolution urging the governor and the California PUC to extend the moratorium and forgive utility debt beginning March 2020.
On rates, Himes explained that Clean Power SF customers also pay PG&E’s Power Charge Indifference Adjustment (PCIA), a surcharge intended to recover above‑market costs of legacy power contracts. He said recent PCIA increases have narrowed the price gap and are a primary driver of customer bills; Clean Power SF’s staff proposed modifying the automatic rate‑adjustment formula so Clean Power SF rates would be the lesser of either 5% above comparable PG&E rates (after PCIA) or Clean Power SF cost‑of‑service.
Himes also summarized state legislation (referred to in the record as SB 612, authored by Sen. Anthony Portantino) that, if adopted, would seek to ensure community choice aggregators (CCAs) receive equitable access to the value of resources they helped fund and reduce residual PCIA costs. Himes said the bill had passed the Senate Energy, Utilities and Communications Committee 11–1 and a floor vote was expected in early June.
Commissioners asked technical questions about SB 612 and the PCIA; Commissioner Amar asked how the bill would affect local PCIA charges, and Himes described the bill’s goals in more general terms but said he could not yet quantify the impact. During the public comment period, multiple callers urged LAFCO to prioritize a local clean‑energy build‑out, workforce development in disadvantaged communities, public broadband to support smart grid deployment, and use of MOU or Board of Supervisors funding to develop a local plan.
