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SFPUC updates LAFCO on Clean Power SF enrollment, contracting and planning
Summary
SFPUC officials told LAFCO that roughly 27,000 accounts are being enrolled in Clean Power SF, opt-out and 'Super Green' participation rates were detailed, and staff said they will seek a Calpine contract extension (about $18.8 million) while planning an Integrated Resource Plan and expanded outreach to limited-English communities.
Michael Himes, director of the Clean Power SF program at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, told the San Francisco Local Agency Formation Commission on July 20 that the program is bringing on "approximately 27,000 in total" commercial and residential accounts as part of a large enrollment effort. Himes reported that the program’s opt‑out rate has been "3.2% for the program year to date" and a cumulative rate of about 2.8 percent when prior and new enrollments are combined.
Himes said the program’s Super Green participation — a higher‑renewables option — has been around "4.2%" and could fall to about "3.4%" temporarily as a result of the large new enrollment batch, but PUC outreach aims to raise signups over time. He described digital, radio and print outreach and specific efforts to reach limited‑English communities, saying brochures are available in Spanish and Chinese, Filipino translations are in progress and the website will be translated into Spanish, Chinese and Filipino "this fall," with Vietnamese and Korean under consideration.
On contracting, Himes described a service contract with Calpine Energy Solutions (contract CS247R) that handles meter data management, billing and a call center. He said the city is considering exercising an extension option and that "the total value of the contract extension will be approximately $18,800,000," while negotiating price reductions that amount to roughly $2.2 million in savings over the term. Himes said the contractor will continue to staff customer service during the enrollment period while SFPUC develops internal call‑center capacity and hires new positions in the PUC to take on that work.
Himes also introduced Clean Power SF’s Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) work, noting the IRP is required under state law and that the PUC retained Black & Veatch as a technical consultant on a draft IRP the PUC will share with LAFCO. The PUC plans a compliance filing on the IRP with the California Public Utilities Commission in August and described the IRP as a "living process" with opportunities for public engagement.
Commissioners asked whether the contract extension had a positive committee recommendation (Himes said yes, unanimous) and whether call‑center staff will cover several languages; Himes said the service will meet language‑ordinance requirements and that some language support will be outsourced.
The update concluded without formal action by LAFCO; the presentation and materials will be shared with commissioners and staff for follow‑up. The PUC indicated the extension item will go before the full PUC board at its next meeting.
