San Francisco Public Utilities Commission Meeting - September 27, 2022
STREAMING COPY IN PREPARATION — RECORDING AVAILABLE FROM THE ORIGINAL SOURCE
San Francisco Public Utilities Commission Meeting - September 27, 2022
The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) held a hybrid in-person and remote meeting on September 27, 2022, at City Hall Room 400. The meeting included recognition of retiring employees and Commissioner Anson Moran, updates on drought conditions, a retail drought response framework, a capital financing plan, and approvals of several consent calendar items and two regular agenda items. The commission also voted to recommend a settlement in closed session.
Consent Calendar
- Item 12C was initially pulled by Commissioner Maxwell for questions regarding contract delays due to COVID and material delivery. Staff confirmed that delays resulted in non-compensable time extensions, with cost-sharing on health and safety measures. The item was then adopted with the rest of the consent calendar.
- The consent calendar (Items A, B, C) was approved unanimously (3-0) after public comment.
Public Comments & Testimony
- General Public Comment (Item 5): Six callers spoke during general public comment. The majority expressed urgent concerns about the Tuolumne River ecosystem and the SFPUC's water management strategies. Key points included:
- Carol Ruth stated that the 8.5-year design drought would be a "eulogy for the Tuolumne River," citing a drop from 25,000 salmon returns in the 1950s to 186 in 2021. She urged reduction of the design drought by at least one to two years.
- Jan Dorman (Friends of the River) encouraged the commission to revisit design drought assumptions and incorporate climate change, state in-stream flow requirements, and demand sensitivity.
- Mary Butterwick and Martin Gothberg called for increasing flows, dropping the lawsuit against the State Water Board, and improving public information requests.
- Peter Dreckmeyer (Tuolumne River Trust) criticized a new voluntary agreement as likely to fail and cited a lack of transparency in response to Public Records Act requests.
- Julianne Frizell and Les Kitler similarly urged protection of the ecosystem and reconsideration of the lawsuit.
- Retirement and Recognition (Items 7 & 8): Public comment included:
- Craig Byrne, spouse of retiree Sarah Blaine, thanked the commission for recognizing his wife's service during COVID and wildfires.
- Ed Harrington, former SFPUC General Manager, praised Commissioner Moran's service and his unique qualifications for Seat 4.
- Peter Dreckmeyer expressed appreciation for Commissioner Moran's willingness to engage despite policy disagreements.
- BAWSCA Update (Item 9): Two callers commented. One speaker (Peter Dreckmeyer) noted that water price increases from the WSIP had driven demand reductions and criticized the commission for inconsistent use of demand projections. Another caller referenced the 1974 legislation and water rights issues.
- Closed Session (Items 16-18): No public comments were submitted.
Discussion Items
- Retirement Recognitions (Item 7): Five retirees were recognized for distinguished service: Sarah Blaine (engineer, 26 yrs), Leonid Weinstein (maintenance planner, 26 yrs), Colin Riley (truck driver, 33 yrs), Petronia Torres (customer service manager, 37 total yrs), and Virginia Sarmiento (customer contact manager, 31 yrs). Commissioners expressed gratitude for their dedication and impact.
- Recognition of Commissioner Anson Moran (Item 8): Commissioner Moran was honored for nearly 50 years of service to the SFPUC, including as General Manager (1993-2000) and Commissioner (2009-2022). Speakers (General Manager Herrera, Commissioners, former GM Ed Harrington, and staff) praised his expertise, leadership, and calm demeanor. He was presented with a commemorative water meter.
- BAWSCA Update (Item 9): Nicole Senko, CEO of Bay Area Water Supply and Conservation Agency, presented data on water use trends. Key points: Regional residential per capita use declined from 71 gpcd in fiscal year 2013 to 66 gpcd in fiscal year 2021. July 2022 water use was 14% lower than July 2019, but not as low as 2015 levels. She discussed challenges in achieving further reductions and efforts to promote greywater reuse and demand-side management. Commissioner Jemmy requested benchmarking of commercial customers and exploration of rate decoupling.
- General Manager's Report (Item 10):
- Drought Conditions (10A): Ellen Levin reported that reservoir storage is at less than half of capacity for water bank. September storms brought 1.43 inches of precipitation at Hetch Hetchy, but no water was available from those storms. Outreach included a partnership with the San Francisco Giants (PSAs at 29 home games).
- Retail Drought Response Framework (10B): Fan Lau presented a framework for mandatory reductions among three customer sectors: irrigation first (percentage reduction from base year), then residential (per capita allocation), then non-residential (percentage reduction, with different percentages for essential services). The framework will inform billing system upgrades and will require commission approval before implementation. Commissioner Jemmy noted the importance of benchmarking and rate decoupling.
- Capital Financing Plan FY 2023 (10C): Nikolai Sklarov presented the plan. The SFPUC has $7 billion in outstanding debt. Interest rates are rising (75 basis point Fed hike anticipated). The plan includes $515,000 for a basis-of-design report for the Peninsula Pure Water Project (MOA with multiple agencies). Financing will come from WIFIA and state revolving funds. Water and wastewater bond issuances are expected in early 2023.
- New Commission Business (Item 11): Commissioner Jemmy requested that staff explore rate decoupling to align revenue with fixed infrastructure costs as water use declines, noting that similar decoupling is already used for the power enterprise.
- Amend Section F (Water Efficient Irrigation) (Item 13): Julie Ortiz presented a procedural update to require organic mulch to comply with SB 1383. The item passed unanimously.
- Peninsula Pure Water Project MOA (Item 15): Approved authorization for a $515,000, 27-month agreement with six agencies to prepare a basis-of-design report for a regional potable reuse project (capacity 5-12 MGD). Commissioner Jemmy requested scenario analysis including on-site reuse impacts.
Key Outcomes
- Votes:
- Adopted renewed findings allowing hybrid meetings (3-0).
- Approved minutes of September 13, 2022 (3-0).
- Consent calendar (Items A, B, C) adopted after removal of Item C for discussion (3-0).
- Item 13 (mulch amendment) passed (3-0).
- Item 15 (Peninsula Pure Water MOA) approved (3-0).
- Motion to assert attorney-client privilege for closed session passed (3-0).
- Closed Session: The commission voted to recommend settlement of the personal injury claim (Victor Jimenez vs. City) in the amount of $100,000, subject to Board of Supervisors approval. No disclosure of closed session discussions was authorized.
- Directives: Staff was directed to bring forward information on rate decoupling for discussion at a future meeting.
- Next Steps: The commission will continue drought monitoring and may consider mandatory retail reductions if dry conditions persist. The urban water demand projection update from BAWSCA is expected by end of 2022.
Meeting Transcript
Good afternoon. I'd like to call the September 27, 2022 meeting of the Public Utilities Commission to order. Madam Secretary, would you call the roll? President Moran? Here. Vice President Jemmy? Commissioner Maxwell? And uh Commissioner Paulson is excused from today. Sorry. This meeting is being held in person at San Francisco City Hall, Room 400 as authorized by the California Government Code Section 54953E and Mayor Breed's 45th supplement to our February 25th, 2020 emergency proclamation. I would like to remind all individuals present and attending the meeting in person today that all health and safety protocols and building rules must be adhered to at all times. Hand sanitizer stations are available throughout the building and masks are available upon request. We welcome the public's participation during public comment periods. For each item, the commission will take two minutes of public comment, first from those attending the meeting in person and then from those attending the meeting remotely. Members of the public may provide remote public comment by dialing one 415 655-0001, meeting ID 2486 8045761 pound pound and pressing star three to raise your hand to speak. Please note that you must limit your comments to the topic of the agenda item being discussed unless you are speaking under general public comment. And to remind you, if you do not stay on the topic, the chair can interrupt and ask you to limit your comment to the agenda item. We ask that public comment be made in a civil and respectful manner and that you address your remarks to the commission as a whole, not to individual commissioners or staff. On behalf of the commission, I would like to extend our thanks to SFGTV and staff and SFPUC IT staff for their assistance during this meeting. If you've not already done so, please silent silence your electronic devices. I'd also like to announce that item 14 has been removed from today's agenda and will be rescheduled. Thank you. And before calling the first item, I'd like to announce that the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission acknowledges that it owns and are stewards of the unceded lands located within the ethno historic territory of the Mawek Maalone tribe and other familial descendants of the historic federally recognized Mission San Jose Verona Band of Alameda County. The SFPUC also recognizes that every citizen residing within the Greater Bay Area has and continues to benefit from the use and occupation of the Moekma Alone tribe's aboriginal lands since before and after the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission's founding in 1932. It's vitally important that we not only recognize the history of the tribal lands on which we reside, but also we acknowledge and honor the fact that the Moekma Alone people have established a working partnership with the SFPUC and are productive and flourishing members within the many greater San Francisco Bay Area communities today. Madam Secretary, please call the first item. Item number three, adopt renewed findings under state urgency legislation to allow hybrid in-person meetings during the COVID-19 emergency and direct the Commission Secretary to agendize a similar resolution at a commission meeting within the next 30 days. Okay, would you please open public comment? Members of the public who wish to make two minutes of remote public comment on item number three, please press star three to raise your hand to speak. Do you have any members of the public present who wish to provide comment on item three? Seeing then, Mr. Middle, do we have any callers with their hands raised to speak to item number three? Madam Secretary, there are no callers wishing to be recognized. Thank you. Public comment on item three is closed. Okay, thank you. Commissioners, any comments or questions? Seeing none, can I have a motion and a second? Second. Moved and seconded. Roll call. President Moran. Aye. Vice President Jemmy. Aye. Commissioner Maxwell? Aye. You have three ayes. Thank you. The next item is the approval of the minutes for September 13th, 2022.
openpublica.com