A public power step

SUP. TOM Ammiano is preparing to introduce a measure that would take the first step toward putting San Francisco in the public power business. That step is called community aggregation, and as long as city officials and community activists see it for what it is – a valuable step in the direction of public power, not a way to delay or derail the public power movement – then it's a good idea and deserves support.

Community aggregation won state approval in 2002 as a way for local governments to get around some of the problems of energy deregulation. In essence, the law allows cities or counties to get into the electricity business without the immediate expense of buying out a private utility's lines, polls, and meters. The local government agency would simply act as a group purchasing agent, buying power in bulk and distributing it along the existing utility's lines. By law, private utilities like Pacific Gas and Electric Co. are required to cooperate with the arrangement (and handle such tasks as meter reading and customer billing).

In San Francisco's case, there's an added bonus – a big one. When voters approved Proposition H in 2001, they authorized the city to sell $100 million worth of revenue bonds to pay for renewable energy projects. With community aggregation, the city could build and operate (or hire a contractor to build and operate) solar and wind projects that (along with energy conservation) could provide enough power for roughly a quarter of the city's needs. That would be energy San Francisco wouldn't have to buy – and ultimately the sale of that power could begin to provide the revenue for the construction of a public power infrastructure. Just the fact that San Francisco would be producing and selling energy would be a major step toward establishing a public power system – and potentially the transmission lines the city might want to build to connect the new generating stations and to ship their power to the grid could be the beginnings of a city-owned distribution system.

There's one big problem with Ammiano's proposed legislation that needs to be fixed. His plan calls for the city to contract with an independent energy provider to build, maintain, and operate the city's renewable-energy facilities for 10 years (after which ownership and operation of the power projects would revert to the city). That's the wrong approach – the city should build and run the plants itself, leaving the private contractor out. If San Francisco is going to move toward operating its own public power system, it will need to create a public agency or authority that can openly oversee that system, and this would be a good place to start.

Ammiano says he's looking at this as a step toward public power, and that's exactly what he should be doing. Throughout the process, it's important that public power advocates think about not only aggregation but also the long-term goal of getting PG&E out of San Francisco and setting up a full-scale public power agency in compliance with the Raker Act. And it's crucial this legislation be compatible with as simple and quick a transition as possible to full public power.

The public power movement needs to be a part of these discussions. The veterans of the past several public power campaigns are already gearing up for the next round of battles, and this one needs their input, analysis, and oversight.