Tom Ammiano introduces public power charter amendment 
 	 		 		 		
Another public power plan | May 23, 2001 | SFBG News
 		 		 		 		
Another public power plan
						
By Rachel Brahinsky
 						
In an effort to shore up San Francisco's chances to bring a new 
public power agency to the city, Sup. Tom Ammiano introduced 
legislation [http://sfbg.com/News/pgande/charter.html] May 21 
that, if passed by voters, would create a municipal water and 
power board.
 						
The legislation is "designed to be a companion to MUD [the 
municipal utility district]," Ammiano said at the Board of 
Supervisors meeting Monday.
 						
The announcement comes three months after the supervisors placed 
the citizen-driven MUD initiative on the November ballot and 
seven weeks after Sups. Gavin Newsom and Tony Hall brought out a 
competing public power proposal.
 						
Ammiano's proposed charter amendment, which, if approved by the 
Board of Supervisors, would be placed on the November ballot, was 
made several days after Mayor Willie Brown announced that he had 
hired energy expert Edward Smeloff for a high-level position at 
the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC). Hiring 
Smeloff – a 10-year member of the Sacramento Municipal Utility 
District board of directors – could indicate that the state's 
energy woes have finally compelled Brown to commit to public 
power.
 						
Still, public power advocates, Ammiano included, are moving ahead 
with multiple plans. Ammiano's would create an agency managed by 
a seven-member district-elected board of directors. It would 
still have some ties to city hall – the controller, for example, 
would monitor the agency's budget. A MUD board, by contrast, 
would be completely independent of city government and would 
consist of five members who represented districts but were 
elected by a citywide vote. Newsom's proposal would create an 
agency whose members were largely appointed by the mayor and by 
the supervisors, with only a few at-large elected 
representatives. Critics of Newsom's proposal point out that last 
year's supervisorial elections proved grassroots candidates with 
low budgets often fare better under district elections. Critics 
say the combination is more likely to keep Pacific Gas and 
Electric in power at city hall.
 						
One aspect of Ammiano's proposal that could appeal to voters is 
the mandate for efficiency programs to save the city 100 
megawatts of energy within three years and to build another 100 
megawatts of new renewable generation by the end of the decade. 
The city power load typically ranges from 800 to 1,000 megawatts 
of power.
 						
Joel Ventresca, a longtime public power advocate, was hesitant to 
support Ammiano's legislation. "I'm just worried that competing 
measures could lead to confusion, and our opposition could 
[capitalize on that]," Ventresca, cochair of MUD NOW (formerly 
Coalition for Lower Utility Bills), told the Bay Guardian. "It 
would be prudent to wait and see what happens with the citizens' 
initiative."
 						
On the other hand, MUD NOW campaign director Ross Mirkarimi said 
he expects to join forces with Ammiano's team. "The charter has 
bright possibilities as long as it [creates] a public power 
authority that is democratically elected [and] complements the 
scope of a MUD," Mirkarimi told us. "The campaigns must operate 
on a companion basis. [Anything else] will only confuse the 
voters, and we will risk losing everything."
 						
The growing debate over what kind of publicly managed agency 
could provide the best deal for San Franciscans is a new 
phenomenon. Just one year ago, before the state energy fiasco 
hit, MUD proponents were the only ones visibly discussing the 
issue.
 						
Now even the mayor has jumped on the bandwagon. He still hasn't 
lent support to a specific public power measure, and for years he 
has protected PG's local monopoly. But his decision to hire 
Smeloff was lauded.
 						
"I hope it shows that the mayor is serious about public power," 
said Dan Berman, author of Who Owns the Sun? People, Politics, 
and the Struggle for a Solar Economy. "I presume he will be free 
to pursue a democratic public power agenda."
 						
Since 1997 Smeloff has headed the Pace University Energy Law 
Institute in New York. He said he cannot comment on which public 
power agency would be best for the city but that "the right kind 
is one that has strong professional management, with decision 
making transparent to the community, and is responsive to the 
public." Smeloff begins work June 4. The SFPUC's highest post, 
general manager, remains vacant.
 						
E-mail Rachel Brahinsky at rachel@sfbg.com [rachel@sfbg.com] . 
						
Tom Ammiano's proposal [http://sfbg.com/News/pgande/charter.html] 
can be read online.
 						
[http://www.sfbg.com/searchit.html]