At the City Council Meeting held on September 10, 2019, Rocklin staff sought direction on the possibility of conducting a feasibility study and legal analysis regarding replacement of PG&E service in the City with another provider. No motion was made to move forward, with Council raising concerns related to potential costs and staff resources.
At the City Council Meeting held on October 22, 2019, following a series of PG&E Public Safety Power Shutoff events, various citizens addressed the Council expressing frustration with PG&E and requesting action by the City. As this item was not on the published Agenda, Council Members were able to briefly respond to statements or questions, but could not make decisions or take action on the issues raised. Council directed staff to place the matter on a future agenda for broader discussion and potential action.
To facilitate the discussion requested by the Council, staff has gathered information regarding local and statewide efforts to address PG&E’s inability to provide safe and reliable energy to its customers, which will be presented at the meeting. For example, a coalition of nearly 30 northern California cities and counties sent a letter to the California Public Utilities Commission focused upon the bankruptcy driven reorganization of PG&E, and supporting the replacement of the current investor owned structure with either a customer owned or state owned utility (SEE example letters at Exhibits A and B). Other groups are taking steps to possibly purchase infrastructure and takeover energy utilities in their areas (Staff Presentation).
Staff has prepared a draft letter to the Governor to express the City of Rocklin’s concerns about reliable and safe energy, which could be edited and sent at the direction of Council (See Exhibit C).