The TWIC requested that Public Works management report annually on the status of street light maintenance coordination efforts with PG&E. Management last reported to the TWIC on November 8, 2021 regarding this item.
Background:
The Letter of Understanding (LOU) dated February 2021, between PG&E and the County, states the commitment of PG&E for open communication, responsive service levels, and actions in resolving issues related to street light performance. For almost two (2) years, Public Works management has utilized the current LOU as a guide for service level management for street lights within the county, towns and cities.
Both Contra Costa County and PG&E have been monitoring service levels provided by PG&E. Towns and Cities have reported marked improvement in communication with PG&E administrative staff and associated repairs. A feature of the LOU is to maintain open communication channels. This is accomplished by conducting regular discussions at Street Light Coordination meetings which include the County, its constituents, and Cities and Towns. Since the last report period, the Coordination meetings have convened once per quarter.
These meetings have included regular attendance by participating agencies. In response to the needs of participating agencies amid the pandemic, the meetings have been hosted by the County via Zoom. Meeting using this platform has been a convenience to participating agencies and allowed opportunities to review effective practices throughout the County. As agencies move beyond the pandemic, staff will determine the effectiveness of in-person and hybrid meetings for this body. County staff continually polls Cities and Towns for presentation topics of interest.
To date, meeting topics have included:
• Copper wire theft and luminaire manufacturing defects;
• Street light energy efficiency;
• Legislative updates;
• PG&E customer relations;
• Emerging technology;
• LightSpec West Conference review;
• Letter of Understanding (LOU) Revision Review; and
• Improving inventory records management.
To support PG&E in addressing related matters, the County has established a relationship with the California Street Light Association (CAL-SLA). This organization has maintained a continued relationship to support the needs of Coordination Meeting Participants.
In preparation for this report, Cities and Towns were invited to report any service level concerns. Reported feedback was generally positive with City, Town, and County staff stating that PG&E management staff responsiveness was consistent with the LOU. PG&E has stated that services levels should continue to improve once Salesforce support is incorporated into their services. Agencies have reported that while responsiveness has improved, ticket status and closure reports are inconsistent. Additionally, when tickets are complex, agencies have received better support by by-passing the newly established system and working directly with PG&E management staff. The relationship with PG&E management staff and public agency staff are initiated and fostered by the quarterly coordination meetings.
There is an ongoing request for PG&E to provide participating agencies with GIS data of streetlights. The intention of this request is to mitigate inventory and billing discrepancies. PG&E has stated that they are not able to provide this data as the costs are excessive, and that it is anticipated that the implementation of Salesforce should help cleanup inventory and billing discrepancies. While PG&E has made efforts to rectify the inventory and billing discrepancies, the process is slow and on-going. As such, the County, Cities and Towns continue to request a GIS inventory be provided to the respective agencies. The County can receive all data and distribute on behalf of PG&E to support this effort. It is recommended that GIS inventory be provided by PG&E at least once every four (4) years beginning June 2023, to support inventory and billing reconciliations.
Details of the PG&E billing structure are described in the Electric Schedule, approved by the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) and provided by PG&E. The most recent version is effective March 2021. We have recently learned that the guiding language for determining the responsible party for lights meeting the LS1E criteria had been inconsistently applied by PG&E. Over the course of the past year, PG&E has confirmed that LS1E street lights are owned and maintained by PG&E.
Staff will continue to monitor ownership and maintenance issues related to billing and inventory and report findings to the TWIC. The County has been in regular communication with Cities and Towns to collect their feedback and recommended to revisions to the LOU. Overall, they have been pleased with the responsiveness of PG&E. There has been some concern with staffing inconsistencies, however it seems that PG&E is resolving that matter.
The County, Cities, and Towns have continued to monitor overall service levels as detailed in the LOU as well as service needs that, at present, have not been included in the LOU. Cities and Towns have provided feedback based on their experiences.
They have requested:
• More transparency from PG&E with their planned maintenance projects. This will allow Cities and Towns to coordinate
services and inform the local community to manage expectations.
• A mechanism for public agencies to report imminent hazards directly to PG&E staff without using the standard reporting
features, which can result in a delayed response.
• GIS map of street lights.
• Consistent response times to down and/or out street lights as described in the LOU.
• Consistently updating the reporting system to reflect status of repairs and an indication of when the work is complete.
• Providing Cities and Towns with an advisement of General Rate Case (GRC) changes that are planned to be submitted to the
PUC. This will allow public agencies to plan for changes in their respective financial and maintenance responsibilities.
Contra Costa County Public Works recommends revising the LOU to support these service needs.
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