...Title
PG&E Power Outages and Infrastructure Repair & Resilience. (Mayor)
...Recommendations
1. Direct the City Manager to identify a senior team to meet with technical staff of Pacific Gas & Electric in the weeks ahead, to identify and discuss critical local power distribution infrastructure needs in San Jose. Ensure that PG&E prioritizes those needs in its pending capital replacement and repair plan for the coming year, by no later than October 31st.
2. If, by October 31st, staff determines that PG&E’s capital repair plan does not adequately protect the health and safety of the San Jose community, direct the City Attorney and City Manager to inform the Council about options that include:
a. Whether and how the City might seek a court injunction or PUC order to mandate that PG&E replace or upgrade any transformers or other elements of PG&E’s distribution infrastructure at substantial risk of heat-related failure by summer of 2023. Such a mandate might focus on devices or other elements of the infrastructure deemed vulnerable based upon their age, signs of wear, or type of manufacture.
b. Whether and how the City might-individually, or in combination with other residents and businesses as plaintiffs --seek damages for harms related to infrastructure-related power outages, including but not limited to costs of business interruption, emergency response, personal injury, and death.
3. Direct the City Manager to report to the Council (as part of its infrastructure resilience workplan, or through other means) the sufficiency of backup or redundant power for telecommunications service providers to keep cell towers operational during extended blackouts. The report should include information regarding what, if anything, the City can do to require telecom providers to bolster their resilience to outages, particularly in light of possible federal or state regulatory preemption in this area.