Environmental activists in San Francisco have long called for the city to have its own public power system. The idea never took off until PG&E went bankrupt, again, in January. The private utility company owns most of the power grid that delivers the city’s power, but S.F. leaders worry PG&E will raise rates and prioritize profits over reliable, safe power. Now city leaders are looking at buying PG&E lines, and are considering what it would take if San Francisco ran power on its own grid. The city will discuss Monday it whether to move forward with a study into how San Francisco could go about operating its own system.
Guest: Lisa Pickoff-White, KQED data reporter
Below is a map of public power in California
Subscribe to The Bay to hear more local, Bay Area stories like this one. New episodes are released Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 3 a.m. Find The Bay on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, NPR One, or via Alexa.