Action to Reclaim PG&E Power in Berkeley

Photos: Leon Kunstenaar

(BERKELEY, Feb. 11) - Activists from the Reclaim Our Power Coalition rallied in front of the Berkeley City Council meeting in preparation for commenting on replacing PG&E (Agenda Item No. 7) with public power.

According to the Reclaim Our Power Coalition, “Its time for a new, safer and more affordable not-for-profit energy system that put people and planet before profits. The people of California are sick of paying for shareholder crimes! We are also sick of rate hikes, we are sick of wildfires, we are sick of corruption and we are ready to fight.”

The Demands:

1. Abolish PG&E
2. Establish Golden State Energy
3. Make CPUC positions elected
4. No more rate hikesk
5. Hold shareholders accountable

Private ownership and management of PG&E has caused dozens of wildfires, billions in damages, over a hundred deaths, and the doubling of residential electricity rates from 2019 - 2024. Californians invoke their right to own and manage this utility for the public interest. They demand that the state legislature pass a bill to revoke PG&E’s business license and transition its assets to Golden State Energy, a not-for- profit utility for public benefit. They demand that the California Public Utilities Commission reject all further electricity and gas rate increases for PG&E until the is company is abolished, and that the commission fine the shareholders to cover the full costs of necessary safety and maintenance repairs on the grid.

Resolution 6:
Resolution in Support of the Commissioning of a California Feasibility Study to Implement “Golden State Energy,” a Not-for-Profit Public Utility Model From: Council member Tregub (Author), Council member Lunaparra (Author) Recommendation: Adopt a resolution in support of the allocation of state fiscal and staff resources to commission a feasibility study that compares various not-for-profit utility models prioritizing public benefits in energy generation, distribution, and transmission; the development of an equitable implementation plan that establishes a statewide successor entity known as “Golden State Energy” as a successor to investor-owned utilities such as Pacific Gas and Electric; and transmittal of the Council’s support of such a resolution to Governor Gavin Newsom, Senator Jesse Arreguín (SD7) and Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (AD14). Financial Implications: See report.