San Francisco is moving forward on a century-long ambition: taking control of its electric utility. According to KQED, the Board of Supervisors recently reaffirmed this effort, spurred by December power outages and electricity rates that have jumped roughly seventy percent since twenty twenty. A restaurant owner in the city's Richmond District now pays nearly three thousand dollars per month for electricity — more than triple what he paid just three years ago. In April, San Francisco submitted a valuation of three-point-four billion dollars to acquire PG&E's local infrastructure, though the utility company disputes the figure, saying it undervalues the property. San Francisco has a new advantage: a twenty eighteen ballot measure allows the Public Utilities Commission to authorize the purchase using revenue bonds without requiring another public vote — needing only two-thirds Board approval. An economist specializing in utility regulation estimates that rates could drop fifteen to twenty percent in the first decade under public ownership, mainly because publicly-owned utilities don't distribute shareholder dividends and can borrow at lower rates. However, there's a regional tradeoff: San Francisco ratepayers currently help fund electric grid upgrades in fire-prone areas across Northern California. If the city exits PG&E, those costs shift to Oakland, Marin, and other surrounding communities. Both sides face an October twentieth, twenty twenty-six deadline to present final valuations to the California Public Utilities Commission.

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