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PG&E + San Francisco Suspend Power & Water Shutoffs

Good news for those who can no longer pay power or water bills
By - posted 3/16/2020 No Comment

San Francisco To Suspend Power And Water Shutoffs, Waive Penalties And Interest For Delinquent Payments

Both SFPUC and SFMTA implement policies as part of City’s Local Emergency response to COVID-19 pandemic

Mayor London N. Breed on Saturday, March 14th announced that the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) will no longer shut off water or power for delinquent payments, and that both the SFPUC and the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) will no longer add penalties on to delinquent payments during the City’s Local Emergency response to coronavirus. These actions are part of the City’s response to reduce financial impacts on individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are continuing to implement policies to protect our residents who are struggling due to loss of income during this challenging public health crisis,” said Mayor Breed. “As we did with suspending residential evictions, this is about making sure that everyone can be safe and healthy at a time when we all should be focusing on public health.”

UPDATE: PG&E has also pledged no disconnections during the coronavirus emergency –
PG&E will not disconnect any customer’s power for nonpayment during this health crisis. We want customers to have confidence in this time that they can turn on the lights, keep the heat on and cook on their stoves.”

The San Francisco Examiner reports that annually about 15,000 customers in SF have service disconnected for non-payment.

“Many working families have been severely hit with the loss in wages due to COVID-19,” said Supervisor Ahsha Safai. “They are concerned how they will pay their rent, let alone their utility bills. I am glad that the SFPUC and SFMTA are providing much needed relief by waiving shut offs and delinquent payments. I look forward to working with the Mayor and my colleagues to see what additional supports we can provide to working families during this time of crisis”

The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission is suspending for 60 days the following:

  • The discontinuation or shut off of water service for residents and businesses in San Francisco for non-payment of water and sewer bills,
  • The imposition of late payment penalties or fees for delinquent water and/or sewer bills,
  • The discontinuation or shut off of power service for SFPUC Hetch Hetchy Power Customers in San Francisco for non-payment of power bills,
  • The imposition of late payment penalties or fees for delinquent Hetch Hetchy Power Customer accounts, and
  • The return of delinquent CleanPowerSF Customers to PG&E generation service for failure to pay CleanPowerSF charges.

“Our top priority is to continue to deliver water, power and sewer services to all customers during this difficult time,” said Harlan L. Kelly, Jr, General Manager of the SFPUC. “This effort allows us to do that and gives customers the peace of mind that loss of income won’t impact access to these essential life services.”

The SFMTA will take the following the actions until further notice:

  • Suspend new late penalties on citations,
  • Extend deadlines for submitting citation protests, and
  • No longer forward additional delinquent citations to the Department of Motor Vehicles or Special Collections.

“Our agency is committed to doing our part in providing much needed relief for San Franciscans impacted by the COVID-19 emergency” said Jeffrey Tumlin, SFMTA Director of Transportation. “We know that penalties in difficult times are a burden, and we’re also sensitive to the need to limit in-person transactions.”