LAFCo’s work related to CleanPowerSF and renewable electricity services consists of oversight activities monitoring CleanPowerSF and a series of studies on local energy innovations.

LAFCo Studies for CleanPowerSF

In May 2023, the LAFCo and San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) executed a memorandum of understanding for work to be funded by CleanPowerSF ratepayers and performed by SF LAFCo during Fiscal Year 2022-23 through Fiscal Year 2025-26. This work includes preparing studies of the opportunities for and barriers to local energy innovations and recommending policies and actions to support San Francisco’s decarbonization goals and other energy-related Climate Action Plan goals. The specific studies LAFCo will undertake includes:

• Battery Storage: identifying opportunities and barriers to battery storage installations across the city, by use type, including public safety, permitting and other local regulatory issues; and proposing amendments to local and state codes to support installation of battery storage
• Green Bank Financing: identifying opportunities and barriers to financing CleanPowerSF initiatives through green bank models—such as a non-depository municipal finance corporation or a public bank as defined by California Government Code Section 57600—that could access funding available through the federal Inflation Reduction Act’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (Section 134 of the Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. § 7434)
• Electric Vehicle Charging: identifying barriers to broader adoption of electric vehicles in San Francisco and analyzing possible solutions that may involve various City departments or State agencies, such as solutions for curbside charging and policies and actions to address access for multi-family buildings, including smart poles, and providing equitable public access to charging infrastructure
• Natural Gas System Decommissioning: identifying challenges regarding the decommissioning of natural gas infrastructure;
• Emerging Clean Energy Technologies: studies of specific emerging clean energy technologies, as agreed to by the Parties (lower-priority studies conducted by LAFCo staff and/or graduate student interns); an initial study will survey existing literature on the future use of hydrogen fuel within urban environments, e.g., possible use cases, pros/cons of urban hydrogen use and infrastructure, local regulatory considerations, safety, and sustainable fuel production. Subsequent studies may survey technologies such as offshore wind, tidal, or wave power

For more information on the CleanPowerSF program itself please visit www.cleanpowersf.org

You can also follow CleanPowerSF on twitter (www.twitter.com/CleanPowerSF)

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