Accountability means not making excuses; taking ownership of an issue and being responsible for its success or failure. Elected officials sometimes avoid this word; I embrace it.
City Light faces some significant challenges. In 2009, the snowpack volumes and actual runoff caused a runoff season to be 92% of normal. In 2010, again, caused by El Nino, the runoff could be 82% of normal. A mild and dry winter equates to a reduction of the Utility’s surplus energy and has a direct effect on its wholesale revenue.
I have asked to chair City Light during these tough times because that’s what the Utility needs: leaders who are willing to be accountable, even during the toughest times.
Let me provide some examples of what we have done in the last two years. The Energy, Technology and Civil Rights Committee (“ETC”), recently reviewed City Light’s key activities for the 2009 year. I am very pleased to report that City Light has been rated as an “Elite Utility” in terms of customer service by J.D. Power and Associates. I have designated “Customer Service” as a direct charge for the ETC committee. Knowing that rate payers demand good customer service, we have taken it head-on. Our focus on streetlights illustrates the point.
Customer Service: As chair, I reviewed the data and called on action. In 2004, there were 23,367 streetlights out from a base of 84,000 streetlights. As we began to improve our service, in 2008, 19,067 were reported out. However, in 2009, 12,799 were reported out, which is a 6,268 reduction. Still wanting improvement, now the Utility is on track to achieve a 10-14 day turnaround on streetlight repair in 2010 and outages have been significantly reduced. The Utility has completely changed its “burn to fail” policy with a group re-lamping strategy designed to significantly improve customer service. Phase one is completed and phase two was substantially completed by the end of 2009, with phases three and four on track for completion in 2010 and 2011. Based on my commitment to customer service, I have asked that the City’s Customer Service Bureau activities be put under my committee to conduct a “best practices” approach to customer service.
System Reliability. System reliability is another means to demonstrate accountability. We have significantly improved this area of work by objective measurements. The average number of outages per customer has fallen below the Utility goal of one per year. We continue to examine the problem areas in our City with an aging underground system and have allocated substantial budget dollars toward their repair. We are also addressing this by injecting gel into the cables. This strengthens the integrity of the cable and extends its life at a lower cost than replacing.
We all remember the Hanukkah eve storm of 2006. City Light‘s outage management system will be in place for the storm season of 2010. The goal of this system is to improve customer communications and the accuracy of estimated outage duration. Since trimming trees effects outages, tree trimming continues to be a priority of the Utility and in 2009, 250 line miles were trimmed.
Financial Polices. In 2009, we saw Standard & Poor’s (S&P) upgrade City Light’s bond rating from A+ to AA- and Moody’s Investors Service upgraded the Utility’s rating from Aa3 to Aa2. This is an outstanding accomplishment and had not been achieved since 2001. Its debt to capitalization ratio has been lowered from a high of 85% in 2003, to 63% today. This downward trend is outstanding.
Environmental Stewardship. City Light is on the cutting edge of environmental stewardship. For the fifth straight year, City Light has achieved the status of being carbon neutral and, as of August 2009, customers were already saving 6.81 average megawatts. Other environmental accomplishments include the purchase of nine acres along the Skagit River to protect fish and wildlife habitat; the Diablo Wastewater plant was recognized as an “Outstanding Wastewater Treatment Plant” from the Department of Ecology; and, two hybrid lift trucks have been added to the fleet. This addition will result in 25% fuel savings and 60% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to a similar diesel truck.
In the end, it is the people who make City Light stand out. The Utility boasts a diverse workforce where 32% of people in management are of color and 40% are women. In the skilled trades, 29% are people of color and 11% are women. City Light has also won 14 prestigious awards for excellence in communications.
I am proud to conclude that City Light continues to be positioned as a reliable source of power, an environmental steward, and a publicly-owned asset in which we can all take pride.
Yes, we have tough times in front of us, but I will remain accountable and do everything within my control to make sure City Light remains a high performing organization.
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