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Tuesday, March 10, 2020
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[Please stand by] >> can we have order?
Wait a minute.
I never used this.
Are we set? Okay. Good afternoon or maybe good
evening and welcome to the March 10, 2020 joint special meeting between the san francisco board of supervisors
and the public utilities commission.
Welcome, commissioners and welcome President Caen.
So Madame Clerk, will you please call the role for the board of supervisors?
>> thank you, Mr. President.
[Roll call]
>> thank you, Madame Clerk.
I will now hand this over to
President Caen of the public utilities commission.
>> Madame Secretary, could you please -- I'm sorry what? >> nothing
>> could you call roll call?
>>
[Roll call] We have a quorum.
>> good of my I yield the floor back to you.
>> thank you. Madame Clerk, thank you Madame President. On behalf of the board, I would
like to acknowledge the staff at sf gov tv who record the meetings and make the transcripts available online.
Thank you for joining us today
on this very important topic.
Before we proceed, President Caen, would you like to make any opening remarks?
>> I will defer any opening
remarks because I would like to get to the basics of why we're here.
And I know that we are moving in concert together. And let's proceed. >> okay. Madame Clerk, are there any communications?
>> I have none to report, Mr. President >> okay. Let's go to the public comment. >> yes. At this time the publish May address the entire board of supervisors and the P.U.C.
Commissioners for two minutes on items within the subject matter jurisdiction of the board. And Mr. President, I will state that members of the public, if
you would like to have hand sanitizer, there is some right outside the chamber door. >> okay. Thank you, Madame Clerk.
I will hand this over to
President Caen of the P.U.C. For the public comment. >> yes. To Madame Secretary, could you call for public comment?
>> P.U.C. Calls for any public comment on maries to be
addressed during closed
session -- matters to be addressed during closed session >> seeing none -- sorry.
>> so this is a special meeting,
and I am supposed to somehow comment on what you all are
going to be discussing.
And what you are all going to be discussing will be shared by the city attorney who is going to
talk to you about pg&e. So as one who participants in
most of your meetings at sfpuc,
I strongly feel at this juncture
that sfpuc hasn't maintained a
standard when it comes to your sewer and your water and also
the hetch hetchy
hydroelectricity that you all produce.
And I find it very difficult
that the city has no money.
Earlier on the mayor stated so.
But somehow now sfpuc has the
audacity to now buy whatever
pg&e wants to give up, which I
know from following everything
that pg&e doesn't want to give
up anything that it possesses.
It's beholden to those who
invest in its stocks and shares.
And they have clients that have
been investing for over 100 years.
And you all know that well.
So I want to know if an
assessment can be done, if sfpuc
really has the capacity, the
ability to buy pg&e, whether it's a small part or a large part of my that's all I'm going to say. Because I cannot say what you
all are going to be discussing.
Somebody May have the power to hoodwink you all.
Thank you.
>> tom gilberti.
I'm not a fan of pg&e. It should have been taken over ten years ago.
They kept saying that if the
city can't run the city, why would they -- how could they run pg&e.
Well, I don't think pg&e can run pg&e. But at the same time, I don't
want to take a piece of the
city, the pg&e part of the city,
because when we have forest
fires, and they are caused by pg&e, the smoke comes down here.
I think it's a regional matter.
And it should be solved regionally.
It's like a taylor.
You get -- we can tell something
for san francisco and what needs
to be tailored out in the suburbs and woodlands. And I agree, where is the money
coming from to buy this?
And good luck to all of you. I think this meeting should be open. I'm against these private,
closed sessions. Thank you.
>> thank you.
Any other speakers? Seeing none, yield the floor back to you, President.
>> I believe that that would be
concludes our public comment.
I understand the P.U.C. Must take action before they go into closed session, before we go into closed session.
So I will hand it over again to President Caen. >> okay.
We are struggling here with our script.
So what do we have to do here? Let's see. Oh, yes.
I need a motion to assert privilege. >> I most of to assert.
>> second.
>> any public comment on that? Seeing none, all those in favor. >> aye. >> opposed?
The motion carryies.
So now I yield back to you, President. >> now that the P.U.C. Has approved their item, Madame
Clerk, please call the closed session item.
>> scheduled pursuant to a
motion number m20-0200 approved
on February 11, 2020, board of supervisors and the P.U.C. Are
scheduled to enter into a joint
closed session for the public utilities commission regarding
existing litigation regarding pacific gas and electric company
today, March 10, 2020. >> okay. Members of the public, we now
ask that you exit the chamber and the sheriffs to lock the
doors behind them, and we will reopen the doors, the chamber once we finish with the joint closed session, and the public
will be allowed to reenter.
[Music]
>> hi mayor. >> good afternoon.
My name is Dr. Emily, the
director of the san francisco department on the status of women, the only department on the status of women in the nation. Since 1975, san francisco has
been the home of the strongest commission on the status of
women in the nation.
It's my pleasure to welcome you to the annual women's history month celebration.
This year we celebrate the national theme of valiant women of the vote.
We honor the brave women who
fought for suffrage rights for women and those who continue to fight for the voting rights of others.
I'm very pleased to say we're
joined by many members of the family. If you could hold your applause,
we'll give them a big applause after.
Carmen chu, board of supervisors
norman yee, catherine stephanie,
sandra lee fewer, and fire chief nicholson, and police chief william scott. So let's give them a big round
of applause for showing up today.
[Applause] >> I also like to recognize
women's commissioner sophia and julie from the commission on the
status of women.
[Applause]
>> also joining us is President
Linda calhoun, and lisa of the friends on the commission of the
status of women. [Applause]
>> and I just want to thank my associate director carol for her
exceptional support for today's event.
We are also joined by many women department heads, raise your
hand if you're a woman
department head. [Cheering and applause] >>, as well as many women leaders serving on our commissions and boards. Can we have a wave from our women's commission and board
members. [Applause]
>> so we mark 100 years since
the passage of the 19th amendment.
It's important to remember that
as the sixth state to ratify the
19th amendment, california has
played a major role in the suffrage movement.
Newly uncovered historical sources put together by the neighborhood history project indicates that san francisco was
a site of the first ever
suffrage March in 1908.
Over 100 years ago, suffrage
leaders picketed the white
house, went to jail, endured intense personal suffering in order to secure the vote for women. I do want to note, this is my
last women's history month as the department head. I will be leaving my position at
the end of the month, after 15 years of service.
I had the honor to serve former
mayor now governor gavin, the
late great mayor ed lee, and the first african-american women and the second woman to be elected to be the mayor of san
francisco, the one and only london breed.
She has made equity for all,
including gender equity a hallmark of her administration. She's working everyday to achieve a vision of san
francisco that is inclusive, fair, and compassionate, one that stands up and supports all its residents. She has a great team and I want to thank two members of her
exceptional staff, senior policy
advisor nicole and appoint
secretary who helped with
today's program.
[Cheering and applause] >> finally before I bring the mayor out, I want to thank the hard working staff of the mayor's office of neighborhood
services who makes these celebrations so special for the
entire city.
So, please join me in welcoming
mayor london breed and happy women's history month.
[Cheering and applause] >> thank you emily. I don't know if you all heard
emily say this is one of her
last women history month events as director of the commission on the status of women and she has
done an incredible job leading this department for so many years. Let's give her a round of
applause for her service.
[Cheering and applause] >> and thank you to all the
women who are here. They are not just women commissioners from the
commission on the status of women, they are women commissioners who serve in
various capacities in this city
that has joined us here today to celebrate women's history month in san francisco. We know that there are still a
number of inequalities that
still exist for women.
In fact, as a woman mayor, I still believe it or not, experience some of those when
I'm even in meetings, even today, dealing with the
challenges of the city. Questions that I get asked I
know if I was not a woman, I would never get asked.
The fact is that we made a tremendous number of gains. I look around and I look at the
fact that so many of you serve in so many capacities. Even think of the history of our
police department and we see now
deputy chief and the other leading women who are basically running the police department in san francisco. [Cheering and applause]
>> we see members of our board
of supervisors, our fire chief,
jeanine nicholson and so many other incredible leaders who
continue to lead this city as
the director of departments,
commissioners, President Of the commissions, and we also know that it shouldn't take 30 years
to have the second female mayor
of san francisco. So while we come a long way, we
know that there is still a long way to go.
as emily has said, we are
celebrating the 100th
anniversary of the 19th amendment giving the women the right to vote.
It is time ladies that we exercise that right to vote. We know there is power when we
serve on boards and commissions. We know there is power when we are at the table making the decisions that impact our lives. Just think about it.
The fact that we are even
discussing in the year 2020 a woman's right to choose and we
have to get out there and defend
that, even in 2020 is absolutely insane.
It means the work that we do now
is important, more than it has ever been.
I mean think about what san francisco has done. Significant policies that the rest of the country is
following, including our paid parental leave which people are
still excited and talking about today.
[Cheering and applause] >> things that address the
challenges of motherhood that
people who May not have babies understand what mothers have to
do in the workplace to of course make a living and take care of their families. There is still work we need to do.
Today's honorees represent san
francisco values at their very
best because the work they do
highlights the need to do more,
to get people to register to vote, to get more people
interested in causes and
policies that impact women, to help understand how our voices are important.
when we come together and we
vote, we make magic happen.
We make change happen.
We make the kinds of policies we
know need to be here, even when we're no longer here. We don't want 20 years from now
the next generation fighting for a woman's right to choose. We don't want the next
generation fighting for the same policy that should already exist
in this city that protect and support women.
So today's honorees represent,
as I said, incredible women who
really have focused on advancing
the rights of women, who are
spending a lot of their time trying to get women registered
to vote, to address what we know, even in san francisco as
we see a lower voter turnout, we
know disproportionately that it impacts people of color and women.
So getting women registered, getting them to turn out to vote
is important and having
organizations that are dedicated
to that cause is also significantly important. Our first honoree is a local
american woman of color who is a
child of immigrants who came to the united states.
She worked tirelessly to engage
women, register them to vote, and connect them with volunteer and civic opportunities. Have you ever come across people who say what do I do? How do I get involved? What's the next step?
People have no idea what to do. Nadia has been doing this work
to help motivate and get women, especially women who have not
been actively engaged, engaged. She volunteered a lot of her
time during the 2018 midterm elections, traveling and california, speaking with people
across the state and educating
communities on how to get
involved and how to register to vote. She has been working to bring women together and to take action.
So please ladies and gentlemen,
help welcome nadia roman and
she's this year's woman I'm honoring for black history
month.
[Cheering and applause]
>> thank you so much mayor breed.
Thank you for being a pioneer and modeling leadership in every
way for girls and women in san
francisco, especially for girls and women of color.
Mayor breed's work to cut red
tape in city hall, take on the
city's housing shortage, and end
homelessness in san francisco ensures that this city can truly
be a home for everyone. Thank you for everyone who came out to participate today.
It's great to see this balcony
be full and see many familiar
faces in the crowd as well. Thank you for participating in the celebration of women's history month.
2020 is such an important year in so many ways and there is a lot to celebrate and look back
on, including 100 years since
the 19th amendment was added to
the U.S. Constitution, finally
giving women the right to vote.
So securing that right to vote,
we heard a little bit about everything that went into that.
So the formal women suffrage
movement start in 1848, 72 years before that amendment was
adopted into the constitution.
30 years after that, in 1878 was actually one of the 1st amendments that was introduced and it failed.
Finally in 1920, a 100 years ago, it was adopted.
Women and their allies secured the right to vote. So as we look ahead into the
rest of 2020, we're already in March now.
I ask that we all be attuned to
the time that we're in right now.
Mayor breed did a great job of talking about how our civil
liberties are under attack and that's particularly affecting
women and also women of color, specifically.
So let's be intentional on how
we choose to spend our time this year.
It's of critical importance that
we pay attention and do the work of winning elections for people
that share our values.
San franciscan values of equity, inclusiveness, and radical acceptance.
If the suffrage that worked
towards their goal for decades, for 72 years in a formal way across multiple generations of
women and men, we can commit to
eight months to get us to
November 2020, right? Yeah. [Applause]
>> so I'm going to conclude my
remarks with and ask of you all. Please push yourselves harder this year.
Pay more attention, be more
informed, push yourself to whatever your personal commitment to civic engagement looks like.
That can be calling a friend or a relative tomorrow to remind
them to vote in the california primary.
That can be canvassing for a
candidate that inspires you in a swing district in california or
a swing state somewhere in the united states. Let's all commit to being as informed and engaged as possible
this year and let's hold on to that beyond November 2020 so we don't find ourselves back in this place ever again.
If you ever think about tuning
out or turns off this year or in
the future, please think of
those who worked for decades for the right to vote.
Thank you.
[Cheering and applause]
>> thank you.
So, the next honorees for today
are a group of incredible,
inspiring women who decided
after the election in 2016 when
the other 45 was elected, I
don't know about you, but that
night I was campaigning for my
re-election for supervisor district five and I was walking around the neighborhood and I
ran into a young woman who
basically was in tears and so many people were hurt.
I mean I won that election, but
I was still devastated by the results of what happened as a
result of that election.
As a result of that, these incredible women got together and they said you know what?
We're going to do something
because I don't eastbound -- even want to talk about what we
all know that this President Has
done, that has not only been offensive to women, but continue
to roll back many of the gains we have made.
they came together and they really started a movement. The women's March has really
been a place that has brought so many women together for inspiring speeches, to connect with other women, and yes there
are some men that show up too. They're always welcome with open arms, but what I notice about the men that show up, they're showing up with their daughters.
They're showing up with their moms. They're showing up with their
family members in solidarity for
what we know we need to call attention to the challenges that
women continue to face in this country.
It's clear that no matter what
political spectrum you are on, there is a sincere need for
women to come together for the purpose of talking about the
things that matter to us the most.
So this has created a platform,
the women's March has just
really taken on a whole other dimension.
It's not only expanded to other
cities throughout the country, where they even had a women's March in napa. I was thinking because I love
wine, I was going to join them.
I was already committed to san francisco. They're not just focused on a
women's March, they're focused
on advocacy and support year round, in helping to outreach,
to get more women registered, to get more people actively engaged, to make sure they're turning out.
So they are all volunteers spending their time in order to
provide a platform for women all over the country.
The people here in san francisco.
They do it with a lot of love
and lot of complaints from other people. [Laughter]
>> but they still try to provide
the opportunity for people to be
heard and to be recognized, and diverse community, and I know it's a lot of work, but you
still do it every single year, even though sometimes it May
feel like oh, I don't want to do it again this year, it's a lot of work. We're with you, we appreciate what you're doing and as long as we're here in san francisco,
we'll be there to sported -- support the work you continue to do. Ladies and gentlemen, at this time I want to invite up one of our commissioners from the commission on the status of women.
Sophia andari and ann to say a
few words and to really thank
them along with there's a bunch
of women who helped to coordinate this event every single year.
So after these ladies say a few words, we're going to ask them
to come up for a photo.
[Cheering and applause] >> good afternoon.
My name is sophia, I'm a
founding member and cochair of women's March san francisco.
I'm joined by founding member
elizabeth, kelly, martha, heather
heather, janet who is here in
spirit, she's working, and cochair ann. We have other leads of women's March san francisco as well. we're all right here.
On behalf of women's March san francisco, thank you mayor breed
for this incredible honor. Thank you so much.
A group of 10 women came
together right after the November 2016 election, not knowing the impact that we would
have on each other and our communities.
Over 100,000 marched on January 21, 2017, in the pouring rain. >> pouring rain, yes.
>> to affirm our commitment to
women's rights, human rights, civil liberties, and social
justice for all. Since then, we have partnered
with numerous community organizations to continue that
work through events, marches,
and action to keep our
communities civicically engaged.
Stressing the importance of
voting, getting involved in
local and national campaigns,
and empowering women to run for office and take on more
leadership positions.
Commissioners, more commissioners, now regardless of
the outcome of the upcoming
election, we cannot afford to be idle anymore.
We need to show up with our
votes for our most marginalized,
elect more women, especially
women of color, run for office,
and take on more leadership
roles so that women take 51% of seats in local government in the
senate and the house, in boardrooms, and in all rooms
where decisions are being made.
[Cheering and applause] >> thank you again for honoring our team to the mayor and the mayor's office and the commission on status of women.
I'm going to hand it over to my
cochair ann.
[Cheering and applause] >> again, thank you so much for
everybody who's come out today. I'm the co-chair of the women's
March with sophia. As sophia highlighted, none of
the women's marches accomplishments over the last four years would be possible without the volunteers and the
partners we had working an organizing on nights, weekends, and any other moments of time we could find. I would like to thank our leadership team that we have
here today.
Crystal, robin, ariel, and all the talent and hard work you
bring to this organization. I also like to express our deepest thanks to the partners
that helped us put this together.
This includes planned parenthood of northern california, the
women's building, the js C.F.S.,
glide, care F.S., and the league
of women voters in san francisco. [Cheering and applause]
>> our mission is to empower everyone that stands for human
rights, civil liberties, and
socialing -- social justice for all.
We will continue to organize to
March because the most marginalized among us is
defending all of us. In 2020, this marks 100 years of women gaining the right to vote. The women that demanded this right were extraordinary in their conviction and ordinary in
the fact that it was a critical mass of people coming together to demand more. To all the women that marched for us, who were arrested for us, who gave their lives for women to have their voice and votes be heard, we honor you
today and we promise to humbly
continue in your footsteps to all among us achieve equity.
Thank you all for having us to celebrate. Thank you mayor breed and happy women's history month.
[Cheering and applause]
>> so thank you.
As the women who are on the
board for the women's March come
forward so we can take a photo together. I just want to take this opportunity to thank all of you
for coming out today to celebrate these incredible women, to kick off women's history month. Tomorrow, the board of supervisors will be hosting
their owner is moan -- ceremony
starting at 2:30 where I know they're going to be honoring
some phenomenal women like we are today. So thank you all so much for being here.
After this photo, I also like to
take a photo with all the women commissioners and women department heads that are joining us.
I want to take advantage of this incredible opportunity.
You know, I know that it feels
like there are challenging times
ahead of us, especially in san francisco and throughout this country. When I look around this room here today, when I think about
so many of the incredible inspiring leaders that are with
us right here on this balcony, I can't help but be excited about
what we are going to do to
change the future for the better
because we know that we are stronger when we come together. There is nothing we can't accomplish. So we want to keep that in mind as we move forward with these challenges. We are going to take it all head on. We are going to do it because you know what?
When women are in charge, great things happens. [Laughter] >> thank you all so much.
[Cheering and applause]
>> okay. Are we ready?
Do I need to do this?
No.
We are now back in open session.
May I have a motion for the board -- what? That the board finds that it is
in our best interest of the public that the board elect not
to disclose this closed session deliberations? A motion made by supervisor
peskin, seconded by supervisor
safai.
>> for the record we will show that supervisor haney is not in the chamber
>> okay.
Then without objection, we will
not disclose our closed session deliberations.
I will hand this over to you for P.U.C.'s action. >> commissioners, can I have a
motion on whether to disclose. A motion by commissioner maxwell
not to disclose seconded by commissioner paulson.
Without objection, that is the order.
>> Mr. President, I would like to note for the record that the
P.U.C. Commissioners caen and vietor are not in chamber >> okay. Colleagues that brings us to the
end of our joint special meeting agenda.
Madame Clerk, is there any further business before us today? >> that concludes our business for today, Mr. President >> thank you.
We are adjourned.
[Please stand by]