HomeMy WebLinkAboutStaff Report 7952
City of Palo Alto (ID # 7952)
City Council Staff Report
Report Type: Informational Report Meeting Date: 6/19/2017
City of Palo Alto Page 1
Summary Title: FY 2016 Utilities Strategic Plan Performance Update
Title: City of Palo Alto Utilities Strategic Plan Performance Update for Fiscal
Year 2016
From: City Manager
Lead Department: Utilities
This report is provided for the Council’s information and no action is required. The report was
provided to the Utilities Advisory commission at its March 1, 2017 meeting.
Executive Summary
This update on implementation of the Utilities Strategic Plan covers the 12-month period from
July 2015 through June 2016. The Council-approved Utilities Strategic Plan, adopted by Council
in 2011 and updated in 2013 and 2015, (Attachment A) uses a Balanced Scorecard concept with
four main perspectives (“Four Perspectives”) with strategic objectives to be achieved for each.
As the Utilities Department has initiated a new strategic planning effort, this performance
report provides a valuable foundation for understanding the activities undertaken and goals
established for the current strategic plan.
To translate these objectives into plans for action, performance measures were identified for
each objective. A summary of the performance measures and status for each of the Four
Perspectives is shown below:
Internal Business Process Perspective People & Technology Perspective
Performance Measure Status Performance Measure Status
Interruption Duration Met Employee Satisfaction Met
Emergency Response Time Met Certification & Training Met
Gas Incident Rate Met Tools & Technologies N/A
Gas Safety Awareness Met New Technology Evaluation Met
Infrastructure Backlog Not yet met
Call Wait Time Met Financial Perspective
Billing Adjustments Met Performance Measure Status
Emergency Notification Met High Credit Ratings Met
Program Participant Satisfaction Met Maintain Reserves Not yet met
Competitive Commodity Bids Met Recover Fixed Charges Met
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Unaccounted Gas & Water Met
Full Value from Redwood Gas Met Customer & Community Perspective
Strategic Initiatives Not yet met Performance Measure Status
Water Use Reduction per capita Met Service Restoration Not yet met
Efficiency Achievement Not yet met System Interruptions Met
Satisfaction Not yet met
Competitive Bill Met
Rate Change Met
PAG Gas Participation N/A
Greenhouse Gas Reductions N/A
The Balanced Scorecard Performance Measures Result (Attachment B) provides a more detailed
description of the objectives and performance measures within each of the Four Perspectives.
The (+) “plus” or (-) “minus” listed after each measure on the chart in Attachment B is an
indicator of the degree to which the measure has been achieved. Where “TBD”, or “to be
determined” is noted, it indicates that staff continues to evaluate benchmark goals for a
performance measure, which must be done prior to assessing progress towards achieving the
performance measure.
It should be noted that the Four Perspectives are presented above, and throughout this report,
in no particular order. They are not arranged in order of importance and no single item is
weighted more heavily than another.
BACKGROUND
On July 18, 2011, the Council approved the 2011 Utilities Strategic Plan (Staff Report #1880). In
implementing the Utilities Strategic Plan, staff regularly reviews the objective measures and
initiatives and recommends any appropriate updates on an annual basis. In addition, on a semi-
annual basis, staff reports progress on implementation of the plan to the UAC and Council.
The Balanced Scorecard tracking methodology was chosen by Staff to assist in performance
measurement and to promote better understanding of the City of Palo Alto Utilities’ (CPAU’s)
strategic business processes. The performance scorecard will evolve over time and respond to
changes in the business climate, with potential new measures added and others modified or
completely removed. Utilities managers meet on a regular basis to review the overall Utilities
Strategic Plan and evaluate the strategic objectives, performance measures, and targets, and
strategic initiatives. From time to time, management will recommend changes to keep the
Utilities Strategic Plan aligned with changing environments and priorities.
The Council approved changes to the Performance Measures and Strategic Initiatives of the
Utilities Strategic Plan in August 2013 (Staff Report #3950) and May 2015 (Staff Report #5709).
No additional changes are proposed at this time, in light of the upcoming major update to the
Strategic Plan.
Given the rapid pace of change, emerging issues and technological advancements within the
utility industry in the past several years, Utilities will review and reestablish the department’s
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strategic priorities in 2017. Utilities will engage with the UAC, staff and other stakeholders in
updating the strategic plan to ensure it aligns with the communities’ sustainability goals and
addresses emerging issues for utilities of the future, while ensuring safe and reliable services
today.
DISCUSSION
The Four Perspectives used in the Strategic Plan are:
Customer and Community
People and Technology
Finance
Internal Business Processes
Each of the Four Perspectives represents a specific viewpoint and ensures CPAU’s business
activities are aligned with the Strategic Plan. The Customer and Community Perspective
represents customer satisfaction and delivery of services to stakeholders. People and
Technology includes employee training and development as well as keeping pace with
technological advancements in the utilities industry. The Finance Perspective focuses on CPAU
having a strong financial base and delivering cost-effective services. The Internal Business
Processes Perspective covers operational goals and outlines the key processes necessary to
deliver services to customers.
Each of the Four Perspectives of the Utilities Strategic Plan includes strategic initiatives which
are key programs or projects required to achieve one or more objectives and the overall
strategic plan. Many of the original strategic initiatives were completed and eight new ones
were added when Council approved updates to the Strategic Plan in May 2015, resulting in 13
active initiatives. Strategic initiatives aim to significantly change the way CPAU does business,
require significant resources to complete, and have a defined timeline.
A summary of performance under each of the Four Perspectives follows.
CUSTOMER AND COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVE
Four strategic objectives are measured from this perspective: service reliability, customer
satisfaction with CPAU’s responsiveness, competitive bills compared to neighboring
communities and care for the environment. CPAU has achieved three performance measures,
two measures are no longer applicable and measures were not met in these categories.
Performance Measures
Service reliability performance measures:
C1.1 an average restoration time after an outage of 90 minutes or less per interrupted
customer
C1.2 an average number of 0.9 or fewer interruptions per customer per year
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CPAU did not meet the target of less than 90 minutes restoration time. The average time to
restore service per interrupted customer for fiscal year 2016 was 165 minutes. There were two
extended outages during this period. The first outage affected 209 households near San
Antonio Road in October 2015. Since the outage occurred around midnight, it took the crews
longer than normal to organize and troubleshoot. It took approximately eight hours to identify
and repair the faulty underground cable. Underground utilities are more difficult to inspect,
diagnose and repair increasing outage times. The second major outage affected 310 households
near Arastradero Road in December 2015. The outage lasted approximately ten hours due to a
failed electrical switch which required replacement. CPAU experienced 26 total outages in
fiscal year 2016, which is seven more outages experienced in fiscal year 2015 (19 total outages).
In addition to specific conditions that may be unique to each outage, aging infrastructure and
crew member staffing and retention may continue to present challenges for CPAU to improve
its restoration times in the near term. Even though restoration time was longer than
anticipated, CPAU’s performance measurement for average interruptions per customer of 0.24
is well below the top quartile of industry standard of 0.9 interruptions per customer.
Customer satisfaction performance measure:
C2.0 to be rated 85% or higher in overall customer satisfaction
In 2016, RKS Research and Consulting conducted a residential electric utility customer
satisfaction survey. Even though CPAU fell slightly short of the target of 85% or above in
customer satisfaction, the overall results were positive and CPAU have trended upward in
customer satisfaction with reliability, cost and concern for the environment compared to other
RKS surveys. The average overall satisfaction score for CPAU electric residential customer was
82% which is significantly higher than the statewide municipal average of 71%. CPAU’s image
on “concern for the environment” is first rate. This is reinforced by the survey when customers
were asked whether they were willing to pay slightly more for carbon offsets, the supporters
outnumbered opponents by about 2:1. CPAU also stood out in its customers’ support for
having a municipally owned utility. A majority of the customers saw “great benefit” resulting
from the City having its own utility. Approximately 75% of the customers also believed they
would be worse off in reliability, customer service and cost of electricity if the utility was
investor-owned.
Customer paying a reasonable bill performance measures:
C3.1 residential bill is less than the average bills in neighboring communities
C3.2 rate increases are less than 10% (electric, gas, wastewater) and 20% (water)
CPAU met both “reasonable bill” performance targets. The total average residential bill
including electric, gas, water and wastewater services in Palo Alto was $188.04, which is 8.9%
below the average bill of $204.86 in neighboring jurisdictions (i.e. Menlo Park, Mountain View,
Santa Clara and Redwood City). CPAU’s bill for electric (<50%), gas (<31%) and wastewater
(<48%) are below the average of neighboring cities; however, CPAU’s water bill is 27% higher
and represents the largest portion of the total utility bill (40%).
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CPAU also met the performance measure of a “less than 10%” rate increase for electric, gas,
and wastewater and a “less than 20%” rate increase for water. For FY 2016, CPAU increased
rates for water and wastewater services by 12% and 9% respectively. CPAU did not
recommend any rate adjustments for electric and gas services.
PaloAltoGreen Gas performance measures:
C4.1 20% of customer participation
C4.2 10% greenhouse gas reductions
The PaloAltoGreen Gas (PAGG) program is scheduled to be terminated at the end of FY 2017 in
anticipation of the newly adopted Carbon Neutral Gas Plan. Council approved the Carbon
Neutral Gas Plan (staff report #7441), enabling the City to achieve a carbon-neutral gas supply
portfolio starting in FY 2018 with a rate impact not to exceed ten cents per therm. CPAU is in
the process of developing an implementation plan for the Carbon Neutral Gas Plan to
eliminate/offset greenhouse gas emissions associated with their natural gas use.
Prior to PAGG termination, approximately 900 customers including all City facilities were
enrolled in the program. As a result of PAGG, there was a 6% or 9,000 metric tonnes reduction
in greenhouse gas emissions in FY 2016. CPAU will eliminate and/or replace these performance
measures in the next strategic plan update.
Strategic Initiatives
Under the Customer and Community perspective there are three strategic initiatives.
1. To establish more mechanisms for eliciting feedback from customers. CPAU conducts
annual or bi-annual customer surveys through independent research companies, which
allow customers to rate their satisfaction and value of the utility services they receive.
Customers are asked to provide written feedback via paper and online surveys after
participation in events and workshops. The CPAU website encourages the public to contact
CPAU by phone or email at any time to provide feedback or ask questions, and CPAU’s
communication with customers via social media channels has grown considerably over the
past few years. Staff is currently in the process of developing new customer feedback cards
that can be placed at key public-facing locations such as Customer Service counters and
carried with Field Service, Meter Reading, Engineering and Maintenance employees while in
the field. In addition to customer surveys, CPAU Communications staff are exploring ways to
record feedback through a more formal process that will allow CPAU to report out on
general customer satisfaction, deliver praise for employees and use critical, constructive
feedback in an effort to continually improve upon the services we offer the community.
Additionally, as part of the billing system improvements and redesign of the My Utilities
Account web portal, we hope to include a user’s feedback mechanism to make it easier for
users to give us feedback.
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2. Improving the electronic bill presentment, payment functionality, and enhancing the
utility’s online capabilities. The Information Technology and Utilities departments deployed
an interactive voice response (IVR) system to enhance CPAU’s customer service call center
operations and provide 24x7 communication and payment options to customers. Some of
the IVR features include retrieval of outstanding account balance and payment history,
payment by credit card, and customer satisfaction survey. Thus far, 12% of total customer
calls have been diverted to the IVR system to transact business instead of requesting for
assistance from a customer service representative. CPAU is also embarking on a new
customer service online portal. CPAU issued a request for proposal (RFP) in 2016 for the
next generation customer portal (My Utilities Account 2.0). The new customer portal will
provide customers a more user friendly and mobile experience. Some of the new features
include rate calculator, notification alerts, recurring payments, e-billing and meter self
reads. The new customer engagement portal is scheduled to be rolled out in 2018.
3. Reevaluate the cost-effectiveness of fuel switching especially for new construction and
evaluate whether new programs or incentives should be offered, consistent with all
applicable legal requirements. On August 2015, City Council approved a ten-point work
plan to evaluate and implement greenhouse gas reduction strategies by reducing natural
gas and gasoline use through electrification measures related to electric vehicles, and
electric heat-pump based technologies to replace water and space heating appliances in the
community. The work plan consists of two phases over a five year period. The first phase is
already underway which will determine the scope of the analysis and identify any staff
and/or consulting resources required to complete it. Phase I will contain additional
information to inform Council’s decisions about whether to pursue or not pursue those
actions related to fuel switching either identified initially in the Colleagues Memo or in the
Phase I analysis. The second phase will involve detailed analysis of proposed actions and
measures identified in the first phase and the development of an implementation plan.
Staff provided UAC an update of phase one in March 2017 (UAC Report).
PEOPLE AND TECHNOLOGY PERSPECTIVE
CPAU measures its success in attracting and retaining of employees, training and development,
and implementation and evaluation of technologies. So far, CPAU has successfully reached
three of four performance measures in these categories. Staff has not been able to identify a
consistent and reliable metric for the tools & technologies performance measure.
Performance Measures
Employee attraction and retention performance measure:
PT1.0 Improvement from prior year’s employee satisfaction survey
In the FY 2016 CPAU employee survey, there were 137 participants or a 60% response rate
which is the highest response rate since we began the surveys in FY2012. The survey provided
CPAU a better understanding of employee priorities, satisfaction and engagement within the
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organization. 71% of the employees reported either being “very satisfied” or “satisfied”
compared to 62% in FY 2015.
Most employees agree that CPAU generally develops and promotes employees from within the
department. In addition, managers are actively engaged with employees in their career
development. However, CPAU received lower marks for employee retention, length of time to
fill vacancies, and transparency for advancement opportunities in certain workgroups.
Management will collaborate with HR to identify and rectify some of these shortcomings over
the upcoming year. As part of the citywide professional development and succession planning
effort, the City will continue to seek academies and classes to improve skills and knowledge and
implement cross training programs.
Training and development performance measure:
PT2.0 100% of Operations personnel have the appropriate certification and training for
their assigned work area
CPAU is committed to provide ongoing training and development for all employees to ensure
safety and best practices are implemented in each CPAU employee’s current job. CPAU met its
performance target of having 100% of Operations personnel with the appropriate certification
and training required for working in their assigned areas to fulfill annual and periodic
requirements to comply with various mandated State of California regulations. In January,
Operations rolled out an on-line training system that complies with CAL/OSHA requirements
and also addresses the unique Utilities related field safety requirements. The new system
allows the department flexibility to structure trainings for staff as needed rather than restricted
to costly one-time on-site sessions. Additionally, Operations has a few staff who are
Operational Qualification certified by the Department of Transportation to proctor the
classroom training sessions.
Ensuring workgroups have necessary tools and technologies performance measure target:
PT3.0 Employees have adequate tools and technologies to perform their jobs
Even though CPAU has not been able to identify a consistent and reliable metric to measure
employees’ tools and technologies, the City and department continue to seek and add new
solutions to assist employees with their work and improve operational efficiencies. The
Information Technology Department rolled out Microsoft Office 365 to all City staff. Office 365
enables staff to access files, share documents, and collaborate with colleagues from wherever
they are and across multiple devices. Documents created in Word, Excel or PowerPoint and
saved on OneDrive can be opened and edited on personal devices or a browser. Collaborating
with colleagues is easier with co-authoring, which helps one cut through the complexity of
managing feedback and versions from multiple people. Under a shared document, one can see
what others are typing and negotiate changes in real-time. In addition, CPAU has issued an RFP
to track emergency equipment and excess inventory outside of the City’s warehouse. With the
use of bar code scanning on a mobile phone or tablet, this will provide staff efficiencies in
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complying with City inventory policies. The vendor software includes mobile enabled
applications to capture data in the field. The anticipation is that after the inventory
implementation, CPAU can expand the mobile applications to include data collection of
necessary work details while crews are in the field and integration with the ERP system. Finally,
the City has embraced digital signatures as an acceptable replacement for wet signatures on
official and non-official documents. CPAU has identified several customer service documents
that can be converted and incorporated with an internal workflow through DocuSign, allowing
Customer Service staff to quickly respond to and efficiently process customer applications.
Evaluation of new technologies performance measure target:
PT4.0 Evaluate at least three new technologies per year
CPAU’s Program for Emerging Technologies, or PET, (www.cityofpaloalto.org/UTLInnovation)
provides the opportunity for local businesses and organizations to submit proposals for
innovative and impactful products to CPAU for review as a prospective partner. The goal is to
find and nurture creative products and services that will manage and better use electricity, gas,
water and fiber optic services. In FY 2016, CPAU met the performance measure by evaluating
14 applications, of which, five were approved and five are pending review. Three of the five
approved projects were letters of support from CPAU for federal funding to develop prototype
applications. The projects are in support of solar water heating, community solar, and power
measurement of the electrical distribution system. Another approved project was
establishment of an Advanced Distribution Management System (ADMS) testbed. The testbed
will accelerate development and adoption of ADMS applications to optimize the performance
of the distribution grid. The fifth project was an integrated energy storage system for
residential and small commercial customers. The energy storage system will serve as a power
backup supply and contribute to CPAU’s demand response program.
Strategic Initiatives
There are two strategic initiatives under the People and Technology perspective.
1. Update the five year department-wide succession plan. Public agencies including
utilities across the nation are facing a retirement wave and anticipate losing 35 to 50
percent of their workforce within the next five years. Recruiting and retaining qualified
personnel (92 percent), succession planning (80 percent), and staff development (79
percent) are ranked as the most important issues for the second year in a row by state
and local government human resources managers.1 This creates not only a challenge but
also offers an opportunity for our employees to grow in knowledge and advance
through the organization.
1 “Survey Findings – State and Local Government Workforce: 2016 Trends” by Center for State & Local Government Excellence,
available at: http://slge.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/State-and-Local-Government-Workforce-2016-Trends.pdf
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As part of professional development and succession planning, the City hosted a
leadership academy to teach fundamentals of supervision and leadership. 30 CPAU
employees across all divisions (Administration, Customer Support, Engineering,
Operations and Resource Management) participated and graduated from the academy.
The academy consisted of 10 modules covering communication, decision-making,
training, team-building, establishing expectations and management of change, time and
stress. The City received positive feedback and reinforcement techniques from the
participants and management. The City will continue to seek other leadership training
opportunities and host another academy in 2017.
2. Develop a Utilities-specific smart grid and IT strategic plan. CPAU is in the process of re-
evaluating the feasibility of an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) system and
associated smart grid technologies and programs. The prior 2012 smart grid assessment
recommended CPAU undertake pilot scale smart grid projects and defer major
investments in smart grid for several years. After implementing pilot scale projects over
the past several years, the City has released an RFP in 2016 for consulting services to
develop a smart grid/AMI business case and Utilities IT strategic roadmap. The
consultant will perform cost benefit analysis including capital costs, life of capital
equipment, recurring expenses, cost savings, system reliability, operational efficiencies
and customer benefits as part of the AMI business case. Under the IT strategic
roadmap, the consultant will identify technology trends in the market place and develop
a 10 year technology roadmap that includes prioritization of technology projects,
resource requirements, estimated one-time and recurring project costs, and
implementation timeline. Staff plans to present the findings and recommendations of
the AMI business case and technology roadmap to the UAC by end of 2017.
FINANCIAL PERSPECTIVE
Under this perspective, the performance measures involve maintaining financial strength,
designing rate structures that balance costs of service with the promotion of conservation and
providing an investment return to the community. CPAU has met 2 of 3 performance goals
under this perspective.
Performance Measures
High credit rating performance measure target:
F1.1 At least AA by Standard and Poor’s (S&P)
F1.2 At least Aa3 by Moody’s
The City maintains S&P’s highest credit rating, Triple A, for the 1999 utility revenue bond, 2007
Clean Energy Renewable bond, 2009 water revenue bond and 2011 utility revenue bond. The
2011 utility revenue bond was refinancing of the 2002 revenue bonds for water and gas
utilities. S&P cited the following factors in conferring the AAA rating: 1) very strong historical
and projected debt service coverage; 2) extremely strong cash balances and strong reserve
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policies; 3) low debt levels, with capital needs to be funded on a pay-as-you-go basis and 4)
strong economic base with very high income levels.
Maintain adequate Operations Reserve levels for all utilities performance measure target:
F2.0 Within guidelines in Council-adopted long-term financial plans
The Gas, Wastewater Collection and Water Funds either met or exceeded the minimum
guidelines in June 2016 and short-term risk assessment level. The Electric Fund was slightly
below the minimum guideline level due to a combination of higher costs and lower revenues.
As a result of the extended drought, hydroelectric resources were lower than average. The City
had to purchase additional higher-priced energy in the markets. In addition, customer sales
were 1% lower than expected. Electricity consumption has declined slowly as a result of a
continuing focus on energy efficiency, as well as the adoption of more stringent appliance
efficiency standards and energy standards in building codes. CPAU had to increase overall
electric rates by 11% in FY 2017 to offset increasing costs and bring reserves back within the
guidelines.
Strategic Initiatives
There is one strategic initiative under the financial perspective.
1. Complete Electric cost of service analysis (COSA) by end of CY 2015. – Completed
The City completed the electric COSA in 2016 (the previous electric COSA was updated
in 2007). The primary goal of the COSA was to ensure costs are allocated equitably
among customers and rate designs are cost of service-based and in alignment with
Council guidelines. As a result of the COSA, there were several design changes to ensure
rates were aligned to the cost of serving customers. The number of tiers was reduced
from three to two for the residential rate because two tiers were required to capture
differences in commodity costs and seasonal capacity needs, instead of three. A
minimum charge was added to all rate classes to recover the minimum direct costs of
customer service, metering, and billing. The municipal rate class was repealed because
it shared similar characteristics to other non-residential classes. The cost of electricity
and operational expenses of streetlights and traffic signals were transferred from the
Electric Fund to the General Fund in alignment with cost of service principles as well.
UTILITIES INTERNAL BUSINESS PROCESS PERSPECTIVE
The largest number of performance measure targets fall under this perspective. Twelve were
met and three were not met.
Performance Measures
The targets for the following measures were met, including:
BP1.1 Restore electrical power in less than 60 minutes
BP1.2 Respond to emergency calls in less than 30 minutes
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BP2.1 Zero reportable gas incidents
BP2.2 Customer gas safety awareness of 90% or higher
BP4.1 Average phone wait time of less than 90 seconds
BP4.2 Number of billing adjustments of less than 2,958
BP5.0 Reporting significant outages within 30 minutes
BP6.0 Customers satisfaction of 90% or higher with program experiences
BP7.0 Minimum of 3 competitive bids for each electric fixed-price purchase transaction
BP8.0 Reduce lost and unaccountable volumes of gas and water
BP9.0 100% of full value received from Redwood gas pipeline
BP11.0 Meet the state’s 20% per capita water use reduction by 2020
The following measures were not met:
BP3.0 Zero backlog of infrastructures beyond their useful lives
Replacing aging infrastructure plays an important role in being able to provide a safe
and reliable distribution. Electric replacement of aging infrastructure, in particular
rebuild of underground districts, has been delayed over the last several years due to
staffing shortages in Engineering and Operations and increasing customer requests.
Due to challenges in hiring qualified employees, CPAU has either executed or is
evaluating short-term contracts with construction and engineering firms to bring the
backlog to a manageable level. The Gas utility has zero backlog and is currently up to
date with gas main replacement projects. The Water Reservoir Coating Improvement
and Seismic Upgrade projects have been temporarily suspended due to associated
escalating costs and new findings of the reservoirs. Staff will conduct an overall water
system study to determine if the City’s emergency water storage and supplies can be
reconfigured and whether the reservoir(s) require replacement. The Wastewater utility
will complete Sewer System Rehabilitation (SSR) / Augmentation Project 24/25/26 in
2017. Capital Improvement project SSR 24/25 was delayed because of unexpectedly
high bid proposals. Unexpected high costs were attributed to increased labor rates and
material prices on high-density polyethylene main pipes. As a result, CPAU had to revise
the scope and re-issue a new bid for SSR 24/25/26 in order to stay within the project
budget. The final bid came in at 2% below estimate as opposed to 20% above estimate
from the original bid.
BP10.0 100% of strategic initiatives completed
This performance measure has not yet been met. Strategic initiatives are specific
programs or projects required to achieve key objectives in the overall strategic plan.
Strategic initiatives are updated and re-prioritized as business needs change over time.
When the strategic plan was developed in 2011, CPAU identified 17 initiatives. Since
then, 13 of the initial 17 initiatives have been completed including redesign of
PaloAltoGreen, reassessment of gas laddering strategy, development of
communications plan, implementation of new technologies program and reevaluation
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of Calaveras Reserves. Nine new initiatives have been added to the strategic plan and
three of them have been completed including evaluation of fuel-switching,
infrastructure master studies, new financial policies and completion of the electric
COSA. Of the 26 total initiatives, 10 are still considered outstanding (Attachment C).
Staff may propose to replace or add new initiatives in future updates.
BP12.0 Meet energy efficiency achievement goals
In FY 2016, CPAU exceeded its natural gas and water efficiency goals, but fell just short
of meeting its electricity goal due to startup costs for new programs and reallocation of
resources to focus on water efficiency during the California drought. CPAU offers
incentives and education programs for customers to encourage energy and water
efficiency, customer-owned renewable generation and enrollment in voluntary green
energy programs. The table below summarizes the FY 2016 goals and achievements. As
shown, the achievements for gas and water efficiency exceeded the goals set for FY
2016. Electricity savings was 0.01% short of achieving its target of 0.60%.
Goals versus Achievements
Resource
FY 2016
Savings Goals
(% of load)
FY 2016
Savings
Achieved
(% of load)
FY 2016
Savings Achieved
Electricity 0.60% 0.59% 5,548 MWh
Gas 0.55% 1.08% 289,442 therms
Water 0.91% 1.96% 74,603 CCF
Strategic Initiatives
Below are updates of four strategic initiatives for the internal business process perspective.
1. Develop a plan to complete a new electric transmission interconnection. The City continues
to have ongoing discussions with Stanford, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), the
Department of Energy (DOE), Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), and the California
Independent System Operator to evaluate alternative transmission connections. The
proposed 60 kilovolt (kV) transmission line would provide an interconnection between two
existing corridors – the 230kV line in west serving SLAC and the 115kV line in the east
serving the City. The new 60kV would provide SLAC, Stanford and the City transmission
service reliability improvements and potential cost savings. Even though the feasibility
studies to date have indicated the proposed interconnection feasible, would strengthen the
local transmission system, could improve power quality, and could provide for the
participants’ current and forecasted electric load, much work remains to move this project
forward. Additional joint evaluation of various issues, including, but not limited to, the
method by which the City can provide electric transmission service to Stanford; land use
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and environmental analysis under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA); siting
issues and easement acquisition; and possibly the negotiation of separate agreements with
other parties such as PG&E, the Western Area Power Administration (WAPA), and the DOE.
There is an alternative to the SLAC 230kV connection that will provide redundant
transmission service to the City. The alternative is a PG&E project that would connect the
Adobe Creek Substation near San Antonio Road with PG&E’s Ames Substation in Mountain
View. Although the PG&E alternative would provide the redundant service and come at
minimal cost to the City, it does not provide the same level of local system benefits or offer
the opportunity for the City to avoid any transmission access charges. This alternative has
been proposed by PG&E to the California Independent System Operator and is currently on
hold pending the results of the City’s negotiations on the SLAC project.
2. Update the Water Integrated Resource Plan (WIRP) including a comprehensive evaluation of
the use of groundwater by end of CY 2015. The WIRP is a roadmap for the City of Palo
Alto’s future potable water supply. CPAU updated the WIRP guidelines in January 2017.
The following potable water supply alternatives were evaluated: 1) water from the San
Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC); 2) groundwater (with or without
groundwater recharge); 3) treated water from the Santa Clara Valley Water District
(SCVWD); and 4) Demand Side Management (DSM). The evaluation concluded that DSM is
the best resource, but potable water supplies are still needed. While SFPUC water is more
expensive, it has higher water quality than groundwater or treated water from the SCVWD.
In addition, groundwater and SCVWD treated water supplies may increase in cost and aren’t
likely to offer additional protection in droughts. The 2017 WIRP guidelines were approved
by UAC in January 2017 and scheduled for Council approval in March 2017. Recycled water
is being evaluated outside of the WIRP in the Recycled Water Strategic Plan process that will
include an evaluation of direct and indirect potable reuse as well as the feasibility and
advisability of expanding the existing non-potable recycled water distribution system. The
WIRP will be updated again in a couple years after the recycled water strategic plan is
completed.
3. Participate actively in Northern California Power Agency’s (NCPA) on-going allocation of
cost, including new cost allocation studies if undertaken, to ensure that the City’s costs are
fair. CPAU staff continues to actively participate in studies and efforts to allocate costs to
Palo Alto and its other members as part of the annual budget process. Additionally, CPAU
staff has been assigned to an NCPA committee to review how to best allocate new revenues
coming into NCPA as a result of expansion services to non-NCPA members. This effort may
lead to a reduction of Palo Alto’s share of costs at NCPA. CPAU continues to evaluate
alternative scheduling service providers for its renewable energy contracts. Staff will assess
the merits of acquiring scheduling coordination services from an entity other than NCPA
including the impacts on current CPAU staff. A recommendation is expected to be made
during the FY 2018 timeframe.
City of Palo Alto Page 14
4. Complete environmental impact report (EIR) and financial plan for expanding recycled
water system. The Final EIR to expand the recycled water distribution system to serve non-
potable uses in Palo Alto, including the Stanford Research Park, was certified by Council on
September 28, 2015 (Staff Report #5962). Palo Alto and the Santa Clara Valley Water
district have embarked on a project to initiate preliminary design of the recycled water
distribution system expansion and develop a business plan to confirm the economic
feasibility of constructing the pipeline. The work is expected to be completed in 2018.
Attachments:
Attachment A: Utilities Strategic Objectives
Attachment B: Balanced Scorecard Performance Measure Results FY 2016
Attachment C: Utilities Strategic Initiatives Update March 2017
Utilities Strategic Plan – Strategic Objectives
Approved by Council July 18, 2011 (Staff Report 1880)
Updated by Council August 5, 2013 (Staff Report 3950)
Updated by Council May 11, 2015 (Staff Report 5709)
1
Strategic
Objective
Objective Statement Performance
Measure
2015 Target Strategic
Initiative
Customer and Community Perspective
C1. “I receive
safe and reliable
service.”
Customers expect that Utilities services are provided on a continuous basis,
without interruption. In addition, customers expect that the Utilities
delivery systems are safe and will not harm them or put them in any danger.
We will listen to our customers and seek to understand their reliability and
safety concerns and implement programs and projects to address them.
Average time to
restore service per
interrupted
customer
Less than 90
minutes
Number of electric
system interruptions
per year for average
customer
Ranks in the top
quartile
nationwide (less
than 0.9)
C2. “Be
responsive to all
my utilities‐
related service
needs.”
We understand that the customer wants clear, accurate bills with easy
methods of payment; access to usage history and enough understanding to
efficiently manage usage; to feel quickly and completely “taken care of”
when they have concerns, questions or requests and to be communicated
with effectively both as individuals and as CPAU’s owners. One of the ways
to achieve this is to elicit feedback from customers to help improve service.
Customer
satisfaction scores
on annual surveys
for overall value.
Residential and
commercial surveys
alternate every other
year.
Ranking in the top
two utilities
statewide
Establish
mechanisms to
elicit customer
feedback on their
satisfaction with
all interactions
with CPAU.
C3. “I expect to
pay a reasonable
bill”
We understand that customers expect their bills to be comparable to those
in surrounding communities and do not expect to pay more than PG&E
customers. Customers believe it is reasonable to pay slightly more in
exchange for increased reliability, safety and protection of the environment.
However, customers’ overall bills for Utilities services must remain
reasonable and be reasonably stable and should not increase significantly in
any one year. Customers also want their bills to provide useful information
about their consumption of resources in addition to the rate so that they can
The average
combined residential
customer bill for
electricity, water,
gas, and wastewater
services
Less than the
average of bills for
comparable
services in nearby
communities (MP,
MV, SC, Hayward,
RC, Roseville, and
Alameda).
Improve the
electronic bill
presentment,
payment
functionality and
enhance the
utility’s online
capabilities.
ATTACHMENT A
Utilities Strategic Plan – Strategic Objectives
Approved by Council July 18, 2011 (Staff Report 1880)
Updated by Council August 5, 2013 (Staff Report 3950)
Updated by Council May 11, 2015 (Staff Report 5709)
2
Strategic
Objective
Objective Statement Performance
Measure
2015 Target Strategic
Initiative
understand how they can influence their total cost for Utilities services. For
natural gas service, Palo Alto’s supply cost has been relatively stable due to a
laddered gas portfolio purchasing strategy; however, this strategy needs to
be re‐evaluated as gas prices are currently low and are projected to stay low
for the foreseeable future. Although, the average bill for all services should
be comparable to those in surrounding communities, staff will continue to
monitor and report the bills for each service separately on a quarterly basis.
Annual rate change Maximum of 10%
per year for
electric and
wastewater
services.
Maximum of 20%
per year for water
service.
C4. “Care for
our
environment”
Our community wants its customer‐owned utility to offer choices for them
to manage their resource use in ways that reflect their environmental
values. Utilities will improve existing programs and develop new programs
to meet customer needs and allow customers to manage their own
environmental footprint.
Percentage of
customers
participating in the
PaloAltoGreen Gas
program
20% of customers
Re‐evaluate the
cost‐effectiveness
of electrification
especially for new
construction and
evaluate whether
new programs or
incentives can or
should be offered,
consistent with all
applicable legal
requirements.
Percentage of
Greenhouse gas
reductions
10% GHG
reductions
Internal Business Process Perspective
Safety and Reliability
BP1. Ensure a
reliable supply of
utility resources
We will implement strategies that ensure the reliable supply of utility
resources to meet present and future needs. To provide opportunities for
economic development within Palo Alto, we must provide sufficient
resources that meet the short and long‐term needs of our customers. To
achieve this we will maintain the utility system components, and provide for
Duration of electric
system interruption
per year for average
customer
Ranks in the top
quartile
nationwide (less
than 60 minutes
per customer)
Develop a plan to
complete a new
electric
transmission
interconnection.
Utilities Strategic Plan – Strategic Objectives
Approved by Council July 18, 2011 (Staff Report 1880)
Updated by Council August 5, 2013 (Staff Report 3950)
Updated by Council May 11, 2015 (Staff Report 5709)
3
Strategic
Objective
Objective Statement Performance
Measure
2015 Target Strategic
Initiative
adequate utility resource supplies to our current and future customers. We
will also develop new management practices and organizational structure to
ensure compliance with regulatory requirements.
Response time to all
emergency calls
Under 30 minutes Complete the
Water Integrated
Resource Plan
(WIRP) including a
comprehensive
evaluation of the
use of
groundwater by
end of CY 2015.
BP2. Operate
the utility
systems safely
We will continue to ensure the safety of our customers, employees and the
community by the ongoing implementation of a safety programs. Protecting
customers and employees from injury and customer’s property from
damage is essential for delivering quality utility services to our customers.
The safety programs will be implemented by updating safety procedures,
educating customers via outreach materials and workshops, correcting
system deficiencies, operating in accordance with existing safety rules, and
ensuring that products delivered to customers are safe.
AGA (American Gas
Association)
Incidence Rate
Zero reportable
incidents
Customer awareness
of gas safety issues
90% of customers
responding to
annual gas
customer safety
awareness survey
BP3. Replace
infrastructure
before the end
of its useful life
We will continue to implement a long‐term strategy for replacing
infrastructure before the end of its useful life. Reliable delivery of utility
services to our customers is critical for the success of business and the
quality of life for our residents. To accomplish this, we will focus on
reducing any backlog of infrastructure work and replace infrastructure
systems in a manner that spreads the expense across multiple years
resulting in program with even expenditures patterns in future years when
possible.
Backlog of
infrastructure
elements whose
ages are beyond
their useful lives.
Zero Complete long
range Gas and
Water master
infrastructure
plans by end of
CY2015.
Customer Service Excellence
BP4. Serve
customers
promptly and
We will provide customers with the highly responsive service they desire.
We will do this by reviewing and improving our processes for managing
accounts, handling payments, resolving billing issues, responding to
Average phone wait
time
Less than 90
seconds
Utilities Strategic Plan – Strategic Objectives
Approved by Council July 18, 2011 (Staff Report 1880)
Updated by Council August 5, 2013 (Staff Report 3950)
Updated by Council May 11, 2015 (Staff Report 5709)
4
Strategic
Objective
Objective Statement Performance
Measure
2015 Target Strategic
Initiative
completely information and field service requests and notifying customers during
service disruptions. We will identify ways to streamline these processes and
implement changes. Specifically, we will review, document and improve
business processes that have been identified as having long customer
response times.
Number of billing
adjustments
10% reduction
from number in
2009.
BP5. Communic
ate clearly and
pro‐actively with
all our
stakeholders
We will proactively communicate with all our stakeholders, including all
customer groups, civic leaders, community groups and the press. To achieve
this objective we will provide the information needed for our stakeholders
to effectively access, understand and utilize all utilities services and
programs. In addition, we will design communication vehicles and
dissemination processes that will enable our residents to be educated
owners of their municipal utilities system.
Time until informing
the public and local
media of a disruption
affecting all sensitive
major customers
Less than 60
minutes after
becoming aware
of a disruption
BP6. Offer
programs to
meet the needs
of customers
and the
community
We will assist customers to lower their cost of utilities services and support
the environment. We will assist customers facing economic hardship by
offering bill payment assistance programs. We will educate customers on
the reasons for and their means of compliance with our safety and
regulatory requirements. We will also identify all customer groups, identify
any gaps in service provision to those customers, and propose new
programs or changes to existing programs to close those gaps.
Participant*
satisfaction with
Utilities programs
(*rebate recipients,
workshop attendees,
callers, etc.)
At least 90% of
program
participants
satisfied with their
experience
Utilities Strategic Plan – Strategic Objectives
Approved by Council July 18, 2011 (Staff Report 1880)
Updated by Council August 5, 2013 (Staff Report 3950)
Updated by Council May 11, 2015 (Staff Report 5709)
5
Strategic
Objective
Objective Statement Performance
Measure
2015 Target Strategic
Initiative
Reduce Costs
BP7. Negotiate
supply contracts
to minimize
financial risk
We will continue to negotiate supply contracts to acquire supply resources
while managing supply portfolio cost uncertainty to meet rate and reserve
objectives and following sound risk management practices. To ensure that
we are buying commodities at as competitive prices as possible, we will
negotiate contracts with new counterparties to continue to have a sufficient
set of credit‐worthy trading partners. We will continue to develop long‐
term acquisition policies and plans (LEAP) and update those plans at least
every three years. We will also determine all that is necessary to execute a
gas prepay transaction as that is one clear way to lower the cost of gas
supply resources.
Number of
competitive bids
received for each
fixed‐price
transaction.
Minimum of three
bids for electric
power
Participate
actively in
Northern
California Power
Agency’s (NCPA)
on‐going
allocation of cost,
including new cost
allocation studies
if undertaken, to
ensure that the
City’s costs are
fair. Evaluate
alternative
providers for
services provided
by NCPA as
appropriate.
BP8. Reduce
cost of delivering
service through
best
management
practices
We will reduce the cost of delivering service to customers. We will identify
opportunities to better coordinate between Utilities and other City
departments to improve efficient delivery of services. We will perform
benchmarking studies to identify potential modifications to procedures,
practices, materials, and plans and to ensure that we are following best
practices. One best practice is to increase calibration and replacement
schedules for gas and water meters since the meters slow over time causing
actual usage to be under‐recorded, resulting in lost revenue.
“lost and
unaccounted for”
volumes of gas and
water
80% of 2009
levels.
Complete Water
benchmarking
study by end of FY
2015.
Utilities Strategic Plan – Strategic Objectives
Approved by Council July 18, 2011 (Staff Report 1880)
Updated by Council August 5, 2013 (Staff Report 3950)
Updated by Council May 11, 2015 (Staff Report 5709)
6
Strategic
Objective
Objective Statement Performance
Measure
2015 Target Strategic
Initiative
BP9. Maximize
value of existing
generation
assets
Palo Alto owns significant supply resource assets including a portion of the
Calaveras Hydroelectric Project, a contract with the Western Area Power
Administration, a permanent allocation of water from the regional water
system managed by San Francisco, and allocated capacity on a gas
transportation pipeline. We will seek out both daily and operational and
long‐term opportunities to optimize the value of these assets to enhance
revenue and/or to reduce costs. We will work with joint‐owners of our
resource assets to leverage those resources and advocate to maintain or
improve the value of existing resources into the future (LEAP and GULP
strategies).
Value harvested
from Redwood gas
pipeline capacity
100%
BP10. Manage
implementation
of strategic plan
Completing the strategic plan is only the beginning of getting value from the
strategic planning process. Ongoing management of the strategies and
initiatives and reporting on progress of those initiatives is essential to
achieving positive results from the strategy. We will report to the UAC and
Council on this plan’s progress twice annually and we will review and revise
the objectives and develop new initiatives on an annual basis.
Number of strategic
initiatives completed
100%
Environmental Sustainability
BP11. Increase
the
environmental
sustainability of
all Utilities
activities
Adding sustainable resources to the supply portfolios will help the City meet
its Climate Protection Plan goals by reducing the carbon footprint of the
utility services provided to our customers. We will achieve this by acquiring
renewable resources and promoting the development of local renewable
resources within the rate objectives in the Long‐term Electric Acquisition
Plan (LEAP). Sustainable practices will be pursued not just for the supply
portfolios, but across all the Utilities day‐to‐day operations.
Meet the state’s
20% per capita water
use reduction by
2020 target
20% by 2020
Complete EIR and
financial plan for
expanding
recycled water
system
BP12. Promote
efficient use of
resources
Resource efficiency programs meet our customers’ desire for environmental
solutions that save money as well as contributing towards the Climate
Protection Plan goals. We will promote resource efficiency by dedicating the
tactical staffing and budgetary resources necessary to reach maximum
Actual electric
energy efficiency
achievement
At least as high as
goals Council set in
December 2012
Include all cost
effective water
efficiency
measures in 2015
Utilities Strategic Plan – Strategic Objectives
Approved by Council July 18, 2011 (Staff Report 1880)
Updated by Council August 5, 2013 (Staff Report 3950)
Updated by Council May 11, 2015 (Staff Report 5709)
7
Strategic
Objective
Objective Statement Performance
Measure
2015 Target Strategic
Initiative
deployment of economically feasible resource efficiency. We will revise and
document our long‐term efficiency strategies by updating our 10‐year
Energy Efficiency goals every three years and updating our water efficiency
goals every five years in the Urban Water Management Plan. To maximize
the savings potential for new development, coordinate with the City’s
Economic Development Manager to ensure that new developments
incorporate energy saving features in the design phase.
Actual gas energy
efficiency
achievement
At least as high as
goals Council set in
December 2012
Urban Water
Management Plan
(UWMP).
People and Technology Perspective
PT1. Be an
attractive place
to work
We will create a positive values‐based work environment which attracts and
retains qualified staff. To achieve this objective we will try to better
understand employees desires and incentives, and will articulate our values
both internally and as we recruit.
Employee
satisfaction rating
Improvement
from prior year’s
level
PT2. Obtain,
develop and
train employees
to ensure an
adequate and
qualified
workforce
A properly sized, trained and certified workforce is essential to our
effectiveness. We will identify skill and staffing gaps at the individual and
organizational levels and seek to fill those gaps through the effective use of
opportunities including hiring, mentorship programs, role rotations,
knowledge transfer opportunities, long‐term developmental assignments
and both internal and external training opportunities. We will plan for
workforce succession and provide cross‐training opportunities for
employees to improve employee satisfaction and build a more robust work
force.
Percentage of
operations personnel
that has appropriate
certification and
training required for
working in all areas
they may be
assigned
100% Update the 5‐year
succession plan
for each division.
PT3. Ensure
employees have
adequate tools
to perform job
duties
As major users of technology assets, we must have access to quality and
timely delivered IT services. We must build and maintain an effective
relationship with the City’s IT division that includes clear, frequent
communication as well as productive coordination. We will collaborate with
IT to identify barriers to providing support for technology projects and
remove them. In those instances in which our immediate technology needs
cannot be addressed by the City’s IT division in a timely or sufficiently‐
comprehensive fashion, we will utilize external expertise.
Employees have
adequate tools and
training to perform
their jobs
100% of
employees
Develop a
Utilities‐specific
smart grid and IT
strategic plan.
Utilities Strategic Plan – Strategic Objectives
Approved by Council July 18, 2011 (Staff Report 1880)
Updated by Council August 5, 2013 (Staff Report 3950)
Updated by Council May 11, 2015 (Staff Report 5709)
8
Strategic
Objective
Objective Statement Performance
Measure
2015 Target Strategic
Initiative
PT4. Investigate
and adopt
innovative
technologies
Our customers value Utilities embracing new technologies that will help
reduce costs and/or meet Climate Protection Plan goals. We will innovate
by researching technologies and cultivating relationships with entrepreneurs
and academics to identify new cost‐effective and environmentally
sustainable technologies to consider adopting. New technologies, programs,
and projects identified in the smart grid strategic plan will be implemented.
Number of new
technologies
evaluated per year
by an in‐depth study
or pilot project
Three
Financial Perspective
F1. Maintain
financial
strength
Maintaining a high credit rating reduces the cost of borrowing if needed for
capital projects. We will continue best practices for financial management,
adhere to energy risk management policies and guidelines to minimize
financial risk, and maintain sufficient reserves to cover debt obligations as
required to retain CPAU’s current favorable bond rating so that the cost of
capital is low for any bond funded capital projects.
Credit rating At least AA as
determined by
Fitch Ratings or
Standard and
Poor’s or at least
Aa3 as determined
by Moody’s
F2. Maintain
adequate
reserves
Maintaining adequate cash reserves contributes to maintaining our overall
financial health and retaining our current favorable bond rating. We will
maintain Rate Stabilization Reserves levels within Council‐approved
guidelines and sufficient to provide rate stability as desired by ratepayers.
During the annual budget and rate setting process, the risks that each
Utilities fund is exposed to will be identified along with the trajectory of
costs and revenues to allow Council to determine appropriate reserve levels
and rate adjustments.
Operations Reserve
levels
Within guidelines
in Council‐adopted
long‐term
Financial Plans
Utilities Strategic Plan – Strategic Objectives
Approved by Council July 18, 2011 (Staff Report 1880)
Updated by Council August 5, 2013 (Staff Report 3950)
Updated by Council May 11, 2015 (Staff Report 5709)
9
Strategic
Objective
Objective Statement Performance
Measure
2015 Target Strategic
Initiative
F3. Implement
rate structures
that balance cost
of service and
resource
conservation
Retail rates should be designed so that the revenues from a customer group
match the cost to serve those customers. Rates consist of fixed charges and
volumetric charges, which are based on usage. Fixed costs consist of
customer‐related costs (meter reading, billing, etc.) and costs related to
capital projects and operations while variable costs include the cost of
buying supplies (water, gas, or electricity). When fixed costs are recovered
through charges based on usage, costs will not be recovered if customers
reduce usage more than projected. To address this problem we will
examine alternate rate structures that strike a balance between the two
competing objectives (cost of service and resource efficiency) to ensure that
certain fixed costs are recovered with a fixed charge, but other costs are
recovered with charges that vary depending on usage (volumetric charges).
Complete Electric
cost of service
analysis (COSA) by
end of CY 2015.
10
Maintain adequate
reservesMaintain financial
strength
Implement rate structures that balance cost of
service and resource conservation
Fi
n
a
n
c
i
a
l
Re
s
o
u
r
c
e
s
Pe
o
p
l
e
a
n
d
Te
c
h
n
o
l
o
g
y
Be an attractive
place to work
Obtain, develop and train
employees to ensure an
adequate and qualified workforce
Ensure employees have
adequate tools to
perform job duties
Values: Honesty and Integrity Teamwork Accountability Quality of Service
“Be responsive to all
my Utilities services-
related needs”
“I receive safe and
reliable service”
“I expect to pay a
reasonable bill”
“Care for our
environment”
Vision: We Deliver Extraordinary Value to Our Customers
Strategic Destination: We will earn the high satisfaction of our customers with our cost-
competitive provision of safe, reliable and environmentally sustainable utility services
Cu
s
t
o
m
e
r
Operate the
Utilities systems
safely
Reliability and Safety Customer Service
Excellence
Manage Cost Environmental
Sustainability
Serve customers
promptly and
completely
Offer programs to meet
the needs of customers
and the community
Communicate clearly and
proactively with all our
stakeholders
Negotiate supply contracts
to minimize financial risk
Reduce cost of delivering
service through best
management practices
In
t
e
r
n
a
l
B
u
s
i
n
e
s
s
P
r
o
c
e
s
s
e
s
Increase the
environmental
sustainability of all
Utilities operations
Promote efficient
use of resources
Investigate and
adopt innovative
technologies
Ensure a reliable
supply of utility
resources
Replace infrastructure
before the end of its
useful life
Maximize value of existing
generation assets
Manage implementation
of strategic plan
Balanced Scorecard Performance Measure Results Attachment - B
Measure ID Strategic
Objective Objective Statement Performance Measure 2015 Target
Measure Goal
Value FY 2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016
Score
(Values: +, -
, TBD)
C1.1
C1. “I receive safe
and reliable service.”
Customers expect that Utilities services are provided on a continuous basis, without
interruption. In addition, customers expect that the Utilities delivery systems are
safe and will not harm them or put them in any danger. We will listen to our
customers and seek to understand their reliability and safety concerns and
implement programs and projects to address them.
Average time to restore service
per interrupted customer Less than 90 minutes <90 113 min 139 min 38.69 263.57 164.78
-
C1.2
Number of electric system
interruptions per year for average
customer
Ranks in the top quartile
nationwide (less than .9) <0.9 0.13 0.25 0.41 0.18 0.24
+
C2
C2. “Be
responsive to all my
utilities-related
service needs.”
We understand that the customer wants clear, accurate bills with easy methods of
payment; access to usage history and enough understanding to efficiently manage
usage; to feel quickly and completely “taken care of” when they have concerns,
questions or requests and to be communicated with effectively both as individuals
and as CPAU’s owners. One of the ways to achieve this is to elicit feedback from
customers to help improve service.
Customer satisfaction scores on
annual surveys for overall value. Ranking in 85-90% >85%
81%
Commercial
86%
Residential
85%
Water
Customers 87% Commercial
82%
Residential
-
C3.1
C3. “I expect to
pay a reasonable
bill”
We understand that customers expect their bills to be comparable to those in
surrounding communities and do not expect to pay more than PG&E customers.
Customers believe it is reasonable to pay slightly more in exchange for increased
reliability, safety and protection of the environment. However, customers’ overall
bills for Utilities services must remain reasonable and should not increase
significantly in any one year. Customers also want their bills to provide useful
information about their consumption of resources in addition to the rate so that they
can understand how they can influence their total cost for Utilities services.
The average combined residential
customer bill for electricity, water,
gas, and wastewater services.
Less than the average
of bills for comparable
services in nearby
communities (MP, MV,
SC, Hayward, RC,
Roseville, and
Alameda).
Total bill calculation
for each month for
CPAU and for
comparator agencies -
this changes every
year so Measure
Goal Value is not a
constant
CPAU:
E - $42.76
G - $51.03
W - $51.19
WW - $27.91
Tot - $172.89
Nearby
community
average:
$158.93
CPAU:
E - $42.76
G - $37.49
W - $62.16
WW - $29.31
Tot - $171.72
Nearby
community
average: $166.35
CPAU:
E - $42.76
G - $38.89
W - $67.35
WW - $29.31
Tot - $178.31
Nearby
community
average: $177.06
CPAU:
E - $42.76
G - $37.39
W - $67.35
WW - $29.31
Tot - $177.22
Nearby
community
average: $191.63
CPAU:
E - $42.76
G - $37.98
W - $75.35
WW - $31.95
Tot - $188.04
Nearby
community
average: $204.86
+
C3.2 Annual rate change
Maximum of 10% per
year for electric, gas,
and wastewater Utilities
service.
Maximum of 20% per
year for water Utility
service.
<10% for E, G, WWC
<20% for W
Effective 7/1/11:
E 0%
G 0%
W 12.5%
WW 0%
Effective 7/1/12:
E 0%
G -10%*
W 15%
WW 5%
*Gas supply rates
change monthly
Effective 7/1/13:
E 0%
G 0%*
W 7%
WW 0%
*Gas supply
rates change
monthly
Effective 7/1/14:
E 0%
G 0%*
W 0%
WW 0%
*Gas supply
rates change
monthly
Effective 7/1/15:
E 0%
G 0%
W 12%
WW 9%
*Gas supply
rates change
monthly
**Drought
surcharge added
9/1/15 still in
effect
+
C4.1
C4. “Care for our
environment”
Our community wants its customer-owned utility to offer choices for them to
manage their resource use in ways that reflect their environmental values. Utilities
will improve existing programs and develop new programs to meet customer needs
and allow customers to manage their own environmental footprint.
Percentage of customers
participating in the PaloAltoGreen
Gas program 20% Customers Top rank nationally E - 24% E - 18% E - 18% G - 3.2% G - 3.8%
N/A
Customer and Community Perspective
1
Balanced Scorecard Performance Measure Results Attachment - B
Measure ID Strategic
Objective Objective Statement Performance Measure 2015 Target
Measure Goal
Value FY 2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016
Score
(Values: +, -
, TBD)
C4.2
Percentage of greenhouse gas
reductions
10% greenhouse gas
reductions N/A N/A N/A 1.3% 5.6%
N/A
2
Balanced Scorecard Performance Measure Results Attachment - B
Measure ID Strategic
Objective Objective Statement Performance Measure 2015 Target
Measure Goal
Value FY 2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016
Score
(Values: +, -
, TBD)
BP1.1
BP1. Ensure a
reliable supply of
utility resources
We will implement strategies that ensure the reliable supply of utility resources to
meet present and future needs. To provide opportunities for economic
development within Palo Alto, we must provide sufficient resources that meet the
short and long-term needs of our customers. To achieve this we will maintain the
utility system components, and provide for adequate utility resource supplies to our
current and future customers. We will also develop new management practices
and organizational structure to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements.
Duration of electric system
interruption per year for average
customer
Ranks in the top quartile
nationwide (less than 60
minutes per customer) <60 15 min 34 min 15.78 min 46.85 39.48
+
BP1.2
Response time to all emergency
calls Under 30 minutes <30m 22 min 23 min 22 min 22 Min 19 min
+
BP2.1
BP2. Operate the
utility systems safely
We will continue to ensure the safety of our customers, employees and the
community by the ongoing implementation of a safety programs. Protecting
customers and employees from injury and customer’s property from damage is
essential for delivering quality utility services to our customers. The safety programs
will be implemented by updating safety procedures, educating customers via
outreach materials and workshops, correcting system deficiencies, operating in
accordance with existing safety rules, and ensuring that products delivered to
customers are safe.
AGA (American Gas Association)
Incidence Rate Zero reportable
incidents
0 00000
+
BP2.2
Customer awareness of gas safety
issues
90% of customers
responding to annual
gas customer safety
awareness survey >90% 96.70% 96% 96% 94.6% 97.0%
+
BP3
BP3. Replace
infrastructure before
the end of its useful
life
We will continue to implement a long-term strategy for replacing infrastructure
before the end of its useful life. Reliable delivery of electric service to our
customers is critical for the success of business and the quality of life for our
residents. To accomplish this, we will focus on reducing the backlog and replaces
infrastructure systems in a manner that spreads the expense across multiple years
resulting in program with even expenditures patterns in future years.
Backlog of infrastructure elements
whose age is beyond its useful life Zero
E - $0
G - $0
W - $0
WWC - $0
E - $7M
G - $1M
W - $3M
WW - $5M
E $7M
G $0
W $7M
WW $5M
E $6.4 M
G $0 M
W $4 M
WW $3 M
E $4 M
G $0 M
W $2 M
WW $3 M
E $3.7M
G $0M
W $2.1 M
WW $2.6 M
-
Internal Business Process Perspective
Safety and Reliability
3
Balanced Scorecard Performance Measure Results Attachment - B
Measure ID Strategic
Objective Objective Statement Performance Measure 2015 Target
Measure Goal
Value FY 2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016
Score
(Values: +, -
, TBD)
BP4.1
BP4. Serve
customers promptly
and completely
We will provide customers with the highly responsive service they desire. We will
do this by reviewing and improving our processes for managing accounts, handling
payments, resolving billing issues, responding to information and field service
requests and notifying customers during service disruptions. We will identify ways
to streamline these processes and implement changes. Specifically, we will review,
document and improve business processes that have been identified as having
long customer response times. Average phone wait time 90 seconds or less <90 sec 134 sec 107 sec 63 sec 68 sec 62 sec +
BP4.2 Number of billing adjustments
10% reduction from
number in 2009
FY09 - 3286
90% - 2,958 1,365 1,340 2,743 1,449 1,165 +
BP5
BP5.
Communicate
clearly and pro-
actively with all our
stakeholders
We will proactively communicate with all our stakeholders, including all customer
groups, civic leaders, community groups and the press. To achieve this objective
we will provide the information needed for our stakeholders to effectively access,
understand and utilize all utilities services and programs. In addition, we will design
communication vehicles and dissemination processes that will enable our residents
to be educated owners of their municipal utilities system.
Time until informing the public and
local media of a disruption
affecting all sensitive major
customers
Less than 90 60 30
minutes after becoming
aware of a disruption <60m < 90 min <30 Min <30 Min <30 Min <30 min +
BP6
BP6. Offer
programs to meet
the needs of
customers and the
community
We will assist customers to lower their cost of utilities services and support the
environment. We will assist customers facing economic hardship by offering bill
payment assistance programs. We will educate customers on the reasons for and
their means of compliance with our safety and regulatory requirements. We will
also identify all customer groups, identify any gaps in service provision to those
customers, and propose new programs or changes to existing programs to close
those gaps.
Participant* satisfaction with
Utilities programs (*rebate
recipients, workshop attendees,
callers, etc.)
At least 90% of program
participants satisfied
with their experience >90%
Average of all
workshops:
94%
Average of all
workshop: 95%
Average of all
workshop: 95%
Average of all
workshop: 95%
Workshops &
Home Energy
Genie: 93.83%+
BP7
BP7. Negotiate
supply contracts to
minimize financial
risk
We will continue to negotiate supply contracts to acquire supply resources while
managing supply portfolio cost uncertainty to meet rate and reserve objectives and
following sound risk management practices. To ensure that we are buying
commodities at as competitive prices as possible, we will negotiate contracts with
new counterparties to continue to have a sufficient set of credit-worthy trading
partners. We will continue to develop long-term acquisition policies and plans
(LEAP) and update those plans at least every three years. We will also determine
all that is necessary to execute a gas prepay transaction as that is one clear way to
lower the cost of gas supply resources.
Number of competitive bids
received for each fixed-price
transaction.
Minimum of three
electric bids > 3 E - 2.75 bids E - 2.4 E - 3.5 bids E - 4.6bids E - 3.9 bids
+
BP8
BP8. Reduce cost
of delivering service
through best
management
practices
We will work towards reducing the cost of delivering service to customers. We will
identify opportunities to better coordinate between Utilities and other City
departments to improve efficient delivery of services. We will perform
benchmarking studies to identify potential modifications to procedures, practices,
materials, and plans and to ensure that we are following best practices. One best
practice is to increase calibration and replacement schedules for gas and water
meters since the meters slow over time so that the actual usage is under-recorded,
resulting in lost revenue.
“lost and unaccounted for”
volumes of gas and water 80% of 2009 levels.
2009
G - 2.6%
W - 5.0%
G - 2.8%
W - 8.2%
G-2.1%
W-7.8%
G-2.5%
W-8.6%
G-2.3%
W-5.0%
G-0.0%
W-4.9%
-
Customer Service Excellence
Reduce Costs
4
Balanced Scorecard Performance Measure Results Attachment - B
Measure ID Strategic
Objective Objective Statement Performance Measure 2015 Target
Measure Goal
Value FY 2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016
Score
(Values: +, -
, TBD)
BP9
BP9. Maximize
value of existing
generation assets
Palo Alto owns significant supply resource assets including a portion of the
Calaveras Hydroelectric Project, a contract with the Western Area Power
Administration, a permanent allocation of water from the regional water system
managed by San Francisco, and allocated capacity on a gas transportation pipeline.
We will seek out both daily and operational and long-term opportunities to optimize
the value of these assets to enhance revenue and/or to reduce costs. We will work
with joint-owners of our resource assets to leverage those resources and advocate
to maintain or improve the value of existing resources into the future (LEAP and
GULP strategies).
Value harvested from Redwood
gas pipeline capacity 100% 100% 99% 100% 100% 100% 100%
+
BP10
BP10. Manage
implementation of
strategic plan
Completing the strategic plan is only the beginning of getting value from the
strategic planning process. Ongoing management of the strategies and initiatives
and reporting on progress of those initiatives is essential to achieving positive
results from the strategy. We will report to the UAC and Council on plan progress
twice annually and we will review and revise the objectives and develop new
initiatives on an annual basis.
Number of strategic initiatives
completed 100% or 26 100% 8 8 10 13 16
-
BP11
BP11. Increase
the environmental
sustainability of the
supply portfolios
Adding sustainable resources to the supply portfolios will help the City meet its
Climate Protection Plan goals by reducing the carbon footprint of the utility services
provided to our customers. We will achieve this by acquiring renewable resources
and promoting the development of local renewable resources within the rate
objectives in the Long-term Electric Acquisition Plan (LEAP).
Meet states 20% per capita water
use reduction by 2020
20% of baseline (2015)
level 4,611,979 CCF N/A N/A N/A N/A 19.6% 29.2%
+
BP12
BP12. Promote
efficient use of
resources
Resource efficiency programs meet our customers’ desire for environmental
solutions that save money as well as contributing towards the Climate Protection
Plan goals. We will promote resource efficiency by dedicating the tactical staffing
and budgetary resources necessary to reach maximum deployment of economically
feasible resource efficiency. We will revise and document our long-term efficiency
strategies by updating our 10-year Energy Efficiency goals every three years and
updating our water efficiency goals every five years in the Urban Water
Management Plan.
Actual annual energy efficiency
achievement as percentage of
electric and gas load
E - Goals Council set in
December 2012
G - Goals Council set in
December 2012
E - 0.60%
G - 0.50%
E - 1.52%
G - 0.73%
E - 0.85%
G - 1.13%
E - 0.87%
G - 1.16%
E - 0.65%
G - 0.92%
E - 0.59%
G - 1.08%
-
Environmental Sustainability
5
Balanced Scorecard Performance Measure Results Attachment - B
Measure ID Strategic
Objective Objective Statement Performance Measure 2015 Target
Measure Goal
Value FY 2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016
Score
(Values: +, -
, TBD)
PT1
PT1. Be an
attractive place to
work
We will create a positive values-based work environment which attracts and retains
qualified staff. To achieve this objective we will try to better understand employees
desires, work with City management to establish sufficient compensation, benefits,
and incentives, and will articulate our values both internally and as we recruit.Employee satisfaction rating
Improvement from 2012
baseline level 100%
62.7% -
Satisfied
12.7% - Neutral
66.3% - Satisfied
12.5% - Neutral
72.5%- Satisfied
5%- Neutral
62.4%- Satisfied
15.6%- Neutral
70.8%- Satisfied
8.9%- Neutral
+
PT2
PT2. Develop and
train employees to
ensure a qualified
workforce
A properly trained and certified workforce is essential to our effectiveness. We will
identify skill gaps at the individual and organizational levels and seek to fill those
gaps through the effective use of opportunities including mentorship programs, role
rotations, knowledge transfer opportunities and both internal and external training
opportunities. We will plan for workforce succession and provide cross-training
opportunities for employees to improve employee satisfaction and build a more
robust work force.
Percentage of operations
personnel that has appropriate
certification and training required
for working in all areas they may
be assigned 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%
+
PT3
PT3. Ensure
employees have
adequate tools to
perform job duties
As major users of technology assets, we must have access to quality and timely
delivered IT services. We must build and maintain an effective relationship with the
City’s IT division that includes clear, frequent communication as well as productive
coordination. We will collaborate with IT to identify barriers to providing support for
technology projects and remove them. In those instances in which our immediate
technology needs cannot be addressed by the City’s IT division in a timely or
sufficiently-comprehensive fashion, we will utilize external expertise.
Employees have adequate tools
and training to perform their jobs 100% of employees 100% N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
N/A
PT4
PT4. Investigate
and adopt innovative
technologies
Our customers value Utilities embracing new technologies that will help reduce
costs and/or meet Climate Protection Plan goals. We will innovate by researching
technologies and cultivating relationships with entrepreneurs and academics to
identify new cost-effective and environmentally sustainable technologies to consider
adopting. Review of Utilities Technology needs was completed in 2014 and a
technology strategic plan is expected to be completed by the end of CY 2015. New
technologies, programs, and projects identified in the plan will be implemented in
the subsequent years.
Number of new technologies
evaluated per year Three >3 N/A 13 15 15 14
+
People and Technology Perspective
6
Balanced Scorecard Performance Measure Results Attachment - B
Measure ID Strategic
Objective Objective Statement Performance Measure 2015 Target
Measure Goal
Value FY 2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016
Score
(Values: +, -
, TBD)
F1
F1. Maintain
financial strength
Maintaining a high credit rating reduces the cost of borrowing if needed for capital
projects. We will continue best practices for financial management, adhere to
energy risk management policies and guidelines and maintain sufficient reserves to
cover debt obligations as required to retain CPAU’s current favorable bond rating so
that the cost of capital is low for any bond funded capital projects. Credit rating
At least AA as
determined by Fitch
Ratings or Standard and
Poor’s or at least Aa3
as determined by
Moody’s <=AA or <=Aa3
S&P = AAA
Moody's = Aa2
S&P = AAA
Moody's = Aa2
S&P = AAA
Moody's = Aa2
S&P = AAA
Moody's = Aa2
S&P = AAA
Moody's = Aa2
+
F2
F2. Maintain
adequate reserves Operations Reserve levels
Within guidelines in
Council-adopted long-
term financial plans
Above rate
stabilization reserve
levels
All RSRs are
above minimum
guideline levels.
All RSRs are
above minimum
guideline levels.
All RSRs are
above minimum
guideline levels.
All reserves are
within Operations
reserve guideline
levels.
E - Below
G - Above
W - Above
WWC - Within
-
F3
F3. Implement
rate structures that
balance cost of
service and
resource
conservation
Retail rates should be designed so that the revenues from a customer group match
the cost to serve those customers. Rates consist of fixed charges and volumetric
charges, which are based on usage. Fixed costs consist of customer-related costs
(meter reading, billing, etc.) and costs related to capital projects and operations
while variable costs include the cost of buying supplies (water, gas, or electricity).
When fixed costs are recovered through charges based on usage, costs will not be
recovered if customers reduce usage more than projected. To address this
problem we will implement rate structures that strike a balance between the two
competing objectives (cost of service and resource efficiency) to ensure that certain
fixed costs are recovered with a fixed charge, but other costs are recovered with
charges that vary depending on usage (volumetric charges). Fixed charges on Utilities rates
By 2013, adequate to
cover 100% of the fixed
costs of meter reading,
billing, and other
customer-related costs
E - 100%
G - 100%
W - 100%
WWC - 100%
E - NA
G - 100%
W - 100%
WWC - 100%
E - NA
G - 100%
W - 100%
WWC - 100%
E - NA
G - 100%
W - 100%
WWC - 100%
E - NA
G - 100%
W - 100%
WWC - 100%
E - 100%*
G - 100%
W - 100%
WWC - 100%
+
Financial Perspective
7
Attachment - C
1
Strategic Initiatives of the Utilities Strategic Plan
(as of March 2017)
For the customer and community perspective:
1. Establish mechanisms to elicit customer feedback on their satisfaction with all interactions
with CPAU.
The Utilities Communication Plan has been redrafted for 2013 and includes plans for
further expanding available mechanisms for eliciting customer feedback. Due to staffing
and resource limitations, we do not anticipate fully implementing mechanisms for
immediate feedback after all customer interactions until 2014. Meanwhile, the
CMUA/RKS survey of residential customers was conducted in 2012 which gave some
generalized feedback on customer satisfaction. We have gotten more specific feedback
via evaluations at workshops, events and as part of programs such as the backflow
prevention device inventory program. We are redesigning the My Utilities Account web
portals to include a user’s feedback mechanism and we are upgrading our MyCPAU
Mobile App to make it easier for users to give us feedback.
2. Improve the electronic bill presentment, payment functionality and enhance the utility’s
online capabilities.
Replace bill redesign with improve the electronic bill presentment, payment
functionality and enhancing the utility’s mobile web capabilities. Improved “My Utilities
Account” portal design with updated electronic bill presentment, greater payment
functionality, and streamlined user interfaces in FY2013‐2014.
19. Reevaluate the cost‐effectiveness of electrification especially for new construction and
evaluate whether new programs or incentives can or should be offered consistent with all
applicable and legal requirements.
On August 2015, City Council approved a ten‐point work plan to evaluate and
implement greenhouse gas reduction strategies by reducing natural gas and gasoline
use through electrification measures. The work plan consists of two phases over a five
year period. The first phase is already underway which will determine the scope of the
analysis and identify any staff and/or consulting resources required to complete it.
For the people and technology perspective:
6. Update the 5‐year succession plan for each division.
A succession organizational chart is being created for each division to identify skill set
gaps and employees eligible for retirement.
7. Develop a Utilities‐specific smart grid and IT strategic plan.
The Utilities‐specific IT strategic plan is on hold pending completion of the citywide IT
strategic plan.
Attachment - C
2
For the financial perspective:
None pending
For the internal business process perspective:
11. Develop a plan to complete a new electric transmission interconnection.
Staff will continue to provide updates to the UAC on the feasibility of a second electric
transmission line source for the City by connecting the City’s Quarry Substation to the
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory 230 kV Substation.
20. Complete long range Gas and Water master infrastructure plans by end of CY 2015.
Master Plan for the Water Utility to address infrastructure replacement priorities has
been completed. This data is now being incorporated in the CIP planning for the next CIP
cycle. In addition, an analysis of gas pipe materials is in progress and will be used to
complete a gas master planning process next year.
21. Participate actively in Northern California Power Agency (NCPA) on‐going allocation of cost,
including new cost allocation studies if undertaken, to ensure that the City’s costs are fair.
Evaluate alternative providers for services provided by NCPA as appropriate.
CPAU staff continues to actively participate in studies and efforts to allocate costs to
Palo Alto and its other members as part of the annual budget process.
22. Complete Environmental Impact Report (EIR) and financial plan for expanding recycled
water system.
The Environmental Impact Report was certified by Council in September 2015. Palo Alto
and the Santa Clara Valley Water district have embarked on a project to initiate
preliminary design of the recycled water distribution system expansion and develop a
business plan to confirm the economic feasibility of constructing the pipeline in 2018.
23. Complete Water benchmarking study by the end of FY 2015.
Staff conducted a benchmark in 2014 comparing CPAU water rates with several nearby
agencies. The preliminary findings were shared with Finance Committee in May 2017.
3. Reassess the gas portfolio laddering purchasing strategy.
Gas purchasing strategy was changed and approved by Council in November 2011; Staff
will present changes to Gas Utility Long‐term Plan, reserve guidelines, and
implementation timeline in 2012.
4. Redesign the PaloAltoGreen program.
The new PaloAltoGreen Gas program was approved by Council on April 21, 2014 (Staff
Report 4596) and will be launched by October 2014.
Attachment - C
3
5. Implement an annual employee satisfaction survey.
An employee satisfaction survey was completed for Utilities in October 2011.
8. Develop a process to evaluate and implement new technology through targeted programs
and consider creating a fund for innovative projects and pilots.
The Emerging Technologies Pilot and Demonstration Program was approved by Council
in January 2012.
9. Re‐evaluate the need for and purpose of the Calaveras (stranded cost) Reserve.
The name and purpose of the Calaveras Reserve has been changed to Electric Special
Project Reserve with new guidelines.
10. Evaluate the appropriate fraction of fixed costs to be collected by fixed charges.
Staff will bring forward rate structure revisions based on cost of service for gas and
water in FY 2016 budget.
12. Prepare a Utilities Communications Plan that incorporates increased use of neighborhood
and business organizations and schools to disseminate program and educational
information.
The Utilities Communication Plan has been drafted and is a working document that is
being constantly updated.
13. Pursue gas prepay transactions to leverage the City’s low cost of capital and tax‐exempt
status to acquire low cost gas supply resources.
After unanimous support from the UAC and Finance Committee, the Council approved a
long‐term prepay transaction with MuniGas on September 15, 2014 (Staff Report 5006).
14. Actively participate in citywide efforts to improve the procurement process.
Utilities is a member of the City’s procurement design team which is tasked to make
recommendations to improve sole source process, increase Cal Card usage, and
implement departmental BID process.
15. Evaluate and implement opportunities to maximize the value of the Calaveras project in the
new electric market framework.
Staff is now able to capture virtually all of the value of the Redwood gas pipeline, the
pipeline from Malin, and Oregon to PG&E Citygate.
16. Develop a program to ensure that the strategic plan is pursued and that objectives and
initiatives are managed.
A balanced scorecard has been implemented to track the performance measures and
initiatives in the strategic plan.
17. Develop implementation plans to achieve the long‐term water and energy efficiency goals
and implement programs as outlined in the implementation plans.
The Urban Water Management Plan was adopted by Council in June 2011.
18. Develop a comprehensive Utilities financial policy by January 2014 to provide direction for
future cost of service studies and rate‐setting priorities.
Staff developed new comprehensive Financial Plans for the Electric, Gas, Wastewater
Collection and Water Funds, which were approved by Council on June 9, 2014 (Staff
Report 4799).
Attachment - C
4
24. Complete Electric cost of service analysis (COSA) by end of CY 2015.
The electric cost of service and rate study was completed in April 2016. The
recommended rates changes by customer class to recover revenue were implemented
in FY 2016.
25. Include all cost effective water efficiency measures in 2015 Urban Water Management Plan
(UWMP).
The updated 2015 UWMP including new demand management measures to meet new
State requirements for potable water use reductions was approved by Council in May
2016.
26. Complete the Water Integrated Resource Plan (WIRP) including a comprehensive evaluation
of the use of groundwater by end of CY 2015.
The 2017 Water Integrated Resources Plan was approved by Council in March 2017.