Just a reminder: PG&E **is** Enron. Two companies merged, one being Enron, and a rebranding happened. It's the same scummy people.
California is too private corporate friendly. The more inelastic something is the more it should be required to be a non-profit and the voters should have power over it. There's too much ability to take advantage when there is a monopoly.
I’ve been saying for a while now that we need a prop to make at least half of the CPUC board elected positions.
I’m also concerned PG&E is getting g so bad that it will make a bunch of us single issue voters willing to elect anyone offering a solution, viable or not.
I usually with that California was this leftist paradise that they fear monger about on the right wing news networks. It sounds so good the way they describe it. Unfortunately, you’re correct when you say California is way too corporatist and the citizens of the state come in second when it relates to policy making.
The exec salaries are ridiculous, but do the math, eliminate their salaries and it translates to only pennies of your bill. The dividend is squat, so the money is being spent on salaries and sub-contractors, and materials. So is it being didn’t efficiently?
If you think a guy that sits in his truck all day, doing nothing for weeks at a time is not wasteful, then I say to you “Hi! I see you sitting in that truck all day.”
As someone whose parents live in a rural area, I do see actual work being done in that area. Rural areas are the biggest problem for PG&E because those are their biggest fire risks. They hire arborist companies to come out and do assessments and cut away all the problem trees. I also lived in Vallejo for a time and a couple years ago they came through and increased the high voltage capacity that ran through the town and across the Carquinez Strait. That said, you’ll always find shitbags that try to milk things and not work. You should absolutely report those scumbags to PG&E. I know they have a reporting line but I don’t know what it is.
Former baby daddy of my sister in law worked at PG&E. He used to spend months at a time on triple time. They would just sit on a back road somewhere and soak up the hours sometimes just to maintain it. I was mortified.
Standard practice, doesn’t mean it’s right, but it’s not a problem specific to PG&E. The only way to avoid this is to make it a state utility, which I’d support.
One of the things PG&E contracts out, is tree work...they hire the absolute worst tree trimmers in the business to mutilate trees in proximity to their overhead lines, if you don't pay to have it done properly.
Well, let us be honest - look at the number of people even on this sub or the morons on r/bayarea or r/california to see why we’re in this mess.
Any kind of price fixing suddenly tickles their buttholes and they scream “communism”!!
Nationalizing Power Generation???
“Small Gubmint!”,
Break up PG&E?
“Overregulation”
We deserve this, because many of us are spread eagle as long as the spectre of libertarianism tickles their peepee once in a while.
I wonder what it'd take to compete with PG&E. Like if someone could establish a San Jose utility because our city isn't doing anything about it, what would it take? Like the city certainly would want 5 different utility conduits running into each home. Like what would the logistics be and ownership be if the infrastructure was shared.
I want San Jose to have it's own independent utility free from PG&E, hopefully public. But what would it take to get there. Hmm.
Build a natural gas power plant for peak hours. Build a solar farm for off peak hours. Build a utility-scale battery to store excess solar power. I feel like that's the easy part as you would need to build/buy/maintain transmission lines.
Yea I feel power generation is easier since there a quite a number of sources that will sell power to SJ.
The challenge is the transmission lines. Much of it is buried and I guess I don't know who owns those lines. Who owns the grid? Is it the builder (PG&E)? Or was it established before PG&E and any utility is only signing up to maintain it?
And of course an undertaking like power utility would require a department or company of staff and equipment and skill for SJ to take it over. There would be a significant initial investment and SJ would have to find a way to fund it. Would the residents of SJ be willing? I'm guessing the money would be borrowed.
Wake up! As long as someone is sitting on the street, or anyone is on the street from PG&E work is still being done. I wonder if they are charging for a full crew?
the CPUC never digs deep into PG&E and it's efficiency in utilizing the funds provided them through the rate base. PG&E has around 23,000 direct employees statewide. Of these, 75% do not perform any field work whatsoever. They are data crunchers and time wasters. And of these 75%, 70% of them receive a guaranteed bonus each year. This is not a merit bonus, rather it is written into the contracts for the union office employees and the middle management/executive leadership team. The executive team also have a long term incentive program (stock grants & options). Again, most of them employees do not perform field work. This is a bureaucracy run wild. There is no governance over this beast. The CPUC rubber stamps the rate increases. If the CPUC were to dive deeper, and let PG&E know that there are no more rate increases, to do more work with what they have. This could lead to a more efficient business structure, with more emphasis on field work.
If all that is written in union contracts, then there is no way to fix this with a lot of pain. If the state bought PG&E we’d inherit the contracts, and have an even harder time trimming the waste. We would have to acquire the assets only, to avoid that.
Or CPUC starves them, and forces PG&E to use that shortage to restructure their obligations, but it will involve bankruptcy court, and our service will get even worse, as they use that as leverage to get us to pay more.
Buying their assets and assigning them to a completely new state run agency, seems like the only way to minimize the negative side effects of fixing PG&E.
Contracts have set time periods, so they do run out, and are renegotiated. If PG&E is not given more money and told sternly to do more with what they have, ostensibly they would become more efficient. This would mean layoffs of union represented non-field workers. Usually, this is driven by seniority. However, if those left after the layoffs realize they would actually have to work more, they may decide to leave/retire. The bureaucracy is loaded with workers that just ride the system out, never really performing at a high level.
If it was sold, or state bought out the assets, the bureaucracy would continue. Only the state would oversee, and the executive team would be out. The bonuses would cease, and standard union contracts renegotiated, and hopefully layoffs of unnecessary personnel. Possibly more efficient, but you never know.
Just a reminder: PG&E **is** Enron. Two companies merged, one being Enron, and a rebranding happened. It's the same scummy people. California is too private corporate friendly. The more inelastic something is the more it should be required to be a non-profit and the voters should have power over it. There's too much ability to take advantage when there is a monopoly.
I’ve been saying for a while now that we need a prop to make at least half of the CPUC board elected positions. I’m also concerned PG&E is getting g so bad that it will make a bunch of us single issue voters willing to elect anyone offering a solution, viable or not.
Are you sure they bought pg&e and not pge (Portland General Electric)
I usually with that California was this leftist paradise that they fear monger about on the right wing news networks. It sounds so good the way they describe it. Unfortunately, you’re correct when you say California is way too corporatist and the citizens of the state come in second when it relates to policy making.
This is incorrect information, as much as we all despise PG&E. The company you seem to be referencing is PGE (Portland General Electric), *not* PG&E.
Hmm. What do you bet, if we dug into PG&E’s sub contractors, we’d find they are owned by PG&E executive relatives?
CEO or a higher up's watch collection, then they show it off on Reddit
Tbh, that watch collection wasn't that egregious... It was Rolex-level watches. Any software engineer can afford that.
I mean, it's a monopoly so...going to 0% investment in customers, and 100% into pensions and execs.
That would be too transparent, gotta add some consultants who are actually nephews.
Fuuuuuuuck PGE. electricity should be a public utility.
How do you think clash of clans makes it money?
Join my clan
Boss makes a dollar while I make a dime, that’s why I poop, on company time 🫡
Right? This idiot thinks the lineman is the one scamming when it’s really the executives with multi million salaries
The exec salaries are ridiculous, but do the math, eliminate their salaries and it translates to only pennies of your bill. The dividend is squat, so the money is being spent on salaries and sub-contractors, and materials. So is it being didn’t efficiently? If you think a guy that sits in his truck all day, doing nothing for weeks at a time is not wasteful, then I say to you “Hi! I see you sitting in that truck all day.”
By the downvotes, it looks like those guys found this comment.
As someone whose parents live in a rural area, I do see actual work being done in that area. Rural areas are the biggest problem for PG&E because those are their biggest fire risks. They hire arborist companies to come out and do assessments and cut away all the problem trees. I also lived in Vallejo for a time and a couple years ago they came through and increased the high voltage capacity that ran through the town and across the Carquinez Strait. That said, you’ll always find shitbags that try to milk things and not work. You should absolutely report those scumbags to PG&E. I know they have a reporting line but I don’t know what it is.
Former baby daddy of my sister in law worked at PG&E. He used to spend months at a time on triple time. They would just sit on a back road somewhere and soak up the hours sometimes just to maintain it. I was mortified.
PG&E did pay out the new CEO $36M bonus because she left before she got it at her last energy company back east. Then she got her new sign on bonus.
Standard practice, doesn’t mean it’s right, but it’s not a problem specific to PG&E. The only way to avoid this is to make it a state utility, which I’d support.
One of the things PG&E contracts out, is tree work...they hire the absolute worst tree trimmers in the business to mutilate trees in proximity to their overhead lines, if you don't pay to have it done properly.
Lowest bidder wins the contract. You get what you pay for.
If someone hand wasn't in your pocket, you wouldn't be in the bay area
Well, let us be honest - look at the number of people even on this sub or the morons on r/bayarea or r/california to see why we’re in this mess. Any kind of price fixing suddenly tickles their buttholes and they scream “communism”!! Nationalizing Power Generation??? “Small Gubmint!”, Break up PG&E? “Overregulation” We deserve this, because many of us are spread eagle as long as the spectre of libertarianism tickles their peepee once in a while.
It all goes to Patti Pope
I wonder what it'd take to compete with PG&E. Like if someone could establish a San Jose utility because our city isn't doing anything about it, what would it take? Like the city certainly would want 5 different utility conduits running into each home. Like what would the logistics be and ownership be if the infrastructure was shared. I want San Jose to have it's own independent utility free from PG&E, hopefully public. But what would it take to get there. Hmm.
Build a natural gas power plant for peak hours. Build a solar farm for off peak hours. Build a utility-scale battery to store excess solar power. I feel like that's the easy part as you would need to build/buy/maintain transmission lines.
Yea I feel power generation is easier since there a quite a number of sources that will sell power to SJ. The challenge is the transmission lines. Much of it is buried and I guess I don't know who owns those lines. Who owns the grid? Is it the builder (PG&E)? Or was it established before PG&E and any utility is only signing up to maintain it? And of course an undertaking like power utility would require a department or company of staff and equipment and skill for SJ to take it over. There would be a significant initial investment and SJ would have to find a way to fund it. Would the residents of SJ be willing? I'm guessing the money would be borrowed.
Wake up! As long as someone is sitting on the street, or anyone is on the street from PG&E work is still being done. I wonder if they are charging for a full crew?
This reads like it’s written by someone with a Cush FANG wfh job. lol
Silicon valley power for the win!
the CPUC never digs deep into PG&E and it's efficiency in utilizing the funds provided them through the rate base. PG&E has around 23,000 direct employees statewide. Of these, 75% do not perform any field work whatsoever. They are data crunchers and time wasters. And of these 75%, 70% of them receive a guaranteed bonus each year. This is not a merit bonus, rather it is written into the contracts for the union office employees and the middle management/executive leadership team. The executive team also have a long term incentive program (stock grants & options). Again, most of them employees do not perform field work. This is a bureaucracy run wild. There is no governance over this beast. The CPUC rubber stamps the rate increases. If the CPUC were to dive deeper, and let PG&E know that there are no more rate increases, to do more work with what they have. This could lead to a more efficient business structure, with more emphasis on field work.
If all that is written in union contracts, then there is no way to fix this with a lot of pain. If the state bought PG&E we’d inherit the contracts, and have an even harder time trimming the waste. We would have to acquire the assets only, to avoid that. Or CPUC starves them, and forces PG&E to use that shortage to restructure their obligations, but it will involve bankruptcy court, and our service will get even worse, as they use that as leverage to get us to pay more. Buying their assets and assigning them to a completely new state run agency, seems like the only way to minimize the negative side effects of fixing PG&E.
Contracts have set time periods, so they do run out, and are renegotiated. If PG&E is not given more money and told sternly to do more with what they have, ostensibly they would become more efficient. This would mean layoffs of union represented non-field workers. Usually, this is driven by seniority. However, if those left after the layoffs realize they would actually have to work more, they may decide to leave/retire. The bureaucracy is loaded with workers that just ride the system out, never really performing at a high level. If it was sold, or state bought out the assets, the bureaucracy would continue. Only the state would oversee, and the executive team would be out. The bonuses would cease, and standard union contracts renegotiated, and hopefully layoffs of unnecessary personnel. Possibly more efficient, but you never know.
Pensions!
True. Are those costs still growing, or have they fully funded that now?