Over 30,000 Signatures Gathered by Volunteers to Place ‘Power San Diego’ on Ballot

Needs City Clerk’s Certification

The Power San Diego ballot measure campaign has delivered tens of thousands of signatures from their volunteer effort to replace SDGE with a non-profit public electric utility.

Designed to conform to San Diego’s City Charter, the initiative would  establish a lower-cost electric utility, retain the current union workforce, and be overseen by a qualified board of directors with citizen oversight.

The Power San Diego ballot measure campaign clearly succeeded in making public power a kitchen table topic.

“The investor owned utilities are making record profits and have too much influence with the Public Utilities Commission” said signer Jason M., echoing a common refrain. It’s not missed on SDGE ratepayers that the recently announced fixed monthly fee only applies to private monopoly customers, not to those served by municipal run utilities which also have uniformly lower rates.

The nine members of the San Diego City Council have the power to place the question up for a popular vote if the City Clerk verifies that Power San Diego has collected at least 24,000 valid signatures.

“The only way for us to be able to craft our own destiny as a city is to control the local grid and thereby enable the most cost-effective, innovative local clean energy strategy,” stated Bill Powers, the campaign’s chair. “Without that local control of the electric utility, we do not control our destiny.”

Nearly 500 volunteers carried petition packets, thousands took advantage of a late in the game mail-in option, and over 30,000 City of San Diego Voters signed. Longtime Political Consultant Bob Glaser couldn’t recall another local ballot measure that has collected as many signatures with a volunteer force.

Top volunteer signature gatherer, Cheryl, has personally spoken with more than 1,183 signers who want an end to the SDGE monopoly. Day after day and week after week, Cheryl made time to volunteer for the initiative, rain or shine.

Citizen Endorser J.J. named some of the motivating factors which drove record high participation rates explaining they were “tired of SDGE and their constant excuses of why they need to continuously raise rates, while posting record profits. Also, how they constantly undermine the solar industry by making it less and less cost-effective to switch to clean energy solutions.”

SDGE is aware that people are talking. They created a political action committee (PAC) called “Responsible Energy San Diego,” and have funded it to the tune of $700,000. The PAC’s hallmark has been a steady stream of disinformation intended to confuse San Diegans and lead them to work against their own best interests.

The Power San Diego is not stopping. In fact, it’s just beginning.

Over the coming weeks and months, volunteers will continue to build on the momentum generated by the ballot measure.

“We feel confident that we will pass the 24,006 voter threshold needed to put this back in front of the full City Council,” said Dorrie Bruggemann, Power San Diego’s Senior Campaign Coordinator. “We’d like to see City Council Members legitimately respond to their constituents’ concerns. The movement for public power in San Diego is really just beginning.”

Power San Diego plans to announce the City Clerk’s signature validation total on their website WeArePowerSanDiego.Com and invites everyone to sign up for their emails to hear about upcoming listening sessions, public education events, and volunteer opportunities.