The Mohammed Nuru scandal saw two more hammers come down Friday, as former Public Utilities Commission head Harlan Kelly was found guilty of fraud, and former Department of Building Inspection “Employee of the Quarter” Bernie Curran was sentenced to a year in prison.

The whole Mohammed Nuru City Hall bribery and fraud scandal has largely fallen out of the headlines lately, which may be somewhat disappointing for anyone who’d hoped to see, I don’t know, a current or former higher-up in City Hall face federal charges. But today was a blockbuster day for Nuru scandal fallout.

On Friday morning, the Chronicle reported that former Department of Building Inspection (DBI) inspector Bernard Curran was sentenced to a year and a a day in prison for taking cash under the table to grant permits. Then just a few hours later, the Chron added that former SF Public Utilities Commission general manager Harlan Kelly was found guilty of fraud for steering city contracts to people who gave him lavish gifts galore, plus that whole bank fraud scheme with local mega-landlord Victor Makras.

Harlan Kelly, seen above right next to Nuru, is obviously the much bigger fish. He was the head of the Public Utilities Commission (PUC), and during his tenure, secretly accepted a trip to Hong Kong, meals, jewelry, and discounted work on the home of he and his former City Administrator wife from ex-permit expediter Walter Wong. Kelly had tried to steer a city lighting contract to a company Wong was working for. (Ill–given bribes, as Wong’s company did not get the contract.)

Wong cooperated with the FBI when the shit hit the fan, leading to the delicious revelation seen above that Wong and Kelly used to bribe-text code ‘35’ when discussing a “former San Francisco mayor” who is almost certainly Ed Lee.

Kelly was also found guilty of defrauding Quicken Loans in a scheme hatched by Victor Makras wherein Makras bribed Kelly to inflate how much he owed Makras on paper, while Makras secretly paid off many of Kelly’s other loans. We still don’t know what Makras got in return for that, but Makras avoided prison and was sentenced to three years probation and got a $15,200 fine.

And SFist will never tire of embedding the “Congratulations to our Employee of the Quarter Senior Building Inspector Bernie Curran!” tweet when discussing the now ex-inspector Curran, sentenced to a year and a day in prison Friday morning. Unlike Harlan Kelly, Curran had pled guilty, in his case for accepting extravagant loans from developers to approve shady permits. Curran was also hit with the same wire fraud charges that hit former Department of Building Inspection commissioner Rodrigo Santos, who told clients to make checks out to “DBI”, and the manually changed those checks to say “RoDBIgo Santos” and cashed them himself.

So Curran gets a year and a day in prison. Harlan Kelly, whose sentencing has not yet been scheduled, was found guilty on six counts, each of which carries a maximum 20-30 years in prison. But the Chronicle notes that “federal sentencing guidelines for his crimes suggest a sentence somewhere in the range of 24-36 months.”

Mohammed Nuru, of course, is already serving his seven-year sentence.

Related: More Nuru Fallout: Prominent Landlord Victor Makras Found Guilty of Bank Fraud [SFist]

Image: @MrCleanSF via Twitter

Supervisor Jeff Sheehy is accusing PG&E of intentionally dragging its feet in a way that's keeping the lights off at two sites in his district, the newly renovated Randall Museum and Noe Valley Town Square, as well as a third project the Dogpatch, the city's latest Homeless Navigation Center. That final project, like the others, is ready to go — in fact, it was supposed to open in March, but it's just sitting there without power.

“PG&E needs to step up or step aside,” the Supervisor tells the Chronicle, who had the story.

The issue: PG&E and the Public Utilities Commission are competing over who will power the sites. But for the PUC to power them, it would want to use its Hetch Hetchy hydroelectric power, which is cheaper and cleaner than the power PG&E would use. The problem there is that PG&E owns the transmission lines that would carry PUC's electricity, and Sheehy says it's stalling to keep that from happening.

At the Homeless Navigation center, for example, the PUC submitted an application to power the shelter to PG&E, but after five months of negotiations, PG&E says the city needs to give them $25,000 for a study on the impact that hydropower would have on the power grid. “

PG&E has asked for similar studies at the Randall Museum. "The museum has been connected to the PG&E transmission and distribution grids for decades,” an incredulous PUC spokesperson tells the Chron. “The load really hasn’t changed.”

Sheehy's former aide, Andrew Powers, puts it this way: The museum “is caught up in what can only be described as a purposeful obstacle by PG&E to delay the opening of a city science museum for youth only because, as has long been the case, the city is choosing to use 100 percent renewable Hetch Hetchy power for this facility rather than less-green PG&E power.”

Andrea Menniti of PG&E disagrees. She tells the Chronicle that the PUC “slowed down the process, in some cases by not providing necessary information in a timely manner, by changing the scope of the project and by not submitting necessary payments in a timely manner.”

Related: Why Is PG&E Buying Multi-Million Dollar Marina Homes And Digging Up Their Yards?

A fine recommended by a California administrative law judge last summer from the California Public Utilities Commission is being levied upon Uber, we learn today. As the LA Times reports, while Uber will be appealing the PUC's decision much as they've appealed the multiple judgements against them this past year on various fronts, the company will cough up the $7.6 million for the fine in order to avoid a 30-day suspension of their operating license in California.

At issue is the company's past failure to report certain data to the commission during the business year 2014, data that it was required to report in its role as, essentially, a taxi service. Uber previously argued that reporting such data might compromise the privacy of its drivers.

As Consumerist clarifies, the judge found that Uber had failed to report three important pieces of information:

Accessibility information: the number and percentage of customers who requested accessible vehicles, and how often [Uber] was able to comply with requests for accessible vehicles…

Service information: the number of rides requested and accepted by [Uber] drivers within each zip code where [Uber] operates, and the number of rides that were requested but not accepted; as well as the amounts paid/donated…

Driver safety information: the cause of each driving incident involving a [Uber] driver

Lyft, reportedly, has already complied with these regulatory requirements, but Uber appealed the judge's decision last August and was met with a revised judgement that raised the fine to $7.6 million.

Per the LAT, "The PUC says driver data is necessary to determine whether or not Uber is serving all manner of passengers in any neighborhood."

Of course Uber has done a lot to contend that it is not a taxi company, but is a software company, and has therefore tried to skirt the regulatory requirements that taxi companies have long faced.

It still remains to be seen, also, if Uber's business model of keeping all drivers as independent contractors will pass muster in California, or face a major class-action settlement.

All previous coverage of Uber by SFist.

We've been warning you about this day, and now it's almost here: 415 area codes for San Francisco are almost all gone, and the new new 628 area code is about to go into full effect. But just because you're happily 415ed doesn't mean that you're immune to the change, for as of February 21, every 415 user will have to dial "1" and the area code, even for local calls.

Who dials these days? you might be wondering. True, but what about your contact list? Are all your local numbers entered with a "415" right now? If so, good for you! If not, well then you'd better get to fixing that, because in a couple weeks, if you just dial a local seven-digit number, you'll get a recording telling you you screwed up, not the dulcet tones of your contact.

Per California's Public Utilities Commission:

Beginning February 21, 2015, callers must use the new 1 + 10-digit dialing procedure for all calls. After that date, if customers do not use the new dialing procedure, their calls will not be completed and a recording will instruct them to hang up and dial again. Between August 16, 2014 and February 21, 2015, customers should practice using the new procedure whenever they place calls from the 415 Area Code.

Until the 21st, "customers should practice using the new procedure whenever they place calls from the 415 Area Code," the PUC urges.

As you can imagine, some folks are upset by the change, like a woman who spoke to KRON 4, saying that it might take her as long at two hours to edit her contacts.

The additional dialing requirement "kind of sucks," she told the news station.

The PUC first announced that 415 numbers were dwindling in December 2012, and OKed an "overlay" of a new area code, 628, in December 2013.

Carriers reportedly continue to dole out 415 numbers, but not for long: "Beginning March 21, 2015," the PUC says, "new telephone lines or services may be assigned numbers using the 628 area code."

Previously: 415 Area Codes Running Out: Let's All Freak Out Now
3,2,1 Freakout: 415 Numbers Running Low As 628 Area Code Arrives

In a display of colossal disrespect for his $111,000-a-year maintenance planner position at the Public Utilities Commission, an adult man frequently urinated in a reservoir that is a source of drinking water for 2.5 million customers in the Bay Area. The Chronicle has word that the culprit named Martin Sanchez will likely be suspended without pay for five days as a result of the behavior that he was called out for in anonymous complaints.

According to a PUC commission spokesman, Tyrone Jue, the 675 million-gallon Priest reservoir was drained in its entirety for maintenance when Sanchez took his thoughtless leak. But that's confusing, since complaints speak to several instances of Sanchez being a huge idiot in such a manner. Logistical questions, such as how frequently Sanchez urinates and how often the reservoir remains empty, should be swiftly investigated. According to the complaints, one instance of urination took place when Sanchez learned he had received a promotion. So, for the sake of our water, Sanchez should probably not be promoted any further, and maybe just the opposite.

At the final stop before the Moccasin Reservoir, where untreated water from the Sierra is sent by pipeline to the Bay Area, water from the Priest Reservoir is treated by ultraviolet light and chlorine prior to delivery. So, although there are no health consequences to be suffered by customers as a result of the, er, indiscretion, it's still disrespectful, unbecoming behavior that displays the worst kind of judgment. “The bottom line is — you pee in the wrong place again, and you are toast,” Jue told the Chronicle.

Related: The Flavor Of SF's Tap Water Will Be Changing, Slightly

It's kind of scary that when many of us see a person in an "official" looking vest, we assume that the person is actually "official." (Remember this guy?) But that trust is what a trio of scammers is relying on, as they present themselves as San Francisco Public Utility workers to innocent homeowners, then rob the place.

Back on December 18, the PUC says, three men talked their way into a Sunset District home by donning vests and claiming they were with SF's Water Department. Instead, two of the men distracted residents while a third stole cash and valuables.

While police seem confident that these miscreants will be caught — according to Bay City News, as the men robbed the home on 19th Avenue between Moraga and Noriega Streets, the video camera on a passing Muni bus caught the suspects and their vehicle on tape — officials are taking the opportunity to remind San Franciscans that just because someone says they're with a utility agency doesn't mean that they are.

This certainly isn't the first time something like this has happened. As you might recall, back in 2013, similar such grifters swiped $5,000 worth of loot from an elderly Oakland couple. And then there's the chilling take of Gary Scott Holland, who told a Russian Hill woman he was with PG&E, then killed her when she let him into her home.

At a press conference earlier this week, city officials told residents not to be afraid to ask to see ID, and to confirm that the worker arrived in an official agency vehicle.

"It's easy to fake because everybody out there has safety vests, you see guys riding around in their cars in safety vests,"Water Department Lead Plumber Mike Broussard told KTVU.

People who work with a city agency will have an official identification badge with the agency and city logo on it, and will arrive in either a department vehicle with green striping and the San Francisco seal or a plain white city vehicle with the seal and an ID number. Officials also say that it's incredibly rare that workers arrive at your home without an appointment, and that if you have any doubts, you can call their agency or 911.

"We're here to help. Look for ID's, look for vehicles," Steve Ritchie, SFPUC assistant general manager, said at the press event, SF Weekly reports.

"If you don't see those things and somebody claims to be part of the Water Department or the Public Utilities Commission, they're not."

Ten days after San Francisco Uber users received emails welcoming them to uberPOOL, a recently-launched service from the transportation service intended to allow "Uber riders to share trips with another rider along their route and reduce the cost of Uber by up to 40%," the California Public Utilities Commission has told the company that their new offering is a violation of state law.

According to Forbes, the problem lies in how California identifies vehicles for hire:

If a company operates as a “passenger stage corporation” or PSC, it can charge people individually for a shared vehicle. This is how SuperShuttle can drive around to multiple neighborhoods, pick people up and drop them all at the airport without running afoul of the law. A “charter-party carrier” or TCP as California calls it, can’t do that. It can only rent out a vehicle by time or distance. Limos and charter buses fall into this category.

Companies like Uber are actually Transportation Network Companies (TNCs), but those companies still follow the regulations laid out for TCPs, including one that states that “[N]o charter-party carrier of passengers shall … demand or receive compensation, for the transportation offered … on an individual-fare basis,” Forbes reports.

Therefore, the PUC told Uber, everyone needs to hop out of the uberPOOL. (Ugh, sorry.)

According to Cnet, Sidecar, which has been beta-testing a "Shared Rides" option, got a PUC nastygram as well. There's no news yet on if Lyft, which launched its Lyft Line carpooling option in August, has been contacted by the regulatory agency.

An SF Business Times report from September 1 says that the uberPOOL service has a remarkably enthusiastic response even in the pre-launch period, with over 100,000 Bay Area users clamoring to try the offering. As of August, 13,000 SF Sidecar users had tried their Shared Rides option, the company told Cnet.

According to Forbes, the PUC told Uber that “The Commission lacks the flexibility to allow a transportation service that is contrary to the statute… If Uber believes that § 5401 is outdated, it may petition the Legislature for a modification. Unless and until the Legislature modifies §5401, the Commission must enforce state law.”

"Our biggest reservation about agreeing to be regulated by the CPUC was that it would slow down our ability to continue to innovate," a Sidecar spokesperson told Cnet. The letter from the PUC "demonstrates our fears were founded."

So what's next for these companies' carpooling offerings? Will they just keep on running their services as a subtle middle finger to the PUC? Will they take the PUC's advice and lobby to change the law? Will they have to go up against Super Shuttle, which Forbes speculates might have tattled on their car service competition?

Your guess is as good as ours — though SFist contacted spokespeople from both agencies, the only response we've received is a canned statement from Uber spokesperson Natalia Montalvo, which read:

“We welcome the opportunity to share with the CPUC the significant benefits of uberPOOL and how it really works so that we can continue to bring its unmatched convenience and affordability to communities and traffic jams across the Golden State.”

Needless to say, this hardly answers the questions we were asking above (don't worry, I wrote back, asking them again). But with Obama's old campaign manager now at Uber to reportedly wage bloody and brutal war against the company's multitude of regulatory disputes, we suspect that this is going to get pretty interesting pretty fast.

[Forbes]
[Cnet]

Starting this fall, your Pacific Gas and Electric will take a leap, and not because you're leaving all the lights on. On Thursday, the California Public Utilities Commission voted to let the SF-based utility jack up their prices, ostensibly for "safety improvements." As you can imagine, many people are angry about this. And maybe you will be too, especially after we take a look at some of the numbers.

• $15.6 billion: PG&E's revenue from last year
• $814 million: The profit PG&E posted on that revenue
• $4.84 billion: The amount of additional money PG&E told the California Public Utilities Commission they wanted to get from customers
• $2.37 billion: The amount of additional money the PUC agreed on Thursday that PG&E could demand from its customer base
• 3: The number of years over which that $2.37 billion boost will be spread
• $4.50: The amount the average PG&E gas bill will increase, starting in September, with additional hikes expected in 2015 and 2016
• $3: The amount the average PG&E electric bill will increase, starting in October, with additional hikes expected in 2015 and 2016 (so, if you have gas and electric from PG&E, expect an increase of around $7.50 this fall)
• $5.23: The amount of an additional monthly increase for PG&E gas customers "for gas storage and transmission," that the PUC is expected to approve or decline next year

All facts and figures: Your PG&E bill is about to rise this much, August 15, 2014, San Francisco Chronicle

Remember when the argument was cabs vs Uber? Well, there's a new player in the game, and Uber's drivers sure don't like it. Sometimes the fall from the cutting edge can be the worst one of all!

Last month, Uber CEO Travis Kalanick had a lot to say about self-driving cars at the Code Conference. According to re/code, Kalanick said that, yes, when driverless cars are here, human Uber drivers will have to go.

“‘Look, this is the way the world is going,’” Kalanick said would be his explanation to Uber drivers who might lose their jobs down the road. “If Uber doesn’t go there, it’s not going to exist either way,” he said.

“The world isn’t always great,” he added.

But members of Uber's contractor workforce, which was, not all that long ago, also described as "the way the world is going," apparently want to stop that momentum.

In a rally in front of the company's corporate HQ on Market Street Monday, dozens of Uber drivers told KCBS about experiences of exploitation, poor pay, and that they "are taken for granted by the company that doesn’t give them enough respect."

Ramzi Reguii, head of the Uber Driver’s Network, told KCBS that he took particular issue with Kalanick's support of self-driving cars, saying that “The reason Uber is expensive is because of the dude in the car. Once we get rid of the dude in the car, Uber will be cheaper...That statement is very disturbing.”

Of course, both Kalanick and an Uber spokesperson reached Monday describe the move to self-driving cars as a "decades-long process." More immediate concerns for local drivers might be worries that the California PUC will shut down Uber and its ilk if they keep taking passengers to airports and the PUC's requirement that companies like Uber dramatically increase insurance coverage for all their drivers.

[KCBS]