Britt K. Strottman

Strottman's six-plus years representing the city of San Bruno over the deadly 2010 natural gas pipeline explosion in the Crestmoor residential neighborhood uncovered political corruption, criminal behavior, unethical relationships and illegal ex parte communications between Pacific Gas & Electric Co. and the California Public Utilities Commission.

She's been the big utility's chief nemesis. As counsel for San Bruno's negotiating team, she helped obtain $70 million from PG&E to support the city and community's efforts to recover from the explosion. Her work helped persuade the commission to impose a record $1.6 billion fine — the largest against a U.S. natural gas utility — and to order PG&E to return $635 million it had collected from customers for unaccomplished pipeline improvements.

Even now, she doubts that PG&E has gotten the message. "It's extremely frustrating," she said, weeks after a federal criminal jury in San Francisco found the company guilty of Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act violations and obstruction of justice. "It seems they haven't learned any lessons. They said they accepted responsibility, but they are appealing the jury verdict in post-trial motions, and if Judge [Thelton E.] Henderson denies them, I'm sure they will go on to the 9th Circuit. How is that taking responsibility?" U.S. v. Pacific Gas & Electric Co., 3:14-cr-00175 (N.D. Cal., filed April 1, 2014).

Strottman said her job for San Bruno required her to confront both the commission and PG&E. "CPUC is supposed to be the policeman, but we found it literally let PG&E get away with murder. It was groundbreaking for a small city to take on one of the largest utilities in the U.S., much less the regulatory agency as well." Her California Public Records Act requests led to discovery of inappropriate email exchanges between the utility and its regulator, then to media headlines, recusals and the commission chairman's decision to not seek reappointment. "Our discovery of meetings behind closed doors to discuss our case and evidence of backchannel communications were key to our investigation," she said.

One result of Strottman's work for San Bruno has been her retention by other local governments. "PG&E tried to shut down its nuclear power plant at San Luis Obispo without consulting the city, for example," she said. "The city hired us." She is battling PG&E on behalf of Calaveras County over hundreds of millions of dollars in damage caused by the 2015 Butte Fire. She represented Carmel-by-the-Sea in a case that resulted in a CPUC penalty of $24.3 million for a natural gas explosion caused in part by PG&E's inaccurate mapping.

Strottman is a former deputy district attorney with deep experience in crisis investigations. "I learned how to fight with limited resources," she said. And she learned how to take on powerful foes like PG&E. "I'm surprised the lights still come on at home," she said.

— John Roemer