DWP'S GREEN-POWER DEAL HAS HAHN, CHICK SEEING RED.

Byline: - Rick Orlov

A $7.2 million, three-year public relations contract by the Department of Water and Power came under scrutiny Monday, with Mayor James Hahn and Controller Laura Chick calling for the Water and Power Commission to delay it until audits are finished.

``This is a very large contract and the mayor felt it should be delayed until the audits are completed and we can look at it more closely,'' Deputy Mayor Matt Middlebrook said.

Hahn talked with Commission President Ken Lombard last week to voice his concern, Middlebrook said.

Chick, in a separate letter to the Water and Power Commission, also called for a delay in considering the contract with the Lee Andrews Group Inc., to carry out work on the utility's Green Power program.

``We aren't singling out a particular firm, but it doesn't make sense to me to award a contract like this at a time when we are doing an audit of the DWP's public benefit program,'' Chick said.

``Not only have I hired an independent firm to look at the DWP, but the DWP has its own people looking at its program.''

For the past several months, Chick has made an issue of the DWP's public benefit program - a $60 million fund that pays for a variety of programs around the city.

Chick's ire was first prompted by a $27,000 bill for a Music Center party dealing with Green Power programs. She refused to approve the payment of $600,000 in bills for other events.

The City Council last week adopted a proposal developing a protocol for approving payments for events and reducing the amount that can be green-lighted without commission approval from $150,000 to $50,000.

DWP officials said they received Chick's letter only late Monday and could not yet comment on it.

Donna Andrews, who heads up the Lee Andrews Group, said she was caught by surprise with the requests from Hahn and Chick to delay the contract.

``This is something we've been working on for four years and it involves all sorts of community groups,'' Andrews said. ``We certainly have no objection to an audit. These are public funds and people should know how the money is being spent.

``But I don't think that's any reason to delay a contract that could jeopardize some programs we have going on throughout the community.''

Andrews said the firm has worked with a number of community groups throughout the city to encourage the use of green power and reduce the need by the DWP to buy expensive power.

Chick said the firm she hired for the audit, Barrington-Wellsley, has already raised questions about some spending practices at the DWP, but she would not offer specifics.

Barrington-Wellsley was brought in several years ago to perform a management audit of the DWP and provided ways the agency could downsize.

The contract to be considered by the commission today is for two years and a total of $4.8 million, with the option of a third year at $2.4 million. The commission's agenda said the firm is to be hired to provide advertising, communication, coalition building, community involvement and media relations to encourage the use of environmentally sensitive sources of electricity.

``I'm not sure if the DWP needs this kind of public relations work at this time when there is no real competition,'' Chick said. ``And, if they do, they can carry it out on a month-to-month basis until the audits are completed.

``We are only talking about a couple of months of delay and then we can look to see what is needed.''