PG&E Geographic Zones - https://www.pge.com/pge_global/common/pdfs/safety/emergency-preparedness/natural-disaster/wildfires/2019-PGE-Geographic-Zones.pdf.

Areas of Nevada and Placer Counties that are served by PG&E are in Zone 5.

Zone outlines are based on the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) High Fire Threat Map https://www.cpuc.ca.gov/firethreatmaps/ (info about the map). CPUC Fire Map is here: https://ia.cpuc.ca.gov/firemap/

HOLIDAY TREE RECYCLING
Holiday trees can be disposed of in two easy ways. All trees must be free of all tinsel, snow flocking, decorations, and metal stands. If you subscribe to green waste service, you can cut up your tree into 3-foot sections and place it in your cart for curbside pickup. Please make sure the lid closes all the way. 

1. Cut and place in Green Waste Cart: Holiday trees can be cut into 3-foot sections and placed in your green waste cart. Please make sure the lid on the cart can close!
2. Take Trees to Designated WM Recycling sites: Waste management will be providing Free Holiday/Christmas Tree Recycling for Nevada County residents. You can take whole trees (free of all tinsel, snow flocking, decorations, and metal stands) to one of the following locations:

Free Drop Off Locations
All Nevada County, Grass Valley and Nevada City residents can bring Christmas Trees to the following locations on the dates indicated for free disposal.

Dec 26, 2021 – Feb 4, 2022
Eric Ro… [read more]

Learn how to file a claim with PG&E - If you are a residential customer who has gone without power for at least 48 hours because of severe storm conditions, you may qualify for an automatic payment under our Safety Net program. This program provides a payment of $25 - $100, which we pay automatically about 60 days following the storm outage. https://www.pge.com/en_US/residential/outages/current-outages/report-view-an-electric-outage/additional-resources/extended-outage-compensation/extended-outage-compensation.page

PLEASE NOTE: Do not submit a claim form to get a Safety Net payment. Visit Compensation for Extended Outages: https://www.pge.com/en_US/residential/outages/current-outages/report-view-an-electric-outage/additional-resources/extended-outage-compensation/extended-outage-compensation.page

However, you may submit a claim if you believe that PG&E caused a loss for which you should be compensated. You can make this type of claim using various methods, bu… [read more]

Following a wildfire, storm, or other disaster, residents who continue to experience outage issues or other utility concerns after contacting their utility provider should submit a complaint with the California Public Utilities Commission's online form here: https://appsssl.cpuc.ca.gov/cpucapplication/

Be ready to provide:

• Name of the Utility Provider
• Full name of the customer. If you are not the customer of record, you must be authorized to discuss the account with the utility company.
• Account Number
• Service Address (the physical location of the service. Is it a residence or business?).
• Mailing Address (if different from service address).
• Area code and phone number that pertains to the dispute.
• A phone number where we can reach you.
• Details of your complaint. Please be specific and provide as much information as possible such as a chronological order of dispute. For example, the dates that charges were billed, the location of the safety concern, etc.
• Include t…

[read more]

People can sign up for PSPS outage notifications by following links on this web page:
https://www.pge.com/en_US/residential/your-account/account-management/manage-your-account/alerts-and-notifications/update-your-contact-information.page?utm_source=spm-gs&utm_campaign=pge-psps&utm_medium=trfc-allpge-kw-pub-a-en&utm_content=search-SPMAAC884ED&gclid=CjwKCAiAv_KMBhAzEiwAs-rX1HMusJIJAxsy7R-ruAg5tExoHhdB4-VxdCjVAp1L4TbBYS4FUK0DphoCRUcQAvD_BwE

People can sign up for PSPS power shutoff alerts even if they do not have a PG&E account, or if they want notifications for one or more other addresses (work, school, etc.). https://pgealerts.alerts.pge.com/outages/psps-address-alert/

Internet Essentials is a program that provides low-cost internet for eligible households. https://www.internetessentials.com/
 
You may qualify for Internet Essentials if you are eligible for public assistance programs such as the National School Lunch Program, Housing Assistance, Medicaid, SNAP, SSI, and others.

Things to know - https://www.internetessentials.com/covid19
New Internet Essentials customers will receive two free months of Internet service if you apply and are approved by December 31, 2020. After promotion, regular rates apply.

 

A list of internet options in Nevada County is here: https://jphein.com/internet-options-in-nevada-county/. List is sorted by relative speed, and type. Info might change at any time.

Web page with info about different lifeline free phone providers. Info may change at any time.
 

Provides discounts on basic residential telephone service to eligible low income customers.

Free phones for eligible low-income Nevada County residents. 

• WHAT: Free smartphones for eligible Nevada County residents. These phones use the T-Mobile network which has limited coverage in Nevada County.
• WHEN: 10am-1pm on Wednesdays
• WHERE: Interfaith Food Ministry food distribution, 440 Henderson Street, Grass Valley, CA 95945

Visit https://jphein.com/lifeline/ for info about free smartphones that use AT&T or Verizon.
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Contact Assurance Wireless directly at 888-321-5880;  ourteamassurancewireless@sprint.com; www.assurancewireless.com for assistance with phones, passwords, accounts, etc.

To see if you qualify and if so, to start the application process, go to: https://www.assurancewireless.com/lifeline-services/how-qualify

For general questions about lifeline telephone programs, please feel free to call 211 or 833-342-5211. The 211 website and call center do not have the information to assist with i… [read more]