The Clean Power Alliance (CPA), is the new electricity provider in Southern California, bringing our community clean renewable energy at competitive rates! In February 2018, Ventura City Council voted to join the CPA, a newly formed public agency, and join 29 other cities and Los Angeles and Ventura counties in offering community choice energy to residents and businesses. Community choice energy allows local governments to join together to purchase and invest in renewable energy sources like solar and wind. The goal is community-based control over electricity sources, creating jobs in the clean energy sector, and moving toward a fully renewable power supply. Southern California Edison (SCE) will continue to deliver power to your home, send one bill, and resolve any issue with your electricity service.

Residential CPA customers in Ventura are scheduled to begin service in February 2019, while commercial and industrial customers will start in May 2019. CPA customers can choose between the following three rate options:

• 100% Green Power - Protects the environment and builds resiliency
  • 7% - 9% more expensive than SCE default rate
• 50% Clean Power - Renewable energy that supports a cleaner future
  • 0% - 1% cheaper than SCE’s default rate
• 36% Lean Power - Least amount of renewable energy
  • 1% - 2% cheaper than SCE’s default rate

The Clean Power Alliance set up an online bill calculator for ratepayers to estimate how their bill may be impacted by the change in rate structure. If you're one of many residents who are still trying to understand their bill, check out CPA's page on understanding your bill. Residents will not have to do anything to be automatically enrolled in CPA’s 100% Green Power rate option, which provides 100% renewable content and gives you the opportunity to join the City of Ventura in our commitment to protecting the environment. If you decide 100% Green Power is not the right fit for you, you will be able to select one of CPA’s other two rate options or “opt out” and return to SCE to purchase energy on your behalf. 

CPA customers will still have access to special rates or programs such as CARE, FERA, Medical Baseline, Level Pay and Summer Discounts. Customers currently enrolled in the CARE, FERA, and Medical Baseline assistance programs, and enrolled in the City’s 100% Green Power will be charged the same rates they would have paid to SCE. To learn more or to change your rate visit their site for rate options or call 888-585-3788. While this process may be confusing, this partnership will support our region moving in a fiscally and environmentally responsible direction. You aren't the only one with questions, so they've put together an FAQ page to help clear the air.

Other cities and counties who have also joined the Clean Power Alliance include: Camarillo, Moorpark, Ojai, Oxnard, Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, Ventura Unincorporated County, Los Angeles County and 23 other cities in L.A. County. Transitioning to the Clean Power Alliance means increased local management and control of energy sources, increased stability in electricity rates, and higher renewable content at a cheaper cost. We believe that this move will bring more decision-making power to the people within our community while allocating our utility payments to local renewable energy sources.

How Does it Work?

The CPA purchased electricity on our behalf and delivers i through the City's existing utility grid, run and operated by Southern California Edison (SCE). You can control your percentage of renewable energy, or go with 100% for the greatest environmental benefit. If you decide to stick with CPA, you will continue to get your monthly bill from SCE  and will submit payment directly to them. There will be a line item on your bill that shows "generation charges" indicating the payment made to CPA. There will not be a separate bill for CPA-related charges. If you decide to stick with the default rate, 100% of your generation charges will go toward renewable sources, such as wind, solar, geothermal, etc. and your bill will increase by 7-9%, the extra cost for supplying energy from clean fossil-free sources. 

However, you can choose a cheaper option within CPA that supplies electricity from fewer renewable sources (either 50% or 36%), which are at cost parity and for some residents, even cheaper than SCE. Customers who decide to stick with CPA will always have the option to switch up or down within CPA with no fee or penalty. Customers can choose to stay with SCE by "opting out" of CPA, but will be required to wait 12 months to return to CPA if they decide to switch back at some point in the future. 

It is true that both you and your neighbors are consuming the same electricity unless either of you have on-site renewable energy options. The same energy comes across our shared utility grid, similar to cash that comes out of an ATM, we all pull from the same end source even though our transactions are de-centralized. By signing up for 100% renewable electricity, that amount of renewable energy will be produced on your behalf and put on the grid. To stay with the ATM example, this is similar if a family member pays you through a bank in Northern California, you know that it is their money that they are sending, but you may take out different dollar bills at the ATM. No, you aren't taking out the exact same bills out of the ATM that your family member deposited, but you know where it is coming from. The money you spend for electricity will go toward a renewable source, but the actual electricity you consume from the grid may be a mix of everyone's purchases. 

Similarly to how solar panels work on homes, if someone is home during the day when their solar panels are producing power, they will be using clean, renewable energy to power their home while excess power flows onto the grid. When they use electricity in the evening or at night, their electricity comes from the grid and is the same as their neighbors. This does not diminish the value of their solar power, they are still powered by renewable energy at the end of the day. 

How to Opt-Out of CPA 

Between February 1, 2019 and March 30, 2019, residents have the option to Opt-Out while maintaining the ability to go back to CPA without a 12-month waiting period. 

• Contact CPA to opt-out via phone or web
• Customer returns to their previous SCE rate
• No charge from CPA
• 50 cent charge from SCE
• Customer must remain with SCE for minimum of 12 months before returning to CPA

After March 30, 2019, residents can still Opt Out of CPA.

• Contact CPA to opt-out via phone or web
• Customer has two options
  • Option #1: Immediate return to SCE on a “Transitional Bundled Service (TBS) Rate” for six months – this is a market price energy rate that could be higher or lower that their previous SCE rate depending on energy prices. After six months on this TBS, then customer returns to their previous SCE rate
  • Option #2: Provide SCE with a form: “Six Month Advance Notice to Return to Bundled Portfolio Service”. Remain with CPA for six months and then return to SCE on their previous SCE rate.
• No charge from CPA
• 50 cent charge from SCE
• Customer must remain with SCE for minimum of 12 months before returning to CPA

How to Opt-In to CPA After Previously Opting-Out

There is no CPA charge or waiting period to switch INTO CPA, or change your plan within CPA at any time. Call CPA Customer Service at 888-585-3788 to request the change. However, note that SCE may impose a 12-month waiting period before you can opt back into CPA as indicated above.

Additional Information

Top consumer questions can be found on the CPA's Frequently Asked Questions page on their website. SCE has also provided valuable information on Community Choice Aggregation on their website as well as their own SCE FAQ page. 

For any further questions, feel free to contact Clean Power Alliance Customer Service Center at 888-585-3788 (TTY: 323-214-1296) or [email protected] or https://cleanpoweralliance.org/