The Future is Bright for Community Choice Energy in California
On August 30, a bill that would have upended the ability of California communities to choose their electrical power sources was defeated in the state senate. AB 2145 was rejected thanks in large part to the outpour of grassroots opposition by a coalition of local governments, elected officials, and nonprofits like the Sustainable Economies Law Center, who pegged the bill as a power grab by utility companies.
The Sustainable Economies Law Center Files Reply Comments on PG&E and SDG&E's Revised Testimony
Overall, the Sustainable Economies Law Center advocates for a more in-depth community-based renewable energy proposal from both PG&E and SDG&E as well as clear guidelines for implementation. In doing so, SELC defines true community-based renewable projects to include the following attributes:
- (1) The majority of the project is owned by individual residents of the community or by a local organization or cooperative that is managed and controlled by individual residents of the community;
- (2) The project's generating capacity does not exceed 1 MW and is located in or near the community; and
- (3) The majority of the project's economic benefits are distributed locally.
Sustainable Economies Law Center Intervenes in CA Proceeding for Shared Renewable Energy
On November 12, the Sustainable Economies Law Center became an official party to a proceeding at the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). Our intention is to help implement Senate Bill (SB) 43, the Green Tariff Shared Renewables Program, which was signed into law in October of 2013. SB 43 establishes a 600 MW pilot program – the largest distributed generation goal in the nation – and allows customers of California’s three investor-owned utilities (IOUs) to subscribe to a shared renewable energy facility in their service territory and receive a credit in their monthly utility bill.
But the devil is in the details.
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