[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village/Town
of Mount Kisco as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted
where applicable.]
[Adopted 9-21-2015 by L.L. No. 4-2015; amended in its entirety 11-7-2022 by L.L. No. 3-2022]
A.Â
It is the policy of both the Village/Town of Mount Kisco and the
State of New York to reduce costs and provide cost certainty for the
purpose of economic development, to promote deeper penetration of
energy efficiency and renewable energy resources such as wind and
solar, and wider deployment of distributed energy resources as well
as to examine the retail energy markets and increase participation
of and benefits for eligible customers in those markets. Among the
policies and mode's that may offer benefits in New York is community
choice aggregation ("CCA"), which allows local governments to procure
electric and natural gas supply on behalf of its eligible customers.
B.Â
The purpose of this CCA Program is to allow participating local governments,
including the Village/Town of Mount Kisco, to procure energy services,
such as energy supply and community distributed generation (CDG) credits,
for their eligible customers, who will have the opportunity to opt
out of the procurement, while maintaining transmission and distribution
service from the existing distribution utility. This chapter establishes
a program that will allow the Village of Mount Kisco to put out energy
services for bid. Eligible customers will have the opportunity to
have more control to lower their overall energy costs, to spur clean
energy innovation and investment, to improve customer choice and value,
and to protect the environment; thereby, fulfilling the purposes of
this article and fulfilling an important public purpose.
C.Â
The Village/Town of Mount Kisco is authorized to implement this Community
Choice Aggregation (Energy) Program pursuant to § 10(1)(ii)(a)(12)
of the New York Municipal Home Rule Law; and State of New York Public
Service Commission Case No. 14-M-0224, Proceeding on Motion of the
Commission to Enable Community Choice Aggregation Programs (issued
April 20, 2016, hereinafter the "CCA framework order").
D.Â
This Chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Community Choice
Aggregation (Energy) Program Law of the Village/Town of Mount Kisco."
For purposes of this article, and unless otherwise expressly
stated or unless the context otherwise requires, the terms in this
article shall have the meanings set forth below, or if not so defined,
as employed in the State of New York Public Service Commission's
Uniform Business Practices:
A municipal energy procurement program, which replaces the
incumbent utility as the default electric and/or gas supplier for
all opt-out eligible customers within the Village/Town of Mount Kisco
The CCA Program may include community distributed generation credits
on an opt-out basis and other DER offerings on an opt-in basis.
The monetary credit applied to the utility bills of participating
customers through the CDG program.
Community shared renewables program expanding customer access
to the environmental and system benefits of qualifying renewable project
generation located behind a nonresidential host meter based on remotely
sharing net metering or VDER monetary credits through a monetary credit
applied to the utility bills of participating customers.
Utility data for all opt-out eligible customers, including
account holder name, service address, primary language, if available,
any customer-specific alternate billing name and/or address, and other
relevant, authorized data.
ELIGIBLE CUSTOMERS — Customers of electricity
and/or natural gas eligible to participate in a CCA, either on an
opt-out or opt-in basis, as delineated in the CCA framework order.
|
OPT-OUT ELIGIBLE CUSTOMERS — Eligible customers
that are eligible for opt-out treatment as delineated in the CCA framework
order.
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PARTICIPATING CUSTOMERS — Opt-out eligible
customers who have been enrolled subsequent to the opt-out process
and other customers who have opted in.
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Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) initiatives that further
engage and/or reduce cost of service for participating consumers,
optimize system benefits, and/or address infrastructure and demand
challenges within the geography of the CCA, including, but not limited
to, local renewable energy projects, community distributed generation,
peak demand management, energy efficiency, demand response, energy
storage, community resilience microgrid projects, and other innovative
initiatives.
Owner or controller of the means of distribution of the natural
gas or electricity that is regulated by the Public Service Commission.
The provision of energy supply as electric power and/or natural
gas or the provision of DER offerings.
New York State Public Service Commission.
Energy service companies (ESCOs) and/or DER providers and/or
other entities with authority to provide energy services for participating
customers in connection with this article.
A not-for-profit organization comprised of member municipalities
in Westchester County, New York.
REV proceeding (Case 15-E-0751) that replaces the net metering
program with a weighted value stack tariff mechanism for accurately
pricing distributed energy resources on the grid as a reflection of
their system value. Value stack components include the price of energy,
capacity, avoided carbon emissions, cost savings to customers and
utilities, demand reduction and locational relief. The goal of this
proceeding is to increase DER penetration and benefits of DER installations.
A.Â
A Community Choice Aggregation (Energy) Program is hereby established
by the Village/Town of Mount Kisco, whereby the Village shall work
together with Sustainable Westchester to implement the CCA Program
to the full extent permitted by the CCA framework order, as set forth
more fully herein. The Village's role under the CCA Program involves
aggregating the demand for energy of its eligible customers and the
entering into contracts for energy services. Under the CCA Program,
the operation and ownership of the utility service shall remain with
the distribution utility.
B.Â
The Village's participation in a CCA Program constitutes neither
the purchase of a public utility system, nor the furnishing of utility
service. The Village will not take over any part of the electric or
gas transmission or distribution system and will not furnish any type
of utility service, but will instead negotiate with suppliers on behalf
of participating customers.
C.Â
In order to implement the CCA Program, the Village will adopt one
or more resolutions that outline the process of and conditions for
participation in the CCA Program, including, but not limited to, signing
a contract for a compliant bid with one or more suppliers, all as
consistent with the article and the CCA framework order.
D.Â
The Public Service Commission supervises retail markets and participants
in these markets through legislative and regulatory authority and
the uniform business practices, which includes rules relating to the
eligibility of participating suppliers, the operation by which suppliers
provide energy services and the terms on which customers may be enrolled
with suppliers.
A.Â
As permitted by the CCA framework order, the Village/Town of Mount
Kisco may request from the distribution utilities aggregated customer
information by fuel type and service classification and other relevant,
authorized data.
B.Â
Sustainable Westchester, on behalf of the Village/Town of Mount Kisco,
shall issue one or more requests for proposals to suppliers to provide
energy to participants and may then award one or more contracts in
accordance with the CCA Program.
C.Â
Sustainable Westchester or the Village if the Village so chooses,
will then request customer-specific data from the distribution utility
in accordance with the CCA Program.
D.Â
Sustainable Westchester or the Village, if the Village so chooses,
and the selected supplier(s) will then notify opt-out eligible customers
of the contract terms and opportunity to opt out of the CCA Program
energy supply and/or CDG credits.
E.Â
In accordance with and for purposes of the CCA framework order, the
distribution utility will provide to Sustainable Westchester customer-specific
data (including usage data, capacity tag obligations, account numbers,
and service addresses) of all eligible customers in the Village/Town
of Mount Kisco.
F.Â
Sustainable Westchester and the Village/Town of Mount Kisco, will
protect customer information as required by law, subject to the CCA
framework order and the limitations of the New York State Freedom
of Information Law.
A.Â
The Village/Town of Mount Kisco will notify, or will cause notification
of, its opt-out eligible customers by letter notice, of the Village
establishing the CCA Program, of the contract terms with the supplier,
and of the opportunity to opt out of the CCA Program offerings.
B.Â
The letter notice will be sent to each opt-out eligible customer
at the address provided by the distribution utility and explain the
CCA Program and the material provisions of the supplier contract,
identify the methods by which the customer can opt out of the CCA
Program, and provide information on how the customer can access additional
information about the CCA Program.
C.Â
The opt-out period shall be at least 30 days.
Sustainable Westchester shall be responsible for filing an annual
report with the Public Service Commission, as required in the CCA
framework order.