[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of Hastings-on-Hudson 10-20-2015 by L.L. No. 6-2015. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Green Building Code — See Ch. 160.
A.
It is the policy of both the Village of Hastings-on-Hudson 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 residential and small commercial customers in
those markets. Among the policies and models that may offer benefits
in New York is community choice aggregation (CCA), which allows local
governments to determine the default supplier of electricity and natural
gas on behalf of its residential and small commercial customers.
B.
The purpose of this CCA Program is to allow participating local governments,
including the Village of Hastings-on-Hudson, to procure energy supply
service for their residential and small commercial 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
to put out for bid the total amount of natural gas and/or electricity
being purchased by local residential and small commercial customers.
Bundled 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 chapter
and fulfilling an important public purpose.
C.
The Village of Hastings-on-Hudson is authorized to implement this
Community Choice Aggregation (Energy) Program pursuant to § 10,
Subdivision 1(ii)(a)(12), of the New York Municipal Home Rule Law
and State of New York Public Service Commission Case No. 14-M-0564,
Petition of Sustainable Westchester for Expedited Approval for the
Implementation of a Pilot Community Choice Aggregation Program within
the County of Westchester, Order Granting Petition in Part (issued
February 26, 2015), as may be amended, including subsequent orders
of the Public Service Commission issued in connection with or related
to Case No. 14-M-0564 (collectively, the "Order"). "Order" shall also
mean orders of the Public Service Commission related to 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 December 15, 2104) to the extent that orders related to Case
No. 14-M-0224 enable actions by the Village of Hastings-on-Hudson
not otherwise permitted pursuant to orders related to Case No. 14-M-0564;
provided, however, that in the event of any conflict between orders
from Case No. 14-M-0564 and orders from Case No 14-M-0224, orders
from Case No 14-M-0564 shall govern the CCA Program.
D.
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Community Choice
Aggregation (Energy) Program Law of the Village of Hastings-on-Hudson."
For purposes of this chapter, and unless otherwise expressly
stated or unless the context otherwise requires, the terms in this
chapter shall have the meanings employed in the State of New York
Public Service Commission's Uniform Business Practices or, if
not so defined there, as indicated below:
- BUNDLED CUSTOMERS
- Residential and small commercial customers of electricity or natural gas ("fuels") who are purchasing the fuels from the distribution utility.
- COMMUNITY CHOICE AGGREGATION PROGRAM OR CCA PROGRAM
- A municipal energy procurement program, which replaces the incumbent utility as the default supplier for all bundled customers within the Village of Hastings-on-Hudson.
- DISTRIBUTION UTILITY
- Owner or controller of the means of distribution of the natural gas or electricity that is regulated by the Public Service Commission.
- PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION
- New York State Public Service Commission.
- SMALL COMMERCIAL
- Nonresidential customers as permitted by the Order.
- SUPPLIERS
- Energy service companies (ESCOs) that procure electric power and natural gas for bundled customers in connection with this chapter, or alternatively, generators of electricity and natural gas or other entities who procure and resell electricity or natural gas.
- SUSTAINABLE WESTCHESTER
- A not-for-profit organization comprised of member municipalities in Westchester County, New York.
A.
A Community Choice Aggregation (Energy) Program is hereby established
by the Village of Hastings-on-Hudson, whereby the Village shall work
together with Sustainable Westchester to implement the CCA Program
to the full extent permitted by the Order, as set forth more fully
herein. The Village's role under the CCA Program involves the
aggregating of the electric and/or natural gas supply of its residents
and the entering into a contract with one or more suppliers for supply
and services. Under the CCA Program, the operation and ownership of
the utility service shall remain with the distribution utility.
B.
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 residential and small commercial customers.
C.
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 local law and the Order.
D.
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 ESCOs, the operation by which ESCOs provide
energy services, and the terms on which customers may be enrolled
with ESCOs.
A.
As permitted by the Order, the Village of Hastings-on-Hudson may
request from the distribution utilities aggregated customer information
by fuel type and service classification on a rolling basis.
B.
Sustainable Westchester, on behalf of the Village of Hastings-on-Hudson,
shall issue one or more requests for proposals to suppliers to provide
energy to participants and may then award a contract in accordance
with the CCA Program.
C.
Sustainable Westchester or the Village, if the Village so chooses,
will then request individual customer data from the distribution utility
in accordance with the CCA Program.
D.
Sustainable Westchester or the Village, if the Village so chooses,
and the selected supplier will then notify bundled customers of the
contract terms and their opportunity to opt out of the CCA Program
at no cost.
E.
In accordance with and for purposes of the Order, the existing distribution
utility, Consolidated Edison Company of New York, Inc., will provide
to Sustainable Westchester aggregate and customer-specific data (including
usage data, capacity tag obligations, account numbers, and service
addresses) of all bundled customers in the Village of Hastings-on-Hudson.
F.
Sustainable Westchester and the Village of Hastings-on-Hudson will
protect customer information as required by law, subject to the Order
and the limitations of the New York State Freedom of Information Law.
A.
The Village of Hastings-on-Hudson or in conjunction with the ESCO
will notify its residential and small commercial customers, by letter
notice, of the Village's decision to establish the CCA Program,
of the contract terms with an ESCO, and of the opportunity to opt
out of the CCA Program.
B.
The letter notice will be sent to each customer at the address provided
by the distribution utility and explain the CCA Program and the material
provisions of the ESCO 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.
The opt-out period shall be 20 days.
D.
CCA Program bundled customers, upon enrollment, will receive a welcome
letter that will explain the customers' options for canceling
the enrollment if they believe they were enrolled incorrectly or otherwise
decide to withdraw from the CCA Program in favor of another supplier.
The welcome letter also will explain that residential customers are
entitled to the added protection of the mandated three-day rescission
period as detailed in Section 5(B)(3) of the Uniform Business Practices.
Sustainable Westchester shall be responsible for filing an annual
report with the Public Service Commission, which identifies the number
of customers enrolled in the CCA Program by municipality and customer
class, the number of customers who returned to utility service or
service with another supplier during the reporting period, and the
average cost of commodity supply by month for the reporting period.
