[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Mamaroneck 7-22-2015 by L.L. No. 8-2015. Amendments noted where applicable.]
A.
It is the policy of both the Town of Mamaroneck and the State of New York to reduce, and provide a certain amount of control over, the cost of purchasing energy for the purpose of economic development, to promote deeper penetration of energy efficiency and renewable energy resources, such as wind and solar, and wide 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 (defined in § 76-2 below) consumers in the Town of Mamaroneck. Among the policies and models that may offer benefits in New York is community choice aggregation, which allows local governments to determine the default supplier of electricity and natural gas on behalf of its residential and small commercial consumers.
B.
The purpose of this Community Choice Aggregation (Energy) Program (defined in § 76-2 below) is to allow participating local governments, like the Town of Mamaroneck, to procure energy supply service for their residential and small commercial citizens, who will have the opportunity to opt out of the procurement, while maintaining transmission and distribution service from the distribution utility (defined in § 76-2 below) that currently supplies them with natural gas or electricity. This chapter establishes a program that will allow Sustainable Westchester (defined in § 76-2 below) to put out for bid the total amount of natural gas and/or electricity being purchased by local residential and small commercial consumers. Bundled customers (defined in § 76-2 below) will have the opportunity to have more control over 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 Town of Mamaroneck 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-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, 2014),
to the extent that orders related to Case No. 14-M-0224 enable actions
by the Town of Mamaroneck not otherwise permitted pursuant to orders
related to Case 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 this
Community Choice Aggregation(Energy) Program.
D.
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Community Choice
Aggregation (Energy) Program Law of the Town of Mamaroneck."
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:
Residential and small commercial consumers of electricity
or natural gas ("fuels") who are purchasing fuels from the distribution
utility that currently supplies natural gas or electricity within
the Town of Mamaroneck.
A municipal energy procurement program, which replaces the
distribution utility that currently supplies natural gas or electricity
within the Town of Mamaroneck as the default supplier for all bundled
customers within the Town of Mamaroneck.
The owner or controller of the means of distribution of the
natural gas or electricity that is regulated by the Public Service
Commission.
The New York State Public Service Commission.
Nonresidential customers as permitted by the Order.
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.
The not-for-profit organization comprised of member municipalities
in Westchester County, New York, that utilize that name.
A.
A Community Choice Aggregation (Energy) Program hereby is established
by the Town of Mamaroneck, whereby it intends to 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 role of
the Town of Mamaroneck 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 Town of Mamaroneck's purchase of energy supply through a
CCA Program is not intended to constitute either the purchase of a
public utility system, or the furnishing of utility service. The Town
of Mamaroneck 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 instead will limit its activities to negotiating with suppliers
on behalf of participating residential and small commercial customers.
C.
In order to implement the CCA Program, the Town Board of the Town
of Mamaroneck 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 this chapter and the Order.
D.
The Town of Mamaroneck recognizes that 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. It will conduct
the CCA Program in a manner that conforms to those rules and acknowledges
the Public Service Commission's role in this area.
A.
As permitted by the Order, the Town of Mamaroneck 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 Town of Mamaroneck, 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 Town of Mamaroneck if it so chooses,
will then request individual customer data from the distribution utility
in accordance with the CCA Program.
D.
Sustainable Westchester, or the Town of Mamaroneck if it 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.
E.
In accordance with and for purposes of the Order, the distribution
utility operating within the Town of Mamaroneck will provide to Sustainable
Westchester, and to the Town of Mamaroneck if it so chooses, aggregate
and customer-specific data (including usage data, capacity tag obligations,
account numbers, and service addresses) of all bundled customers in
the Town of Mamaroneck not enrolled with an ESCO.
A.
The Town of Mamaroneck independently or in conjunction with the supplier
chosen under the CCA Program will notify the residential and small
commercial consumers of fuels in the Town of Mamaroneck, by letter,
and other means of communication decided upon by the Town Board of
the Town of Mamaroneck, of the 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 will 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. The supplier chosen under the CCA Program will present a
draft of the letter notice to the Town of Mamaroneck for its review
and approval before sending it to the residential and small commercial
customers of fuels in the Town of Mamaroneck.
C.
The residential and small commercial customers of fuels in the Town
of Mamaroneck will have 20 days from the date that the letter notice
is sent to opt out of the CCA Program.
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.
