Open Letter to the Encinitas City Council in Support of Community Electricity Choice

TO:  Kristin Gaspar, Mayor
        Catherine S. Blakespear, Deputy Mayor
        Lisa Shaffer, Councilor
        Tony Kranz, Councilor 
        Mark Muir, Councilor 

Dear Honorable Mayor, Deputy Mayor and Councilors: 

The San Diego Energy District (SDED) started in 2011 to bring Community Electricity Choice to the attention of the San Diego region.  We applaud the Council's consideration of CEC/CCA.  We further urge you to move with alacrity to the next step in implementation of a Community Choice Program.   

The reason is simple. There are no benefits to waiting; there ARE costs to delay.  Electricity Choice represents a “win-win-win” – for Encinitas' citizens and ratepayers, for businesses, schools and municipal budgets, and for the environment and community as a whole.  

In urging immediate action, SDED offers three core points. These supplement the stellar record of CCA successes in Marin and Sonoma Counties.  Simply stated, there are three big arguments for CEC/CCA now: 

• The Community can easily do it – A city of the size of Encinitas can decide to proceed now, on its own.  The City of Lancaster exemplifies this model.  The City utilizes an “enterprise account” to separate CCA finances from other City accounts.  Enterprise accounts isolate any financial risk; its a tried, true and well-understood tool.   
• A CCA is a powerful climate mitigation step – Electricity Choice enables ALL residents, businesses, entities of all kinds, to realize greenhouse gas reductions.  The CCA will procure local, renewably-generated electricity in amounts responsive to the Community's wishes.  From the outset, studies and experience (Direct Access, et al) prove that “basic” electricity will be greener and cheaper than SDGE's standard service. In all probability, a 100% renewable option will be available at only a modest premium.  Near-term, the CCA can improve renewables penetration while capturing lower energy costs, a reflection of the fact that wholesale prices for wind and solar generation are increasingly below the price of new gas-fired energy.  
  
• A CCA is the City's most cost-effective tool to reduce greenhouse gases -- Experience has shown that CCA communities are meeting their renewables obligations and their climate mitigation targets more quickly and more cost-effectively than communities that rely on other measures (e.g., housing, biking, transportation, etc. )
  

In summary, there are many good reasons to enact Community Electricity Choice. SDED can provide other arguments and supporting documentation on these points as needed.  

But the bottom line is very clear:  Implementing Community Electricity Choice via CCA is doable, effective and economic – to consumers and municipalities alike.  Hiring a Lead Consultant (LC) is the critical next step. The LC's sole responsibility is CCA implementation. The cost of the LC is reimbursable by the CCA once operational. 

A CCA is the strongest, most effective climate mitigation tool available.  And what other climate mitigation measure brings immediate economic benefits to its constituents as rapidly and readily? We submit that on these and other measures, the results of the existing CCAs speak for themselves. 

The undersigned Directors of SDED urge the Encinitas City Council to vote near-term action to implement Community Electricity Choice.  We stand ready to assist your actions with any further information or support you may wish. 

With best wishes, 

​San Diego Energy District 


Erika Morgan, Secretary and Executive Director 
Lane Sharman, Board Chair
Michael Hetz, Vice Chair
Van Collinsworth, Director
Jamie Edmonds, Director