HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015_7_22_Local_Law_No_8
Local Law No. 8 – 2015
This local law shall be known as the “Establishment of a Community Choice Aggregation (Energy)
Program in the Town of Mamaroneck” Law.
Be it enacted by the Town Board of the Town of Mamaroneck as follows:
Section 1 – Purpose:
The Town Board declares the policy of the Town of Mamaroneck, like that of the State of New
York, is to reduce, and provide a certain amount of control, over the cost of purchasing energy.
In order to advance this objective the Town Board finds that it is in the best interest of safety,
health and well-being of citizens of the Town of Mamaroneck to create a “Community Choice
Aggregation (Energy) Program”.
Section 2 – Creation of a new chapter for the Code of the Town of Mamaroneck:
The Code of the Town of Mamaroneck hereby is amended by adding a new Chapter 76 thereto,
entitled “COMMUNITY CHOICE AGGREGATION (ENERGY) PROGRAM,” to read as follows:
Chapter 76: COMMUNITY CHOICE AGGREGATION (ENERGY) PROGRAM
§76-1. Legislative Findings; Intent and Purpose; Authority.
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 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 (defined in
section 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 section
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 section 2, below) that
currently supplies them with natural gas or electricity. This Chapter establishes a
program that will allow Sustainable Westchester (defined in section 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 section 2,
below) will have the opportunity to have more control over their overall energy costs, to
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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 Section 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”.
§76-2. Definitions.
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 means 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.
Small Commercial means non-residential customers as permitted by the Order.
Community Choice Aggregation (Energy) Program or CCA Program means 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.
Distribution Utility means the 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 means the New York State Public Service Commission.
Suppliers mean energy service companies (ESCOs) that procure electric power and
natural gas for Bundled Customers in connection with this Chapter or, alternatively,
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generators of electricity and natural gas or other entities who procure and resell
electricity or natural gas.
Sustainable Westchester means the not-for-profit organization comprised of member
municipalities in Westchester County, New York that utilize that name.
§76-3. Establishment of a Community Choice Aggregation (Energy) Program.
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.
§76-4. Procedures for Eligibility; Customer Data Sharing.
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.
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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.
F. Sustainable Westchester and the Town of Mamaroneck will protect customer
information as required by law, subject to the Order and the limitations of the law,
including but not limited to the New York State Freedom of Information Law.
§76-5. Choice of Energy Supplier; Opt-Out Notice and Procedure.
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 twenty (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 (3) Day rescission period as
detailed in Section 5(B)(3) of the Uniform Business Practices.
§76-6. Verification and Reporting.
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A. 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.
Section 3 - Severability:
Should any provision of this Local Law be declared invalid or unconstitutional by any court of
competent jurisdiction such declaration of unconstitutionality or invalidity shall not affect any
other provisions of this Local Law which may be implemented without the invalid or
unconstitutional provisions.
Section 4 – Effective Date:
This local law shall take effect upon filing with the Secretary of State.
TB meeting June 23, 2015
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