Local Clean Energy Alliance Presents: Community Choice 101

Alameda County residents will soon have more voice and more choice about where their electricity comes from. Community Choice energy—an alternative electricity provider to PG&E—is coming to the County! Join us to learn more about how Community Choice works and what it means for you.
 
What: Brief presentation on
- Basics of Community Choice energy programs
- Potential community benefits
- What’s unique about Alameda County’s East Bay Community Energy
- Plus a Q&A session
When: Thursday, May 11, 2017, 7-8:30pm
Where: Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo Ave, Berkeley

Community Voice in East Bay Community Choice!

In April, progress continued toward the launch of East Bay Community Energy (EBCE), Alameda County’s new Community Choice energy program. Most relevant for community-minded advocates, the governing board is soon to seat a Community Advisory Committee and a contractor has begun work on creating a local development business plan.

Local Clean Energy Alliance Presents: Electrifying! Toward Fossil Fuel Free Homes, April 6th

Want to know what you can do in your own home to contribute to a more sustainable future? In the first event in the Local Clean Energy Alliance Presents series, learn how you can help your city meet climate action plan goals, and increase the effectiveness of Community Choice energy (a public alternative to PG&E for electricity).
 
When: Thursday, April 6, 2017, 7-8 pm 
Where: Oakstop, 1721 Broadway, Downtown Oakland, by 19th St BART

East Bay Community Energy Update

January 30th marked the first meeting of the governing board of East Bay Community Energy (EBCE), Alameda County’s brand new Community Choice energy program. The governing board is made up of elected officials from the eleven cities* in Alameda County that joined the program and one County Supervisor representing the unincorporated areas. EBCE is expected to begin providing power to County residents and businesses in the spring of 2018.

Community Choice Victory in Alameda County

Martha Kuhl, First Vice President of Labor Council outside Board of Supervisors' meetingMartha Kuhl, First Vice-President of the Alameda Labor Council and leader of the California Nurses Association, speaks in favor of community/labor Unity Proposal at press conference, October 4, 2016 outside County administration building.


October 4th marked a victory for East Bay communities and the East Bay Clean Power Alliance’s Clean Power to the People efforts. The Board of Supervisors voted to approve establishing a Community Choice energy program with a commitment to maximizing community benefits and including community input in the governance of the program.

The County approved a Joint Powers Authority (JPA) agreement, the foundation document for establishing the Community Choice program. The agreement represents a commitment to the goals advocated for by the East Bay Clean Power Alliance. It also incorporates a groundbreaking Unity Proposal released two weeks earlier by the East Bay Clean Power Alliance and the Alameda Labor Council.

Speak Out on October 4th: Big Vote on Community Choice

On Tuesday, October 4th, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors is scheduled to vote to move forward on the County’s Community Choice Energy program. Supervisors will vote on approving a Joint Powers Authority agreement to propose to cities that wish to participate in the County’s Community Choice energy program and funding the next phases of establishing the program. 
 
Join the East Bay Clean Power Alliance on Tuesday, October 4th to call for a Community Choice program that puts our communities first! 
 
Time:          8:30am Community Press Conference 
9:30am - 11:30am Board of Supervisors Meeting
Date:           Tuesday, October 4th 
Location:  County of Alameda Administration Building, Board Chambers
1221 Oak Street, 5th Floor (off Lake Merritt BART)
Oakland, 94612
 

Join the Local Clean Energy Alliance at the Building Resilient Communities Convergence!

On September 14-18, the annual Northern Permaculture and Building Resilient Communities Convergence will be held at the Solar Living Institute in Hopland, California. The Local Clean Energy Alliance will present a workshop on Sunday, September 18th on Community Choice as a powerful vehicle for democratizing energy, spurring local sustainable economic development, and building more resilient communities. 

The Convergence is a combined effort of the 2nd Annual North American Permaculture Convergence and the 11th Northern California Permaculture Convergence. The gathering is intended as an inspirational five days of intensive focus on a common goal: to design, build, and strengthen regenerative communities and habitats, in accordance with nature, for humans, plants, animals, the greater bioregion, and the Earth at large. 

CPUC: Latest Bid to Kill Community Choice

On August 18th, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) approved San Diego Gas & Electric’s (SDG&E) plan to launch a new division to market against Community Choice energy, the latest in a series of CPUC decisions to undermine Community Choice energy programs.
 
SDG&E is one of California’s three investor-owned utilities, serving as the monopoly energy provider for 3.6 million customers across San Diego and south Orange Counties. In San Diego and throughout California, cities and counties are moving to establish Community Choice energy programs as public, non-profit energy service providers. While investor-owned utilities continue to operate the energy grid and deliver electricity, the Community Choice program decides where the electricity for residents and businesses will come from–enabling the community to prioritize a cleaner energy portfolio and investment in local renewable energy resources. Utilities like SDG&E see the growth of Community Choice energy programs as a threat to their business model.

Delay on East Bay Community Choice Program - No Rest for Advocates

Providing less than 24 hours’ notice, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors delayed its much anticipated action on Community Choice energy at its August 2nd meeting. The vote is now expected in October, following a half-day Board of Supervisors retreat on September 20th. 
 
Despite the organizing challenges of the last minute shift, the delay offers the East Bay Clean Power Alliance an opportunity to make Alameda County’s Community Choice program even stronger in its commitment to community involvement, community benefits, and investment in local renewable energy resources.

East Bay Community Choice - Act Now!

August 2nd marks the next step for Alameda County’s quickly developing Community Choice Energy program: the Alameda County Board of Supervisors will vote on (1) approving a Joint Powers Authority agreement to propose to cities that wish to participate in the County’s Community Choice energy program, (2) accepting the Community Choice feasibility study, and (3) funding the next phases of establishing the program. 

The East Bay Clean Power Alliance, an Alameda County-wide alliance with support from fifty-six community organizations, is calling on County Supervisors to make sure that community benefits and community involvement are at the core of an East Bay Community Choice program. After a recent victory against a proposed coal export terminal in West Oakland, let us reaffirm the need for a clean energy future and clean energy jobs in the East Bay!
 

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