Town seeking public input on Weschester Power program enrolling all residents in ESCO- Potential 38% increase in supply costs
Hello Everyone,
The Town of Greenburgh has scheduled an online Public Discussion at 7:30pm this upcoming Wed 9/23 regarding the renewal of the Westchester Power ESCO. You may remember that I sent an update about this a couple of months ago(link) and with the 4 year contract up for renewal at the end of the year, the Town Board is seeking public input on its renewal.
There are two main components of your electricity utility bill. There is the supply of energy and there is the delivery. Under normal circumstances, both of these would be provided by Con ED. An ESCO, or Energy Supply Company is a company that supplies the electricity, and there are a variety of different suppliers out there that you can choose from besides Con Ed. Regardless of the supplier, Con Ed is still the provider of delivery and who you receive your monthly utility bill from.
In 2016, the Town enrolled all residents into the Weschester Power ESCO program unless they specifically requested to opt out. Since January 1st of 2019, rates for the ESCO have been significantly higher than Con Ed rates(previously they fluctuated between higher and lower and were overall similar). That means anyone who did not opt out has been paying more for electricity(currently 38% more) over the last 2 years than those of us who opted out(I will share that I am one of those people who opted out).
There are approximately 12k households enrolled in the program in Greenburgh.
The Town is looking to renew their contract with Westchester Power which began in 2016 and expires at the end of this year.
Points to Consider
Unlike the original contract, this time the Town Board is considering the "Green Option" which provides electricity that is from 100% renewable sources. This provides a clear environmental benefit unlike the previous program.
The price target that they have for the supply of electricity to provide is 7.65 cents which is 38% more than current Con Ed rates. This would impose a significant increase in utility costs on Greenburgh residents.
The Town is proposing to enroll all residents via negative consent. Unless residents read the one time mail that will go out and then take action to elect to not participate, they will be automatically enrolled. These types of programs have received large scale criticism and are considered unethical by many in the marketing industry. Link Link2
Even if the Town does proceed with this program, residents who are interested can opt out at any time.
It would appear there is no option that would be an opt in, where people choose to join. We either do this as an opt out, or don't do it at all.
Lack of Transparency. Westchester Power had committed at the time of the contract to send out notices or updates on the program to all enrolled residents. By all accounts those updates/notices have not gone out as promised. The Council of Greenburgh Civic Associations has been vocal in pointing this out at TB meetings and via emails to the TB.
You are encouraged to attend the meeting and share your thoughts, email publichearing@greenburghny.com if you wish to be invited. If you cannot attend but wish to share comments, please email TownBoard@greenburghny.com. If you have questions you would like me to try and answer please email me at eric@ericzinger.com.
At the same meeting, the TB will be continuing the Public Hearing from 9/9 regarding Assisted Living Zoning legislation changes. More info. If you did not get a chance to speak at the 9/9 hearing, you can do so at this meeting.
If you find these updates informative, forward them to your friends and neighbors and encourage them to subscribe, and like my page on FB. Questions? Event you want publicized? Something your curious about? Email me at eric@ericzinger.com.
Eric Zinger
www.ericzinger.com