The City of El Monte has partnered with California Choice Energy Authority (CCEA) for a technical study that will determine the City’s feasibility for a Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) program.

“CCAs provide cities the opportunity to develop their own energy portfolio, generate cost savings for customers, and increase revenues that can be reinvested in the community,” said Alex Hamilton, City of El Monte City Manager. “The City finds that the many benefits of a CCA support the City’s long-term goals.”

A CCA program would enable the City to purchase and generate electricity for residents and businesses, offering the El Monte community an alternative to the local investor-owned utility Southern California Edison (SCE). CCEA’s technical study will determine if the program is a viable, beneficial option for the City.

“The development of a CCA would support the City’s long-term sustainability goals by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing local renewable energy,” added Hamilton. “In addition, the CCA would prompt more local jobs for our community and provide an additional source of revenues.”

To verify the City’s feasibility for a CCA, CCEA will request the City’s energy data from SCE. CCEA partners with industry experts who can use their technical expertise to analyze the data and determine potential electrical load, costs and revenues associated with a CCA in El Monte.

If the technical study results are positive, CCEA will also develop an implementation plan for the City to file with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). The implementation plan is based on information from the technical study and is required by the CPUC in order to launch a CCA.

“The City of El Monte selected the CCEA to conduct the City’s technical study for its collaborative approach, industry expertise and proven success with other cities such as Lancaster and Pico Rivera,” said Hamilton.

Located approximately 12 miles east of downtown Los Angeles, El Monte is the hub of the San Gabriel Valley, where two major freeways – Interstates 605 and 10 – intersect and is the ninth largest city (out of 88) in Los Angeles County with a population of approximately 120,000.

CCEA is a pioneering Community Choice Aggregation solution for cities in California. The hybrid joint powers authority provides an innovative model that retains local control of utility services for cities who partner with CCEA while alleviating operational risk and administrative overhead associated with the implementation of CCA. For more information, please visit https://californiachoiceenergyauthority.com/.