ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT
MEETING DATE: March 25, 2026 AGENDA CATEGORY: Reports TO: Honorable Mayor and City Council
FROM: Christian Clegg, City Manager
DATE: March 19, 2026
SUBJECT: Community Choice Aggregation Update
and Utility-Scale Distributed Energy Resources Pathways/Feasibility Study Introduction
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that City Council:
Receive and file the update regarding the Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) feasibility and Utility-Scale Distributed Energy Resources (DER) pathways/feasibility studies; Provide direction to staff regarding whether to proceed with CCA implementation planning, and if so, authorize staff to begin preliminary community outreach and education efforts; and, Provide direction to staff regarding whether to proceed with Utility-Scale Distributed Energy Resources (DER) implementation planning.
BACKGROUND:
In 2023, City Council directed staff to continue evaluating the feasibility of Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) following a referral to explore innovative energy strategies that could provide greater local control, increased customer choice, and potential cost savings for Bakersfield r esidents and businesses. In addition, Council requested staff to explore creative solutions to larger scale energy production, microgrids, and other energy solutions that would create greater savings and serve as economic development tools.
CCA allows participating local governments to procure electricity generation on behalf of customers within their jurisdiction while the incumbent investor -owned utility —Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) — continues to provide transmission, distribution, billing, and infrastructure maintenance. Under this model, customers are automatically enrolled but retain the ability to opt out and remain with PG&E for generation services.
Council previously authorized staff to pursue further analysis of whether a CCA structure could be successfully implemented in Bakersfield, including review of financial viability, risk exposure, customer rate competitiveness, and long-term sustainability.
Since the last report, staff engaged the California Choice Energy Authority (CalChoice) to condu ct a comprehensive feasibility study evaluating:
Financial viability and pro forma modeling
Customer rate competitiveness compared to PG&E
Risk exposure and reserve requirements
Governance structure and operational considerations
Implementation timeline and regulatory requirements
Additionally, staff engaged Willdan to evaluate pathways and the feasibility of utility-scale Distributed
Energy Resources (DER) implementation. The intent of this analysis is to determine whether locally generated renewable e nergy could be leveraged either in coordination with a CCA model, or as stand - alone programs, to:
o Increase long-term rate stability
o Provide additional local energy cost savings
o Enhance renewable energy portfolio offerings
Furthermore, staff has identified several ways in which a CCA could support local sustainability and economic development goals:
Easier facilitation of private microgrids for large development projects without reliance on cumbersome utility processes
Offer local timeline improvement and/or guarantees for power connectivity for new development projects
More control in pursuing innovative, game-changing industry cluster projects More flexibility in the creation of economic development or community development incentives through CCA revenues
More funding flexibility for creating community energy reduction or support programs in alignment with the City Council Goals and the General Plan
This update is presented in two parts:
CalChoice Presentation – Findings and recommendations rega rding CCA implementation feasibility
Willdan Presentation – Pathways and feasibility of utility-scale DER and potential integration with a future CCA
Should Council direct staff to move forward, next steps would include:
Initiate preparation of a formal Implementation Plan; Solicit proposals for preparation of the final Implementation Plan to be submitted to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC)
Following preparation and Council approval of the Implementation Plan, the Plan would be submitted to the CPUC for certification. Based on regulatory timelines, staff would target a January 2028 CCA implementation date.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Implementation Plan is estimated to cost between $50,000 and $100,000 and can be funded by existing General Fund appropriations in the non -departmental fund. Some savings can be achieved if community outreach and education efforts can be completed by internal Communications & Marketing staff, limiting the impact to the General Fund.
COUNCIL GOAL:
Innovative and Efficient City Government
Reliable Infrastructure
ATTACHMENTS:
None