What community choice energy costs and saves California cities
A community choice aggregator (CCA) buys electricity for a city's homes and businesses; PG&E, Southern California Edison or SDG&E still delivers it and sends the bill. These pages gather what joining, running or leaving a CCA has cost city governments, what cities pay for their own electricity under one, and how CCA bills compare with the utility's — from the councils' own staff reports, budgets and minutes, and from the rate comparisons the CCAs and utilities must publish.
The short answer
Cities that join a CCA
Joining an existing CCA usually costs a city government nothing, or a study fee of a few thousand dollars, and the joint powers agreement keeps the CCA's debts off the city's general fund: when Western Community Energy went bankrupt in 2021, its member cities paid only legal bills, while the regional agency that ran it wrote off $2.1 million and its former customers paid most of Edison's $5.2 million re-entry fee. Palm Springs is an exception: it guaranteed up to $25 million of Desert Community Energy's power purchases. What member cities do pay for is their own electricity — usually a small saving on the default product and a premium of a few percent when the council picks 100% renewable power. Many also receive grants and projects from their CCA.
What cities pay for their own electricity · Joining and leaving
Cities that run their own CCA
A city that runs its own CCA is its bank: it lends the start-up money, posts the collateral and covers cash shortfalls — Lancaster and Palmdale were each owed about $11–12 million by their CCA funds in 2024. In good years the fund repays the city, pays for city staff and programmes and builds reserves of tens of millions; Baldwin Park's CCA lasted 17 months and the city got its money back by selling the power contracts.
Residents' and businesses' bills
In most years the typical bill on a CCA's default product is within a few percent of the utility's. The utility's exit fee (PCIA) decides which side: when it jumped in January 2026, several Northern California CCAs went 7–17% above PG&E until they cut their own rates, while others held even by spending reserves. Most of the CCAs that a single city runs in Edison territory were 10–18% above SCE in their own 2026 comparisons. Some CCAs return surpluses as one-time bill credits.
Bills compared with the utility, year by year · Is your CCA saving you money? Compare your own bill (beta)
Bills on the default product compared with the utility
The latest published comparison in each year: the typical residential bill on the CCA's default product, percent above (red) or below (blue) the utility's. Hover or tab to a cell for the bills; click it for the source.
The CCAs
| CCA | Utility | Run by | Started | Member cities | Latest bill comparison | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ava Community Energy | PG&E | Joint powers authority | 2018 | 16 | −0.1% March 2026 | Serving |
| Central Coast Community Energy (3CE) | PG&E, SCE | Joint powers authority | 2018 | 29 | +8.6% PG&E March 1, 2026 / CCA February 15, 2026 | Serving |
| CleanPowerSF | PG&E | City and County of San Francisco (SFPUC) | 2016 | +7.3% March 2026 | Serving | |
| King City Community Power | PG&E | City of King City (operated by Pilot Power Group) | 2018 | 1 | −1.4% March 1, 2026 | Serving |
| MCE | PG&E | Joint powers authority | 2010 | 34 | +16.5% March 1, 2026 | Serving |
| Pioneer Community Energy | PG&E | Joint powers authority | 2018 | 18 | +12.8% PG&E March 1, 2026 / CCA March 2026 | Serving |
| Redwood Coast Energy Authority | PG&E | Joint powers authority | 2017 | 7 | +1.7% PG&E March 1, 2026 / CCA September 1, 2026 | Serving |
| San José Clean Energy | PG&E | City of San José | 2019 | 1 | −0.8% June 1, 2026 | Serving |
| Silicon Valley Clean Energy | PG&E | Joint powers authority | 2017 | 12 | −0.3% PG&E March 1, 2026 / CCA as printed: not stated separately | Serving |
| Sonoma Clean Power | PG&E | Joint powers authority | 2014 | 11 | 0.0% PG&E March 1, 2026 / CCA September 1, 2026 | Serving |
| Valley Clean Energy | PG&E | Joint powers authority | 2018 | 3 | −1.5% March 1, 2026 | Serving |
| WestLight Energy | PG&E | Joint powers authority | 2016 | 21 | −1.4% July 2026 | Serving |
| Apple Valley Choice Energy | SCE | Town of Apple Valley (CalChoice) | 2017 | 1 | +12.4% SCE June 1, 2026 / CCA November 1, 2025 | Serving |
| Clean Power Alliance | SCE | Joint powers authority | 2019 | 38 | 0.0% SCE June 1, 2026 / CCA July 1, 2026 | Serving |
| Desert Community Energy | SCE | Joint powers authority | 2020 | 3 | +20.2% SCE June 1, 2026 / CCA July 1, 2026 | Serving |
| Energy for Palmdale's Independent Choice (EPIC) | SCE | City of Palmdale (CalChoice) | 2022 | 1 | +18.3% SCE June 1, 2026 / CCA February 1, 2024 | Serving |
| Lancaster Energy | SCE | City of Lancaster (CalChoice) | 2015 | 1 | +17.2% SCE June 1, 2026 / CCA August 21, 2024 | Serving |
| Orange County Power Authority | SCE | Joint powers authority | 2022 | 5 | +12.3% SCE June 1, 2026 / CCA October 20, 2025 | Serving |
| Pico Rivera Innovative Municipal Energy (PRIME) | SCE | City of Pico Rivera (CalChoice) | 2018 | 1 | +10.4% SCE June 1, 2026 / CCA May 1, 2026 | Serving |
| Pomona Choice Energy | SCE | City of Pomona (CalChoice) | 2020 | 1 | +14.9% SCE June 1, 2026 / CCA December 1, 2025 | Serving |
| Rancho Mirage Energy Authority | SCE | City of Rancho Mirage (CalChoice) | 2018 | 1 | −0.2% SCE June 1, 2026 / CCA March 1, 2026 | Serving |
| San Jacinto Power | SCE | City of San Jacinto (CalChoice) | 2018 | 1 | +17.9% SCE June 1, 2026 / CCA May 1, 2024 | Serving |
| Santa Barbara Clean Energy | SCE | City of Santa Barbara (CalChoice) | 2021 | 1 | +9.4% SCE June 1, 2026 / CCA March 15, 2026 | Serving |
| Clean Energy Alliance | SDG&E | Joint powers authority | 2021 | 8 | +5.1% SDG&E August 1, 2026 / CCA June 1, 2026 | Serving |
| San Diego Community Power | SDG&E | Joint powers authority | 2021 | 7 | −4.0% SDG&E August 1, 2026 / CCA May 1, 2026 | Serving |
| Baldwin Park Resident Owned Utility District (BPROUD) | SCE | City of Baldwin Park (CalChoice) | 2020 | 1 | — | Ended 2022 |
| Butte Choice Energy | PG&E | Joint powers authority | 2 | — | Never launched | |
| Western Community Energy | SCE | Joint powers authority (WRCOG) | 2020 | 6 | — | Bankrupt 2021 |
Cities
Every city with a figure about money between the city government and a CCA, or a study of joining one.
Downloads and method
Money figures (CSV) Bill comparisons (CSV) CCA finances (CSV)
Sources and method — what was read, how each figure was checked, and what these pages cannot tell you.