Desert Community Energy or SCE: what a household pays beta
Desert Community Energy buys the electricity; SCE delivers it and sends the bill. Pick your city, rate plan and usage to see the official comparison of a typical bill on each Desert Community Energy product and on SCE, with an estimate for your own usage.
Every plan on the official comparison
The typical monthly bill printed on the comparison for each residential rate plan, and the difference from SCE (red: more, blue: less).
All DCE customers
SCE–Desert Community Energy joint rate comparison: SCE rates are current as of June 1, 2026. DCE rates are current as of July 1, 2026. Source (fetched 2026-10-20).
| Plan | Typical use | SCE | Desert Saver | DCE CARE/FERA | 100% Carbon Free |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D Tiered · sheet: DOMESTIC | 795 kWh | $287.26 | $286.32 −0.3% | — | $345.22 +20.2% |
| D CARE Tiered · sheet: D-CARE | 795 kWh | $177.33 | — | $176.40 −0.5% | — |
| D FERA Tiered · sheet: D-FERA | 795 kWh | $223.78 | — | $222.85 −0.4% | — |
| TOU-D-4-9 Time-of-use, peak 4–9 pm · sheet: TOU-D-4-9 | 795 kWh | $287.65 | $286.69 −0.3% | — | $346.14 +20.3% |
| TOU-D-4-9 CARE Time-of-use, peak 4–9 pm · sheet: TOU-D-4-9-CARE | 795 kWh | $177.60 | — | $176.64 −0.5% | — |
| TOU-D-4-9 FERA Time-of-use, peak 4–9 pm · sheet: TOU-D-4-9-FERA | 795 kWh | $224.11 | — | $223.15 −0.4% | — |
| TOU-D-5-8 Time-of-use, peak 5–8 pm · sheet: TOU-D-5-8 | 795 kWh | $287.28 | $286.41 −0.3% | — | $345.88 +20.4% |
| TOU-D-5-8 CARE Time-of-use, peak 5–8 pm · sheet: TOU-D-5-8-CARE | 795 kWh | $177.35 | — | $176.48 −0.5% | — |
| TOU-D-5-8 FERA Time-of-use, peak 5–8 pm · sheet: TOU-D-5-8-FERA | 795 kWh | $223.81 | — | $222.94 −0.4% | — |
| TOU-D-PRIME Time-of-use PRIME · sheet: TOU-D-PRIME | 795 kWh | $299.76 | $296.85 −1.0% | — | $356.90 +19.1% |
| TOU-D-PRIME CARE Time-of-use PRIME · sheet: TOU-D-PRIME-CARE | 795 kWh | $185.78 | — | $182.86 −1.6% | — |
| TOU-D-PRIME FERA Time-of-use PRIME · sheet: TOU-D-PRIME-FERA | 795 kWh | $234.04 | — | $231.13 −1.2% | — |
- On the CARE and FERA plans the sheet prices one DCE column (CARE/FERA) only.
Why the bills differ
The delivery part of the bill goes to SCE whichever provider you choose. What differs is the price of the power itself and the exit fee (the Power Charge Indifference Adjustment, PCIA): a charge on CCA customers for power contracts the utility signed before they left, set by the CPUC each year by the year the customer's community left (its “vintage”). How it moved since 2018, by utility and vintage: the exit fee by year.
Time-of-use, peak 4–9 pm (TOU-D-4-9PM), Desert Saver: the power price is 9.33¢ a kWh against SCE's 11.72¢ (2.38¢ lower). The exit fee and franchise fee (SCE's “surcharges”: the Cost Responsibility Surcharge, which includes the PCIA, and the franchise fee) is 2.85¢ for Desert Community Energy customers and 0.00¢ for SCE customers (2.85¢ more). (SCE prints no surcharge for its own customers: their share is inside its generation rate.) Delivery is printed 0.59¢ lower for Desert Community Energy customers. Net: −0.12¢ a kWh, or −$0.96 on the typical 795 kWh bill (−0.3%).
Time-of-use, peak 4–9 pm (TOU-D-4-9PM), CARE, DCE CARE/FERA: the power price is 9.33¢ a kWh against SCE's 11.72¢ (2.38¢ lower). The exit fee and franchise fee (SCE's “surcharges”: the Cost Responsibility Surcharge, which includes the PCIA, and the franchise fee) is 2.85¢ for Desert Community Energy customers and 0.00¢ for SCE customers (2.85¢ more). (SCE prints no surcharge for its own customers: their share is inside its generation rate.) Delivery is printed 0.59¢ lower for Desert Community Energy customers. Net: −0.12¢ a kWh, or −$0.96 on the typical 795 kWh bill (−0.5%).
The difference over time
Every comparison found from 2021 on, most of them from archived copies (utilities overwrite these sheets in place).
| Rates as of | Plan | Utility bill | Products (vs the utility) | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SCE June 1, 2026 / CCA July 1, 2026 DCE member cities | DOMESTIC (D) · 795 kWh | $287.26 | Desert Saver $286.32 −0.3% 100% Carbon Free default $345.22 +20.2% | source |
| November 15, 2025 DCE member cities | DOMESTIC (D) · 541 kWh | $207.79 | Desert Saver $207.08 −0.3% 100% Carbon Free default $243.39 +17.1% | source |
| SCE March 1, 2025 / CCA February 1, 2025 DCE member cities | DOMESTIC (D) · 541 kWh | $189.76 | Desert Saver $189.36 −0.2% 100% Carbon Free default $220.78 +16.3% | source |
| SCE June 1, 2024 / CCA June 4, 2024 DCE member cities | DOMESTIC (D) · 520 kWh | $186.25 | Desert Saver $185.76 −0.3% 100% Carbon Free default $210.70 +13.1% | source |
| SCE March 1, 2024 / CCA March 7, 2024 DCE member cities | DOMESTIC (D) · 520 kWh | $189.30 | Desert Saver $188.77 −0.3% 100% Carbon Free default $214.15 +13.1% | source |
| SCE June 1, 2023 / CCA July 1, 2023 DCE member cities | DOMESTIC (D) · 569 kWh | $199.04 | Desert Saver $198.41 −0.3% 100% Carbon Free default $225.24 +13.2% | source |
| SCE March 1, 2023 / CCA January 1, 2023 DCE member cities | DOMESTIC (D) · 569 kWh | $188.20 | Desert Saver $188.42 +0.1% 100% Carbon Free default $215.32 +14.4% | source |
| SCE June 1, 2022 / CCA March 1, 2022 DCE member cities | DOMESTIC (D) · 564 kWh | $169.87 | Desert Saver $169.24 −0.4% 100% Carbon Free default $193.94 +14.2% | source |
| SCE June 1, 2022 / CCA March 1, 2022 DCE member cities | DOMESTIC (D) · 564 kWh | $169.87 | Desert Saver $170.53 +0.4% 100% Carbon Free default $195.23 +14.9% | source |
| SCE October 1, 2021 / CCA July 15, 2021 DCE member cities | DOMESTIC (D) · 594 kWh | $163.63 | Desert Saver $148.98 −9.0% 100% Carbon Free default $172.26 +5.3% | source |
Your options
Switch to another Desert Community Energy product
Web form (embedded) or phone (855) 357-9240. Desert Community Energy: change your product.
Return to SCE
Desert Community Energy: opt out · (855) 357-9240.
“DCE does not charge a fee to opt out at any time.” source
“If you choose Option #1, SCE will require you to remain on TBS for 6 months, and your service will not be eligible to return to Direct Access service or CCA service until a 12-month commitment has been fulfilled.” source
SCE's rules for returning customers
Within the first 60 days: “If you opt out within the first 60 days after transferring to CCA Service, your account will be transferred from CCA Service and to the same bundled service you were on prior to being transferred to CCA Service. at no cost to you and with no penalty.” source
After 60 days: six months’ notice: “If you opt out of CCA service more than 60 days after being transferred to CCA Service, you will be required to provide a completed Six-Month Advance Notice to Return to Bundled Portfolio Service (Form 14-955) before you will be eligible to return to SCE bundled service.” source
Or return at once: “Request an immediate return to SCE (during the six-month advance notice period), in which case your service account will be served on Schedule Procurement Charge — Transitional Bundled Service (Schedule PC-TBS) for the six-month advance notice period. You will continue to pay CCA CRS charges while on TBS service.” source
Then a minimum stay: “Following the end of the six-month advance notice period, your account will be returned to SCE's bundled service for a minimum commitment of 12 months. During this 12-month period, customers will not be allowed to switch to CCA Service or Direct Access Service until their 12-month commitment has been fulfilled ... *The time served under TBS shall apply toward the 12-month minimum commitment with SCE.” source
Re-entry fee: “Note: Either option is subject to a one-time re-entry fee to cover costs associated with account processing. Please see CCA Info Tariff.” source
Member cities and their default product
The default product is the one a city's customers are enrolled in unless they choose another; where a CCA offers several, each member city's council chooses it. Every city's default and the council decisions behind it.
| City | Default product | Source | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Palm Springs | 100% Carbon Free since 2020-04 (launch) | source | |
| Cathedral City left. Council voted to withdraw from Desert Community Energy (city goals update in the 2024-11-13 council packet). | — | ||
| Palm Desert not served. A member of the joint powers authority, but DCE serves Palm Springs only ('DCE service launched in Palm Springs in April of 2020'). | — |
Desert Community Energy in the CCA money pages: finances, credit ratings, money returned to customers, and money between Desert Community Energy and its member city governments. · Every CCA