Timeline for program development and the approval process followed all steps required by State statute, including local authorization, public review, and approval by the Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission. Follow the Central Falls Community Electricity Program’s progress with the table below.
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Step One: On July 8, 2019, City Council voted in favor of creating a Central Falls CEA program; it was signed by the Mayor on the same date. The City selected Good Energy, L.P. as the consultant to assist in developing and managing the Program.
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Step Two: In 2020, the City worked to develop a draft Aggregation Plan including the program’s goals, organization, and operation.
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Step Three: The City made the draft Aggregation Plan available for public review starting on April 30, 2020, and held a public hearing on May 11, 2020. The draft Aggregation Plan was amended, based on public input and comments received during the review.
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Step Four: The City Council voted to approve the Aggregation Plan on May 11, 2020, which allowed the submission of the plan to the Public Utilities Commission.
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Step Five: In May 2021, the Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission (PUC) approved the Aggregation Plan in docket number 5042.
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Step Six: In September 2022, Central Falls chose NextEra Energy Services as the supplier for the program. South Kingstown monitored the market to identify the appropriate time to run a competitive bid for electricity supply.
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Step Seven: From March to April 2023 Central Falls implemented an education and outreach campaign to make residents and businesses aware of the upcoming program launch and their choice to participate in the Program, or leave before it started (opt out). This included:
- A post-card and Customer Notification letter mailed to each eligible electricity customer
- Public meetings to answer questions and explain the program:
- Monday, March 20th at 6 pm at City Hall.
- Tuesday, March 21st , Green Energy Consumers Alliance, the local non-profit that helps bring new renewable projects to New England held a virtual discussion about our city’s community electricity program. A second meeting took place on Thursday, March 23rd.
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Step Eight: The Program began providing electricity as of the May 2023 meter read. Participants can switch their Program option or opt out, without penalty or fee of any kind, any time after the Program has begun.