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resolution 2 pages

Also attached to this agenda item: Resolution 173-2022 Support PSC Approving Solar...

Dear Municipal Leaders, Sustainable Westchester is preparing to launch an exciting, new Solar Credit offering (opt- out community solar a.k.a. opt-out community distributed generation) within the Westchester Power program. We are awaiting final approval from the Public Service Commission of our implementation plan to add the Solar Credit offering to the Westchester Power program. The Solar Credit offering will provide up to 10% savings on the electricity bills for eligible households and small businesses. This offering will be made available first to residents in participating municipalities who are enrolled in the utility’s low-income assistance programs. We estimate this population to include about 30,000 households in Westchester County. We prioritize these households for the guaranteed savings because they face the highest burden of energy costs. Municipalities that wish to make the Solar Credit offering available to their eligible residents must: 1. Adopt an updated CCA Enabling Law: The Public Service Commission requires that municipalities adopt a local CCA Enabling Law with specific language to incorporate the Solar Credit offering. o Please find attached a Local Law Template to establish or amend a Community Choice Aggregation that enables multiple energy service offerings, including electricity supply as well as solar credits. 2. Sign the Administration Agreement: To enable the Solar Credit offering for your constituents, your municipality must execute the Administration Agreement. We will circulate our Administration Agreement for your review upon final approval of our implementation plan by the Commission. Showcasing climate leadership, the following municipalities have already adopted the updated enabling law this summer: City of New Rochelle City of White Plains Town of Bedford Town of North Salem Town of Ossining Town of Yorktown Village of Hastings-on-Hudson Village of Larchmont Village of Ossining Village of Tarrytown The new draft is written to allow participation in either the Electricity Supply or the Solar Credit offering or both, but does not obligate participation in either. Some municipalities find that providing the two offerings increases the impact and provides the broadest range and access to benefits to their residents and small businesses. For municipalities with existing CCA laws on the books, we can provide a redline version customized to the specific local law to highlight the changes needed for this update. For municipalities that have not yet adopted a local CCA law, we are providing the draft to establish the law. We are happy to arrange a time to meet with you to address any questions or concerns you may have. We are also available to join public board meetings, either virtually or in person. Please feel free to contact me at leo@sustainablewestchester.org, 914-242-4725 ext. 116 or Carmen Santos, Manager, Solar Programs at carmen@sustainablewestchester.org, 914- 242-4725 ext. 105. We look forward to working with you to provide these valuable savings to your community members! Leo Wiegman, Director, Solar Programs