For purposes of this chapter, and unless otherwise expressly
stated or unless the context otherwise requires, the terms in this
chapter shall have the meanings employed in the State of New York
Public Service Commission's Uniform Business Practices or, if
not so defined there, as indicated below:
AGGREGATED DATA
Aggregated and anonymized information including the number
of consumers by service class, the aggregated peak demand (kW) (for
electricity) by month for the past 12 months, by service class to
the extent possible, and the aggregated energy (kWh) for electricity
by month for the past 12 months by service class.
CCA ADMINISTRATOR
Shall be duly authorized to put out bids for and select qualified
CDG sponsors to supply CDG credits for participating consumers. The
CCA Administrator is responsible for program organization, administration,
procurement, and communications, unless otherwise specified. The CCA
Administrator is responsible for ensuring and tracking compliance
with Public Service Commission requirements applicable to CCA and
CDG Programs, including reporting requirements. The Town may retain
a CCA Administrator to oversee and operate its CCA Program consistent
with the Commission's rules and with this chapter, as well as
any CCA administration agreement executed between the Town and the
CCA Administrator.
COMMUNITY DISTRIBUTED GENERATION (CDG)
Refers to small, community-based renewable generation projects
up to five megawatts (MW) in size, to which residential and commercial
customers can subscribe to obtain credits on their electricity bill.
These credits are used to reduce the overall cost of a customer's
electricity service. Solar CDG projects are sometimes called "community
solar" projects.
CUSTOMER-SPECIFIC DATA
Customer-specific information, personal data and utility
data for all consumers in the municipality eligible for opt-out treatment
based on the terms of the PSC CCA Order and the CCA Program design,
including the customer of record's name, mailing address, telephone
number, account number, and primary language, if available, and any
customer-specific alternate billing name, address, and phone number.
DATA SECURITY AGREEMENT
An agreement between the distribution utility and the Town
that obligates each party to meet, collectively, i) all national,
state and local laws, regulations or other government standards relating
to the protection of information that identifies or can be used to
identify an individual eligible consumer with respect to the CCA Administrator
or its representative's processing of confidential utility information;
ii) the distribution utility's internal requirements and procedures
relating to the protection of information that identifies or can be
used to identify individual eligible consumer with respect to the
CCA Administrator or its representative's processing of confidential
utility information; and iii) the PSC CCA Order and PSC rules, regulations
and guidelines relating to confidential data.
DEFAULT SERVICE
Supply service provided by the distribution utility to consumers
who are not currently receiving CDG or remote net metering credits
through other sources. Eligible consumers within the Town that receive
default service, and have not opted out, will be enrolled in the program
as of the effective date.
DISTRIBUTED ENERGY RESOURCES (DER)
Local renewable energy projects, shared renewables like community
solar/CDG, energy efficiency, demand response, energy management,
energy storage, microgrid projects and other innovative Reforming
the Energy Vision ("REV") initiatives that optimize system benefits,
target and address load pockets/profile within the CCA's zone,
and reduce cost of service for participating consumers.
DISTRIBUTION UTILITY
Owner or controller of the means of distribution of the electricity
that is regulated by the Public Service Commission.
ELIGIBLE CONSUMERS
Eligible customers of electricity who receive default service
from the distribution utility as of the effective date, or new consumers
that subsequently become eligible to participate in the program, at
one or more locations within the Town, except those consumers who
receive default service and have requested not to have their account
information shared by the distribution utility. Customers who are
not receiving default service from the distribution utility, but who
wish to voluntarily opt in to the CCA Program are also eligible consumers.
NEW CONSUMERS
Consumers of electricity that become eligible consumers after
the effective date of the ESA, including those that opt in or move
into Town.
PARTICIPATING CONSUMERS
Eligible consumers enrolled in the program, either because
they are consumers who receive default service from the distribution
utility as of the effective date and have not opted out, because they
are eligible consumers who voluntarily opted into the program, or
are new consumers.
PSC CCA ORDER
The PSC's Order Authorizing Framework for Community
Choice Aggregation Opt-Out Program, issued on April 21, 2016, in Case
14-M-0224, "Proceeding on Motion of the Commission to Enable Community
Choice Aggregation Programs," and as amended by the Commission.
PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION or PSC
New York State Public Service Commission, which regulates
the generation, distribution and sale of public utility services in
New York State.
SUPPLIERS
CDG project owners/sponsors selected by the CCA Administrator
to provide credits to customers on their utility bills. In the event
the Town's CCA Program is expanded to include value-added services
such as traditional supply from an energy services company ("ESCO"),
the term "supplier" may also refer to ESCOs that procure electric
power for eligible consumers in connection with this chapter or, alternatively,
generators of electricity, or other entities who procure and resell
electricity.
Participating consumers shall be provided customer service including
a toll-free telephone number available during normal business hours
(9:00 a.m. through 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday)
to resolve concerns, answer questions, and transact business with
respect to the service received from the CCA Administrator and/or
CDG sponsor. At the Town's request, the CCA Administrator shall
provide information regarding available customer service opportunities,
including but not limited to reports related to customer service inquiries,
complaints, and the resolution of those complaints.
The Town and/or CCA Administrator may collect, or cause to be
collected, funds from customer payments to pay for reasonable administrative
costs associated with running the CCA Program.
This chapter shall be effective immediately upon filing in the
office of the New York State Secretary of State.
The invalidity or unenforceability of any section, subsection,
paragraph, sentence, clause, provision, or phrase of the aforementioned
sections, as declared by the valid judgment of any court of competent
jurisdiction to be unconstitutional, shall not affect the validity
or enforceability of any other section, subsection, paragraph, sentence,
clause, provision, or phrase, which shall remain in full force and
effect.