Coronado will begin the process of joining a locally controlled, non-profit energy authority to source its power instead of relying solely on San Diego Gas and Electric (SDG&E) for power procurement.
The City Council voted on Feb. 17 to initiate the process of joining a Community Choice Aggregation (CCA), capping a multi-year discussion of the matter that began when Coronado adopted its Climate Action Plan in 2022. The council decided to join San Diego Community Power (SDCP), which serves much of the county already.
CCAs focus on sustainable energy sources, and under this model, public utilities continue to deliver power and handle billing — SDG&E, in Coronado’s case. Because they are non-profit entities, they must reinvest income after reserves into local energy programs, which is not the case with investor-owned utilities.
Historically, customers under SDCP see comparable rates to those of SDG&E. The earliest Coronado could join, if approved for membership, is 2028. All residents and commercial customers can opt out and remain with SDG&E.
The decision came after nearly three hours of staff presentations, subcommittee analysis, detailed questioning of CCA executives and public comment.
Councilmembers Carrie Downey and Kelly Purvis spearheaded the CCA subcommittee and, after nearly a year of research, recommended joining SDCP.
“This is the culmination of four years of work,” Downey said, outlining why the subcommittee concluded a CCA offered “competitive electricity rates” and a way to “meet our Climate Action Plan goals with minimal cost” while preserving customer choice.
Downey said during her presentation that the city had made little progress toward its CAP goals. While she still wants the city to strive for other initiatives — she specifically mentioned installing solar panels on city buildings — she said joining a CCA would help the city reduce its carbon footprint in a capital-light manner.
Purvis, who said she was not familiar with CCAs when the debate re-emerged last June, said that through her research on the subcommittee, she had become a supporter. Last summer, concerns about joining a CCA arose, which the subcommittee researched and addressed ahead of Tuesday’s meeting.
“For 42 years, I’ve received an SDG&E bill and haven’t had a choice,” she said. “This is an opportunity to have a choice. (…) And if you don’t want it, you can go back to SDG&E.”
Mayor John Duncan pressed staff and SDCP on the practical implications for residents, particularly those with rooftop solar, and on how much money ratepayers are likely to save under SDCP’s default “PowerOn” product compared with SDG&E.
The joint rate comparisons presented showed small but consistent savings at current prices: SDG&E’s sample residential bill was pegged at about $164 per month, versus roughly $163 under SDCP’s mid‑tier product offering 53% renewable energy (plus 2% additional carbon‑free) compared with SDG&E’s current 41.4% renewable mix.
Downey emphasized that while savings per bill may appear “negligible” at low usage, they scale with higher consumption and, critically, are set by a board whose legal mandate is to serve ratepayers rather than investors.
Public comment was dominated by supporters urging the council to move forward, including members of local environmental group Emerald Keepers and other residents who argued the program balances environmental and fiscal benefits.
Emerald Keepers president David Landon framed the move as both pragmatic and forward‑looking. He said CCA participation “allows communities to purchase electricity with a higher renewable content, while also offering comparable or lower rates,” adding that reliability remains unchanged because SDG&E will continue to deliver power and maintain the grid.
Others focused on local control and community reinvestment, pointing to CCA‑funded grants and battery‑storage incentives already being offered in other member cities.
Not everyone was convinced. One resident cited recent Resource Adequacy fines against SDCP. Resident Brad Gerbil took issue with SDCP’s weighted vote option, which, if utilized, would give the city of San Diego majority control in voting. In the past, Coronado griped with weighted voting at the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) leaving Coronado with little influence. To date, SDCP has not called a weighted vote, though its structure allows it.
On the dais, Councilmember Mike Fleming also highlighted affordability and long‑term uncertainty. He questioned whether SDCP’s goal of reaching 100 percent clean energy by 2035 — ten years ahead of the state’s 2045 mandate — could eventually pressure rates upward if renewable costs spike or federal incentives shrink.
“We shouldn’t fool ourselves and think that what we’re doing up here is saving the planet,” Fleming said, describing Coronado’s carbon footprint as a “tiny speck in the regional and global picture.” He expressed more comfort with the smaller CCA, Clean Energy Alliance (CEA), in part because its joint-powers agreement does not allow for weighted votes.
Downey acknowledged the weighted‑vote concern, which has loomed large for Coronado in regional transportation politics at SANDAG, but argued SDCP’s structure and history make abuses unlikely. The weighted vote has never been used, SDCP staff confirmed, and any decision would still require support from multiple cities.
“We couldn’t come up with a reason why San Diego would use a weighted vote to favor one city over another,” Downey said, adding that any board decision on rates or reserves would apply uniformly across all member jurisdictions.
What changes for residents?
Under the CCA model, nothing changes about who delivers electricity or maintains lines and poles: SDG&E remains the distribution utility. The only change is who buys the electricity on behalf of most Coronado customers and what mix of resources they purchase.
If Coronado is admitted to SDCP, the city’s residents and businesses will be automatically enrolled in SDCP’s default product on a future start date, but customers can opt out before enrollment, can opt up or down among SDCP products (from lower-cost, lower-renewable options to 100 percent renewable), and can leave SDCP later and return to SDG&E.
For rooftop solar customers on legacy Net Energy Metering (NEM) 1.0 or 2.0, their net‑metering contracts follow them. Those customers’ existing NEM status and true-up structure are preserved, and SDCP ads a small bonus payment on top of SDG&E’s net surplus compensation rate (about $0.0075 per kilowatt-hour). Additionally, transitions are timed to coincide with annual true‑up dates to avoid disrupting accrued credits.
SDCP also touted its battery‑storage incentives, saying it has already helped install about 2,200 residential batteries under a pilot and is now rolling out a full program expected to support more than 4,000 additional systems, with upfront incentives and performance payments for customers who let SDCP dispatch stored power during peak periods.
Next steps and timeline
Tuesday’s vote does not make Coronado an SDCP member immediately. Instead, it initiates a months‑long process involving the city, SDG&E, SDCP and state regulators.
By June 30, Coronado must formally request three years of historical electricity‑use data from SDG&E and transmit it to SDCP under a nondisclosure agreement.
By Aug. 15, SDCP will analyze Coronado’s load and determine whether it can integrate the city without adverse financial or resource‑adequacy impacts.
By Aug. 30, Coronado must take a second, confirmatory council vote making a preliminary decision to join SDCP, informed by SDCP’s analysis.
In September, SDCP’s board will consider admitting Coronado, evaluate any financial impacts from adding the new member, and adopt a resolution to amend its Joint Powers Agreement to include the city if approved.
By October 31, both SDCP and the Coronado City Council must formally adopt the amended Joint Powers Agreement, making Coronado a voting member and adding a Coronado representative (and alternate) to SDCP’s board.
In late 2026, SDCP will file an updated implementation plan with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), outlining how and when it will begin serving Coronado. After CPUC review and scheduling, SDCP would begin procuring electricity for Coronado customers. Service could start on or after Jan. 1, 2028.
Between now and the second vote, city staff plan an outreach campaign to explain the change, answer rate and opt‑out questions and help residents compare bills. The city manager said staff time will be required for the application and ongoing board participation but described the workload as “significant but manageable,” akin to Coronado’s involvement in other regional joint‑powers agencies.
Downey stressed that the decision remains reversible for both the city and individual customers at several points.
“What we’re doing tonight is initiating an application,” she said. “If at any point in that process, something changes — if SDCP can’t take us, if the state doesn’t approve, or if this council decides it’s no longer in the public interest — we can step back. And even if we do move forward, every single customer still has a choice.”
