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South Lake Tahoe council directs staff to explore Community Choice Aggregation and join CalCCA affiliate list
Summary
After a staff feasibility presentation, the council authorized staff to explore Community Choice Aggregation options — including regional partnerships — and directed the mayor to apply for nonbinding affiliate membership in CalCCA to pursue potential local procurement and resilience benefits.
City staff presented a feasibility memo on Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) as a potential way to gain local control of electricity procurement, increase renewable energy access and pursue resilience programs. Sarah Leton, the city's sustainability coordinator, said staff, the city attorney and outside consultants examined City‑only feasibility and found CCA could work financially but administrative costs and wildfire mitigation expenses would remain.
Leton said the city's electricity comes from Nevada and sits in a different balancing authority, a complication that the feasibility work found addressable. Staff recommended next steps: pursue economies of scale by joining an established CCA, explore a regional CCA with neighboring jurisdictions (noting positive preliminary conversations with Pioneer Community Energy), and file for nonbinding affiliate membership with Cal CCA so interested parties can make contact.
During Q&A, councilmembers emphasized that CCA would not itself force Liberty Utilities to underground lines or improve reliability, and that such infrastructure changes would remain under the utility's control or require municipalization. Councilmembers asked about grant opportunities for undergrounding and were told staff had not identified reliable grants for full undergrounding projects but would continue to investigate potential funding sources.
Public commenters, including representatives from Pioneer Community Energy and local advocacy groups, voiced support for the city exploring CCA and regional coordination. Council then approved a motion directing staff to pursue CCA exploration and authorized the mayor to execute an application for affiliate membership with Cal CCA.
What happens next: Staff will use allocated feasibility funds to continue outreach with neighboring jurisdictions and report back on options, costs and potential next steps if council wishes to advance from exploration to formal feasibility study or implementation.
