Community choice is another term for opt-out energy aggregation. Electricity and natural gas utility customers who fail to enroll in a retail supply contract automatically receive their electricity generation or natural gas supply through the utility default supply rate called the Standard Service Offer (SSO) or Standard Choice Offer (SCO). SSO and SCO pricing have historically been much higher than the rates offered through retail suppliers in the competitive market. Community choice allows the community to select a cheaper retail energy product to serve as the new default supply rate for SSO or SCO customers in the community.

No. Community choice never takes away customer choice. Individual customers always retain their customer choice rights and can shop around and choose any supplier they would like at any time without any fees, hassle, forms, paperwork, phone calls, or opt-out. Simply contact their preferred retail supplier and enroll in the retail contract they want just like before. And for customers with pre-existing retail supply contracts, community choice does not interrupt those previous customer choice decisions. Community choice just allows the community to shop around in the competitive market and decide the community default supply rate for SSO or SCO customers instead of that rate being determined by the utility company and PUCO.

Community choice must be authorized by the voters in the community. Communities can place the electric or natural gas aggregation ordinance on the ballot for either the General Election in the Fall, or the Primary Election in the Spring. To get started, SOPEC can provide assistance to local governments with draft legislation and ballot language.

Community choice is intended to provide flexibility for all customers. Customers who do not want community choice to replace their default supply rate with a rate from the competitive market can choose to opt-out. These customers return to the utility default supply rate for electricity generation or natural gas supply service charges. Customers can opt-out at any time and there is no fee or hassle to opt-out. Customers can also return at any time also without any fee or hassle.

Customers can opt-out of the SOPEC Electric Aggregation Program at any time by calling toll free 1-877-726-0214 and providing their account number and service address.

Customers can opt-out of the SOPEC Natural Gas Aggregation Program at any time by calling toll free 1-855-667-3201 and providing their account number and service address.

No. Under Ohio law, participation in community choice is prohibited for some customers even if they are not in a retail agreement. The following customers cannot participate in community choice:

• PIPP Plus Customers (Electric and Natural Gas)
• Net Metering Customers (Electric)
• Municipal Utility Customers (Electric)
• Rural Cooperative Customers (Electric)
• Customers with Multiple Meters/Accounts (Electric)
• Customers using more than 700,000 kWh/yr (Electric)

Even though these customers are ineligible, their neighbors and other customers in the community could save through community choice, so it is important to educate all members of the community when the community is voting on community choice through an electric or natural gas aggregation ordinance.

Residential electric customers can expect to save between $50 – $200 each year. Commercial electric customers can expect to save $100 – $250 each year. Households and businesses with larger electricity usage will save more. When aggregated across an entire community, these savings are very meaningful. Community Choice can easily achieve $100,000 to $500,000 in savings community wide.

Expected savings for natural gas are lower due to the smaller share of residential and commercial energy consumed through natural gas than electric power. Residential natural gas customers can expect to save between $10 – $50 each year. Commercial natural gas customers can expect to save $25 to $75 each year. Households and businesses with larger natural gas usage will save more.