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PRESS RELEASE
Clean Power Alliance (CPA) announced that approximately 55,000 of its residential customers, who have fallen behind on their electricity bills due to the COVID-19 pandemic, are now receiving financial assistance totaling more than $15.8 million from the California Arrearage Payment Program (CAPP).
The CAPP program provides financial assistance for California energy utility customers to help reduce past due energy bill balances that increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. The program dedicates $1 billion in federal American Rescue Plan funding to address California’s energy debt.
Established by Governor Newsom and the California Legislature in the 2021-22 State Budget, the CAPP program is being administered by the Department of Community Services & Development (CSD). To expedite the release and distribution of CAPP assistance to eligible California utility customers, CSD has been working closely with energy utilities throughout the state, including CPA.
CPA previously provided $2 million in bill credits using internal funds to struggling customers during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Now to provide assistance for those still struggling to catch up, CPA proactively applied for CAPP assistance on behalf of its numerous customers who incurred a past due balance of 60 days or more on their energy bill during the COVID-19 pandemic relief period covering March 4, 2020, through June 15, 2021.
“Meeting the needs of our vulnerable customers is a core priority of CPA. So our team members started working with CSD as soon as possible to ensure CPA customers throughout Los Angeles and Ventura Counties received their fair share of these funds,” said Ted Bardacke, CEO of Clean Power Alliance.
Customers do not need to apply to receive assistance under the CAPP program. If a customer account is eligible and prioritized for funding, a credit is automatically applied to the customer’s bill. State funding requires energy utilities to prioritize CAPP assistance to eligible customer accounts in the following order:
1. Active residential customers with past due balances who are at risk of disconnection due to nonpayment.
2. Active residential customers with past due balances.
3. Inactive residential customers with past due balances.
4. Commercial customers with past due balances.
“We are happy our customers do not need to apply to receive this important financial assistance. These funds will go a long way toward getting many of our customers back on their feet, enabling them to remain current on their bill payments moving forward,” said Diana Mahmud, Board Chair of Clean Power Alliance. “We hope to receive more CAPP funding in the future, so we can further assist even more of our customers in need.”
CPA expects to provide CAPP utility bill relief to all customers in priority levels 1 and 2. Unless additional funding is made available, CPA anticipates that only residential customers will receive a CAPP credit.
Customers receiving a CAPP credit will receive a letter informing them of their upcoming credit. The credit will then appear as a bill payment on their next monthly bill. The bill will also include a message, so customers know why they are receiving the CAPP credit. Billing logistics are being implemented by CPA’s billing partner Southern California Edison (SCE).
More information regarding the CAPP program can be found at https://cleanpoweralliance.org/capp-program. Customers can also visit the California Department of Community Services & Development’s CAPP website at https://www.csd.ca.gov/Pages/CAPP.aspx.
About Clean Power Alliance
Founded in 2017, Clean Power Alliance is the locally operated non-profit electricity provider for 30 cities across Los Angeles County and Ventura County, as well as the unincorporated areas of both counties. CPA is the fifth largest electricity provider in California and has the most customers receiving 100% renewable energy in the nation. CPA serves approximately three million people via one million customer accounts, providing clean renewable energy at competitive rates. To view CPA’s most recent Impact Report, click here. For complete information regarding CPA visit www.cleanpoweralliance.org.
