Dear Councilors,
I am writing in disgust of the opt-out Electricity Choice notice I received today (attached). I should be able to expect continuity-in-service and business-as-usual without having to read a notice and take action. Shame on you all for allowing this to happen.
I am sure you will agree that a large percentage of residents are too busy to bother reading notifications and will likely discard the notice without action. The consequence of their inaction will occur sometime later when they notice a higher bill. We can only speculate on their reaction when they learn that Watertown moved them into a program without their consent and they will be furious at the opt-out burden that was placed on them. Regardless of an individual’s perspective on clean energy, they will be upset.
My anger is doubled in the knowledge that “clean energy” is a lie. I am sure there are still some folks in the town who still believe in the fairytales promoted by the climate zealots but I am not one. I have a first-hand, front row seat to the construction of wind turbines on Coxes Ledge. I have analyzed wind energy, particularly offshore wind energy, in great detail and it is flawed environmentally as well as economically. The clean energy narrative is a lie! It is not clean and it is not economical. I would be happy to discuss it with any of you but you should start by visiting our website: www.green-oceans.org.
Lastly, the numbers cited in the enclosed chart are misleading because they are “cooked.” The clean energy numbers are heavily subsidized, which is not disclosed. Trump is actively cutting the subsidies and will likely claw-back what he can. Furthermore, Trump is actively trying to shut down offshore wind and I think he will succeed. In the short-term, this will likely expose consumers to the direct cost of “clean energy” which will be very different from what is presented in the enclosed chart.
Please consider this email a formal request to immediately reverse the opt-out program and make it an opt-in program.
Dave Sprogis
Watertown Resident
Thank you, Dave. This is valuable information
I have not received the Opt Out Notice yet, but will go online to do so nevertheless. This is an outrage. The City has not right to automatically enroll anyone to anything, but it comes as no surprise that Watertown tries to pull a fast one in its continued quest to become a Mini-Me Cambridge.
The climate change fanatics will stop at nothing to pursue their objectives, and – while some can’t even spell methane – have passed S2967 which will cost us Billions and achieve nothing. Here is further detail about this jewel of legislation:
https://tippinsights.com/grid-battery-cost-issue-storm-looms-in-massachusetts/
https://www.massfiscal.org/op-ed-the-actual-costs-legislature-climate-bill?ref=tippinsights.com
Add to this the constant war against natural gas, and any other energy source the “green” fanatics deem inappropriate, and wait to see utilities rates to soar to unforeseen levels.
What a ripoff.
It worked! Thanks again, Dave.
MassPowerChoice Customer Support
This email confirms that you have submitted a request to opt the
following account out of your community’s municipal electricity
program:
—> Eversource account number ending in XXXX
Quote, “…..If you do nothing you will automatically be enrolled in Watertown Clean Energy Choice at 13.74 c /kWh.” Based on what I can find on-line currently the Eversource Basic Plan is 13.24 c/kwh. Based on that info I did not opt out but why aren’t these numbers clearly and publicly posted for comparison? If clean energy is actually a choice, shouldn’t citizens know the cost? This doesn’t pass a transparency test, but obviously it wasn’t intended to based on the decision made that you are automatically opting in, unless you opt out.
Thanks for highlighting this and to WN for publishing it. We really need a clearing house for all the information coming from the city. This is not to bash their handling of the information because it is a lot, even for those of us who pay attention.
I opted out when the program first came out because I didn’t like the variability in price. The current stock market is depressing because the steady growth over the past 4 years has been replaced with high volatility which does not benefit me as I am not in Mergers and Acquisitions. Congrats corporate raiders; must be nice.
I am not opposed to green energy at all. I supported the wind mills on the Cape. I do support a plurality of energy, even nuclear. However, the options need to be affordable, particularly when it comes to costs associated with housing. Costs for housing and associated costs are ludicrously high. It’s not a consumer good that people can easily substitute for, like Stop & Shop for Whole Foods or going without an item, such as VIP concert tickets.
I understand that fossil fuels will go up over the long term, but I need to understand how much or at what what rate, given that it’s a monopoly, and state legislation has some power to impact. I do need to look at the matrix and do a deep dive, and if the numbers over the next 5 years can’t be reasonably predictable, then I’ll be opting out as well. I will not be forced to take on any debt instrument for this program or other programs that impact housing costs. My aim is maintenance, not selling or conversion.
Absolutely agree. A few years ago I was duped because i thought the City of Watertown had home owners best interests at heart. At first I didn’t notice, but within months my bill kept going up and up per KwH. When i called they said my KwH usage was triple than that of regular energy users. They said i had to pay my last month bill of $900! $900 for a month for electricity for a cape????
They switched me back and said i could put a block on any more automatic opt-in clean energy switch. Apparently the clean energy originated in VA and cost a lot more for delivery.
Now i’m back on regular energy my monthly bill has cratered back down to reasonable $180 a month…while not cheap it was certainly better than $900.
I completely agree with Dave. Read the fine print and don’t fall for this foolishness. If you’ve already opted in you’ve probably noted a steep increase in your electric bill. Call your provider, switch back and put a block on this transfer so you can’t get moved over without your knowledge.
If the City won’t do it, be a problem solver and call and tell them to reverse the switch!!!
Does anyone know whether the Opt Out is good forever or needs to be renewed every year?
BTW, we can’t blame our Councilors for this stupid requirement. Every community in MA has to comply with it as ordered by State government. Check Mass.gov.
I got this from the City about the opt outs:
“Only new electric meters (new resident, new business, replaced meter) to the grid in Watertown are sent notices that they can opt-out if they so choose. But anyone can opt-out at any time. Once they have opted out, they stay opted out. They can usually opt-in back in at a later date if they so choose.”
Got it. Thanks, Charlie.
When this program started, the default Watertown Electricity Choice was a much better price than the standard Eversource option, so this seemed like a great thing. There are now many other provider options offering seemingly great rates for the first 6 months, but it seems we’ll have to monitor price increases closely, since everyone seems likely to jack up the prices once they’ve got you signed up.
This surprise announcement was certainly not expected nor communicated in a very timely manner, especially where people need to make a decision by April 23 and many of us haven’t even received this letter from the City.
It seems to me that Watertown could do better by its citizens. If they could have provided more notice, listed the current basic rate from Eversource per kWh and then listed the costs of the options they are offering through Watertown ElectricityChoice, they would have saved thousands of residents from the time, energy and frustration from doing this as individuals.
As the writer mentions, how many people will not understand what the letter is all about, how many will put it aside and not read it in time, or just throw it away without reading it? Then all hell will break loose if they get their first bill with the new assigned plan and possibly more increases in charges.
Everyone in this state is already upset about the energy costs increasing dramatically, whether it’s their gas or electric bills. Governor Healey, in her recent reaction to the high bills, will provide a $50 credit to each family in their April electric bills. Whoopie do! We are supposed to think that will appease the masses after what they’ve already paid and then the utility companies will resume their higher charges after a couple of months, possibly with interest!
I pulled a file that I saved from 2017 and 2018 when we still had the Watertown Tab paper here. There were numerous articles and an editorial regarding the start of this energy saving program. We also received a notice in the mail from CleanChoice Energy Processing with a form saying, “Please note that CleanChoice Energy cannot switch your electricity supply to renewable sources unless your instructions are received.” They asked for people to sign and return the form to them by mail. They said we’d get our clean energy from regional and wind farms. and this was a state goal.
Here is a link to a notice on November 1, 2023 mentioning that prices will move to MARKET LEVELS when the current contract with NextEraEnergy Service ends and a new 36-month contract takes effect in December 2023.
https://mail.aol.com/d/search/keyword=Watertown%2520Electricity%2520Choice%2520News/messages/AEDzgzJnzVnsZUKMqAG9UM4_dlg
It also mentions that active participants would be automatically enrolled in the new price for their option unless they opted out or changed to a different option.
If you’ve kept up with recent news, you probably heard that many of the Offshore Wind projects are in trouble. The Institute for Energy Research published an article on February 5 and enumerated a number of reasons for this. There conclusion stated, “Offshore wind energy is expensive and is getting even more expensive due to supply chain issues and high interest rates. Wind development companies are canceling projects not only in the United States but also around the world. President Trump is not enamored with offshore wind energy due to its cost and unreliability, as it produces energy only when the wind blows. The refrain of intermittent renewable energy supporters that wind facilities are cheaper ignores that they are usually unavailable, requiring backup power to be built and paid for by consumers to accommodate their intermittency. The result is higher prices for consumers and businesses trying to compete globally.”
They went on to say, “Concerns are also raised as China has become a dominant force in manufacturing wind energy components, which leads to energy security and national security concerns for nations that rely on it. China does not have the oil and gas resource base that the United States has, so it has used the green energy transition to become dominant in supplying the energy needs of Western countries that want to stop using fossil fuels because they supposedly cause climate change.”
China is not our friend, and if we are forced to buy equipment, including solar panels and replacement parts from them, we are putting ourselves at risk and our costs can only go up. Also, the article mentioned the UK’s dependence on China for offshore wind supplies has become a growing national security concern for their country. Rare earth permanent magnets are a critical component in offshore wind turbine generators. These rare earth magnets are predominantly produced in China, putting Europe’s energy infrastructure and national security at risk. Europe’s energy future will be beholden to China. Think about what risks we are taking with dependence on wind power.
In our Watertown Comprehensive Plan our city has signed on to be one of the first in the state to be sure to comply with the state plan to:
By 2050, 100% of electricity is sourced from renewables
By 2050, Watertown’s buildings are efficient, resilient, and carbon neutral.
By 2050, 100% of ALL vehicles in Watertown are ELECTRIC.
(I wonder how that last option will be achievable with hateful, illogical, and vengeful people sabotaging Tesla dealerships and charging stations and cars of current owners of Teslas with no regard for people’s personal property and the safety of people in those businesses because they feel their opinions matter more.)
If this schedule is achieved, I wonder what the electricity charges will be by then as all our needs will be dependent on electric sources!
To provide some clarity of past approaches to the new electrical contracts signed by the state officials, I’ve included some past history for your perusal.
In the Watertown Tab on July 19, 2019 Editorial section the writer said, “Customers can change from default level to “basic” to 100 percent renewables at any time without financial penalty.” He went on to say , “Watertown’s new contract automatically opts in customers at a standard default rate, which has 49% green energy (14% state mandated plus 35 percent added), with, by state law, 2% green energy increases in January of each year. You can choose to opt down to “basic” or to opt up to 100 percent green energy or to opt out.”
If people want to opt up to the higher levels, that’s fine; that’s your choice, but for those watching your personal budgets to provide for your families, green energy might be fine, but green in your pocket may be more important!
Here is a link to Watertown News dated August 5, 2019.
https://www.watertownmanews.com/2019/08/05/deadline-for-choosing-electricity-plan-approaching-for-watertown-residents/
Here is a link to Watertown News dated July 22, 2019.
https://www.watertownmanews.com/2019/07/22/find-out-about-watertowns-new-electricity-plans-at-upcoming-meetings/
As you can see, the rules have been changed many times as to whether you need to opt out or won’t need to do this. In the past they have had meetings with residents to provide answers in advance. I guess the new way is to just opt us in and expect people to accept what they want us to do, hoping people won’t pay attention! As the old saying goes, Caveat Emptor or Let the Buyer Beware!
P.S. Have you received the City letter yet? As of March 31, I haven’t.