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Clean Power Expo 1/25

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Expo + Info Session for Home Energy Improvements
Thursday 1/25, 5:30 to 7:30 PM
@ The Fuller Building, 45 Pine Grove Ave, Kingston, 12401
Click here to register:
https://www.tickettailor.com/events/chronogrammedia/1062538 
Join us for our first Clean Power Expo of the year, in partnership with Chronogram Magazine, featuring local energy coaches and specialists in Home Energy Improvement.
One-stop destination for learning how to wean your home off fossil fuels and maximize savings, your way. This forum and expo features authors and sponsors of the 2024 Clean Power Guide, local energy coaches and refreshments, of course.
Pick up the newly published 2024 Clean Power Guide here and make your home energy improvement New Year’s Resolution with kindred spirits.
Moderated by Chronogram Editorial Director Brian K. Mahoney; with Melissa Everett of Sustainable Hudson Valley; and special guests including some of the most knowledgeable and motivated Energy Coaches in the Valley, here to help you deal with whatever energy issues your home is presenting. Learn how make your home more comfortable, more affordable, and more sustainable, in the winter and year round.
Speakers:
Jeff Eckes, Certified Passive House Tradesperson, LDR Group
Marcy Cleveland, Owner and Operator, Green Building Specialists; Founder of Hudson Valley Green Homes
Tom Konrad, Energy Coach, New Yorkers for Clean Power; Marbletown Environmental Conservation Commission Chair
Steve Wehr, Energy Coach, New Yorkers for Clean Power; retired IBM senior engineer and electric vehicle enthusiast
Thank You to Our Clean Power Guide Sponsors:
Hot Water Solutions
Central Hudson
Dandelion Energy
WaterFurnace International
Lighthouse Solar
Advanced Radiant Design
Energy Conservation Services

Stop CenHud Rate Increase Hearing Sept.12 & 20

Please share this widely!

There’s a Central Hudson rate case that was just opened earlier this summer; the company is requesting an increase in electricity costs for customers in our region. We’d like to invite your organization to get involved!

There’s a few ways you can take a stand against electric & gas bill costs!

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Instructions on Registering to Make a Statement

*You must register BY 4:30pm on the day before the hearing. Give yourself extra time to jump through the tech hoops in the registration process! For the hearing, keep your comment to about 1 page long, because there’s a time limit.

STEP 1: Click on the blue links below for the hearing you want to speak at

STEP 2: Enter the password for that specific hearing

STEP 3: Click “Register” (DO NOT CLICK “OK”) underneath

the enter the webinar password box

STEP 4: Click “Register” in the box that appears on the right

STEP 5: Fill out the form & BE SURE TO CHOOSE THE “Yes, I’d like to make a statement” box

Online Hearing One: Tuesday, September 12th at 1pm

Event Number: 2345 253 2876

Password: Sept12-1pm

Phone Access: 518-549-0500

Access Code: 2345 253 2876

Phone-in password: 73781201

Online Hearing Two: Tuesday, September 12th at 5pm

Event Number: 2336 265 2934

Password: Sept12-5pm

Phone Access: 518-549-0500

Access Code: 2336 265 2934

Phone-in password: 73781205

Online Hearing Three: Wednesday, September 20th at 1pm

Event Number: 2338 342 7497

Password: Sept20-1pm

Phone Access: 518-549-0500

Access Code: 2338 342 7497

Phone-in password: 73782001

Online Hearing Four: Wednesday, September 20th at 5pm

Event Number: 2334 829 1678

Password: Sept20-5pm

Phone Access: 518-549-0500

Access Code: 2334 829 1678

Phone-in password: 73782005

Share your story, or the stories of people you advocate for!

Tell decisionmakers whether or not Central Hudson should be rewarded with a rate increase & tell them why you feel the way you do.

Talk about your problems with Central Hudson & whether or not they’ve been remedied.

What effect has being a Central Hudson customer had on your emotional wellbeing or finances, or on the people you help?

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Want an official seat at the bargaining table? Become an an “intervenor” in this rate case.

Anyone, and any organization, can sign up to be an official “party” (also known as an “intervenor”) to the upcoming rate case that will determine how much CenHud customers will pay for their electricity. CLP has been a party to Central Hudson rate cases for over a decade; we’ve had some success, and we can share information and resources with you.

What is a rate case?

A rate case is the formal process used to determine what utility companies can charge customers for the delivery of electricity, natural gas, private water and steam service. Interested persons and organizations can “intervene” and become “parties” in a utility company’s rate case.

Who can get involved in a rate case?

Intervenors include: industrial, commercial and other large-scale users of electricity; public interest groups; representatives of residential, low-income and elderly customers; local municipal officials; advocacy groups; and, ratepayers– people just like you!

What’s required (cost-wise, time-wise, etc) to become involved?

The cost is FREE. Folks and organizations who become intervenors will be be working with experienced groups who value and protect your time by letting you know:

  • What are the most crucial meetings, and when you should join them to speak up
  • How to write the various testimonies/discovery questions
  • What specific terms mean
  • When we need to make big decisions for the settlement as a whole, and what the various options and their outcomes might be

Please note– rate cases do take time and there are a lot of meetings to go to (currently virtual). Intervenors do not need to attend each meeting, but consistent participation is recommended.

Is there a deadline for becoming a party to the upcoming rate case?

No.

How long does the rate case process take?

The state body overseeing the process is the Public Service Commission (PSC), and they must make a decision within 11 months after a major rate case is filed. Rate cases proceed in an entirely public and open process.

Want to become an intervenor? Aren’t sure if it’s a good fit? Don’t have much time or want to commit, but want to stay involved?

Reach out to us at CLP! We can talk to you about ways you can make a difference, no matter the type of skills or amount of time you have. Email dacruz@communitiesforlocalpower.org and we can help get you in a solid place that suits your needs and capacity.

Want to share info about this absurd proposition, so that others are aware and can take action?

Forward this email!

Share our Sept.12th & 20th Online Public Hearing Guide w/registration instructions & evolving talking points/ideas for comments. Here’s a nice-looking link of the guide to share, also: bit.ly/cenhudrateincrease

Share our facebook post (or copy our post language and use it for an eblast or newsletter)!

In Solidarity,

Communities for Local Power

Scavenger Hunt Earth Week Recap

Happy Friday, Sane Energy Family,

This week was the 50th anniversary of Earth Week, and we know that our action, attention, and care must persevere and expand.

Here is a recap of some of the action we helped to generate this week that you can still participate in. Get ready for ACTION!

Follow the map below and keep reading to take action and keep Earth Day going every single day.

Day One: Monday was for maps!

  • Where are you? Learn what Indigenous land you are occupying right now by exploring the beautiful mapping project: native-land.ca
  • You Are Here! Locate what fossil fuel infrastructure is around you now on the You Are Here interactive map created by a partnership between Sane Energy Project and Fractracker Alliance

Day Two: Tuesday was about radioactivity & fracked gas

There is legislation to fight for radon testing & ending frack waste that we will revisit with you all when the legislature reconvenes.

Day Three: Wednesday we wrote letters to shut off the Spectra Pipeline @ Indian Point nuke plant. Keep the letters going!

  • Read the scathing report from the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) that the NRC staff analysis of the safety of the Spectra AIM Pipeline was flawed, and the 20 million people living within 50 miles of Indian Point are now facing unknown risks of a pipeline rupture damaging the plant and the spent nuclear fuel stored there.
  • Send a letter to insist NYS regulators keep working to ensure the Spectra Pipeline gets shut off NOW! We can really achieve this if we get enough demand from all of us, so please send a letter with this easy form. Thank you to the continuous hard work of the fierce women-led groups Resist Spectra, SAPE, SEnRG, and Grassroots Environmental Education.

* Wednesday, we also sent comments to stop the North Brooklyn Pipeline! Keep ’em coming folks!

Day Four: Thursday was focused on keeping pressure on Cuomo to keep Cricket Valley switched OFF!

Day Five: Friday was a big festive day celebrating Renewable Heat Now! + Stop the Williams NESE pipeline for GOOD!

  1. The company pushing the Williams NESE pipeline, National Grid, tried to downplay their own report showing that we can meet the need for heat in downstate New York and avoid any new gas infrastructure — and renewables and efficiency are cheaper! Add your name to the growing campaign to Stop Williams and build renewables!
  2. The NYS regulators are taking a deeper dive into how we look at gas thanks to all of our great advocacy! File a comment to support Renewable Heat Now!

Thank you for participating in all of the scavenger hunt stops for Earth Week — will you help to keep Sane Energy going with a generous donation?

We will never stop organizing until everyone is safe, healthy, and can live a life of dignity.

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With love,

All of us at Sane Energy!

What’s Going on With Your Central Hudson Bill?

What’s going on with your Central Hudson bill?
We’re conducting a survey to find out

In the past few weeks it has been brought to our attention that a number of Central Hudson customers have received unusually high bills. Although the timing of these bills seemed to coincide with the filing of the Joint Proposal for the new Rate Plan, this is just a coincidence. The new rates will not go into effect until July of this year, after the Public Service Commission has approved the plan.

The unusually high bills appear related to electricity usage for the month as recorded by the company, and not to rates. (Delivery rates are approved by the PSC and do not change month to month; and supply rates, which are set in the market, did not vary that significantly.) We have heard directly from some customers that Central Hudson’s recorded usage for their home appears much higher than is typical for their household consumption. We’ve seen some fluctuations that can be explained by the unusual weather and the effects that has had on the estimation system and meter reading schedule, but there are some that can’t be explained by this. We want to get a sense of whether other customers have had the same experience with their recent bill, so that we can get to the bottom of this and hold the company accountable if customers are being overcharged.

Please take a moment to look at the usage bar chart on your bill. If there was a significant usage jump in one of the past few months, please consider filling out our survey. Your personal information will not be recorded or shared.