Letter: Please say yes to Article 26 in Rindge

I hope Rindge will vote yes on Article 26, community power aggregation, on March 11.

I encourage my neighbors to start work now on this plan for energy savings and local control, even though Rindge won’t actually enroll in Cheshire Community Power (CPCNH) until 2026 because of current market conditions. CPCNH will not launch with new communities until they can beat Eversource pricing. All electric pricing fluctuates, so it's wise to look at long-term patterns. CPCNH has demonstrated significant savings since its creation. Over the past two-plus years, CPCNH averaged 8.7% savings relative to Eversource’s supply rate.

If future CPCNH prices aren’t the lowest, customers can switch to another provider without penalty, and can then switch back whenever CPCNH's prices are again lowest. Community power doesn’t hurt Eversource's profits; it simply enables bulk purchasing for electric supply to benefit Rindge residents. Everything billing-related stays the same, including electrical assistance programs, payment plans, saved payment methods, etc. No action is required from customers, who keep the same login and account number for paying their bill because Eversource continues to handle all billing.

Eversource also continues to service power lines: they will still be the people to call in a power outage or for any other problem. The only difference you will notice in your electrical service is a small line on your bill that says "Supplier: default" changing to "Supplier: Rindge Community Power" and that the rate is lower. Yes on Article 26.

Patricia Martin

Rindge