Green Your Electricity

At Sustainable Milton, we spend a lot of time thinking about how Milton residents can take action to reduce the impacts of Climate Change. We strongly encourage every Milton resident to opt into the 100% Green electricity option in Milton’s Community Electricity Aggregation program.

In this period of volatile energy prices, you will have the confidence of a stable, competitive electricity price that’s fixed until November 2024. You’ll also know that every kilowatt-hour your household uses is matched by a kilowatt-hour of clean, renewable energy delivered into the New England grid, which is the foundation of Massachusetts’s plan to achieve net-zero greenhouse emissions by 2050. For the average Milton household, the extra cost is less than the cost of a Boston Globe subscription and is tax deductible.

How to Sign Up:

It takes only a few minutes to sign up on the Milton CEA website . To opt in to the 100% Green electricity program, have your most recent electric bill handy and fill out the form at https://miltoncea.com/enroll-or-change-your-product/ . The image below shows where to find the relevant information on your Eversource bill.

What does it cost?

​ If you are not currently enrolled in the Milton CEA program prices for the supply portion of your Eversource bill, it’s possible you could save money on your electric bill by enrolling in Green 100. Use the CEA website’s calculator tool to get an authoritative estimate of costs based on your own electricity usage, then read on for some help interpreting the results.

• From January 1st-July 31st 2024, Eversource’s Basic Service electricity supply price for residential customers is 17.251 ¢/kWh .
• This is in addition to the delivery price charged to all Eversource customers regardless of their supplier choice, currently between 14-15 ¢/kWh depending on your heating source.
• The total electricity price for Eversource Basic Service is around 32 ¢/kWh
• The Eversource Basic Service price will remain fixed until July 31st, 2024.

Milton CEA offers three fixed price options, and all three are lower than Eversource’s current price. ¹ The default Milton Green plan, which Milton residents were enrolled in unless they specifically opted out, costs 10.848 ¢/kWh for a total cost including delivery of 24.961 ¢/kWh. Thanks to the Milton CEA program, an average Milton household using 707 kWh/month saved $851 relative to Eversource Basic Service over the course of 2023.

The Green 100 plan charges 14.133 ¢/kWh, so opting up would cost an average household in the Milton Green plan an extra $23.22 / month. Despite the extra cost, they would still save $264 / year compared to Eversource Basic Service. Future savings cannot be guaranteed once Eversource Basic Service prices change after 7/1/24, but customers can leave the CEA program at any time without penalty.

Given the urgency of the climate crisis, the centrality of clean electricity in the state’s Net-Zero by 2050 plans, and the trustworthiness and transparency of the Milton CEA program, we think opting up to Green 100 would be an excellent addition to your household’s charitable giving budget. Like other charitable giving, the cost of the extra Green Electricity in the CEA program is tax deductible.

Have you already opted up?

You rock! Post on our Facebook Group to let your neighbors know! We’d be happy to give you a biodegradable lawn signDon’t forget that the cost of the additional renewable energy provided through Milton Community Electricity Aggregation is eligible for a federal tax deduction. To receive a receipt to file with your taxes, you must fill out the form here . Hard copy letters are not being mailed.

Am I eligible to participate?

Anyone who pays for electricity service to a Milton building can participate. If you currently purchase electricity from a supplier other than Eversource or Milton CEA, switching fees could apply, so be sure to review your current supplier contract details.

If you are not eligible for Milton CEA, consider purchasing Green Electricity through the Green Powered Program of Green Energy Consumers Alliance (GECA). GECA is the supplier of Green Electricity for Milton CEA, so you are getting the exact same product through a different channel.

How does “green electricity” work?

While it’s not physically possible to track an electron from a power plant to your house, Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) are the accepted way to track renewable energy use. For each megawatt-hour generated at a renewable energy facility, one REC is created, and only the person who purchases and retires that REC can claim to have “consumed” that megawatt-hour. The Massachusetts renewable portfolio standard requires Eversource to deliver 24% of its electricity from renewable sources in 2024, which means they must purchase RECs equivalent to 24% of the megawatt-hours they supply to their customers. By purchasing Massachusetts Class I RECs, which come only from solar, wind, anaerobic digestion and low-impact hydro located within New England, you ensure that additional clean energy beyond the minimum state requirement is delivered to our grid. You can learn more about this and see a map of the facilities where the energy is generated here

Does this program make a difference?

Yes! Unlike some misleading third-party electricity suppliers , Milton CEA purchases only high-quality Class I RECs from New England, making it a genuinely green option. By choosing the Green 100% option, customers actively support renewable energy projects while enjoying stable prices.

How does it help manage bills?

By participating in the Milton CEA program, customers benefit from a three-year fixed-price contract with an energy supplier. The current contract period launched in September 2021 and ends November 2024. After November 2024, the CEA program will continue, and the town is negotiating a new long-term, fixed price for program participants. Unlike Eversource’s Basic Service, which changes every six months based on market prices, Milton CEA offers stable prices 3 years at a time. And, although future savings cannot be guaranteed, to date Milton CEA prices have been lower than the Eversource Basic Service rate.

How do I know if I’m participating in the Milton CEA?

After you enroll, we recommend double checking your bill after a month or two because we have heard many stories from residents who thought they opted into Green 100 but were not actually enrolled. Check your most recent Eversource electric bill under “Total Charges for Electricity”, as shown in the sample bill above. If you are enrolled in Milton CEA, the Supplier will be listed as NEXTERA ENGYSV MA-MILTON AGG. To verify that you are enrolled in the correct plan option, cecking the supply rate. If you are in Green 100, it should show 14.133 ¢/kWh.