Publisher’s Perspective: OCPA to Spend an Astounding $4 Million on PR!

When it launched back in 2022, the Orange County Power Authority (OCPA) Board promised Irvine customers greener electricity at lower monthly rates. OCPA also promised to create a large number of “green” programs in town. It sounded too good to be true … and it was!

Without a vote of the people, Irvine ratepayers were automatically enrolled in OCPA’s most expensive plan. Residents and business owners were forced to pay significantly higher monthly electricity rates than we paid to Southern California Edison. And, Irvine taxpayers had to pay an extra $70,000 every month just to keep the lights on and the air conditioning running at City Hall and other City facilities. And what did Irvine ratepayers and taxpayers get for the higher monthly rate they paid to OCPA? Nothing! OCPA never provided anyone in Irvine with greener electricity, and the agency hasn’t launched a single green program in our city.

Nearly everyone in the state, including OCPA customers in Irvine, receives power from the same source — the California electricity grid. There is no separate transmission line pumping higher quantities of “renewable” electricity into the homes of OCPA customers.
 

We’re all on the same grid and we’re all getting the same electricity. According to the California Energy Commission, the California electricity grid delivers, on average, 54.23% green energy generated from non-Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emitting sources and renewables. Non-GHG resources include nuclear and large hydroelectric facilities. Renewables include solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, and small hydro.

So, why were Irvine electricity customers being charged the highest rates in all of Orange County for the same electricity everyone else receives? Because OCPA is nothing more than a middleman that was established by high-priced lawyers, with tens of millions of dollars being paid out to expensive energy consultants, electricity commodity traders, and a public relations firm. In effect, OCPA has become a giant slush fund for politicians and their cronies who run the agency.

Now we have learned that just last month, the OCPA Board — including Irvine’s two representatives, Councilmembers William Go and James Mai — voted to increase OCPA’s marketing budget by a whopping $1 million! This means that the agency’s public relations consultant will be paid up to $4 million for creating TV, print, and digital ads to convince the public how terrific (ha! ha!) OCPA is.
 

Irvine ratepayers will largely be funding that massive expense, even though it does nothing to move us toward becoming a greener community.

However, there is some good news. Last December, Mayor Larry Agran — who has been a vocal critic of OCPA for years — was able to secure Council approval to downgrade Irvine ratepayers to the lowest-priced electricity plan and issue a letter of intent to withdraw from the embattled agency. Let’s hope Irvine’s withdrawal from OCPA soon becomes a reality!