Publisher’s Perspective: $100 Million in Overcharges by OCPA in Just 2 Years … and Nothing to Show for It!

October 1st marked the two-year anniversary since Irvine residential electricity customers were forced into the more expensive plan offered by the Orange County Power Authority (OCPA).

When it launched back in 2022, the OCPA Board promised Irvine customers “greener” electricity at lower monthly rates. Those promises were flat-out lies. From day one, Irvine ratepayers have been forced to pay significantly higher monthly electricity rates than we paid to Southern California Edison (SCE). And, OCPA has not provided anyone in Irvine with greener electricity.

Just about everyone in the state, including OCPA customers in Irvine, receives power from the same source — the California electricity grid. There is not a separate transmission line pumping “100% renewable” electricity into the homes of OCPA customers.

Chart obtained from the California Energy Commission website

According to the California Energy Commission, the California electricity grid delivers 54.23% green energy from non-Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emitting sources and renewables. Non-GHG resources include nuclear and large hydro. Renewables include solar; wind; biomass; geothermal; and small hydro.

So, why are Irvine electricity customers paying 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 and electricity commodity traders. In effect, OCPA has become a giant slush fund for politicians and their cronies who run the agency.

While OCPA residential and business customers have been overcharged more than $100 million in the past two years, longtime Irvine resident Dee Fox did some digging on her own and uncovered pages and pages of wasteful “pet projects” the OCPA Board has been funding through the agency. The screenshot below contains just a small sampling from those pages. As you can see, the expenses have nothing to do with addressing climate change. (Fox obtained the check register for the agency directly from the OCPA website.)
 

To add insult to injury, Irvine City Councilmember Tammy Kim, who serves as one of Irvine’s two paid representatives on the four-member OCPA Board, pushed through a 40% pay raise for herself and the other OCPA Board members. This pay raise occurred last year, at the same time Tammy Kim told frustrated Irvine residents there was nothing she could do to lower electricity rates in Irvine. That’s another lie. In fact, the OCPA Board sets the electricity rates in Irvine.

About 30% of Irvine residents have already opted-out of OCPA. You can too by clicking here or calling (866) 262-7693.