San Luis Obispo County Residents to See Changes in Electric Bills as 3CE Expands
SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY, Calif. — Residents in San Luis Obispo County may notice changes to their electric bills this year as Central Coast Community Energy (3CE) expands its coverage across most of the Central Coast.
The Atascadero City Council and San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors voted to join 3CE in 2022 and 2023, respectively. The joint powers authority now includes every coastal city and county from Santa Cruz to Santa Barbara, except King City, Lompoc, and Santa Barbara, which operate their own public power services.
Unlike investor-owned utilities such as PG&E and Southern California Edison (SCE), 3CE is governed by local city and county officials, offering greater community involvement and transparency.
“This is an agency by the public, for the public,” said Catherine Steadman, chief communications officer for 3CE. “Our customers can participate in decisions about their power service, ensuring transparency and community involvement.”
3CE procures renewable power for more than 1 million residents along the Central Coast, while PG&E and SCE continue to manage power delivery, infrastructure operations, maintenance, and billing.
Residents in Atascadero and unincorporated San Luis Obispo County were automatically enrolled in 3CE on Jan. 1, 2025, unless they chose to opt out. Customers will see 3CE generation charges on their bills, replacing previous generation fees from PG&E or SCE, with no additional cost for switching.
“You’ll see a new charge for 3CE generation, but it simply replaces the generation charges from PG&E or SCE—there are no additional costs for switching,” Steadman explained.
Residents who prefer to stay with PG&E have 60 days from their January billing date to opt out at no cost. After that period, opting out will result in a $5 fee.
According to 3CE, in 2024, residential customers who received service from both 3CE and PG&E paid approximately 17% less on generation service compared to customers who opted to receive generation, transmission, and distribution services exclusively from PG&E.
