Understanding your Bill

Desert Community Energy (DCE) is a Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) program established by state law to offer you a choice in electricity generation providers and access to clean energy at competitive rates. Briefly stated, DCE will take over the generation of customer’s electricity. Southern California Edison (SCE) will continue to deliver it, maintain the grid, and provide customer service and billing.

DCE rates are approved annually by our Board of Directors and may be adjusted as needed to keep them competitive. Included in our rates and comparison with SCE are all surcharges and fees including the Power Charge Indifference Adjustment (PCIA). Sometimes referred to as an “exit fee”, the PCIA is a cost charged to all SCE customers that switch to a CCA such as Desert Community Energy. It represents the costs SCE bears for the power that has been purchased on your behalf in contracts that into future years.

With the PCIA and all surcharges included in our rates, DCE’s Carbon Free plan is at a slight premium to SCE’s base rate and our Desert Saver plan is less than SCE’s base rate. We are your lowest cost choice in electricity providers!

Explore below to understand how your bill works and give us a call toll-free at (855) 357-9240 with any additional questions.

Customer Bill
NEM Customer Bill
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Customer Bill

  1. This is your SCE account number that is also used by DCE for billing inquiries and opting up/down plans or to opt out and return to SCE.
  2. SCE account number for the delivery portion of your bill.
  3. DCE account number for the generation portion of your bill.
  4. Southern California Edison (SCE) electric delivery charges.
    This is SCE’s charge for the delivery of electricity. It includes transmission, distribution and a variety of other fees. It does not include generation charges if you are a DCE customer.
  5. Desert Community Energy (DCE) electric generation charges.
    This is DCE’s charge for generation and related fees – the cost of the electricity you use in your home or business.
  6. Total Amount Due.
    The Total Amount Due includes ALL of your fees for electricity delivery and DCE electricity generation services. You should pay the total amount due on your SCE bill. By partnering with SCE to have just one bill, we keep it simpler for you.

  1. This includes the applicable rate schedule under which you are receiving electrical delivery service from SCE.
  2. SCE Delivery Charges.
    This is a breakdown of SCE’s charges for the delivery of electricity. It includes transmission, distribution, maintenance, and a variety of other fees. It does NOT include generation charges (the cost for the energy you used) if you’re a DCE customer. These rates are set by SCE as approved by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC).
  3. The CCA cost responsibility surcharge includes preexisting fees that you previously had on your bill and new fees for joining DCE. All new fees for joining DCE are included in advertised cost comparisons with SCE.
  4. The Power Charge Indifference Adjustment (PCIA) fee or “exit fee” is a cost charged to all Southern California Edison (SCE) customers that switch to DCE. It is set by the CPUC to ensure that customers who switch to Desert Community Energy pay for electricity that was acquired by SCE to serve them prior to their switch. The PCIA fee varies by customer class and is based on the amount of kilowatt hours (kWh) used. DCE includes the PCIA fee in its advertised rates and cost comparisons with SCE.
  5. The DWR Bond Charge is a pre-existent charge issued by the Department of Water Resources (DWR) to cover the cost of buying power during the energy crisis. Both SCE and DCE customers are responsible for this charge.
  6. The Competition Transition Charges (CTC) is a pre-existent charge that is applied to all customers, regardless of enrollment in a CCA, to reimburse SCE for their costs of building power plants and buying electricity from independent power producers. The CPUC approved that SCE could recover these charges in rates collected over many years.
  7. The Generation Municipal Surcharge (GMS) is a recurring surcharge applied to all DCE customers and is comprised of franchise fees collected by Southern California Edison. DCE includes the GMS and PCIA fees in its advertised rates and cost comparisons with SCE.
  8. Your Delivery Charges Include: This is the breakdown of the Transmission, Distribution, Public Purpose Programs, taxes, and other fees required by law, including: Nuclear Decommissioning, Conservation Incentive Adjustment fees or credits, Energy Cost Recovery Amount, Taxes and other.

  1. The Utility User Tax (UUT) is a 5% tax imposed by the City of Palm Springs on the delivery and generation of your electricity bill. SCE and DCE collect the UUT and pay it directly to the City on a monthly basis. The UUT is pre-existent charge that was approved by Palm Springs voters
  2. Your total Transmission and Delivery charges due to SCE. This balance does not include any generation charges if you are a DCE customer.
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  1. DCE Generation Detailed Charges.
    This is a breakdown of DCE’s electric generation charges. It specifies whether you are on the Carbon Free or Desert Saver plan and the applicable rate. The DCE Board of Directors sets rates annually to be competitive with SCE.
  2. DCE Customer Support.
    We’re here to help! Call us toll-free Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. PST at (855) 357-9240.

NEM Customer Bill

  1. This is your SCE Customer Account number that is also used by DCE for billing inquiries and opting up/down plans or to opt out and return to SCE.
  2. SCE Service Account number for the delivery portion of your bill. This is also your meter identification number.
  3. DCE account number for the generation portion of your bill. Note that DCE uses your SCE Customer Account number for customer service and billing inquiries.
  4. Southern California Edison (SCE) electric delivery charges.
    This is SCE’s charge for the delivery of electricity. It includes transmission, distribution and a variety of other fees. It does not include generation charges if you are a DCE customer. These charges are denoted by a “(SCE)” after the customer’s rate. For more information regarding these charges, please see page 4 of your bill.
  5. Desert Community Energy (DCE) electric generation charges.
    This is DCE’s charge for the generation of your electricity and related fees.
  6. Total Amount Due.
    The Total Amount Due includes ALL of your fees for electricity delivery and DCE electricity generation services that need to be paid each month. You should pay the total amount due on your SCE bill.
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  1. Electricity You Have Used This Month.
    This number will be positive if your electricity consumption is greater than the total electricity generation produced by your solar system. If this number is negative, it means you were a net generator for this bill period, and this will be added to your NEM Credit balance.
  2. Your Daily Average Electricity Usage.
    This section is not used to calculate your bill, but to give you a look at your historical energy use over the past year. This allows you to see how your energy use varies from month to month.
  3. Non-Tracked Charges are SCE distribution charges that DCE does not have control over.
  4. Your SCE Rate for Delivery.
    This includes the applicable rate schedule under which you are receiving electrical delivery service from SCE.
  5. SCE Non-Tracked Delivery Charges.
    This is a breakdown of SCE’s non-tracked charges for the delivery of electricity. It includes the fees associated with the transmission and distribution of your electricity and fees associated with the maintenance to the overall electrical grid. These charges are from SCE, and DCE has no control over the rates at which you are being charged for the delivery of your electricity. These rates are set by SCE as approved by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). For more information regarding your delivery charges, please contact SCE Customer Support at 1 (800) 655-4555.
  6. Non-bypassable charges (NBCs) are assessed to make sure every customer pays into programs that have broad benefits such as funding energy efficiency, low-income customer assistance, and other related programs.
  7. The Competition Transition Charges (CTC) is a pre-existent charge that is applied to all customers, regardless of enrollment in a CCA, to reimburse SCE for their costs of building power plants and buying electricity from independent power producers. This line item was not previously highlighted in your invoices prior to enrollment to SCE. The CPUC approved that SCE could recover these charges in rates collected over many years.  The Nuclear Decommission Charge (NDC) is a state- mandated charge serves to recover SCE's costs for dismantling its nuclear power plants after they are retired from operation. The Public Purpose Programs Charge (PPPC) covers the cost for state- mandated programs, such as the California Alternate Rates for Energy (CARE) discount and energy efficiency programs.
  8. The DWR Bond Charge is a pre-existent charge issued by the Department of Water Resources (DWR) to cover the cost of buying power during the energy crisis. Both SCE and DCE customers are responsible for this charge.
  9. The Generation Municipal Surcharge (GMS) is a recurring surcharge applied to all DCE customers and is comprised of franchise fees collected by Southern California Edison. When conducting rate comparisons, DCE includes the GMS and PCIA fees in its analysis of advertised rates and cost comparisons with SCE.
  10. The Utility User Tax (UUT) is a 5% tax imposed by the City of Palm Springs on the delivery and generation of your electricity bill. SCE and DCE collect the UUT and pay it directly to the City on a monthly basis. The UUT is pre-existent charge that was approved by Palm Springs voters. This tax is applied to both DCE and SCE customers.
  11. Your total Non-tracked Delivery charges due to SCE. This balance does not include any generation charges if you are a DCE customer.

  1. SCE Tracked Delivery Charges.
    This is a breakdown of SCE’s tracked charges for the delivery of electricity. It includes the fees associated with the transmission and distribution of your electricity and fees associated with the maintenance to the overall electrical grid. Here you can see a further breakdown of your usage for the bill period in question. These rates are set by SCE as approved by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), and unfortunately DCE has no control over the rates being applied.
  2. Your SCE Rate for Delivery.
    This includes the applicable rate schedule under which you are receiving electrical delivery service from SCE.
  3. The CCA cost responsibility surcharge includes preexisting fees that you previously had on your bill and new fees for joining DCE. All new fees for joining DCE are included in advertised cost comparisons with SCE.
  4. The Power Charge Indifference Adjustment (PCIA) fee or “exit fee” is a cost charged to all Southern California Edison (SCE) customers that switch to DCE. It is set by the CPUC to ensure that customers who switch to Desert Community Energy pay for electricity that was acquired by SCE to serve them prior to their switch. The PCIA fee varies by customer class and is based on the amount of kilowatt hours (kWh) used. DCE includes the PCIA fee in its advertised rates and cost comparisons with SCE.

  1. DCE Generation Detailed Charges.
    This is a breakdown of DCE’s electric generation charges.
  2. DCE rate plan
    (Carbon Free or Desert Saver) and applicable rate is specified here for the power you drawn the grid. The DCE Board of Directors sets rates annually to be competitive with SCE.
  3. Total DCE Generation Charges.
    For Palm Springs customers enrolled in DCE’s NEM program, the electricity you generate from your solar panels and the electricity you consume will be monitored monthly. If you produce excess energy, you will receive a credit for that difference in electricity generated and electricity consumed. If you consume more electricity than the solar panels on your home produce in a given month, that difference in electricity consumed and electricity will be deducted from your credit balance. At the end of the relevant period, which will be your meter read date in May 2021, you will receive either a bill from DCE if you are a net consumer at the end of the year, or you will receive a check if you are a net generator.  As a member of DCE’s NEM program, you will only receive one bill annually if you are a net consumer for that year.  As a DCE customer, you will also be enrolled in our Carbon Free plan to receive 100% carbon-free electricity and further reduce your carbon footprint.
  4. DCE Customer Support.
    We’re here to help! Call us toll-free Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. PST at (855) 357-9240.