City of Boulder 2C – New Xcel Franchise Agreement After a 10-Year Lapse

The 2C ballot language consists of 61 words, but don’t let that fool you. The proposed 20-year Franchise Agreement is 38 pages long and is part of a larger proposed Settlement Agreement. (See the links at the bottom of this page.)

In 2010 the city of Boulder chose not to renew a franchise agreement with Xcel. Nevertheless, Xcel was required to continue providing electricity until the city formed its own municipal electric utility or entered into an agreement with a different investor-owned utility.

Municipalization came up again on the ballot in 2011, 2013, 2015, and 2017 with the municipalization proponents prevailing each time. The city even created its own municipal utility in name only.

This summer a group called End the Muni tried to get a measure on the ballot to end the municipalization effort. Although End the Muni did not collect enough signatures, the city council on a 2nd-reading vote of 6 to 2 (with one member absent) referred a similar measure to the ballot.

Empower Our Future, a group that supports the municipalization efforts, is unhappy with the city’s proposed Franchise Agreement and the process. This ballot measure is essentially a go/no go vote on municipalization. We have learned much about the costs of municipalization, but Empower Our Future feels that the city is not fulfilling a promise to inform the citizens of the “final costs” of municipalization before calling for go/no go vote. Their argument leans on the 2017 measure 2O – Vote Prior to Municipalization Construction Debt.

Under the proposed Settlement Agreement most litigation would cease, undergrounding investment to improve reliability would restart, and the city would maintain the option to terminate the franchise at several specified times in the future, particularly if certain emissions reduction targets are not met.

In legal documents the name Xcel is more properly called by the utility subsidiary’s name, Public Service Company of Colorado.

Recommendation: leaning yes/leaning for

Our 21st-century effort to create a municipal electric utility has run into many legal and regulatory stumbling blocks and cost tens of millions of dollars, including the need to borrow from the general fund. (See companion ballot measure 2D.) Some long-time proponents of municipalization believe that the proposed Franchise Agreement is the best deal we can get.

On the other hand, Empower Our Future feels that the proposed Franchise Agreement (pFA) has been rushed and is too risky, giving Xcel the upper hand. They point to responses to a 2018 Request for Indicative Pricing that shows “local power” energy suppliers could provide Boulder with more renewable electricity at less cost than Xcel. The community choice aggregation (muni-lite) option might have become a reality in Colorado via Boulder Rep Edie Hooton’s bill HB20-1064 but, like many other bills this year, it did not survive the pandemic.

A different 2019 bill with Boulder co-sponsors Sen Steve Fenberg and House Speaker KC Becker addressed greenhouse gases. SB19-236 requires retail utilities with more than half a million customers in Colorado, such as Xcel, to reduce carbon emissions by 2030 to 80% of 2005 levels.

If you continue to strongly support a city municipal utility and want to be free of Xcel, you should vote against this measure. Given the uncertain economic and health situation we are in at the moment, an ongoing municipalization effort seems to be a low priority for the city right now and will likely fall off the radar if the proposed Franchise Agreement is passed.

Website for the Yes side – End the Muni
http://endthemuni.org/

Website for the No side – Empower Our Future
https://empowerourfuture.org/


Approved Ballot Language

City of Boulder Ballot Question 2C
Public Service Company Franchise

Shall the City of Boulder grant a franchise to Public Service Company of Colorado to furnish, sell and distribute gas and electricity to the city and to all persons, businesses, and industries within the city and the right to make reasonable use of all streets and other public places and public easements as may be necessary as described in Ordinance 8410?

YES/FOR ____
NO/AGAINST ____

Ordinance 8410 to put 2C to the voters. Exhibit A included in the ordinance is the proposed Franchise Agreement.
https://www-static.bouldercolorado.gov/docs/Ord_8410_-_Franchise_Agreement-1-202008281144.pdf?_ga=2.187918700.518549467.1599345017-1345314453.1596765451

City of Boulder’s webpage for question 2C
https://bouldercolorado.gov/elections/2020-ballot-measure-public-service-company-franchise

City’s webpage on the details of the proposed Xcel Settlement
https://bouldercolorado.gov/local-power/potential-settlement-xcel-energy