Frequently Asked Questions

The program is a municipal electricity aggregation, which is a form of group purchasing in which a city or town arranges electricity supply on behalf of its citizens. Aggregation is allowed by Massachusetts law and is growing in popularity.

The term aggregation is used because all of Chelmsford’s electrical load (electricity use) is combined, or aggregated, and given to the same electricity supplier. This allows Chelmsford to get the best price possible from that electricity supplier.

The Town used a competitive bidding process to select Dynegy and make sure you get the best price possible for your electricity supply.

No. If you receive a personal call or visit about your electricity, that person does NOT represent the Town of Chelmsford, National Grid, or the Chelmsford Choice program. Neither National Grid nor representatives from the Town will come to your door or call you on the phone. Chelmsford sends a single notification in the mail with detailed program information to residents and businesses eligible for automatic enrollment. That notification includes the Town Seal in the header and the Chelmsford Choice name.

If you receive a call or a visit from someone who wants to discuss your electricity, here are three things to keep in mind:

• The person you are speaking with is not associated with National Grid, the Town of Chelmsford, or Chelmsford Choice.
• You should treat your National Grid account number like you treat your credit card information. Do not give it out unless you want to change your electricity supplier.
• You do have the right to select an electricity supplier of your choice. If you choose to explore this option, please check the terms of the agreement carefully. Things to check for include, but are not limited to: minimum bill amounts, contract length requirements, early termination fees, low introductory rates that change after the introductory period ends, and rates that vary.

If you feel a salesperson has fraudulently identified themself as working for National Grid or the Town of Chelmsford, please report it to the Department of Public Utilities Consumer Division 617-737-2836, or DPUConsumer.Complaints@state.ma.us.

You benefit in a few ways:

Long-term price stability: The Chelmsford Choice price is fixed until November 2025. This makes it different from National Grid’s Basic Service prices, which change every 6 months for residential and commercial customers and every 3 months for industrial customers.

Choice: The program gives you three alternatives to National Grid’s Basic Service.

• Chelmsford Choice Basic: This is the default program offering, meaning all new participants in Chelmsford Choice will be automatically enrolled in Chelmsford Choice Basic unless they choose one of the other options. Like National Grid’s Basic Service, Chelmsford Choice Basic provides just the minimum amount of renewable electricity required by state law.
• Chelmsford Choice Greener: This option gives you an additional 40% renewable electricity from new regional resources (MA Class I RECs) over and above the minimum amount required by the state for a total of 62% from new regional resources in 2023, 64% in 2024, and 67% in 2025. (The minimum amount required by state law increases every year.)
• Chelmsford Choice Greenest: This option gives you 100% renewable electricity, all from new regional resources (MA Class I RECs).

Cost-effective cleaner electricity: Chelmsford Choice offers two cleaner electricity options, Chelmsford Choice Greener and Chelmsford Choice Greenest. These options allow you to increase the amount of renewable electricity in your electricity supply cost effectively.

Consumer protections: All program terms are public, there are no hidden fees, and you may leave the program at any time with no penalty or fee.

Potential savings: The program price has the potential to be lower than National Grid’s Basic Service price. However, National Grid’s residential and commercial prices change every 6 months and industrial prices change every 3 months. Future prices are not known. As a result, the program cannot guarantee savings when compared to National Grid’s Basic Service price.

Chelmsford’s contract with Dynegy is in effect until November 2025. At that time, Chelmsford can establish a new electricity supply contract or end the program.

• If Chelmsford signs a new contract, all active program participants will be automatically enrolled in the new contract.
• If Chelmsford chooses instead to end the program, all active program participants will be automatically returned to National Grid’s Basic Service.

In either case, Chelmsford will make an announcement, and the transition will be seamless for program participants.

Call National Grid if your power goes out, as always.

National Grid will continue to read meters, maintain distribution and transmission lines, and provide customer service.

National Grid’s customer service number is 1-800-465-1212.

Yes. You will continue to receive solar credits and/or solar incentive payments, and participating in Chelmsford Choice will not change how they are calculated.

Yes. There will be no change to your benefit under the Chelmsford Choice program.

Tax-exempt accounts that wish to maintain their tax-exempt status in Chelmsford Choice must submit tax-exemption documentation to the program’s electricity supplier.

This means that tax-exemption documentation must be submitted each time the program’s electricity supplier changes.

The program’s electricity supplier is required by the State of Massachusetts to have valid tax-exemption documentation on hand for all tax-exempt accounts.

You may have submitted tax-exemption documentation to National Grid already, but National Grid does not share this documentation with the program’s electricity supplier. It is the customer’s responsibility to submit this documentation.

Information about how to submit this documentation is available on the tax-exempt account page.

Electricity service has two parts: supply and delivery. Supply refers to the electricity itself. Delivery is the process of bringing that electricity to you over the wires.

With National Grid’s Basic Service, National Grid is your electricity supplier, meaning they buy electricity for you, and also they deliver that electricity to you.

With Chelmsford Choice, National Grid will continue to deliver your electricity, but Chelmsford will choose its own electricity supplier.

Dynegy is the electricity supplier for Chelmsford Choice until November 2025.

A competitive supplier is NOT your utility. A competitive supplier is a company licensed by the Department of Public Utilities to purchase electricity and related services from the wholesale electricity markets for resale to retail customers.

If you or your municipal government signs a contract with an electricity supplier, you are still a National Grid customer, and National Grid will continue to deliver your electricity.

However, when National Grid calculates your electric bill, they will use your electricity supplier’s price to calculate the Supply Services portion of your bill instead of their own Basic Service price.

Visit the Your Options page for current program prices.

Possibly. Chelmsford Choice does offer the potential for small savings compared with National Grid’s Basic Service price, however, savings cannot be guaranteed.

This is because National Grid’s fixed Basic Service prices change seasonally, and their future prices are not known.

The program will impact only the Supply Services portion of your National Grid electric bill. The Delivery Services portion of your National Grid bill will not be impacted by this program.

You will see two changes on your National Grid electric bill beginning the month after your enrollment in the program:

• Your Supply Services price will change to the Chelmsford Choice price of whichever option you are enrolled in.
• You will see Dynegy listed as your supplier on the Supply Services portion of your bill instead of National Grid’s Basic Service.

View an example National Grid bill to see how Chelmsford Choice will appear on your bill.

Otherwise:

• Your bill will continue to come from National Grid.
• You will continue to send bill payments to National Grid.
• You will continue to call National Grid if your power goes out.

If you are on a budget plan or are eligible for a low-income delivery rate or fuel assistance, you will continue to receive those benefits as a participant in Chelmsford Choice.

No. National Grid will continue to bill you for your electricity, and this is the only electric bill you will receive as a participant in Chelmsford Choice.

No. You will continue to receive those benefits as a participant in Chelmsford Choice.

All metered electricity customers within the geographic boundaries of Chelmsford are eligible to participate in the program. New electricity customers in Chelmsford will be automatically enrolled. You will receive a notification about the program in the mail from the Town prior to being automatically enrolled and a few months after opening your electricity account. The notification will include information about the program, options in the program, and prices, as well as information about how to opt out of the program if you do not wish to participate.

Important note: For any customer who previously opted out of or left the program and wishes to re-enroll, the program’s electricity supplier is entitled to charge a market price instead of the program price for the remainder of the current electricity supply contract. If the program’s electricity supplier decides to charge market pricing, you will be notified before enrollment and can decide then whether to continue with enrollment or not.

If you are a new resident in Chelmsford or have opened a new National Grid electricity account, you will receive a notification about automatic enrollment in the program in the mail from the Town within a few months of opening your account. If you wish to participate, do nothing. You will be automatically enrolled if you do not opt out.

Please note: If you sign an electricity supply contract with an electricity supplier after opening your account with National Grid, you will not be automatically enrolled in Chelmsford Choice. However, you are welcome to participate in the program. We recommend that you carefully check the terms and conditions of your supplier agreement. Your ability to terminate your agreement with your supplier may be restricted.

If you wish to enroll in the program, you may request enrollment online or over the phone via customer support. Learn more about enrolling.

Important note: For any customer who previously opted out of or left the program and wishes to re-enroll, the program’s electricity supplier is entitled to charge a market price instead of the program price for the remainder of the current electricity supply contract. If the program’s electricity supplier decides to charge market pricing, you will be notified before enrollment and can decide then whether to continue with enrollment or not.

If you have signed an electricity supply contract with another supplier, you are welcome to enroll in the program.

You may request enrollment online or contact customer support at 1-844-483-5004.

However, we recommend that you first carefully check the terms and conditions of your current electricity supplier agreement. Your ability to terminate your agreement with your supplier may be restricted, and you may be charged early termination fees.

Important note: For any customer who previously opted out of or left the program and wishes to re-enroll, the program’s electricity supplier is entitled to charge a market price instead of the program price for the remainder of the current electricity supply contract. If the program’s electricity supplier decides to charge market pricing, you will be notified before enrollment and can decide then whether to continue with enrollment or not.

You may choose either option by completing the online form or by contacting customer support.

Participation is not required, and you may leave the program at any time. This is called opting out. There is no penalty for opting out. If you choose to opt out, you will be returned to National Grid’s Basic Service.

You have three ways to opt out of the program:

1. Sign and return the reply card that you receive with the program notification in the mail, if you received one. The reply card must be postmarked within 30 days of the date on the notification in order for you to be opted out of the program before being automatically enrolled.

2. Contact customer support and tell them you want to opt out of Chelmsford Choice. You may do this at any time after receiving the program notification or at any time after participating in the program.

3. Opt out online. You may do this at any time after receiving the program notification or at any time after participating in the program.

Yes, however, you are not guaranteed the program price. If you opt out and then re-enroll, the program’s electricity supplier is entitled to charge a higher market price instead of the program price for the remainder of the current electricity supply contract.

If the program’s electricity supplier decides to charge market pricing instead of program pricing, you will be notified before enrollment and can decide then whether to continue with enrollment or not.

Large commercial accounts may be eligible for higher market pricing instead of program pricing when they request initial enrollment in the program. If you are interested in submitting an enrollment request for your large commercial account, please contact customer support.

No. National Grid’s quality of service will not be affected by your participation in the program. National Grid does not profit from the Supply Services charge on your electric bill. They make their profit from the Delivery Services charge. As a result, they have no preference whether they are your supplier or Chelmsford chooses a different supplier for you.

No. Chelmsford Choice does not replace National Grid. National Grid will still be your electric utility, and your primary relationship for electricity will continue to be with National Grid:

1. Your electric bill will continue to come from National Grid.
2. You will continue to send bill payments to National Grid.
3. You will continue to call National Grid if your power goes out.
4. If you are eligible for a low-income delivery rate or fuel assistance, you will continue to receive those benefits.