Painesville Electric Ends Contract with Efficiency Smart

At Monday, September 19’s Painesville City Council meeting, City Council voted to decline renewal of Painesville Electric’s contract with Efficiency Smart, which expired on August 31, 2022. The decision was based on the recommendation of the Painesville Electric Committee.

 
Efficiency Smart is a program offered by American Municipal Power (AMP) and serves more than 60 AMP member utilities in four states. The goal of the program is to empower residents and businesses to lower their electric bills and save on energy costs via advice on energy-efficient products, rebates, discounts and improvement projects. Efficiency Smart promotes that participating communities receive an average of $3.63 in benefits for every dollar spent.
 
“At the end of the three-year contract, the Painesville Electric Committee felt the promised savings of the program were not achieved and that overall participation from residents was low,” said Electric Superintendent Jeff McHugh. “As a member of AMP, Painesville Electric has the ability to re-join the program in the future. But for now, we have opted out of renewing our contract,” he added.
 
The Painesville Electric Committee functions as a decision-making advisory body for the Painesville Electric system. It consists of five voting member and one City Council member who serves as a non-voting liaison. All committee members are Painesville Electric customers.