Board backs new Joint Powers Authority to find solutions to Coachella Valley power shortfalls

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (KESQ) - Riverside County supervisors today approved a compact to establish a new governing authority comprised of the county and multiple cities within the Coachella Valley that will be responsible for developing plans to ensure desert communities secure affordable electricity in the future.

"This is years in the making,'' Board of Supervisors Chairman Manuel Perez said. "It's going to cost $1.5 billion to build up and improve the generation and transmission (capacity), improve the power grid to provide electricity in the eastern Coachella Valley. Our goal is to keep costs as low as possible."  

The board's 5-0 vote Tuesday to join the proposed Coachella Valley Power Agency-Joint Powers Authority, or CVPA-JPA, lays the groundwork for eventually setting up an independent entity for acquiring, or possibly generating, electricity to sustain wide swaths of the valley. For now, however, the CVPA-JPA is proposed to function as a coordinate branch of the Imperial Irrigation District, which has been supplying the power needs of a large segment of eastern Riverside County for almost a century.

"Growth is occurring in the Coachella Valley at a tremendous pace, and frankly, the power needs have not kept up with that,'' Coachella Valley Association of Governments Executive Director Tom Kirk told the board. "Something has to change. We've been wrestling with this issue for a number of years. We're concerned that IID's power system is not keeping up with demand, and we're concerned that (county residents) are not receiving representation. This JPA would not replace IID, but would work with it to address issues specific to the Coachella Valley.''

CVAG took the lead in initiating the JPA concept, and its staff are slated to be at the forefront of fulfilling the new governing body's administrative needs.

The JPA would supplant the Coachella Valley Energy Commission, which IID formed in 2021 in response to complaints from the agency's Riverside County energy recipients about not having direct input on the IID Board of Directors. The CVED has only offered advice; the new JPA would be positioned to vote on plans for projects, as well as pass resolutions advocating new ones.   

Under the California Government Code, to found a JPA, at least three voting members are needed. The La Quinta City Council formally approved adding a representative last month, and with the county's support Tuesday, only one other prospective member is needed to enact the JPA. That's expected to happen Wednesday, when the Indio City Council will take up the proposal.   

Going forward, multiple entities will be eligible to join, including four Native American tribes, four municipalities and the Coachella Valley Water District.

Only one person spoke in opposition to the JPA -- Rancho Mirage resident Brad Anderson. He told the board there were "other avenues that should be investigated'' before creating another governing entity that will come with costs.

The JPA agreement acknowledged that operations, including the use of CVAG personnel, will require funding, which may be obtained via new fees, assessments on cities that are voting members, or possibly electrical surcharges. None of those costs had been determined yet.

Moreno Valley resident Roy Bleckert suggested the obvious electricity cost-saver may be a new nuclear power plant.   

"There won't have to be subsidies,'' he told the board. "California has the highest cost of electricity in the country, and it's going higher. You should be enacting policies that would actually be effective."

Perez, whose Fourth District encompasses the entire Coachella Valley, said it was worth considering.   

Once the JPA is formed, affected residents will be notified of the governing body's meetings and how to contact their representatives about any issues of concern.