Power to Choose is a website created by the Public Utility Commission of Texas to assist electricity consumers in navigating deregulated electricity in Texas. The website is designed to assist consumers in navigating the dozens of Retail Electric Providers (REPs) to find the best rates. However, Power to Choose ignores important factors that could affect your electricity rates, such as the size of your home, how much electricity you use, and the fine print of your REP’s contracts. This guide explains what Power to Choose is and why you’re probably not getting the best electricity plan for you and your family if you use them.
The Public Utility Commission of Texas created the website Power to Choose (PUCT). The majority of Texas has a deregulated electricity system, which means that customers can choose which REP they want to buy electricity. The Power to choose website is designed to make it simple for electricity customers to compare rates and plans.
Here’s a refresher on what deregulated electricity entails:
In many parts of Texas, you have the option of choosing your electricity provider. Unlike many other states, you are not obligated to use one or two different utility providers for your electricity needs.
As a result, there are hundreds of different plans offered by dozens of different Retail Electricity Providers.
Power to choose aims to make the process of selecting an electricity plan as simple as possible:
The official Texas Power to choose website allows you to compare and contrast various electricity rates and plans currently available. Because there are hundreds of plans to choose from, you’ll be able to see which ones have the best rates in your area. However, the Power to choose method may not save you money. Power to choose gives you access to all of the plans currently available on the market. You can see the electricity company that is offering the plan and the rate per kilowatt-hour and other plan details. Just because you have access to all of the plans doesn’t mean you’ll always pick the best one for you.
Finding the best plan for you as a consumer is dependent on several factors, including:
- The size of your residence
- How you use it
- The age of your residence
You need to know that these factors are extremely important, and Power to Choose does not account for them.
The following is how Power To Choose works:
Retail Electric Providers in Texas can use Power To Choose to list all of their available plans. Hundreds of REPs have access to the website to post their electricity plans and rates. Because some people purchase electricity through this website, most REPs will want to share their plans. Because each REP is likely to offer multiple plans, the Power To Choose website lists hundreds of options from the dozens of Retail Electric Providers.
The Power To Choose option filters the plans.
Power To Choose uses a simple algorithm to sort through all of the available plans based on a few different criteria:
- Postal Code
- Monthly Kilowatt-Hours
- Per-Kilowatt-Hour Cost
- The Plan Type (Fixed Rate vs. Variable Rate)
- What is the duration of your contract?