How is this different from our current energy system?

Before Community Choice, customers only had one choice of a monopoly energy provider, Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) in North Santa Barbara county and San Luis Obispo county, and Southern California Edison (SCE) in South Santa Barbara and Ventura county. These are investor-owned companies, meaning they are beholden to shareholders and are committed to providing profits to their investors. Community Choice Energy programs give us a choice in who buys our power, while directing profits back into the community (instead of to investors).