Customer Support

1. Our solar projects across Massachusetts produce clean, green energy.
2. Your utility turns this energy into bill credits that lower your electric bill charges.
3. JOE-4-SUN pays for 50% of the credits and you pay back the remaining 50%, saving $300 - $400 each year.

Every month you will receive two bills (for now). We know that’s not ideal and JOE-4-SUN has been fighting to change the double-billing system in Massachusetts. In the meantime, we are making our billing system as easy for you and as transparent as possible.

The first bill will come from your utility and will be reduced by the value of the bill credits from JOE-4-SUN (an average of $50 per month). 

The second bill will come from JOE-4-SUN and will be for 50% of the bill credit value you ALREADY received. You have the option to sign up for automatic bill pay for your JOE-4-SUN bill to make this two-bill system easier.

1. Our solar project produces clean, green energy.
2. Your utility turns this energy into bill credits that lower your electric bill charges.
3. You receive guaranteed savings every month on your electric bill, saving you up to 20% annually.

1. Our solar projects across Massachusetts produce clean, green energy.
2. Your utility turns this energy into bill credits that lower your electric bill charges.
3. JOE-4-SUN pays for 50% of the credits and Vineyard Wind 1 pays the other 50% to benefit their wind farm’s host communities, saving you more than $600 per year on electricity.

No. There is no subscription fee, startup fee or termination fee for JOE-4-SUN. You will not be billed until after you begin to receive credits and then only for the credits that you use each month at a 50% discount.

As soon as you know you’re moving, please alert our JOE-4-SUN customer service team so they can help you navigate your options. There are a few different possibilities depending on your situation.

1. If you are moving within the same service territory, it is possible for you to keep your utility account number and transfer your JOE-4-SUN service without interruption.
2. If you are moving within the same service territory but you decide to get a new utility account number, you would need to cancel your JOE-4-SUN subscription and reapply.
3. If you are moving outside your current service territory, you must cancel your JOE-4-SUN account. You can reapply to JOE-4-SUN if you move to a town serviced by Eversource or National Grid in Massachusetts or NYSEG in New York. 
4. If moving out-of-state, check here to see if JOE-4-SUN assistance extends to your new home.

Your JOE-4-SUN account is most quickly canceled if you close your utility account. However, we will help you save on energy until you receive your last utility bill with that account.

When you move, your final JOE-4-SUN invoice will come two to three months after your move. Your utility will send you your last electric bill about one month after you move. Your last JOE-4-SUN invoice for those credits will arrive about one month after that.

12 months. After you are accepted into JOE-4-SUN, you are guaranteed to receive 12 months of discount bill credits through the program.

You can cancel your subscription at anytime and at no cost—just tell us at least 90 days in advance to account for communication with your utility and processing time.

No. Citizens Energy has transitioned to providing assistance through the use of renewable energy, like solar power.

If you need additional assistance with your energy bills, LIHEAP may help.

JOE-4-SUN MA: Applicants can be renters or homeowners, as no installations or long-term commitments are necessary. Applicants must be customers of Eversource or National Grid, and must either receive a low-income discount from that utility or live in an low-income defined environmental justice zone to qualify.

JOE-4-SUN RAP: Applicants must be members of the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe or Aquinnah Wampanoag Tribe living in Massachusetts; or residents of Martha's Vineyard, the Villages of Barnstable*, New Bedford or Somerset.

Applicants can be renters or homeowners, as no installations or long-term commitments are necessary. Applicants must be customers of Eversource or National Grid, and must either receive a low-income discount from that utility or live in an low-income defined environmental justice zone to qualify.

*Barnstable, Centerville, Cummaquid, Cotuit, Hyannis, Hyannis Port, West Hyannisport, Marstons Mills, Osterville and West Barnstable.

JOE-4-SUN NY: Applicants can be any renters or homeowners who have a NYSEG electric bill.

Apply through our online portal or request a paper application. You need to provide us with your contact information, a copy of your most recent electric bill (must include every page) and a signed disclosure agreement. That’s it! Contact us for additional assistance.

Below you can learn more about each step in the JOE-4-SUN process!

Please check your email to find your most recent status update from JOE-4-SUN. You can also email us at JOE4SUN@citizensenergy.com to get an update on your status.

After you are accepted into JOE-4-SUN, we will send your account to the utility. You will see savings on your bill after being processed and assigned to one of our solar arrays by your utility, which takes 1-2 billing cycles.

No, JOE-4-SUN is not a utility company or energy supplier. You will continue to receive an electric bill from your utility as usual. JOE-4-SUN is a low-income community solar program that works with your utility to reduce your total balance due by applying credits to your electric bill.

JOE-4-SUN will save most people $300 to $400 per year—about $200 in New York—on electricity and connect you to the green energy revolution. You will receive discounted bill credits on your utility bill, which are generated by clean, renewable energy at our solar projects. JOE-4-SUN provides all the benefits of solar energy without the hassle of rooftop panels.

As a JOE-4-SUN subscriber, you earn bill credits from the energy produced by our solar projects. Every unit of electricity we produce is assigned a dollar value by the utility and that total dollar amount is given to our local subscribers as bill credits that lower their utility bills. These credits reduce what you owe to your energy company each month. In our pay-as-you-go program, JOE-4-SUN then invoices you separately for the bill credits you have already received at a 50% discount. We are actively working with the state to simplify this system, but in the meantime we are here to answer any questions you may have.

The value of the credits you receive each month will vary based on the weather and solar production. You can expect a higher credit value in the summer when we produce more solar power and a lower value in the winter, but the total annual savings you see will be between $300 and $400—or about $200 in New York.

To make a one-time payment to JOE-4-SUN it's best to log in to our online portal, where you can also track your credits and savings. You can get there by clicking "Login" at the top of this page.

1. Log in to our online portal at www.citizensenergy.com/portal.
2. You'll see the option to register as a new user and to sign in as a returning user. Select sign in and click "Forgot Password" if you don't recall your credentials.
3. Navigate to the "Payments" tab on the left sidebar.
4. Click "+ Add Payment Method" and select if you would like to add a credit card or bank account. Enter the information and click "Submit."
5. Toward the bottom of the page, click "+ Make One-Time Payment." Select the payment method you just added from the dropdown menu and the amount you want to pay, then submit.

You can also set up automatic payments from the same page.

To see your monthly credits and savings, as well as your outstanding balance if you have one, click on "Invoices / Savings" on the left sidebar.

All of your payment information is saved to PaySimple, a well-known and well-trusted third-party payment company. JOE-4-SUN never has access to the payment information you enter.

You can also make a direct payment here: https://citizensenergy.mypaysimple.com/s/pay without saving your payment information to the system.

Here are the instructions to set up monthly automatic payments to JOE-4-SUN in the amount of your current balance.

1. Log in to our online portal at www.citizensenergy.com/portal. You'll see the option to register as a new user and to sign in as a returning user.
2. Select sign in and click "Forgot Password" if you don't remember your login information.
3. Navigate to the "Payments" tab on the left sidebar.
4. Click "+ Add Payment Method" and select if you would like to add a credit card or bank account. Enter the information and click "Submit."
5. Under "Automatic Payment Method" select the payment method you just added from the dropdown menu and click submit.

The short answer: The State of Massachusetts designed the Community Shared Solar Regulations that way. Here’s what it looks like:

You can pay your JOE-4-SUN invoice by mailing a check to our office or pay electronically by setting up autopay / making a one-time payment online.

Mail a check to our office at the following address:

If you aren’t getting a monthly JOE-4-SUN invoice, it’s most likely because it is being emailed to you and filtered out by your spam or junk mail filter. There are a few ways to fix this.

1. Make sure JOE4SUN@citizensenergy.com is added to your email contact list so that your system will recognize it.
2. If you are unable to find the email in your inbox, junk or spam folder, we can also change your invoice preference to paper so you get your JOE-4-SUN invoice in the mail each month.

If you have any questions about this, or would like us to change your invoice preference, please call us at (855) 563-4786 and leave a voicemail with your full name and JOE-4-SUN account number, or email us at JOE4SUN@citizensenergy.com.

You will need to send us a request to cancel your JOE-4-SUN account in writing, either by mail or email.

It will usually take two to four months to fully cancel your account. We are only allowed to submit enrollment changes to the utility four times per year. Your cancellation will be finalized by the utility during our next submission. During the waiting period, you will continue to receive credits from JOE-4-SUN if your utility account is still active. Since we are still putting credits on your bill, you will still receive invoices from JOE-4-SUN. We do our best to make the cancellation process expedient, but we cannot control the utilities’ timelines.