Baseline Regions

Sometimes the rates on a tariff vary based on the baseline region, or sub-territory, where a customer is located. This how-to guide explains how to identify tariffs like this and how to determine and set the baseline region once you do.

Does this tariff have baseline regions?

Each tariff in our database includes a list of tariff properties, which can be found in the properties list in the JSON response. You can request these properties to be returned in the results of the Get Tariffs API by including populateProperties=true in your request. If you find a territoryId property in the returned list with a propertyTypes value of RATE_CRITERIA, then at least one rate on the tariff varies according to the customer's location within the utility's service area. This means it has a baseline region.

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You can learn more about what the other types of Rate Criteria mean in this how-to guide.

When you encounter this situation, you can explicitly pass a territoryId to the calculator or allow the calculator to default it. Arcadia makes an effort to set default values for most rate criteria, but we highly recommend reviewing and making adjustments to improve the results of your calculations.

How to determine what territories are available for a customer

You can retrieve a list of territories for a customer by using our Territory API. Here's an example to retrieve a list of territories for Southern California Edison (lseId: 1228) with the zip code 92407. Importantly, we are requesting only the baseline region territories by including the request parameter usageType with a value of TARIFF (Tariff types denote baseline regions, as opposed to service areas, utility climate zones, and other types of territories):

GET /rest/public/territories?lseId=1228&zipCode=92407&country=US&usageType=TARIFF

The response returns Baseline Region 10 (territoryId: 5) and Baseline Region 16 (territoryId: 9):

{  
    "territoryId": 5,  
    "territoryName": "Baseline Region 10",  
    "lseId": 1228,  
    "lseName": "Southern California Edison Co",  
    "parentTerritoryId": 1362,  
    "usageType": "TARIFF",  
    "itemTypes": "CITY",  
    "deregRes": false,  
    "deregCandi": false,  
    "centerPoint": {  
        "latitude": 33.93300848031497,  
        "longitude": -117.3344177637795  
    }  
},  
{  
    "territoryId": 9,  
    "territoryName": "Baseline Region 16",  
    "lseId": 1228,  
    "lseName": "Southern California Edison Co",  
    "parentTerritoryId": 1362,  
    "usageType": "TARIFF",  
    "itemTypes": "CITY",  
    "deregRes": false,  
    "deregCandi": false,  
    "centerPoint": {  
        "latitude": 34.71016330481286,  
        "longitude": -117.95372556684482  
    }  
}

In the case above, two territories are returned. If you have a bill for your customer, you can often find the baseline region indicated on it.

How to determine what territory was defaulted

When a calculation requires a territory to select the correct subset of rates, a default territory is selected. The territoryId used is returned in the assumptions section of the calculation response. If its accuracy is less than 100 (percent), then you know the calculator defaulted it. If you want to use a different territory, pass a territoryId into the calculator's propertyInputs and that will be used instead. You will see its accuracy is 100 in the assumptions if you do so.