Make demand response participation the default

If you have a smart thermostat, EV charger, battery, or other connected device, it might be able to take part in a demand response program — where your utility briefly adjusts your device during times of high grid demand, often in exchange for a bill credit or other reward. Right now, most of these programs require you to actively sign up, and few people do. One report found only about one in five smart thermostats nationwide are enrolled, even though a separate study of a large program showed that once people join, only about 4% ever override an event.

This piece argues that the fix is to make enrollment automatic rather than something you have to seek out. Instead of filling out forms, you would be enrolled by default when you get a device or sign up for service, with a clear notice and an easy way to opt out or skip any single event. Programs using this approach reportedly reach participation rates as high as 95%, compared with under 10% for traditional opt-in programs. A couple of state programs — California's Demand Side Grid Response and Texas grid operator ERCOT's Emergency Response Service — have already simplified enrollment using basic address information rather than separate authorization paperwork.

For your own home, this means the way you sign up for these programs may get simpler over time, especially if your utility or device maker adopts this default-enrollment model. It does not affect your ability to decline or skip events — the idea is to keep that easy, just make joining the automatic starting point instead of an extra chore.