Jan. 20, 2022
NRDC Sponsors 2022 FRI Crystal Award
January 20, 2022 The FRI is excited to announce the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) as the sponsor for 2022 FRI Crystal Award for Distinguished Contribution. First awarded in 2013, the Crystal Award is presented each year to recognize an individual who has made recent and significant contributions to the design, implementation or analysis of public utility regulatory policy. The Crystal Award provides an opportunity to recognize excellence and achievement across regulated industries and further promote the FRI mission. Although NRDC’s sponsorship with FRI is new, NRDC has a long history with the Crystal Award. Ralph…
Dec. 15, 2021
POV: Advancing Environmental Justice at the California Public Utilities Commission
December 14, 2021 Written by Clifford Rechtschaffen, Commissioner, California Public Utilities Commission In California, as in many other states, policymakers have known for a number of years that environmental harms are disproportionately concentrated in low-income communities and communities of color. This includes air pollution, unsafe drinking water, exposure to pesticides, proximity to power plants and oil refineries, and vulnerability to extreme heat.[1] Over the past two decades, the state has set broad objectives requiring that environmental justice be part of the mission of state agencies and adopted specific mandates in various environmental and energy legislation. In 2017, the…
Sep. 9, 2021
FRI Welcomes New Advisory Board Members
September 10, 2021 We are happy to announce our newest Advisory Board members: Christina Baker, Chairman Kent Chandler, Kristy Hartman, Commissioner Gabriella Passidomo, Kari Gehrke and Matt Rice. Longer bios for these distinguished individuals (and all of our Advisory Board members) are available on the FRI Members page. Christina Lynn Baker, P.E., J.D., is a Senior Assistant Attorney General with the Arkansas Attorney General’s Office working on public utility and environmental issues. She serves as lead attorney of the Consumer Utilities Rate Advocacy Division and routinely provides expert testimony regarding positions taken by the Attorney General to protect Arkansas…
Sep. 9, 2021
POV: New Jersey and PJM Initiate State Agreement Approach
September 10, 2021 Written by Joseph Fiordaliso, President of the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities. Direct questions to Ryann Reagan and Joseph DeLosa on the NJBPU staff. The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) took a monumental step on November 18, 2020, becoming the first state to integrate its offshore wind transmission objectives with the regional grid’s planning and development process. To position the state to reach Governor Phil Murphy’s ambitious goal of 7,500 megawatts of offshore wind energy by 2035, the NJBPU has formally requested inclusion of its offshore wind public policy into the regional…
Aug. 25, 2021
2021 Public Utility Symposium Moved to Virtual
August 26, 2021 We have made the difficult decision to hold the 2021 FRI Symposium entirely virtual this year. The thought of leaving the virtual meeting world was exciting, but the reality is that travel is still not as safe and reliable as we want it to be, and the responsible decision is to acknowledge that things are not improving as quickly as we had hoped. Several of our presenters had health concerns, many of our presenters were having trouble getting permission for business-related travel, and all of our presenters had difficulties with flight cancelations (as well as disconcerting…
Aug. 10, 2021
POV: Achieving Water Equity: Assessing Water Access Beyond Affordability
August 11, 2021 Written by Robert F. Powelson, President & CEO of National Association of Water Companies With infrastructure taking the spotlight in Washington since January and COVID-19’s ongoing impact, there’s certainly been a renewed focus on the essential role water service plays in protecting public health — and rightfully so. At the same time, the pandemic’s economic impact and increased attention paid to equity has sharpened focus on ensuring customers can afford their water bills. To date, these dual realities– the need for investment and the desire to keep rates low – has created a false choice…
June 16, 2021
FRI Welcomes Dr. Adrienne Ohler
June 17, 2021 FRI is excited to announce the addition of Dr. Adrienne Ohler to the FRI team, effective July 1, 2021. Dr. Ohler is an Associate Research Professor at the University of Missouri with appointments in the Division of Applied Social Sciences and the School of Medicine. She has published several papers related to renewable energy issues and to consumer demand for electricity in peer-reviewed journals such as The Energy Journal, The Electricity Journal, and Energy Policy. Working with FRI, Dr. Ohler will be developing research and grant opportunities related to the regulation of public utilities…
June 15, 2021
POV: Billions of Reasons to Invest in Broadband Infrastructure
June 16, 2021 Written by Elin Swanson Katz, VP of Utilities at Tilson They say timing is everything, and if a utility broadband project is anywhere on the horizon, now is the time to act. While the COVID-19 pandemic appears to be winding down, one of the many challenges it has exposed is the number of Americans that do not have access to reliable, affordable high-speed broadband. It has also revealed the profound impact that the lack of access – referred to as the digital divide – has on school children, people working from home, small businesses, medical…
May 16, 2021
POV: A State Regulator Perspective on the Future of Nuclear Energy
May 17, 2021 Written by Former Commissioner Sadzi Martha Oliva, Legal and Policy Advisors Alejandro Mateos and Kealie Vogel, and Policy Intern Haley Bracken of the Illinois Commerce Commission Disclaimer: All views expressed within this article are the authors’ own and do not necessarily represent the views of the Illinois Commerce Commission or the Illinois state government. Introduction Since the Illinois Commerce Commission last held a public policy session on issues surrounding nuclear energy, much has changed in the world including a global pandemic, racial tensions highlighting social inequities, extreme weather challenges in February 2021, and a…
April 26, 2021
David K. Owens Selected for 2021 Crystal Award
April 27, 2021 FRI has selected David K. Owens as recipient of the 2021 Crystal Award for Distinguished Service. David K. Owens, 2021 Crystal Award honoree Owens is President and Energy Consultant at Da’VAS, LLC. He retired in 2017 as Executive Vice President of the Edison Electric Institute (EEI). He is an accomplished executive with extensive experience in public policies surrounding utility operations, strategic planning, technology development, rate making and regulation. He is recognized as one of the foremost authorities on electric utility issues, industry restructuring and transformation. Owens has a long history of contributions to the utility industry. During…