In the current budget environment, there is a growing awareness that the funding role of the federal government for RD&D in this area will be severely limited, which jeopardizes projects to demonstrate the commercial viability of CCS. What role can states play to maintain this research initiative, and what are the risks if this work is allowed to languish or terminate uncompleted?

This Roundtable is aimed at addressing these important questions by assembling a select group of representatives from the private and environmental/NGO sectors to engage in an important dialogue with a group of leading State Commissioners.

Roundtable Agenda and Format

• This interactive Roundtable will be keynoted by Jim Wood, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Clean Coal from the U.S. Department of Energy.
• Invited private sector/NGO participants will be asked to share their perspectives as to what is required to maintain the viability of research, development, and demonstration of CCS technologies. They will undoubtedly discuss the role of the states.
• Commissioners will be asked to respond, followed by a discussion facilitated by Chairman Jon McKinney.

Travel stipends available visit http://www.naruc.org/raft/

Moderators

Hon. Jon McKinney - Commissioner - West Virginia PSC Jim Wood - Deputy Assist. Sec. Clean Coal - US DOE

While many utilities around the nation are making efforts to improve diverse procurement spend, the lack of access to capital for emerging and diverse firms have caused constraints on these firms' capacity.

This panel will focus on access to captial (i.e., equity, credit lines, surety, completion bonds, risk management tools, letters of credit and other financial opportunities and barriers to capital to foster procurement for diverse and emerging businesses.

Moderator	Hon. Timothy A. Simon - Commissioner - California PUC
Panelists	Ryan Castillo - Los Angeles SBA Banker - Wells Fargo Bank Maria Contreas-Sweet - Executive Chairwoman and Founder - Promerica Bank E. David Ellington - Co-Founder and President - GridSpeak Corporation Ingrid Merriwether - President and CEO - Merriwether and Williams Nancy Pfund - Managing Partner - DBL Investors

A recent study conducted by the Minority Media & Telecom Council ("MMTC"), showed that both minorities and women are both significantly underrepresented on the public utility commissions throughout the nation. The study also showed several variables for this deficiency, which includes elected and/or appointed positions.

This panel of notable commissioners and research analyst will discuss the opportunities for advancing minorities and women to serve on (State) public utility commissions. The panel will also focus on the findings of the MMTC study; and they will discuss the political process and the appointment process from the view of a former governor's appointment secretary; and we'll hear the reflections of a women serving as a State Commissioner.

Moderator	Dr. Edward H. Salmon - President - Salmon Ventures
Panelists	Marcella Gadson - Director of Communications - Minority Media & Telecom Council Hon. Erin O'Connell-Diaz - Commissioner - Illinois Commerce Commission Hon. Timothy A. Simon - Commissioner - California Public Utilities Commission

UMA WILL PARTICIPATE IN A COMBINED PANEL WITH THE COMMITTEE ON GAS ENTITLED: DIVERSE AND EMERGING FIMS IN THE GAS AND FUEL INDUSTRIES. Recent increases in shale gas discoveries and lower GDP have resulted in lower natural gas prices. This has created opportunities and challenges for diverse and emerging firms serving the growing and dynamic natural gas and fuel industry. This panel of diverse emerging firms and investor-owned utilities will discuss the opportunities and barriers to procurement in the natural gas and fuel supply industries. The panel will also examine the economic benefits to ratepayers and investor-owned utilities in utilizing natural gas and fuel purchased from diverse suppliers. The investor-owned utilities representatives will also discuss their perspective on cutting edge fuel programs and opportunities for diverse and emerging firms within their respective companies.

The panel moderator is The Honorable Commissioner Erin O'Connell of the Illinois Commerce Commission and the panelist are: Renard Euell, President Euell Energy; Will Evans, President, Intergrys-Peoples Energy; Tamara Walden -Senior Advisor, Energy Commodities, Walden Energy/Yaka Energy; Roy Kuga - V.P., Energy Supply, PG&E and James P. Harrigan - V.P., Gas Acquisition, SCG.

See the Gas Committee Agenda for a complete details.

Moderator

Hon. Harold D. Williams - UMA Chair/Commissioner - Maryland Public Service Commission

Opening remarks provided by Consumer Affairs Committee Chair Betsy Wergin (MN PUC) and Critical Infrastructure Chair Lib Fleming (SC PSC).

Moderator

Katrina McMurrian - CCIF Facilitator - K2M Strategies, LLC

Panelists

Hon. Robert Kenney - Commissioner - Missouri PSC Hon. Jeff Goltz - Chairman - Washington UTC Hon. Susan Ackerman - Commissioner - Oregon PUC Bill Levis - Consumer Counsel - Colorado Office of Consumer Counsel Joe Como - Acting Director - California Division of Ratepayer Advocates Gregory Knight - Division VP of Customer Service - CenterPoint Energy Cherry Hudgins - Smart Grid Regulatory Manager - Southern Co. Services

Regional Association Collaboration & Activities
* ABAR (Brazil, Landfill Gas to Energy Project)
* ACERCA (Central America)
* AFUR (Africa)
* CEER (European Union)
* ERRA (Central/Eastern Europe & Eurasia)
* RERA (Southern Africa)

Status Report on the activities of the International Confederation of Energy Regulators (ICER)’s Working Groups
* Reliability and Security of Supply (Chaired by MEDREG)
* Regulatory Role in Climate Change (Chaired by CEER)
* Competitiveness & Affordability (Chaired by CAMPUT)
* Training, Education & Best Practices (Chaired by NARUC)

Opening remarks provided by Consumer Affairs Committee Chair Betsy Wergin (MN PUC) and Critical Infrastructure Chair Lib Fleming (SC PSC).

Moderator

Katrina McMurrian - CCIF Facilitator - K2M Strategies, LLC

Panelists

Hon. Robert Kenney - Commissioner - Missouri PSC Hon. Jeff Goltz - Chairman - Washington UTC Hon. Susan Ackerman - Commissioner - Oregon PUC Bill Levis - Consumer Counsel - Colorado Office of Consumer Counsel Joe Como - Acting Director - California Division of Ratepayer Advocates Gregory Knight - Division VP of Customer Service - CenterPoint Energy Cherry Hudgins - Smart Grid Regulatory Manager - Southern Co. Services

Joint Meeting with Staff Subcommittee on Gas Subcommittee

Speakers

Chris McGill - American Gas Association Cynthia Marple - American Gas Association

How have the energy markets been functioning? What does the future hold? How will the EPA rulemakings affect future coal and gas prices and availability? What are the consequences on energy markets? What is the forward outlook?

Moderators

Steve Michals - Chief, Electric Market Monitoring - Office of Energy Market Regulation, FERC Michael Leff - Office of Electricity, Coal, Nuclear and Renewables Analysis - US Dept of Energy Andrew Weissman - Editon-in-Chief & Publisher - Energy Business Watch

This session examines key elements of the growth in natural gas production from shales, including tangible benefits of shale gas development, geologic components, horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing for the non-geologist.

Moderators

Chris McGill - American Gas Association Cynthia Marple - American Gas Association

Many of PowerAdvocate customers appear before regulatory commissions for rate cases that involve capital expenditures for which commissioners and staff must pass judgment. It is PowerAdvocate's desire to provide a better understanding of how gas and electric utilities are using new and unique data and technology to reduce risk and manage costs. In addition, Sean will highlight how using data and technology can reduce customer costs and provide a more informed regulatory deliberation process.

Moderator

Sean Riley - Director, Energy Intelligence Group - PowerAdvocate

After keynote addresses by executives from some of the world’s top energy firms, a diverse panel of energy resource experts will discuss how these issues are impacting energy demand across the world.

Keynote Addresses by:

• Gregory H. Boyce, Chairman and CEO, Peabody Energy Corporation
• Arun Majumdar, Director of ARPA-e and Sr. Advisor to Secretary of Energy, US DOE
• Aubrey McClendon, Chairman and CEO, Chesapeake Energy

See Committee on Telecommunications for agenda.

The State Energy Efficiency Action Network (SEE Action) is a federal-state-local effort to build upon the progress of the National Action Plan for Energy Efficiency and assists state and local governments in advancing energy efficiency policies and programs; removing barriers and disincentives to reliazing energy savings through energy efficiency; and growing state-level investments in cost-effective energy efficiency.

SEE Action looks for opportunities to catalyze and transform the market and foster the emergence of a sustainable energy efficiency industry. In this session, we will receive an overview of the SEE Action effort and hear from four Working Group co-chairs (there are 8 in total) on the key activities they have identified in the Blueprints. The four Working Groups are: 1) evaluation, measurement & verification, 2) customer information & behavior, 3) commercial building retrofits, and 4) industrial efficiency & combine heat and power.

Moderator	Michael Li - Electricity Policy Specialist - Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability, United States Department of Energy
Panelists	Hon. Pat Oshie - Commissioner - Washington UTC Hon. Phyllis Reha - Commissioner - Minnesota PUC Jim Gallagher - New York ISO Hon. Greg White - Commissioner - Michigan PSC

Approximately 176 carriers in 35 states have seen trouble with call completions. Nebraska has open dockets on this issue and has spent extensive resources trying to find the problem. Is it VoIP? Is it a refusal to pay switched access? Is it MagicJack? Is it greed? Is it a crumbling of the PSTN that is going to become our new normal? Businesses and home owners are growing continually enraged and concerned that their communications are not being completed. What can state regulators do? Is the FCC the only authority involved? How can we get our call completion rates back up to 99.99%.

Moderator

Hon. Anne Boyle - Commissioner - Nebraska PSC

See Committee on Telecommunications for agenda.

See Committee on Gas agenda.

See Committee on Telecommunications for agenda.

Oral Reports:
* Robin Lunt, Legal Update
* Chris Mele, Legislative Update
* Hon. Douglas Nazarian, President, Eastern Interconnection States’ Planning Council and Chairman of the Maryland Public Service Commission
* Hon, Marsha H. Smith, State Provincial Steering Committee, Chairman of the Board, Western Electricity Coordinating Council, Commissioner, Idaho Public Utilities Commission

*Scott Hempling, NRRI Report

Lauren Azar, Advisor to Secretary Chu, U.S. Department of Energy

Written Report Discussion
Consideration of Resolutions

Joint Meeting with Committee on Gas

Fact: Gas pipeline reliability can substantially impact electric generation; Electric system reliability can have an impact on gas pipeline operations. In general, pipeline and electric system operators do not understand each other’s business very well; Pipeline planning and expansion are substantially different from the electric equivalent; Communications between pipeline operators and electric reliability coordinators are generally weak; Pipeline tariffs for firm delivery service are not compatible with peaking generation economics in many electric markets.
Event: An unprecedented cold snap in early February in Texas and other parts of the southwestern United States adversely impacted the delivery of power from natural gas, coal and wind during a period of heavy heating demand for natural gas and electricity. These power outages highlight the interdependency of the electric power and natural gas systems and provide a basis for examining whether there are opportunities for improvements. While extreme temperatures, such as those experienced by Texas in early February, are rare, industry officials and regulators need to consider what additional measures would prevent a reoccurrence of power shortages.
Requirement: Industry and regulators must recognize the growing interdependence between natural gas and the power grid and work, in coordination, to find balanced solutions. Efforts are underway to improve gas and electric coordination and the today’s speakers will address current regulatory, business standards and operational issues.

Moderator	Hon. Garry Brown - Chairman - New York PSC
Panelists	Hon. Philip Moeller - Commissioner - FERC David McCurdy - President and CEO - American Gas Association Rae McQuade - President - North American Standards Board Gerry Cauley - President and CEO - North American Electric Reliability Corp.

Joint Meeting with Committee on Critical Infrastructure

Moderator

Hon. Garry Brown - Chair - New York PSC

Panelists

Gerry Cauley - President and CEO - North American Electric Reliability Corporation David Owens - Executive Vice President - Edison Electric Institute Joseph H. McClelland - Director, Office of Electric Reliability - Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Hank A. Courtright - Senior Vice President - Electric Power Research Institute David J. Godfrey - Vice President, Operations and Planning - Western Electricity Coordinating Council

This panel will study the relationship between increased intermittent renewables and policy changes required to integrate this renewable energy. Additionally, this panel will address what technologies could be available for ensuring grid reliability throughout the country. Technologies under discussion will include large-scale electric transmission planning, energy storage, and natural gas peaking generation. Given the likely increase in intermittent renewable resources in order to comply with states' RES standards, and the challenges associated with building conventional generation:

• Do regulators and industry participants need new policies for financing and new methods of planning for upgrading electric transmission infrastructure?
• What mix of technology investments will be needed to ensure reliability?
• What regulatory changes are needed?
• When would any investments or technical/regulatory changes need to be made in order to be timely?

Joint Meeting with the Committee on Consumer Affairs

The State Energy Efficiency Action Network (SEE Action) is a federal-state-local effort to build upon the progress of the National Action Plan for Energy Efficiency and assists state and local governments in advancing energy efficiency policies and programs; removing barriers and disincentives to reliazing energy savings through energy efficiency; and growing state-level investments in cost-effective energy efficiency.

SEE Action looks for opportunities to catalyze and transform the market and foster the emergence of a sustainable energy efficiency industry. In this session, we will receive an overview of the SEE Action effort and hear from four Working Group co-chairs (there are 8 in total) on the key activities they have identified in the Blueprints. The four Working Groups are: 1) evaluation, measurement & verification, 2) customer information & behavior, 3) commercial building retrofits, and 4) industrial efficiency & combine heat and power.

Moderator	Michael Li - Electricity Policy Specialist - Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability, United States Department of Energy
Panelists	Hon. Pat Oshie - Commissioner - Washington UTC Hon. Phyllis Reha - Commissioner - Minnesota PUC Jim Gallagher - New York ISO Hon. Greg White - Commissioner - MIchigan PSC Dian Grueniech - Former CPUC Commissioner - Partner, Morrison Foerster

In the widening pursuit of the "first fuel," energy efficiency, behavioral change is an ever popular topic. Through a variety of incentives, decoupling, lost revenue adjustment mechanisms and inverted block rates, regulators provide incentives to utilities that promote energy efficiency. In turn, utilities have rolled out numerous energy efficiency programs to their customers. Most of the time, behavioral change is a term directed at the utility customer, the end-use consumer who has the final say in how much energy is used in a home, business or factory. And most observers agree that if a customer's behavior is to change, there must be sufficient incentives in place for the change to occur.

That logic is widely accepted, but does it really present the best path to energy efficiency? This panel will examine the issue from all the angles. Who is in the best position to promote energy efficiency through behavioral changes and how good are they at it? What works best to motivate customer change in energy usage? What are the best practices to measure and evaluate the effectiveness of various programs that promote behavioral change? If some third-party efficiency administrators reportedly perform better than many utilities in saving energy, will maximum efficiency savings ever come via the utilities?

Moderator	Gail Gutsche - Commissioner - Montana Public Service Commission
Panelists	Kevin Ashton - General Manager of Conserve, clean technical division - Belkin Hank Courtright - Senior Vice President - Electric Power Research Institute Merrilee Harrigan - Vice President of Education - Alliance to Save Energy Michael Sachse - Vice President, Regulatory Affairs and General Counsel - Opower Gene Rodrigues - Director of Energy Efficiency and Solar - Southern California Edison

Regulators compare energy efficiency resources to conventional generation technologies when reviewing energy acquisition plans offered by utilities. Many regulators give energy efficiency equal weight when making decisions about utility resource plans and cost recovery while others do not. This panel will address the different methods of comparing energy efficiency benefits and costs with those of conventional and advoidable resources. The panel will provide a foundational discussion of the benefit/cost tests typically used in these decisions, including the Total Resource Cost and the Utility Cost tests. It will focus on how regulators choose to use these tests, their pros and cons, where the tests are working well, and where they have been modified with diminishing results for energy efficiency. Panelists will recommend changes to the tests and their application to truly evaluate investments in energy efficiency on a par with other resources

Moderator	Patrick Oshie - Commissioner - Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission
Panelists	Snuller Price - Energy and Environmental Economics, Inc. Tom Eckman - Northwest Power and Conservation Council Marty Kushler - American Council for an Energy-Efficiency Economy

See Committee on Telecommunications for agenda.

In the summer of 2008, natural gas prices were over $12.00 and mmbtu and state Commissions were concerned about natural gas scarcity. Since then shale gas has emerged as a game changer. The new supply picture and advances in drilling technology have combined to create the potential for more reliance on natural gas in end-use applications, electric generation, as use for chemical feed stocks and as a transportation fuel.
Having been there before, utility regulators have some reason to be wary of this new ‘rush to gas’ that is why the new assessment from the Potential Gas Committee is so important.
In addition to the new supplies regulators need to know how they affect the markets and prices consumers pay.

Moderator	Hon. Timothy A. Simon - Commissioner - CA PUC
Panelists	Porter Bennet - CEO - Bentek Chris McGill - AGA

Fact: Gas pipeline reliability can substantially impact electric generation; Electric system reliability can have an impact on gas pipeline operations. In general, pipeline and electric system operators do not understand each other’s business very well; Pipeline planning and expansion are substantially different from the electric equivalent; Communications between pipeline operators and electric reliability coordinators are generally weak; Pipeline tariffs for firm delivery service are not compatible with peaking generation economics in many electric markets.
Event: An unprecedented cold snap in early February in Texas and other parts of the southwestern United States adversely impacted the delivery of power from natural gas, coal and wind during a period of heavy heating demand for natural gas and electricity. These power outages highlight the interdependency of the electric power and natural gas systems and provide a basis for examining whether there are opportunities for improvements. While extreme temperatures, such as those experienced by Texas in early February, are rare, industry officials and regulators need to consider what additional measures would prevent a reoccurrence of power shortages.
Requirement: Industry and regulators must recognize the growing interdependence between natural gas and the power grid and work, in coordination, to find balanced solutions. Efforts are underway to improve gas and electric coordination and the today’s speakers will address current regulatory, business standards and operational issues.

Moderator	Hon. Garry Brown - Chair - New York PSC
Panelists	Hon. Philip Moeller - Commissioner - FERC David McCurdy - President & CEO - American Gas Association Rae McQuade - Executive Director and COO - North American Standards Board Gerry Cauley - President and CEO - North American Electric Reliability Corporation

Joint Meeting with Committee on Critical Infrastructure

The Department of Transportation is in the process of reviewing federally mandated safety procedures. These rules could have a significant impact on safety programs though out the country. This panel will examine potential new rules from PHMSA, how interstate transportation and local distribution companies are addressing pipeline safety, what technologies are being developed to lower costs and improve safety what the regulatory response has been at the state level.

Moderator	Hon. Timothy A. Simon - Commissioner - California PUC
Panelists	Hon. Colette Honorable - Chair - Arkansas PSC Tim Butters - Deputy Director - Office of Pipeline Safety Ron Edelstein - State Regulatory Director - GTI Larry Borgard - Integrys Corp. Jesus Soto - El Paso Corp.

Joint Meeting with Committee on Critical Infrastructure, Electricity, Gas and Consumer Affairs

Utilities basically have two choices in communications architecture with regard to the smart grid. Historically, most IOU's have chosen to build a mesh network. However, recent changes in pricing plus the move from smart grid 1.0 (Automatic Meter Reading), to Smart Grid 2.0 (Distributed Automation), is making cellular another option. This interactive panel will debate and discuss the pros and cons of both options for communications architecture for the Smart Grid.

Moderator	Hon. Carlito Caliboso - Commissioner - Hawaii PUC
Panelists	Paul DeMartini - CTO, VP Innovation - Cisco Campbell McCool - Smart Sync Raj Vanswani - Silver Spring Networks Andy Wood - Director of Business Development, QCT Machine-to-Machine & Smart Energy - Qualcomm

At the Washington, DC meetings the telecommunications committee discussed neutrality among small video providers. It was determined at that time to study the issue further. This panel will try to address the need, concern, and reality of reform on a state and federal level.

Moderator	Hon. James Cawley - Commissioner - Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission
Panelists	Tom Dominico - Business Development Manager - Sebastian Corp. Ross Lieberman - VP of Government Affairs - American Cable Assn. Michael Petricon Sr. - VP of Government Affairs - Consumer Electronics Assn. Hon. Larry Landis - Commmissioner - Indiana URC

Approximately 176 carriers in 35 states have seen trouble with call completions. Nebraska has open dockets on this issue and has spent extensive resources trying to find the problem. Is it VoIP? Is it a refusal to pay switched access? Is it MagicJack? Is it greed? Is it a crumbling of the PSTN that is going to become our new normal? Businesses and home owners are growing continually enraged and concerned that their communications are not being completed. What can state regulators do? Is the FCC the only authority involved? How can we get our call completion rates back up to 99.99%.

Moderator	Hon. Libby Jacobs - Chair - Iowa Utilties Board
Panelists	Bob Gnapp - NECA Mike Romano - NTCA Rick Ratliff - Sprint Malia Brock - Oregon Public Utility Commission

In May 2011, the U.S. Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration launched DigitalLiteracy.gov in partnership with nine Federal agencies, with the goal of creating an online hub for librarians, educators, and other digital literacy practitioners to share content and best practices. In September 2010, the NTIA completed the approval process for 44 sustainable broadband adoption projects totaling $250.7 million in Federal Recovery Act grant funds to support innovative projects that promote broadband adoption. Earlier in 2011, the Federal Communications Commission approved mergers of Comcast with NBC Universal and CenturyLink with Qwest Communications based, in part, on public interest commitments to implement national broadband adoption programs. This panel will discuss these initiatives and any lessons learned about how to promote broadband service adoption, especially among vulnerable population groups where broadband technology traditionally has been underutilized.

Moderator

Hon. Betty Ann Kane - Chairman - District of Columbia Public Service Commission

Panelists

Tony Wilhelm - Director, Broadband Technology Opportunities Program - National Telecommunications & Information Administration Sunne Wright McPeak - President & Chief Executive Officer - California Emerging Technology Fund Tessie Guillermo - President & Chief Executive Officer - ZeroDivide Mark Seeger - Senior Director of Business Development - Communications Services for the Deaf Jeffrey Lanning - Assistant Vice President, Federal Regulatory Affairs - CenturyLink Bret Perkins - Vice President, External & Government Affairs - Comcast

Sue Daly: Legislative Changes Under Consideration in Ohio

Steve Klick : ARM's Three Legs - We're Not in the 70's Anymore

• Byron L. Dorgan, US Senator (ret)
• Randall Stephenson, Chairman and CEO, AT&T
• David Cohen, Executive Vice President, Comcast

The new 'Rush to Gas' presents regulators with one key challenge: How can we protect consumers from the price volatility? New gas plays, higher reserve estimates and faster more efficient drilling techniques are part of the answer but they do not repeal the laws of supply and demand. Regulators need to use their familiar tools and may need to add new tools to deal with market variability. The Bipartisan Policy Center has recently finished their report on how consumers can best capture the benefits of increased natural gas supply. In addition a few states have recently authorized their utilities to enter into long term, fixed price supply contracts.

Joint Meeting with Committee on Gas and Subcommittee on Utility Marketplace Access

See Committee on Gas for agenda

The issue of utilizing alternative fuels, like electricity and natural gas, for mass transportation on a nationwide scale may not seem like anything new. It’s true that vehicles powered by electricity and natural gas have been around for decades, although most were not able to achieve and maintain a strong position in the marketplace. However, a convergence of factors may have reset and redefined the potential for alternative fuel technologies and provided the necessary impetus to bring this technology into the mainstream for the long term.

The utility industry is already investing and moving to expand the alternative fuel transportation market. Across the country collaborative efforts between utilities, infrastructure providers, governments and auto makers are currently underway, preparing communities and consumers to take advantage of alternative fuel vehicle options. However, there are still many questions about the impact of this convergence of the utility and transportation sectors.

Utilities, regulators, auto manufacturers and consumers are at a critical juncture. The regulatory implications of this technology are just beginning to come to light. Everything from impacts on the local distribution systems of utilities, to transmission upgrades that will accommodate more of these vehicles in communities; from the establishment of rate structures that would enable consumers to utilize this technology, to ensuring implementation is done in a way that won’t be detrimental to utility operations and other consumers, These are all areas where regulators will play an important role.

This discussion will focus on the following:
• Identifying and prioritizing those areas where there will be an impact on the regulatory paradigm
• Identifying the gaps in current regulatory policies
• Determining what additional information/education is needed

Moderator	Hon. Matt Baker - Commissioner - Colorado PUC
Panelists	Hon. Orjiakor Isiogu - Chairman - Michigan PSC Michael W. Allman - President and CEO - Southern California Gas Co. Dr. Kathryn Clay - Executive Director - Clean American Transporation Alliance (CATA) Hank Courtright - Senior Vice President - EPRI Robert Graham - Mgr, PEV Readiness Program - Southern California Edison Alex Keros - Sr. Engineer, Electric & Hydrogen Infrastructure - General Motors

The issue of utilizing alternative fuels, like electricity and natural gas, for mass transportation on a nationwide scale may not seem like anything new. It’s true that vehicles powered by electricity and natural gas have been around for decades, although most were not able to achieve and maintain a strong position in the marketplace. However, a convergence of factors may have reset and redefined the potential for alternative fuel technologies and provided the necessary impetus to bring this technology into the mainstream for the long term.

The utility industry is already investing and moving to expand the alternative fuel transportation market. Across the country collaborative efforts between utilities, infrastructure providers, governments and auto makers are currently underway, preparing communities and consumers to take advantage of alternative fuel vehicle options. However, there are still many questions about the impact of this convergence of the utility and transportation sectors.

Utilities, regulators, auto manufacturers and consumers are at a critical juncture. The regulatory implications of this technology are just beginning to come to light. Everything from impacts on the local distribution systems of utilities, to transmission upgrades that will accommodate more of these vehicles in communities; from the establishment of rate structures that would enable consumers to utilize this technology, to ensuring implementation is done in a way that won’t be detrimental to utility operations and other consumers, These are all areas where regulators will play an important role.

This discussion will focus on the following:
• Identifying and prioritizing those areas where there will be an impact on the regulatory paradigm
• Identifying the gaps in current regulatory policies
• Determining what additional information/education is needed

Moderator	Hon. Matt Baker - Commissioner - Colorado PUC
Panelists	Hon. Orjiakor Isiogu - Chairman - Michigan PSC Michael W. Allman - President & CEO - Southern California Gas Co. Dr. Kathryn Clay - Executive Director - CATA Hank Courtright - Senior Vice President - EPRI Robert Graham - Mgr, PEV Readiness Program - Southern California Edison Alex Keros - Sr. Engineer, Electric & Hydrogen Infrastructure - General Motors

1:45 Miscellaneous Reports

• Report on ECC Committee
• Chris Mele, NARUC Washington Report
• Miles Keogh, NARUC Grants & Research Report
• Tom Stanton, NRRI Report
• Barbara Tyran, EPRI Activity Update
• Ron Edelstein, GTI Activity Update
• Roger Hamilton, Western Grid Group clean energy vision

2:00 Roundtable Discussion on Clean Energy and Air Planning

Joint Meeting with Committee on Electricity

In some circles, storage is seen as the holy grail of electricity technologies, transforming an enormous system that delicately balances supply and use in real time and allowing a host of new resources to be integrated into the electricity system. Although batteries, flywheels, thermal energy storage, compressed air, pumped hydro and other technologies are developing quickly, several storage technologies remain in research and development, and no clear frontrunner exists at grid-scale. In this session, experts from the public and private sector will present the landscape of energy storage technologies, discuss how to value storage (and how to realize benefits faster), and describe the outlook for success or failure of different technologies and the market for electricity storage.

Moderator	Hon. Jeanne Fox - Commissioner - New Jersey BPU
Panelists	Haresh Kameth - Senior Project Manager - EPRI Steve Minnihan - Research Associate - Lux Research Imre Gyuk - Program Manager - ARPA-E (invited)

The issue of utilizing alternative fuels, like electricity and natural gas, for mass transportation on a nationwide scale may not seem like anything new. It’s true that vehicles powered by electricity and natural gas have been around for decades, although most were not able to achieve and maintain a strong position in the marketplace. However, a convergence of factors may have reset and redefined the potential for alternative fuel technologies and provided the necessary impetus to bring this technology into the mainstream for the long term.

The utility industry is already investing and moving to expand the alternative fuel transportation market. Across the country collaborative efforts between utilities, infrastructure providers, governments and auto makers are currently underway, preparing communities and consumers to take advantage of alternative fuel vehicle options. However, there are still many questions about the impact of this convergence of the utility and transportation sectors.

Utilities, regulators, auto manufacturers and consumers are at a critical juncture. The regulatory implications of this technology are just beginning to come to light. Everything from impacts on the local distribution systems of utilities, to transmission upgrades that will accommodate more of these vehicles in communities; from the establishment of rate structures that would enable consumers to utilize this technology, to ensuring implementation is done in a way that won’t be detrimental to utility operations and other consumers, These are all areas where regulators will play an important role.

This discussion will focus on the following:
• Identifying and prioritizing those areas where there will be an impact on the regulatory paradigm
• Identifying the gaps in current regulatory policies
• Determining what additional information/education is needed

Moderator	Hon. Matt Baker - Commissioner - Colorado PUC
Panelists	Hon. Orjiakor Isiogu - Chairman - Michigan PSC Michael W. Allman - President & CEO - Southern California Gas Co. Dr. Kathryn Clay - Executive Director - CATA Hank Courtright - Senior Vice President - EPRI Robert Graham - Mgr, PEV Readiness Program - Southern California Edison Alex Keros - Sr. Engineer, Electrical &Hydrogen Infrastructure - General Motors

The new ‘Rush to Gas’ presents regulators with one key challenge: How can we protect consumers from the price volatility? New gas plays, higher reserve estimates and faster more efficient drilling techniques are part of the answer but they do not repeal the laws of supply and demand. Regulators need to use their familiar tools and may need to add new tools to deal with market variability.

The Bipartisan Policy Center has recently finished their report on how consumers can best capture the benefits of increased natural gas supply. In addition a few states have recently authorized their utilities to enter into long term, fixed price supply contracts.

Moderator	Hon. Lee Solomon - President - New Jersey BPUC
Panelists	Ralph Cavanagh - Energy Program Director - National Resources Defense Council Greg Staple - American Clean Skies Foundation Gregg Kantor - Northwest Natural Gas James Zadvorny - Director, Business Dev. - EnCana Marketing

Joint Meeting with Committee on Consumer Affairs and Subcommittee on Utility Marketplace Access

Recent increases in shale gas discoveries and lower GDP have resulted in lower natural gas prices. This has created opportunities and challenges for diverse and emerging firms serving the growing and dynamic natural gas and fuel industry. This panel of diverse emerging firms and investor-owned utilities will discuss the opportunities and barriers to procurement in the natural gas and fuel supply industries. The panel will also examine the economic benefits to ratepayers and investor-owned utilities in utilizing natural gas and fuel purchased from diverse suppliers.The investor-owned utilities representatives will also discuss their perspective on cutting edge fuel programs and opportunities for diverse and emerging firms within their respective companies.

The Committee on Gas will review and discuss relevant resolutions.

The issue of utilizing alternative fuels, like electricity and natural gas, for mass transportation on a nationwide scale may not seem like anything new. It’s true that vehicles powered by electricity and natural gas have been around for decades, although most were not able to achieve and maintain a strong position in the marketplace. However, a convergence of factors may have reset and redefined the potential for alternative fuel technologies and provided the necessary impetus to bring this technology into the mainstream for the long term.

The utility industry is already investing and moving to expand the alternative fuel transportation market. Across the country collaborative efforts between utilities, infrastructure providers, governments and auto makers are currently underway, preparing communities and consumers to take advantage of alternative fuel vehicle options. However, there are still many questions about the impact of this convergence of the utility and transportation sectors.

Utilities, regulators, auto manufacturers and consumers are at a critical juncture. The regulatory implications of this technology are just beginning to come to light. Everything from impacts on the local distribution systems of utilities, to transmission upgrades that will accommodate more of these vehicles in communities; from the establishment of rate structures that would enable consumers to utilize this technology, to ensuring implementation is done in a way that won’t be detrimental to utility operations and other consumers, These are all areas where regulators will play an important role.

This discussion will focus on the following:
• Identifying and prioritizing those areas where there will be an impact on the regulatory paradigm
• Identifying the gaps in current regulatory policies
• Determining what additional information/education is needed

Moderator	Hon. Matt Baker - Commissioner - Colorado PUC
Panelists	Hon. Orjiakor Isiogu - Chairman - Michigan PSC Michael W. Allman - President & CEO - Southern California Gas Co. Dr. Kathryn Clay - Executive Director - CATA Hank Courtright - Senior Vice President - EPRI Robert Graham - Mgr, PEV Readiness Program - Southern California Edison Alex Keros - Sr. Engineer, Electrical & Hydrogen Infrastructure - General Motors

What happened when the earthquake and tsunami caused a loss of primary and backup power to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex in March? What does it mean for the 104 nuclear reactors in the U.S.-could similar damage occur here? We will discuss what influence events at Fukushima may have on building new nuclear plants and what this might mean for goals for reduced carbon emissions in view of the fact that nuclear power now accounts for 70 percent of U.S. emissions-free electricity generation.

Moderator	Hon. David Boyd - Commissioner - Minnesota
Panelists	Dr. Per Peterson - Head, Nuclear Engineering Dept. - University of California, Berkeley Elmo Collins - Director, Region IV - U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Sharon Bonelli - Managing Director - Fitch Ratings Paul Genoa - Director, Policy Development - Nuclear Energy Institute

• Commissioner Lib Fleming, Public Service Commission of South Carolina
• (DHS Representative for Assistant Secretary Todd Keil,) Department Homeland Security, Office of Infrastructure Protection
• Mike Warwick, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

• Developing a Utility / Regulator / Federal communications plan
• Siting Model
• Resource Availability (renewable, others)
• Addressing other regulatory Issues