Respondents describe an industry grappling with accelerating load growth, infrastructure vulnerability, and policy uncertainty – even as they continue to work toward clean energy goals and distributed resource integration.

“Orientation offers new Commissioners the chance to learn directly from peers, understand the legal and policy frameworks that will help shape their work, and most importantly, build relationships that will last throughout their careers.“

“As a former Commission Chair, I recognized quickly that there is a whole host of managing and operating at any Commission that falls outside the ordinary daily responsibilities of regulating.”

Conversations with Tricia Pridemore and Jehmal Hudson about the Chairs Council Conference and New Commissioner Orientation.

“All these resources coming on have a lower accredited capacity than traditional resources. You have to make sure you’re meeting that supply-demand balance in an already tight market. That’s what we’re focused on. We’re also focused on getting more transmission built.”

“Regulatory incentives focusing on improving overall system utilization create a net downward pressure on rates, just as prioritizing rate impact benefits over other benefit-cost tests helps lower rates more readily than do traditional avoided capital cost tests.”

“Leading utilities’ resiliency programs are also typically ahead in their digital journeys by developing geospatial asset registries, accessible outage management systems, and digitized inspection data.”

“The race for skilled resources is more competitive than ever as the existing workforce ages and labor markets wane, making enterprise alignment on talent acquisition strategies, career pathways, and succession planning critical.”

“If utilities are to become fast followers in AI adoption, they should build a robust ecosystem that strategically integrates AI and other new technologies into their operations and across their networks.”