Casten Applauds Senate Confirmation of 5th FERC Commissioner and Urges Commission to Immediately Leverage its 3-2 Majority to Combat Climate Crisis
WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Tuesday, the Senate voted to confirm Willie Phillips to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) following Congressman Sean Casten's (D-IL) "Hot FERC Summer" campaign to educate the public about an agency most Americans had previously never heard of and push for the confirmation of a climate-focused 5th commissioner to secure a Democrat appointed majority the first time in years.
Given that Democrats' Build Back Better Act will include neither a Clean Electricity Standard nor a carbon tax, Casten believes FERC is uniquely equipped to eradicate greenhouse gas emissions by putting a price on carbon. The commission issued a policy statement in April that opened the door to incorporating carbon prices into wholesale electricity markets.
Reacting to the Senate Confirmation, Casten said, "I'm thrilled that President Biden and the Senate have embraced the Hot FERC Summer spirit by confirming Willie Phillips as the 5th Commissioner—recognizing that a fully staffed, climate-focused FERC will be among the most powerful tools we have to get to a clean energy economy at the pace the climate crisis demands. If you ask me, that's FERCalicious!"
"As I'm certain Commissioner Phillips knows All Too Well, preventing irreversible climate catastrophe means FERC must immediately leverage its majority to implement new rules to incentivize clean energy investments, put a price on carbon, and debottleneck our transmission system to deliver clean, cheap, reliable energy to all Americans."
"The Fossil fuel industry wants us to think energy policy is too complicated to understand, but the simple and important truth behind Hot FERC Summer is that we don't have to keep paying too much for dirty energy. We don't have to accept the fossil-fuel funded, false dichotomy between our morals and our wallets. Thanks to all who helped me prove that FERC is indeed hot enough to warrant this level of attention, and helped move us a little closer, a little quicker to a fully functioning Federal Energy Regulatory Commission equipped to fight climate change and ensure that the economic gains of a zero carbon economy are shared by investors, workers, and consumers. And Thank you to Megan Thee Stallion, Fergie, and Dolly for the inspiration and for helping me ensure my daughters--however embarrassed they may now be--can inherit a livable planet."
To watch Casten's Hot FERC Summer speech, click here. To watch his FERCalicious speech click here. To watch FERCing 9 to 5, click here.
Before Casten launched Hot FERC Summer, The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) was rarely in the spotlight despite its essential role in decarbonization. While Rep. Casten's floor speeches gave his Hot FERC Summer campaign unusual virality, several of his Democratic colleagues in the House and Senate joined his successful efforts to increase public awareness around FERC: Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL-09) led a successful campaign that resulted in the creation of FERC's Office of Public Participation in June this year. Senator Martin Heinrich and Rep. Casten introduced HR 2678, the Interregional Transmission Planning Improvement Act requiring FERC (D-NM) to improve interregional transmission. Reps. Jared Huffman (D-CA-02), Mike Levin (D-CA-49 ), and Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR-01) co-led Casten's Energy Price Act directing FERC to ensure that electric utilities take into account greenhouse gas emissions when setting their utility rate--and Rep. Tom Malinowski joined Casten in introducing the Timely Rehearings at FERC Act, H.R.4746, which amends the Federal Power Act to require FERC to respond to requests for rehearing orders on any of its decisions.
"I can't keep up with Representative Casten's pop culture references, but I do truly appreciate his effort to raise public awareness around the critical role that FERC can play in climate action," said U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.). "We need FERC to greatly improve its interregional planning processes for new transmission lines and clean energy projects if we want to move quickly enough to decarbonize our electricity sector. With all the mounting climate impacts—from extreme wildfires and floods to deadly heatwaves and water shortages—we don't have any more FERCin' time to waste in building a clean and carbon-free economy."
"Thanks to my friend and colleague Sean Casten from the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis for introducing a new word – "FERCalicious" – and for coming up with such a creative way to bring attention to clean energy efforts at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission," said Chair Kathy Castor of the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis (D-FL-14). "And while I remain hopeful for an Olivia Rodrigo-inspired 'FERC 4 u', I know the end of Hot FERC Summer is only the beginning of our efforts to expand clean energy with the help of the Biden Administration."
"As Hot FERC Summer comes to an end, our fight for a clean energy economy is gaining momentum and charging forward. I applaud my colleague, Rep. Sean Casten, for bringing FERC to the forefront in our conversations about energy and combatting climate change," said Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL-09). "FERC will play a key role in our fight to transition to cleaner, cheaper energy, all while creating more jobs."
Rep. Huffman (D-CA-02) said, "This summer, an often ignored agency that plays an important role in solving the climate crisis got the attention it deserves – thanks to Rep. Casten. As the nation is battling droughts, wildfires, and superstorms fueled by climate change, it's obvious that we need to restore FERC to its full potential so we can transition to a clean energy economy. Paired with the strong bills we've introduced in the House, FERC is poised to reshape America's future with cleaner, cheaper energy that boosts the economy and creates jobs while making us more competitive in the global energy market. I hope to see us wrap up this successful push by not only having Chairman Phillips confirmed by the Senate, but then having the commission use its full weight under a Democratic majority to continue making progress on the clean energy goals the country and planet need."
"Every federal agency has a part to play in overcoming the rapidly emergent climate crisis, yet perhaps no role is more vital than that of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Thanks to the exemplary leadership and catchy campaign of my colleague in the House of Representatives, Congressman Casten, FERC is finally gaining much-needed recognition for its pivotal responsibilities in transitioning our electric grid to 100% clean energy by no later than 2035, "said Congresswoman Yvette Clarke (D-NY-09). "All alarms are sounding code red as we move deeper into the looming climate catastrophe; the time to act is now. The Senate must proceed with Chairman Willie Phillips's expeditious confirmation, and Congress must come together as a whole to restore FERC's full capabilities and enable us to Build Back Better for a future that is equitable, sustainable, driven by high-paying clean energy jobs, and, above all else, safe for our communities to thrive."
Rep. Casten recently introduced three bills on FERC:
- The Timely Rehearings at FERC Act, H.R.4746, which Casten introduced with Congressman Tom Malinowksi (D-NJ) amends the Federal Power Act by changing the timeline that FERC must respond to requests for rehearing orders on any of its decisions. Rep. Malinowski introduced a companion to Casten's bill making similar changes to the Natural Gas Act.
- H.R. 4556, the Energy Price Act, which Rep. Casten introduced last week with Reps. Mike Levin (D-CA), Jared Huffman (D-CA) and Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) would clarify that for the purposes of the Federal Power Act (which has been law for nearly a century) that any electricity price not accounting for the price of greenhouse gas emissions is ‘unjust, unreasonable, or unduly preferential, or discriminatory'. This isn't a change of FERC's authority under the FPA, but mainly a return to form for FERC – court rulings have held that the Commission must ensure protection of the public interest when setting rates, and given the 2009 endangerment finding from the EPA that found that greenhouse gases endanger the public health and welfare, it's clear that FERC should take into account how a rate accounts for the cost of greenhouse gases when determining if it's allowable. The bill was introduced last Congress as HR 5742.
- HR 2678, the Interregional Transmission Planning Improvement Act , which Rep. Casten introduced this spring with Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) would require FERC to issue a rulemaking on interregional transmission, requiring grid operators to look at interregional solutions, not just intraregional ones, as is often the case today. Interregional transmission will be an incredibly important part of decarbonization – an analysis by Americans for a Clean Energy Grid identified 22 high-voltage transmission projects that could begin construction in the next year that would create up to 240,000 jobs if all built (according to the American Council on Renewable Energy). A version of the bill is included in the CLEAN Futures Act out of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and is also in the Senate Energy and Natural Resources package that was marked up earlier this month that is slated to be included in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework.[bill text]
# # #