Testimony of
Mark Rodeffer
of the Sierra Club
Before the DC Council Committee on Business and Economic Development
On the nomination of Ted Trabue to the Public Service Commission
December 7, 2022
Councilmember McDuffie, thank you for the opportunity to testify on the important nomination to the Public Service Commission that is before this committee today. And congratulations, Councilmember McDuffie, on being elected to another term on the DC Council. My name is Mark Rodeffer, and I’m testifying on behalf of the Sierra Club. We are the nation's largest grassroots environmental advocacy group, with chapters in all 50 states, and about 3,000 dues-paying members in the DC chapter
Combating climate change is our top priority. One of the most important DC government agencies in the fight against climate change is the Public Service Commission. The Sierra Club has intervened in multiple cases before the Commission, advocating for clean energy, a just transition off fossil fuels, protecting DC’s most vulnerable residents from climate change, and reasonable utility rates for DC residents. The Sierra Club believes the Commission must take stronger and more proactive leadership on climate change if the Commission is to meet its statutory requirement to uphold DC’s climate commitments, which includes transitioning off fossil fuels by 2045.
The Sierra Club applauds Mayor Bowser for nominating Ted Trabue to the Public Service Commission, and we call on the DC Council to confirm him. Ted Trabue has decades of energy experience, with a deep background in energy efficiency and building decarbonization, both of which will be crucial if DC is to meet its climate commitments.
Energy efficiency is sometimes called the best climate policy most people have never heard of. Leading the District’s energy efficiency efforts as head of the DC Sustainable Energy Utility (DCSEU) for over a decade, Mr. Trabue is an expert on energy efficiency and can bring his expertise to bear on efficiency proposals from the electric and gas utilities to ensure they are effective, fair to ratepayers and consistent with DC’s climate commitments.
To achieve DC’s climate commitments and to improve public health, we must transition DC’s buildings off fossil fuels like fracked gas for heating. Mr. Trabue has experience in this area as well. He oversaw the creation of DCSEU’s Low-Income Decarbonization Pilot, which removed fossil fuel equipment from the homes of some DC’s most vulnerable residents, reducing indoor air pollution in their homes, lowering utility bills, and cutting greenhouse gas emissions. During Mr. Trabue’s tenure, DCSEU negotiated a contract with the DC Department of Energy and Environment to end subsidies for new fossil fuel burning equipment in the homes of DC residents of all walks of life. Also under his leadership, DCSEU aligned its energy efficiency metrics with DC’s climate commitments by instituting a fuel-neutral energy savings target that can encourage building electrification with measures like installing highly efficient heat pumps instead of fossil fuel furnaces and boilers.
DC will not meet the climate commitments set by the DC Council and Mayor Bowser if DC continues pumping polluting, dangerous, and explosive fracked gas into people’s homes. Continued reliance on gas – whether it is fracked gas, methane from other sources, or hydrogen – is not a cost-effective nor realistic solution for decarbonizing DC's buildings and meeting DC's climate commitments. The DC Public Service Commission is in dire need of a greater understanding of the importance of building decarbonization to meet DC’s climate commitments. We believe Ted Trabue will bring that valuable asset to the Commission if he is confirmed.
In addition to launching initiatives to begin to remove fossil fuels systems from DC homes, Mr. Trabue has worked to provide the benefits of solar power to DC residents. Under his leadership, DCSEU established programs to provide solar power to low-income residents before Solar for All was created. Mr. Trabue’s experience with the challenging interactions between solar installations and the electric utility will be invaluable in moving forward with solutions to issues relating to permitting, interconnections, and billing for individual installations and Community Renewable Energy Projects (CREFs). With the addition of Mr. Trabue, we hope the Commission will demand greater accountability to address Pepco unjustly withholding energy bill credits that rightfully belong to low- and moderate-income participants in the Solar for All program. On electric vehicles, Mr. Trabue understands the importance of building charging infrastructure now, taking advantage of new federal funding.
Meeting DC’s climate commitments will require energy-saving efficiency measures, transitioning buildings off fossil fuels, and expanding solar energy in a cost-effective manner. Ted Trabue is highly knowledgeable and experienced in these areas.
Thank you again, Councilmember McDuffie, for the opportunity to testify today. The Sierra Club asks you to schedule a confirmation vote soon in the Business and Economic Development Committee on Mr. Trabue’s nomination and we ask all members of the Council to vote to confirm Ted Trabue to the Public Service Commission