1. If you were advising President Biden / Dem leadership, what would you emphasize as your priorities should the Democrats somehow win a national trifecta again? Compared to 2020, due to both the political landscape and the passage of the IRA, there is much less discussion about what could be done legislatively if given the…
1. If you were advising President Biden / Dem leadership, what would you emphasize as your priorities should the Democrats somehow win a national trifecta again? Compared to 2020, due to both the political landscape and the passage of the IRA, there is much less discussion about what could be done legislatively if given the chance, although I am sure many smart people are thinking about it!
2. What do you make of the discussion around rising electricity rates, possible policy changes to shift from volumetric rates to income-based/fixed charges, and generally which climate measures should be implemented through electricity rates vs. local/state budgets? This has been a particularly live wire discussion in California, and Sammy Roth at the LA Times has written intelligently about it in the last few weeks. Do you have a mental model for which types of costs make sense to rate-base or are you familiar with any research for best practices?
#2a has seen little discussion of the most obvious factor. Nat gas makes up a third of kWh generation now, and in the last 2-3 years the cost of gas to generators tripled but is now falling back a bit. https://www.eia.gov/dnav/ng/hist/n3045us3a.htm
The states with lots of gas generation, at the end of the pipelines, pay the most for electricity. I.e. CA, NY, some of New England.
Lots of political agitation about how to use electric rates for social, environmental and economic purposes. Can't satisfy everyone, so status quo seems to prevail in most places, except for those fuel cost adjustments.
Two questions:
1. If you were advising President Biden / Dem leadership, what would you emphasize as your priorities should the Democrats somehow win a national trifecta again? Compared to 2020, due to both the political landscape and the passage of the IRA, there is much less discussion about what could be done legislatively if given the chance, although I am sure many smart people are thinking about it!
2. What do you make of the discussion around rising electricity rates, possible policy changes to shift from volumetric rates to income-based/fixed charges, and generally which climate measures should be implemented through electricity rates vs. local/state budgets? This has been a particularly live wire discussion in California, and Sammy Roth at the LA Times has written intelligently about it in the last few weeks. Do you have a mental model for which types of costs make sense to rate-base or are you familiar with any research for best practices?
Got a pod on #1 coming soon!
#1 sounds like a good topic for Volts, for sure.
#2a has seen little discussion of the most obvious factor. Nat gas makes up a third of kWh generation now, and in the last 2-3 years the cost of gas to generators tripled but is now falling back a bit. https://www.eia.gov/dnav/ng/hist/n3045us3a.htm
The states with lots of gas generation, at the end of the pipelines, pay the most for electricity. I.e. CA, NY, some of New England.
Lots of political agitation about how to use electric rates for social, environmental and economic purposes. Can't satisfy everyone, so status quo seems to prevail in most places, except for those fuel cost adjustments.