DCPSC Commissioners were excited to finally attend the groundbreaking of the District of Columbia Power Line Undergrounding (DC PLUG) on June 14th. Mayor Bowser, D.C. Council, the District's Department of Transportation, Pepco, the DC Office of the People's Counsel, DCPSC and other government agencies kicked off the construction of this $500 million public-private partnership.
Due to severe weather events between 2010-2016 including the February 2010 winter storm, the June 2012 Derecho, and the January 2016 blizzard, DC PLUG was established to primarily make the electric distribution system more resilient during severe weather events, reducing the duration and frequency of electric outages. Once completed, DC PLUG will decrease storm-related outages by 94%.
DC PLUG will migrate up to 30 of the District’s most vulnerable overhead distribution lines underground, taking place over six to eight years. Construction has begun in the American University Park and Friendship Heights communities, and is then expected to proceed to the Hawthorne, Barnaby Woods, Chevy Chase and Friendship Heights areas. However, DC PLUG activity will commonly occur in areas with the most vulnerable overhead lines: Wards 3, 4, 5, 7 and 8. DC PLUG also includes a comprehensive, 3-year reliability improvement plan for the Benning Road area.
The DCPSC is monitoring activities throughout the project. To stay current on the project, visit the DC PLUG website.
Watch the groundbreaking on Mayor Bowser's YouTube Channel.
As a part of the Chairman's commitment to continuous improvement within the agency, the DCPSC now has an Office of External Affairs (OEA).
The OEA will report directly to the Office of the Chairman and handle all external affairs matters for the DCPSC, including interface with the D.C. Council, State and Federal entities, and key external stakeholders.
Cary Hinton has been selected as the Director of the Office of External Affairs. Since 2007, Cary has provided expert advice on regulatory policy and legislative matters to the Office of the Commissioners. He brings a breadth of knowledge to this new position, with over 30 years of regulatory and government affairs experience.
If your Advisory Neighborhood Commission, community group or non-governmental organization would like a Commissioner or Commission representative to speak at your meeting or event, please contact Cary with the details of your request at chinton@psc.dc.gov.
The DCPSC hosted a MEDSIS Town Hall on June 13th to allow for public comment on the recommendations contained in the final MEDSIS Working Group Report. The report was filed with
the DCPSC on May 31, 2019.
The MEDSIS Town Hall was well attended with 16 individuals providing testimony on the recommendations. Many residents applauded how the DCPSC has made significant progress in moving the MEDSIS initiative forward as well as having an open, diverse and transparent process.
District residents spoke about various concerns such as community outreach efforts, the importance of prioritizing customer privacy and partnering with utilities and developers to ensure that grid modernization is inclusive especially of DC seniors and low-income residents.
Launched in 2015, the DCPSC first began investigating grid impacts of distributed energy resources (DERs) and determining how the DCPSC wanted the local grid to evolve. By 2017, the DCPSC had formalized its vision for grid modernization. To achieve the vision, the DCPSC established six MEDSIS stakeholder working groups and hired Smart Electric Power Alliance to engage and support the stakeholders contributing their expertise through formal working group meetings.
For ten months, stakeholders participated in over 50 meetings and reviewed over 200 documents. The process yielded 32 recommendations for DCPSC consideration as outlined in a 500+ page final report. These recommendations were developed based on results from exercises conducted during meetings, participant surveys, stakeholder proposals and working group meeting discussions.
The June 13th Town Hall was the final opportunity for District residents to weigh in on the recommendations before the DCPSC issues an Order in July.
To watch the MEDSIS Town Hall Meeting, visit the DCPSC's YouTube Channel.
Now that the MEDSIS working group recommendations have been submitted to the Commission, we are considering a new name for the next phase of grid modernization in the District.
Capital Power Path? DC Grid Mod? What are your suggestions?
Tell us at bit.ly/NewNameforGridMod
This Juneteenth (June 19th), the doors of the James C. Dent Community Center were opened to the Ward 6 community. DCPSC Chairman Willie L. Phillips gave remarks during the grand opening, noting the significant impact James C. Dent made on his community.
James C. Dent, born into slavery in 1855, grew up a farm laborer in Maryland. Dent eventually made his way to SW DC as a laborer, mostly employed in a lime kiln. In 1885, his wife Mary and several parishioners founded the Mount Moriah Baptist Church. Dent became the second pastor and took the church to prominence within Washington’s black religious community - overseeing it’s transition into several newer and nicer buildings, and serving as pastor for over 22 years. The Dent Residence became emblematic of the rise of the black middle class after Emancipation. The home was eventually turned into a community center for Ward 6 residents.
The DCPSC is proud to support the James C. Dent House Community Center. Through the Living Classrooms Foundation, the Center will offer education and workforce development programs and STEAM activities for Ward 6 families.
To learn more about the Center, visit the Dent House website.
The DCPSC's Office of Consumers Services (OCS) hosted in the Energy Affordability Expo at the Wilson Building. The DCPSC joined the DC Office of the People's Counsel and the DC Sustainability Energy Utility in educating Constituent Services Directors from the D.C. Council on how each agency can help their ward constituents with their utility bills.
Through the DCPSC's outreach program, OCS offers information tables and presentations about DCPSC consumer initiatives at community festivals and meetings. To schedule an outreach with OCS, call 202-626-5124 or submit a request online.
Chairman Willie L. Phillips was invited to speak at the Edison Electric Institute (EEI) 2019 Conference in Philadelphia. Chairman Phillips was featured on a panel discussing how District leadership is focusing on climate policy and grid modernization.
EEI 2019 is the electric industry’s premier event, bringing together top executives, policymakers and industry partners for thought leadership, networking and best practices.
Public Utilities Fortnightly Magazine celebrated the next generation of up-and-comers in the utilities industry in their June issue. Attorney Advisor, Naza Shelley was recognized for her impactful work at the Commission. She has twice represented the Commission before the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia in defending the District’s landmark electricity undergrounding public private partnership, known as DC PLUG, affirmed by the court. She is currently managing the Commission’s grid modernization case (the Modernizing the Energy Delivery System for Increased Sustainability initiative).
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