Climate Action Now

At CCAN, we’re fighting for a future without fossil fuels. But to get DC from relying on polluting methane gas to a city run entirely on clean electricity, we need a plan! The good news is that our electric utility, D.C. government, and other electrification experts are discussing that very plan right now – called integrated distribution system planning (IDSP).

The better news? You can weigh in too! Take 30 seconds to submit a comment to the Public Service Commission (PSC).

We’re demanding:

Transparent electric grid planning that sets us on the path to achieve D.C.’s ambitious climate commitments.
A plan for not just electricity, but also gas! PSC is considering a separate planning process for our gas system, but we want any plans to be focused on the same goal: a just transition to clean energy for the whole District.

A template comment has been provided, but feel free to personalize.

Submit a comment to PSC today.

This email will be directly sent to the officials of the D.C. Public Service Commission.
Please personalize!

Secretary

Public Service

Commission

Office of the Commission Secretary

Dear Chairman Thompson, Commissioner Beverly, and Commissioner Trabue,

Thank you for beginning discussions on integrated distribution systems planning (IDSP) for DC’s electric grid. A reliable, affordable, and renewably resourced electric system is extremely important to residents like myself, and a strategic plan to ensure the grid continues to meet our city’s needs is critical.

I would like to encourage the Commission to undertake a transparent, collaborative process to develop an IDSP that aligns with the District’s climate commitments and energy planning.

Robust stakeholder involvement should be the starting point for any planning. Many experts, in addition to Pepco, have valuable insight to provide to the planning process. The Commission must enable the data sharing necessary for all of these experts to participate in planning fully. Fortunately, the Commission can follow models of IDSP processes in other jurisdictions. Our neighbor Maryland established a distribution system planning working group that includes the Maryland Energy Administration, and I would like to see a similar taskforce for the IDSP process in the District.

The District government, particularly the Department of Energy and Environment, must be a key partner  in integrated distribution system planning, because a modernized electric grid must be able to accommodate load growth in line with the District’s electrification plans, as laid out in the DOEE’s Strategic Electrification Roadmap for Buildings and Transportation as well as frameworks such as Carbon Free DC and the forthcoming Clean Energy DC 2.0 plan.

Additionally, I strongly encourage the Commission to coordinate integrated distribution system planning for electricity with gas system planning. Failure to do so runs a high risk of wasteful, unnecessary spending on infrastructure that will not be used or useful as the District transitions to truly clean energy sources.  It is important to me to feel confident that the Commission is using its authority to guide energy planning in the right direction.

Sincerely,

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