Legislature(2025 - 2026)BARNES 124
03/19/2025 01:00 PM House RESOURCES
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Confirmation Hearing(s):|| Regulatory Commission of Alaska | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE RESOURCES STANDING COMMITTEE
March 19, 2025
1:03 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Robyn Niayuq Burke, Co-Chair
Representative Maxine Dibert, Co-Chair
Representative Carolyn Hall
Representative Donna Mears
Representative Zack Fields
Representative Dan Saddler
Representative Julie Coulombe
Representative Bill Elam
MEMBERS ABSENT
Representative George Rauscher
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
CONFIRMATION HEARING(S):
Regulatory Commission of Alaska
Steven Devries - Anchorage
Mark Johnston - Anchorage
John Springsteen - Anchorage
- CONFIRMATION(S) HELD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record
WITNESS REGISTER
STEVEN DEVRIES, Appointee
Regulatory Commission of Alaska
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointee to the Regulatory
Commission of Alaska.
MARK JOHNSTON, Appointee
Regulatory Commission of Alaska
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointee to the Regulatory
Commission of Alaska.
JOHN SPRINGSTEEN, Appointee
Regulatory Commission of Alaska
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified as appointee to the Regulatory
Commission of Alaska.
ACTION NARRATIVE
1:03:23 PM
CO-CHAIR ROBYN NIAYUQ BURKE called the House Resources Standing
Committee meeting to order at 1:03 p.m. Representatives
Coulombe, Hall, Mears, Dibert, and Burke were present at the
call to order. Representatives Fields, Elam, and Saddler
arrived as the meeting was in progress.
^CONFIRMATION HEARING(S):
^Regulatory Commission of Alaska
CONFIRMATION HEARING(S):
Regulatory Commission of Alaska
1:04:22 PM
CO-CHAIR BURKE announced that the only order of business would
be the confirmation hearing on the governor's appointee to the
Regulatory Commission of Alaska. She described the role of the
commission and stated that public testimony regarding the
appointees would be scheduled for a later date.
1:04:52 PM
STEVEN DEVRIES, Appointee, Regulatory Commission of Alaska,
testified as the Governor's appointee to the Regulatory
Commission of Alaska (RCA). He described his background and
professional experience including previous work with the RCA
[resume included in the committee file].
1:07:11 PM
MR. DEVRIES responded to several questions from Representative
Saddler by explaining how his legal background and experience
representing the Alaska Attorney General's office was relevant
to the work of the commission. He also described the process of
evaluating utility rates that would be fair, reasonable, and not
excessive while simultaneously ensuring that the utilities are
safe and effective.
1:10:38 PM
MR. DEVRIES, in response to several questions posed by
Representative Mears, described the commission as a reactive
agency which acted on matters brought before it. He noted that
some of the energy challenges faced by Alaska included the
potential shortage of natural gas in Cook Inlet, the needs of
Railbelt utilities, transmission constraints of the Railbelt,
assisting open access of the transmission system, and how energy
costs on the Railbelt impacted rural Alaska.
1:16:18 PM
MR. DEVRIES addressed a question posed by Representative Fields
regarding the drastic utility rate escalation which occurred in
Aniak in 2023 and how the commission could help avoid such
situations in the future. He described several potential
solutions that have been brought before the RCA.
1:20:27 PM
MR. DEVRIES, in response to several questions from
Representative Saddler, described RCA's employment challenges
and the impacts of attrition. He posited that despite those
challenges, the RCA does excellent work. On the topic of
incentives, he said that when he considered coming out of
retirement, the increased salaries were an enticement but not as
much of a factor as his interest in RCA's work.
1:25:12 PM
MR. DEVRIES responded to a question from Representative Mears
regarding coordinating the utilities along the Railbelt and how
to ensure that utilities meet the requirements set out by the
RCA. He described the types of enforcement tools available to
the commission but emphasized the importance of imposing
realistic objectives and using subtle encouragement rather than
coercive steps.
1:30:41 PM
MR. DEVRIES addressed a question from Co-Chair Dibert, regarding
the expense of utilities in Fairbanks. He acknowledged the
difficulties faced by Fairbanks residents and said that
potential viable solutions brought before the commission would
receive serious consideration.
1:33:31 PM
MR. DEVRIES responded to a question from Representative Fields
by describing a typical approval process for utility projects.
1:38:33 PM
MR. DEVRIES, in response to a question from Representative
Saddler, provided examples of matters the commission has
responded to. He pointed out that the commission has
jurisdictional boundaries.
1:40:53 PM
HEARD AND HELD
1:40:58 PM
CO-CHAIR BURKE announced that the next order of business would
be consideration of Mark Johnston, the governor's appointee to
the Regulatory Commission of Alaska.
1:41:22 PM
MARK JOHNSTON, Appointee, Regulatory Commission of Alaska,
testified as the Governor's appointee to the Regulatory
Commission of Alaska (RCA). He described his background,
professional experience, and how his appointment aligned with
statutory requirements [resume included in the committee file].
1:44:10 PM
MR. JOHNSTON responded to Representative Mears question
regarding the sale of Municipal Light & Power (ML&P) to Chugach
Electric. He described the process, the rationale, and the
advantages of the sale.
1:48:38 PM
MR. JOHNSTON addressed several questions posed by Representative
Fields. He discussed tariff actions and the cost of power in
various Alaskan communities. He touched on the importance of
understanding new technologies and mentioned the Anchorage
landfill "trash to energy" project. He also discussed ways to
increase energy efficiency.
1:57:01 PM
MR. JOHNSTON responded to a question from Representative Saddler
regarding the 2023 Alaska Federation of Natives (AFN)
resolution. He emphasized the importance of having highly
qualified RCA commissioners who can deal with Alaska's unique
challenges.
1:59:16 PM
MR. JOHNSTON, in response to a question from Co-Chair Dibert,
discussed the energy costs faced by Fairbanks residents. He
described several projects that could help lower costs, pointing
out the importance of looking at a variety of potential
solutions. He discussed cold weather heat pumps and programs
for implementing efficiency upgrades to homes .
2:06:34 PM
MR. JOHNSTON responded to Representative Mears question about
variable or differential rates for utility costs. He explained
that the RCA can make suggestions in response to petitions which
could incentivize a customer or a rate payer to make specific
types of changes.
2:09:37 PM
MR. JOHNSTON, in response to several questions from
Representative Coulombe, explained that wind farms could lower
utility rates depending on the equipment being used. He
discussed the variables that should be taken into consideration
when considering renewable energy. He described the RCA's role
in helping determine what the actual cost would be and whether
there was a benefit to ratepayers.
2:13:47 PM
HEARD AND HELD
2:14:06 PM
CO-CHAIR BURKE announced that the final order of business would
be consideration of John Springsteen, the governor's appointee
to the Regulatory Commission of Alaska.
2:14:30 PM
JOHN SPRINGSTEEN, Appointee, Regulatory Commission of Alaska,
testified as the Governor's appointee to the Regulatory
Commission of Alaska (RCA). He described his background,
professional experience, and his familiarity with Alaska's
energy concerns [resume included in the committee file].
2:19:43 PM
MR. SPRINGSTEEN, in response to a question from Representative
Elam, described the RCA's role as being largely reactive. He
pointed out that more considerations come into play when there
are different energy developers working with the utility
companies. He referred to a previous anchor tenet in Japan that
drew natural gas from Alaska and had allowed Alaska to have a
relatively low-cost supply of natural gas. He described the
advantages of having that type of relationship with different
companies.
2:22:27 PM
MR. SPRINGSTEEN responded to a question from Representative
Fields regarding whether the RCA can look beyond technology
proposals brought before the commission and suggest other
generation and storage technologies. He explained that some of
the key tenets of the RCA concerned whether a project is "fit,
willing, and able" as it applies to energy. The discussions of
projects included consideration of intermittency, seasonality,
and distance. He pointed out the advantages of having an
advanced look if a variety of technologies were brought to the
table such as through public presentations. He also described
the use of storage batteries as transition devices.
2:25:55 PM
MR. SPRINGSTEEN, in response to a question from Representative
Mears, discussed the challenges of retaining staffing, pointing
out that these concerns were being faced by the state in
general. He described how the RCA supports workforce
development to retain qualified employees.
2:28:56 PM
MR. SPRINGSTEEN, in response to a question from Co-Chair Dibert,
explained how his work with the Alaska Housing Finance
Corporation for energy and weatherization loans applied to the
work of the RCA. He also referenced the Alaska Energy Authority
and the work they did assisting with larger scale rural energy
programs.
2:30:45 PM
MR. SPRINGSTEEN addressed several questions from Representative
Saddler by discussing the RCA's work with the Railbelt energy
cooperatives, the Railbelt Reliability Council, the integrated
resource plans, and the Railbelt Transmission Organization. He
referenced needing to be aware of pancaking of rates. He also
pointed out the importance of considering intermittency,
seasonality, and distance and how those concerns affected the
planning process. He explained that the RCA worked within the
boundaries established by the legislature and did not set energy
policies.
2:34:06 PM
MR. SPRINGSTEEN responded to a question from Representative Hall
regarding workforce development and how the RCA worked to retain
employees.
2:35:31 PM
HEARD AND HELD
2:36:01 PM
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Resources Standing Committee meeting was adjourned at 2:36 p.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| John Springsteen RCA Resume_Redacted.pdf |
HRES 3/19/2025 1:00:00 PM |
|
| Mark Johnston RCA Resume_Redacted.pdf |
HRES 3/19/2025 1:00:00 PM |
|
| Steven Devries RCA Resume_Redacted.pdf |
HRES 3/19/2025 1:00:00 PM |