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Reps. Beyer, Raskin, Schakowsky Lead Letter Calling for Reform To FERC’s Public Participation Office

Washington, December 17, 2021

December 17, 2021 (Washington, D.C.) –Reps. Don Beyer (D-VA), Raskin (D-MD), and Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) today led a letter to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) urging them to incorporate certain reforms into the newly established Office of Public Participation (OPP).

They wrote:

“We applaud the establishment of the Office of Public Participation (OPP) and the appointment of Elin Katz as its inaugural director. The OPP is more than 40 years overdue and is vital to ensuring that the public has the information, tools, and funding necessary to participate in Commission proceedings.

As the Commission works to develop the OPP, it should work quickly to introduce reforms that will immediately improve the stakeholder experience.”

The suggested reforms include overhauling the FERC website to increase accessibility, shifting outreach responsibilities to the OPP, educating and engaging with the public, and establishing an intervenor compensation framework.

Full text of the letter follows below, and a signed copy can be found here.