Agenda Day 1

9:00 am

Introduction & Overview: The Big Picture for Putting Together the Pieces of a Complex Puzzle

Identifying the regulatory policies and financial incentives for the various sectors of the West Coast economy, with electrification as the common thread for achieving the region's climate action goals

Craig Gannett, Esq. , Program Co-Chair
Davis Wright Tremaine / Seattle, WA

Peggy Otum, Esq. , Program Co-Chair
WilmerHale / San Francisco, CA

9:30 am

An Overview of the Climate Provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)

Tax incentives to make clean energy and storage less expensive, thereby accelerating the achievement of state carbon reduction goals

Michael W. Evans, Esq.
K&L Gates / Washington, DC

10:15 am

Break

10:30 am

Statutory Frameworks for Climate Action in the West Coast States

California as the state with the most mature regulatory framework: Cap-and-trade and other key provisions for stationary source carbon emissions

Peggy Otum, Esq. , Program Co-Chair
WilmerHale / San Francisco, CA

Washington's recently enacted climate legislation (a mandate on utilities, cap-and-trade, clean fuels, and environmental justice) and how the overall package reflects the evolution of the issues since California adopted its cap-and-trade structure

Craig Gannett, Esq. , Program Co-Chair
Davis Wright Tremaine / Seattle, WA

Oregon's differing political dynamics, legislative stalemate, and resulting reliance on administrative policy initiatives; agency jurisdictions on climate issues; how the election is likely to change the political dynamics and the path Oregon takes

Derek D. Green, Esq.
Davis Wright Tremaine / Portland, OR

12:15 pm

Lunch Break

1:30 pm

Decarbonizing the Generation of Electricity

The broad range of issues from resource planning to facility siting to ratemaking; implementation of state legislation mandating that utilities transition to carbon-free generation

Glenn Blackmon, Ph.D. , Manager, Energy Policy Office
Washington State Department of Commerce / Olympia, WA

Caroline F. Moore , Administrator, Utility Strategy & Integration
Oregon Public Utility Commission / Salem, OR

3:00 pm

Break

3:15 pm

West Coast Offshore Wind: How Soon, How Much?

West coast continental shelf topography, the need for floating turbines; Northern CA and Southern OR as the best place to start; BOEM's role, policy priorities, and permitting processes; developing a realistic timeline for getting steel in the water

Jennifer Miller , Pacific Region Renewable Energy Section Chief
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management / Camarillo, CA

State jurisdiction and initiatives: Case study of the goals set by California and Oregon and how the states can work together on state-level permitting processes and requirements

Jason R. Busch, Esq. , Executive Director
Pacific Ocean Energy Trust (POET) / Beaverton, OR

4:30 pm

Electrolytic Hydrogen as an Emerging Carbon-Free Fuel Source

New technological, market, and policy developments relating to green hydrogen as a longer-term backup for solar and wind generation and as an alternative for battery electric vehicles in the transportation sector

Michelle Detwiler , Executive Director
Renewable Hydrogen Alliance / Portland, OR

5:00 pm

Reception for In-Person Faculty and Attendees

Sponsored by Davis Wright Tremaine and WilmerHale

Friday, May 19, 2023

9:00 am

Decarbonizing Transportation

Local initiatives: Case study of the City of Seattle's Blueprint for Transportation Electrification

Jessyn Farrell, Esq. , Director, Office of Sustainability & Environment
City of Seattle / Seattle, WA

Development of a publicly available, nationwide charging infrastructure for commercial vehicles

Joseph Colett , Manager, Public Charging Infrastructure
Daimler Truck North America / Portland, OR

Utility perspective on grid changes needed to support electrification of vehicles

Rachel Huang , Director, Customer & Grid Strategy
Sacramento Municipal Utility District / Sacramento, CA

10:30 am

Break

10:45 am

The Nuts and Bolts for Participation in the Three States' Cap-and-Trade/Invest/Reduce Programs

California: How market operations have evolved over time in response to legislative and market developments

Mark R. Sippola, Ph.D. , Chief, California Cap-and-Trade Program
California Air Resources Board / Sacramento, CA

Washington: Recent adoption of a new Cap and Invest regulation; what to expect as the program gets off the ground; tips for effective participation

Derek Nixon , CCA Auctions and Market Unit Supervisor
Washington Department of Ecology / Lacey, WA

Oregon: How Oregon agencies were implementing the Climate Protection Program, which uses a cap approach to reduce emissions from fossil fuels used in the state

Colin McConnaha , Manager, Office of Greenhouse Gas Programs
Oregon Department of Environmental Quality / Portland, OR

12:15 pm

Lunch Break

1:30 pm

Putting the Pieces Together from a Regional Resource Planning and Grid Operational Perspective

How the IRA and state decarbonization initiatives can be expected to impact resource planning processes and wholesale market operations

Rebecca Sexton , Director of Reliability Programs
Western Power Pool / Portland, OR

Andrew Ulmer, Esq. , Assistant General Counsel
California Independent System Operator / Folsom, CA

3:00 pm

Addressing the Need for Policy Linkage Regarding Environmental Justice

How Oregon is factoring climate justice considerations into agency decision making

Nicole Singh , Senior Climate Change Policy Advisor
Oregon Department of Environmental Quality / Portland, OR

3:30 pm

Evaluations and Adjourn

Faculty Bios

Craig Gannett, Program Co-Chair, is a partner at Davis Wright Tremaine. He focuses his practice in the fields of electric utility regulation, renewable energy development, and climate change-related regulation. He also teaches Climate Change Law at the University of Washington School of Law and is the President of the Henry M. Jackson Foundation, which focuses on the intersection of climate change and national security.

Peggy Otum, Program Co-Chair, is a partner at WilmerHale and co-Chairs the firm's Energy, Environment and Natural Resources Practice. She provides strategic advice on a host of environmental regulatory and policy matters, including those related to climate change risk, Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) matters, compliance, crisis response and risk management.

Glenn Blackmon, Ph.D., is the Manager of the Energy Policy Office at the Washington State Department of Commerce. He formerly served as Director of Regulatory Services for the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission and provided consulting services to business and government clients in telecommunications and utility regulation.

Jason R. Busch is Executive Director of the Pacific Ocean Energy Trust (POET), an organization that supports the responsible development of marine energy and decarbonization of the maritime sectors. He also is active in a number of organizations, including the Marine Energy Council, Offshore Wind California, and the Renewable Hydrogen Alliance. Prior to joining Oregon Wave Energy Trust, he was an attorney specializing in land use, energy, and project development.

Joseph Colett, Manager of Public Charging Infrastructure for Daimler Truck North America, leads the company's effort to develop the public heavy-duty vehicle charging and fueling infrastructure of the future. He formerly led Portland General Electric's electric vehicle charging infrastructure operations team.

Michelle Detwiler is Executive Director of the Renewable Hydrogen Alliance (RHA). It is is a trade association focused on promoting the production and use of renewable hydrogen in the Pacific Northwest to help meet carbon emission reduction and climate protection goals. She came to RHA from PacifiCorp, where she served on the Government Affairs team.

Michael W. Evans, a partner at K&L Gates, recently returned to the firm after serving as Chief Majority Counsel and Deputy Staff Director for the U.S. Senate Finance Committee where he has worked on major federal policy issues, including the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act and reconciliation process. He served on the U.S. Senate staff for more than 26 years, including 18 years as chief counsel to two separate Senate committees.

Jessyn Farrell is the Director of the Office of Sustainability & Environment for the City of Seattle. She previously served in the Washington State Legislature and as the Executive Director of the Transportation Choices Coalition.

Derek D. Green is of counsel to Davis Wright Tremaine. His practice encompasses regulatory and transactional matters related to utility-scale and portfolio energy projects and operations. He advises independent power producers, utilities, investors and industrial consumers in project development, operations and acquisitions.

Rachel Huang is the Director, Customer & Grid Strategy for the Sacramento Municipal Utility District. In this role she oversees the development of strategy for new business models, demonstrations, and evolution of utility functions in the face of an increasingly distributed energy future.

Colin McConnaha is Manager of the Office of Greenhouse Gas Programs for the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality. This includes Oregon's Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program, Clean Fuels Program, and the Climate Protection Program.

Jennifer Miller is Chief of the Renewable Energy Section in the Pacific Regional Office of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM). Prior to her role as Chief, she was the senior geophysicist in BOEM's Office of Renewable Energy Programs with first-hand experience with offshore wind project development on both U.S. coasts.

Caroline F. Moore is Administrator for Utility Strategy & Integration at the Oregon Public Utility Commission. She formerly worked as a New Program Development Project Manager for PacifiCorp and as an Utility Partnership Associate at 3Degrees.

Derek Nixon is the Supervisor for the Climate Commitment Act Auctions and Market Unit at the Washington Department of Ecology. He joined Ecology's Air Quality Program after serving as an Air Pollution Specialist for the California Air Resources Board.

Rebecca Sexton is Director of Reliability Programs for the Western Power Pool. She previously did energy utility project consulting for Sappere Consulting.

Nicole Singh is a Senior Climate Change Policy Advisor for the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality. She previously served as the Executive Director of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a cooperative, market-based effort among the states of Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Virginia to cap and reduce CO2 emissions from the power sector. It was the first cap-and-invest regional initiative implemented in the United States.

Mark R. Sippola, Ph.D., is Chief of the California Cap-and-Trade Program for the California Air Resources Board. He has nearly a decade of experience working on emission trading programs, especially on allowance allocation to minimize carbon leakage and protect ratepayers.

Andrew Ulmer is Assistant General Counsel at the California Independent System Operator (ISO) where he has worked since 2008 on various electricity market and infrastructure issues. Prior to joining the ISO, he served as Chief Counsel for the Division of Ratepayer Advocates at the California Public Utilities Commission.

Continuing Education Credits

Live credits: This program qualifies for 11.25 Washington MCLE, 11.25 California MCLE, 11.25 Oregon MCLE, 11.25 AICP land use planner, and 11.25 ABCEP environmental professional credits. Upon request, we will help you apply for CLE credits in other states and other types of credits.

I appreciate LSI's seamless segue from registration, an informative seminar, to end result.

In-Person Location

John Davis Conference Center

920 Fifth Ave Ste 3300 in Seattle, WA 98104

More about the Location
Map & Directions

Remote Access to the Live Program

The day before the program, we will email you a link to the materials and one to log into the broadcast. Fill out the Zoom "Registration" form by entering your name and email address. That will log you in.

Register or Purchase a Replay