Here are links to some current cases on the WV PSC's Web site.  These links will take you to the PSC's database of all documents filed in these cases.  You can find the original petitions and applications that open a case, testimony and evidence presented by all the parties in the case and, when a case is decided, you can find the final order describing the PSC's decision.  You can also subscribe to email updates on these cases here.

• Case 10-0019-E-GI - Investigation of causes and power company response to December 2009 blackout in southern and central WV
• Case 09-1758-E-C - Formal complaint case concerning failure of Allegheny Energy (now First Energy) to follow PSC order on right of way clearing for the TrAIL transmission line
• Case 11-1274-E-P - FirstEnergy WV power companies request for new rate increase
• Case 11-0452-E-P-T - Case to design energy efficiency/demand reduction programs for FirstEnergy power companies in WV
• Case 11-1034-E-P - AEP WV power companies' filing concerning compliance on alternative/renewable and efficiency programs
  

For more than 100 years, electric companies and government regulators in the US have been training us all to be stupid about electricity.  They want us to believe that we are dependent on the corporate experts and engineers for the magic that "keeps the lights on."  Our electrical system has grown into a highly centralized grid which is increasingly unreliable and expensive.  The corporations that run our electric grid want the rest of us to shut up and remain helpless consumers that constantly demand more and more electricity to generate larger and larger profits.

The electric companies and government regulators are wrong.  We now have the ability to become producers of electricity.  Technological change in photovoltaic cells and small scale wind turbines has put production of our own power within our reach.  In some states with forward looking policies, power production is happening right now for individual homeowners.

So now, every rate increase as a result of stupid investment decisions by power companies hurts every one of us as potential energy producers.  If we are to become producers, we have to invest in our own equipment, our own capital, to produce energy.  Every dollar the power companies take out of our pockets for their own bad investments is a dollar that we cannot spend on our own smart power producing investments.

AEP/Entergy and FirstEnergy and all of the other mega-holding companies that own generating plants, transmission lines and the distribution systems that bring power to our homes and businesses are now competing with us as producers.  We can create our own generating system and even build local microgrids that create self-reliant community power networks.

We are also producers in another sense.  Every kilowatt of electricity we avoid using is the equivalent of power that we have produced.  In fact, Vermont has set up a utility company that does nothing but reduce electricity use by factories and homes.  The Vermont company is paid for each kilowatt hour it saves just as if it were producing that electricity.  This practice is now being implemented in our own regional transmission organization, PJM Interconnection, under the name "demand side management" or "demand resources."  Demand side management is growing by leaps and bounds in the electric utility markets and has significantly reduced demand for electricity in our region.

The WV PSC and the WV government have made little or no effort to seriously improve the efficiency of the electrical system in WV.  We producers are having to do the job all on our own.  It might startle you to learn that people in California still use the same amount of electricity, per capita, that they used in the late 1970s.  They didn’t use magic, they just got serious about conservation and efficiency.

We are not consumers.  We are not hogs at the trough waiting for the next bucket of corn.  We are citizens and we are becoming competitors of the power companies in the power production business.

Ask any electrical engineer what is the most reliable electrical system.  He/she will tell you that the most reliable system is one where the distance between the generation of electricity and the use of electricity is as short as possible.  The most reliable power system is also decentralized so that problems can be fixed before they spread to become major cascading failures.  You can't get any more reliable than a system where small scale generators produce their own power on a widely distributed, decentralized grid.

The Coalition for Reliable Power challenges you to STOP THINKING LIKE A CONSUMER! 

We need to take control of our own electricity needs.  We need power where we live.  We have the tools, we just need to start building.

The Governor of West Virginia needs to appoint commissioners who are knowledgeable about the concerns of average citizens, who place the reliability of West Virginia’s electrical system first and who will protect property owners and businesses from the self-serving projects of out of state corporations.  We need creative solutions to our state’s utility and energy future.  We need leadership from our PSC, not the same old corporate favors.  The Coalition for Reliable Power is supporting the appointment of Robert Rodecker to the West Virginia Public Service Commission.  Click here to read the Coalition's statement of support for Mr. Rodecker.  He has a track record of responsiveness to citizens, a thorough knowledge of regulated industries and experience in utility cases.  He began his legal career as a public interest lawyer and remains committed to helping West Virginia citizens and businesses. He has served as General Counsel to the West Virginia Public Service Commission, and since then has become one of the leading utility lawyers in the state.  Send an email to Governor Tomblin today and tell him the public wants to be served by a fresh, new, consumer friendly, accessible Commission, and not more of the same, old industry insiders whose prior experience alienates them from the public they are sworn to serve.  Tell Governor Tomblin that you support the appointment of Robert Rodecker.

Suggested text for your email (personalize or create your own!):  The term of current Commissioner Jon McKinney expired on June 30.  I ask that you, as Governor, appoint Robert Rodecker to assume the seat of Commissioner McKinney effective immediately.  Mr. Rodecker is knowledgeable about the concerns of average citizens and he will protect property owners, citizens and small businesses from the profit-driven projects of out-of-state corporations.  We need creative solutions to our state’s utility and energy future.  We need leadership from our PSC, not the same old corporate favors.  We need Robert Rodecker as our PSC Commissioner! I believe he will be an innovative, citizen-focused commissioner.  How about it, Acting Governor Tomblin?  Are you willing to start fixing the PSC by appointing someone who will work for the interests of WV citizens?  Please appoint Robert Rodecker to the West Virginia Public Service Commission!

Mountain View Solar and Wind, is committed to educating the public on the benefits of solar pv installation and ownership thereof. If any of my friends would like to host a solar mixer in order to promote the technology please contact me so we can set it up in July or anytime after that. The mixers are not boring, less than an hour in duration and we provide a tasty appetizer and beverages as a bonus. Small groups of ten or even more is encouraged to make the Q & A session more fun. We love doing these and the feedback is great! Contact our website @  www.mtvsolar.com and john@mtvsolar.com is my email.

The Coalition for Reliable Power seeks to educate others about actions they can take to ensure a reliable electrical system and explore real alternatives to our dangerously centralized electrical grid.  Fill out the form below to request a no-cost speaker for your event.  All our speakers are unpaid volunteers.