WASHINGTON — Support for the appeal of a DC Circuit Court of Appeals decision that vacated Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Order 745 (Electric Power Supply Ass’n v. FERC, D.C. Circuit No. 11-1486) has been filed by a number of parties, including several Advanced Energy Management Alliance (AEMA) members and allied organizations.

In mid-January, the U.S. Solicitor General filed a petition for a writ of certiorari at the U.S. Supreme Court. At that time, EnerNOC, EnergyConnect, the PJM Industrial Customer Coalition, the Coalition of MISO Transmission Customers, and Viridity, all of whom had standing in the case, also jointly filed a petition for a writ of certiorari in support of appeal.

In February, several additional parties have filed respondent briefs and amicus briefs in support of appeal. The states who were a part of the case, California, Maryland, and Pennsylvania, all jointly filed a respondent’s brief in support of the appeal, as did the California Independent System Operator (CAISO). Amicus briefs in support were also filed by demand response providers, consumer advocates, utilities, environmental groups, a large state university, municipal school districts, and industrial customers and associations. NRG, an owner of over 50,000 MW of generation across the country, and a member of the Electric Power Supply Association (EPSA), the petitioner opposing appeal, also filed an amicus brief in support of appeal, noting, “NRG agrees with petitioners that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission must have the authority to regulate wholesale demand response to fulfill its statutory mandate to ensure that wholesale rates are just and reasonable and to eliminate undue discrimination and preferences.”

“AEMA is pleased that diverse groups understand the importance of demand response in ensuring reliable, cost effective, and clean electric service for consumers,” said Frank Lacey, chair of AEMA and senior vice president at CPower, a demand response provider. “Our companies have been joined in our quest to allow consumers more choices, a greater ability to save on their energy bills, and cleaner air through reduced greenhouse gas emissions.”

For more information, visit http://aem-alliance.org.

Publication date: 2/23/2015

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