Dive Summary:

• Thursday, President Obama nominated Ron Binz to be the new Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) chairman, replacing Jon Wellinghoff who announced his resignation in May. Executives at utilities such as New Jersey’s PSE&G and New England’s National Grid have stepped up to back Binz who has spent years advocating for utility customers, pushing clean energy, and supporting smart grid innovation.
• The former chairman of the Colorado Public Utilities Commission from 2007 to 2011, Binz is battle-tested and has drawn fire from the coal power industry. Binz backed Colorado’s Clean Air-Clean Jobs act which shuttered six coal-fired power plants, costing about $1 billion.
• Binz has also stood up to accusations of conflicts of interest from coal and power generator groups, and beat an ethics probe led by a Republican state lawmaker concerning breach of public trust.

From the article:
“Binz also played an important role in regulating the troubled SmartGridCity project in Boulder, Co., an expensive and contentious, $100-million-plus citywide grid network that’s now embroiled in the city’s move to form its own utility…”