Thank you for that introduction, Jeanne (Fox). It’s always nice to see a fellow New Jersey native. And thank you for having me back to NARUC. As many of you know, I have had a history with NARUC, from my days as president of the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities to my time as Environmental Protection Agency administrator. I have a tremendous amount of respect for all of you and for all that this organization accomplishes for the people of our nation.

I want to share with you this morning some of the work that I’m involved in to help to ensure that Americans will have the electricity they need in the decades ahead … and that we are pursuing energy solutions that do not place an undue burden on our environment and future generations.

You know the energy landscape that lies ahead.

The Energy Information Administration predicts that we will need 45 percent more electricity by 2030—or about 300,000 megawatts of new power capacity.

That is not something that we can take lightly. But how do we meet the need?

We need to make continued advances in efficiency and renewable energy technology, and increase our dedication to conservation—we haven’t yet really scratched the surface. But we know that these alone won’t meet the demand. The industry also must build more baseload electricity production. And it needs to start today.

NARUC’s importance is more evident than ever in this current environment. State utility boards are on the front lines of regulating these projects to balance consumers’ interests with those of the companies that must recover their costs. You also see the impact of energy supply and price volatility on local business and industry and on consumers.

Price and reliability have a real impact on how we meet the growing electricity needs of our households and on the growth of our states and communities. While small businesses feel the effects of volatile energy pricing on an immediate basis, large corporations often make decisions on where to locate based on the long-term cost of energy.

The energy challenges that face America are well known by this group. But these are increasingly being viewed through the prism of climate change.