What’s in a name?

Source: By KELSEY TAMBORRINO, Poltiico • Posted: Thursday, February 28, 2019

WHAT’S IN A NAME? David Hill, a former lawyer at DOE, is “almost certain” to be tapped for the open vacancy at FERC, a senior administration official told Pro’s Darius Dixon and Andrew Restuccia. Hill has the backing of White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow, though nothing is set in stone.

If the president taps Hill, it would install someone who has publicly criticized the Trump administration’s efforts to support the ailing coal industry. “Do we think there is a problem [in the power markets]? Yes, we think there is a problem,” Hill said of DOE’s notice of proposed rulemaking at an event hosted by the Heritage Foundation in 2017. “… Do I think it is the solution that DOE proposed? No. It’s absolutely not the solution that DOE proposed.”

Other names have also emerged for the spot, all of whom represent sharply different views about the role of regulators, Darius and Andrew report. That list includes former Texas utility, oil and gas industry regulator Barry Smitherman, former Wisconsin utility commissioner Ellen Nowak, and former Murkowski aide Pat McCormick.