Committee hears Department of Public Service on H.125 report to track energy transition

The House Energy and Digital Infrastructure Committee heard testimony Feb. 19 from TJ Ford, director of regulated utility planning at the Vermont Department of Public Service, about H.125, legislation that would assemble statewide reporting on the ongoing energy transition.

Ford told the committee the Department of Public Service supports the bill’s high-level goal of providing policymakers with the information they need, but cautioned that much of the requested data already exists in separate reports and agency files. "A lot of the information that you requested...is already collected, published, and provided to developing committees of jurisdiction, but not in one place," Ford said.

Committee members said they want a single, accessible view that flags towns or regions likely to be disadvantaged during the transition from delivered fuels to electrification. Representative Michael Southworth, who asked for geographic detail, said, "What I am looking for is…