House hearing on bill to fold Office of Consumer Advocate into Department of Energy draws wide testimony

Representative Ross Berry introduced House Bill 610 in the House Science, Technology and Energy Committee hearing, arguing the measure would fold the five-person Office of the Consumer Advocate into the much larger Department of Energy and refocus the DOE on lowering residential utility rates.

Berry said the Office of the Consumer Advocate (OCA) has about five staff and an approximately $1 million annual budget funded by an assessment on ratepayers, and that the Department of Energy has roughly 80 employees. "The consumer advocate themselves is either required to be an attorney or their assistant is required to be an attorney, mostly staffed by attorneys versus the department of energy has about 80 employees," Representative Ross Berry said in his opening remarks.

Why it matters

Proponents said the merger would concentrate staff and influence inside a larger state agency and reduce duplicative processes among the Public Utilities Commission, the OCA and DOE. Opponents said the OCA’s independence — and the distinct perspective it offers at utility rate hearings — would be lost if it becomes an internal office of the DOE.

What witnesses said

Donald Kreece, the state consumer advocate, told the committee he takes no formal position on whether the office should exist but urged caution about removing its independent status. "The independence of the office of the consumer advocate is our superpower," Kreece said, summarizing the office’s role representing residential utility customers in regulatory proceedings.

Several former officials and long-term observers urged the committee to preserve separation. Former Public Utilities Commission commissioner Mike Harrington warned that the OCA’s statutory role is to "represent the interests of residential utility customers," not simply to lower rates, and said folding the office into DOE could mute that voice before regulators.

Other witnesses including representatives of Unitil, the AARP and New Hampshire Legal Assistance told the panel that patients and ratepayers rely on an independent advocate to contest utility spending and to scrutinize proposals such as multi‑hundred‑million‑dollar transmission projects.

Supporters argued the OCA’s small size limits its capacity. Representative Berry said transferring the office to DOE would give advocacy for residential ratepayers a larger staff and a bigger institutional voice on matters such as generation policy, transmission and New England market issues.

Votes and next steps

This hearing was part of the committee’s public comment record. As of the hearing’s close the committee had not taken a vote on HB 610; staff and the Department of Energy were scheduled to testify later in the docket.

Ending

Committee members asked a broad range of follow-up questions about appointment processes, funding, and whether the current OCA has demonstrably reduced rates over its history. Members and witnesses agreed on the importance of residential ratepayer protections even as they differed on the best institutional home for that function.