TOPEKA - A national group of state utility regulators and gas and electric industry representatives are working together to enhance the reliability and safety of the nation’s electric power grid. Kansas Corporation Commissioner Dwight D. Keen is one of seven state commissioners selected to participate with seven gas and electric industry professionals in the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners’ (NARUC) Gas-Electric Alignment for Reliability (GEAR) Working Group.

The group’s goal is to develop solutions to better align gas infrastructure and markets with the electric industry, which is increasingly reliant on gas for electric generation. The need for improved synchronization between the gas and electric sectors was underscored by recent Weather Storms Uri and Elliott, which revealed critical reliability issues and concerns due to the inter-dependence of these sectors.

In reflecting upon the mission of the GEAR Working Group, Keen noted that “Electricity is, and has been, an essential cornerstone of our standard of living and our quality of life and is enormously impactful in promoting the general welfare. All electricity consumers and ratepayers have a right to expect that the electric grid will continuously provide service that is affordable, reliable and, in crisis situations or circumstances of most critical need, resilient.”

The GEAR Working Group is chaired by Georgia Commissioner Tricia Pridemore and vice-chaired by New Hampshire Commissioner Carleton Simpson. The group will present an update on its progress in November at the NARUC Annual Meeting, followed by a comprehensive set of recommendations to advance electric grid reliability across the nation at NARUC’s Winter Policy Summit in February 2025.

More information about the Gas-Electric Alignment for Reliability Working Group is available at: https://maxxwww.naruc.org/forms/committee/CommitteeFormPublic/viewExecCommittee?id=13B6350000001C&multicolumns=1.

Photo of Dwight D. Keen