New England Congressmen Seek Equal Representation On RTO

NEW YORK --Twenty-three U.S. congressmen from New England states Thursday asked federal energy regulators to ensure the board governing a unified wholesale power market in the Northeast U.S. is made up of an equal number of representatives from New England, New York and the Mid-Atlantic.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has directed the three organizations running the power markets from Washington D.C. to Maine to consolidate into one regional transmission organization, or RTO. The move is part of a broader effort to place control of the country's high-voltage power lines in the independent hands and to spur the development of competitive power markets.

"We view an equally balanced governance structure as the only way in which a single market design can be implemented which would truly benefit the consumers of all the regions," the bipartisan delegation wrote in its letter to FERC. Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, organized the letter-writing effort.

The commission is considering several options for structuring the board that will oversee the Northeast combined market, and said Wednesday it expects to make a decision in early January.

One of the proposals, which resulted from 45 days of mediated talks with power market participants, calls for giving five seats to representatives from the Mid-Atlantic, three seats to New York and two to New England.

ISO New England and the New York Independent System Operator have also opposed that plan and called for equal representation.