Confirmation

Public Service Commission of the District of Columbia Chairman Willie L. Phillips will officially serve as the next FERC commissioner after the Senate confirmed his nomination late Tuesday. Phillips, nominated by President Biden in September, will fill the seat vacated by former Commissioner Neil Chatterjee for a term expiring June 30, 2026. Chatterjee, a former…

The Senate and Natural Resources Committee voted this week to advance the nomination of former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm to the full Senate, where she’s expected to be confirmed as the Secretary of the Department of Energy (DOE).  Granholm signaled in written responses to the committee ahead of her confirmation hearing last week that she…

The Senate and Natural Resources Committee voted Wednesday to advance the nomination of former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm to the full Senate, where she’s expected to be confirmed as the Secretary of the Department of Energy (DOE).  Granholm signaled in written responses to the committee ahead of her confirmation hearing last week that she wouldn’t…

Bernard McNamee, a Republican who is currently executive director of DOE’s Office of Policy, was confirmed Thursday by the Senate as a FERC Commissioner on a straight party-line vote of 50-49.

The U.S. Senate confirmed Howard “Skip” Elliott to serve as administrator of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) Thursday, but a motion to confirm Kevin McIntyre and Richard Glick to FERC was set aside after one senator objected.

The Senate voted Thursday to move forward with a vote to confirm Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to head the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), but one Republican senator said she will oppose his confirmation.

Not all of the lobbying groups in Washington, DC, believe that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is destined to become more proactive on energy if former Colorado regulator Ron Binz is confirmed as chairman.

At his confirmation hearing last week, Department of Energy (DOE) secretary-designate Ernest J. Moniz committed to review the department’s data and studies on natural gas exports, which relied on what some have said is outdated information that failed to examine the regional impacts of exporting liquefied natural gas (LNG).

President Obama’s nominee for administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sailed through her confirmation hearing last Thursday, fielding softball questions from Democrats. The issues raised by Republicans were more pointed, but not by much. Gina McCarthy was not pressed on one of the most important issues to oil and gas — regulations pertaining to hydraulic fracturing (fracturing).