CT legislative committee gives PURA nominee a favorable vote. He's a familiar face in government.

Yahoo

13-03-2025

Gov. Ned Lamont's latest appointee to the newly controversial Public Utilities Regulatory Authority sailed through the first step of the confirmation process Thursday, getting a warm reception from former colleagues on the Legislature's Executive Nominations Committee.
David Arconti of Danbury, a former state representative and lobbyist for United Illuminating, won a favorable vote from the committee and his appointment, along with the reappointment of PURA Chairman Marissa Gillett, now moves to a vote of the full General Assembly, which has been tentatively scheduled for early next month.
If confirmed, as expected, Arconti will join a formerly little-noticed utility regulatory agency that has figured prominently in the news recently as the result of an angry, year and one-half long standoff with the utility industry over rates.
State Rep. Dave Yaccarino, a North Haven Republican, told Arconti that PURA has 'tarnished' its reputation in the dispute with the utilities.
'I think we have to mend the relationship with utilities, like it or not,' Yaccarino said. 'I think it has to be mended because we need to work together.'
Arconti, United Illuminating's former vice president for government relations, said he believes the relationship remains healthy. He has been serving as an interim PURA commissioner since being appointed by Lamont in August.
'There always needs to be some tension between the PURA regulator and the utilities,' Arconti said. 'I don't necessarily need them to like me. But they need to respect me and chair Gillett and Commissioner Caron and the staff and vice versa. And I can tell you, if you were to watch one of our hearings, everyone is very respectful of one another.'
Disagreement between utilities and regulators is the result of a series of rate decisions that the companies contend has unfairly prevented them from recovering what they invest in their Connecticut systems through customers rates.
What credit bureaus have called the state's negative regulatory climate has led to a succession of credit downgrades across the local utility industry. The value of Eversource stock has fallen sharply against the industry average and United Illuminating disclosed this week that recent rate decisions caused its return on equity for 2024 to fall to 3.55 percent, crippling its ability to access capital markets.
PURA supporters, including Lamont, endorse recent rate decisions made under the chairmanship of Lamont appointee Marissa Gillett, saying they are holding utilities to account after years worrying more about investor dividends that customer rates.
PURA chief clears confirmation hurdle after 11th hour compromise to expand, restructure agency
PURA's limited role in controlling consumer electric rates came into focus last summer when residential bills spiked because of power consumption linked to record heat and payments connected to a state contract to purchase power from Dominion's Millstone nuclear power station in Waterford.
Arconti acknowledged during questioning Thursday that consumer electric rates are determined largely by the limited energy supply across New England, something over which state regulators and the utilities have no control.
If Gillett and Arconti were confirmed next month, they would join Commissioner Michael Caron, who has not been renominated by Lamont. Lamont and the legislature's leadership reached an agreement last month to expand PURA to five members, which is the membership required by state law, but the agreement is not scheduled to take effect for more than a year.