The Electric Wire

On this episode, our goal is to help listeners better understand how energy assistance is administered, how pandemic-related funding is being distributed, and what resources are available to in-need households as Wisconsin’s moratorium on disconnecting electric customers from service comes to an end on April 15. Our guests include: Barb Klug , Home Energy Plus Bureau Director; Division of Energy,...

Widespread power outages and skyrocketing customer bills due to a frigid February freeze in Texas are raising questions about the way the state regulates power providers. We brought in a panel of experts to weigh in on questions about regulation, reliability, and what went wrong in Texas. Our panel: John Carr, VP – Power Supply, Dairyland Power Cooperative Paul Griffin, Executive Director, Energy...

With so much breaking energy news, co-hosts Kristin Gilkes (CFC) and Tom Content (CUB) first review recent headlines, including: the announced closure of the coal-fired Columbia Energy Center in Portage, WI; a new solar/storage proposal from WEC and MGE; diversity and equity reporting requirements at the PSCW; recent WI state budget and legislative news; and the devastating electric system failure...

We’re talking utility regulation! We start with a simple question – why are utilities regulated? (Ok, this question technically doesn’t get asked until minute 7:56 , but who’s counting?) We also sort through some common terms on this topic, including discussion about deregulation, restructuring, and retail choice. These topics were central to the founding of the Customers First! Coalition over twe...

What was the energy story of 2020? What about the "shock" of the year? Who's got the next bright idea for 2021? On the latest episode of The Electric Wire podcast, we've got an outstanding roundtable to help review the year of 2020 and look ahead to some brighter days in 2021.  Our roundtable includes: Chris Hubbuch, Reporter, Wisconsin State Journal Carrie Templeton, Chief of Staff, Public S...

In this episode of the Electric Wire, we take a look at polling and the 2020 Presidential Election results with pollster Charles Franklin, @pollsandvotes. Later in the podcast, we host a Customers First! Coalition member roundtable with some of the government affairs representatives for CFC members, including Matt Spencer of Madison Gas & Electric, Jennifer Shilling of Dairyland Power Cooperat...

Kristin Gilkes is joined by Marge Anderson, Executive Vice President at Slipstream, to discuss green buildings and the upcoming October Energy webinar series hosted by the Customers First! Coalition and Slipstream. Kathy Kuntz, Acting Director of the Dane County Office of Energy and Climate Change also joins to discuss the Dane County Climate Action Plan’s recommendations on buildings and more. We...

Today we begin to unpack energy storage from a customer angle and discuss the first “storage as transmission only asset” project being developed in Wisconsin. First, CFC Executive Director Kristin Gilkes interviews Tom Content, Executive Director of the Citizens Utility Board (CUB), to discuss potential customer benefits from increased use of energy storage and how CUB will evaluate utility storag...

Just in time for #AmericanWindWeek, CFC Executive Director Kristin Gilkes interviews Scott Coenen of the Wisconsin Conservative Energy Forum regarding the organization’s mission and the status of wind in Wisconsin from that group’s perspective. Brian Rude and Jennifer Shilling of Dairyland Power Cooperative discuss their roles within the organization and on the CFC Board, as well as DPC’s investme...

Public Service Commission of Wisconsin Chairperson Rebecca Valcq and Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes join Kristin Gilkes and co-host Bob Stone of the IBEW 2150 to discuss Wisconsin’s carbon reduction goals, the Governor’s Climate Change Task Force, and the appointment of Wisconsin’s newest PSC Commissioner. Interview with Chairperson Valcq begins at 9:30 Interview with Lt. Governor Barnes begin...

Customers First! Coalition Executive Director Kristin Gilkes and RENEW Wisconsin’s Jane McCurry co-host this special episode all about electric vehicles (EVs) and EV policies. Gilkes and McCurry share personal and nostalgic experiences as EV drivers and discuss some of the advantages of choosing electric transportation. They also discuss current topics such as battery recycling and mining. Later,...

The Rise of Solar! The first episode of our Energy Innovation Series focuses on solar power in Wisconsin. Heather Allen of RENEW Wisconsin joins to give a lay of the land and share her personal story of getting involved in renewable energy. Jeff Ripp of Alliant Energy discusses Alliant Energy’s recent announcement regarding an investment in 1GW of solar. Rep. Mike Kuglitsch discusses legislation h...