10:00-10:15 a.m.

Business Meeting Items

Bringing SSWD NARUC Resolutions to Life

In July, NARUC adopted two historic resolutions, spearheaded by the Subcommittee on Supplier and Workforce Diversity, that expanded the encouragement for strategic partnerships to foster talented and diverse professionals in the utility industry and engagement of diverse financial and professional service providers by investor-owned utilities.  To bridge the retirement epidemic and need for greater inclusion in the industry, the first resolution calls for expansion on the support of long-term strategic partnerships between utilities, commissions, and other interested stakeholders and academic and professional institutions that serve underrepresented communities.  The second resolution expands upon an existing resolution that supported supplier diversity in financial services to include all professional services because the American economy improves when there is equitable access and participation by all industry participants. 

To maximize the power of these call-to-actions, a dynamic panel of subject matter experts will brainstorm ways that utilities and stakeholders alike can adopt these resolutions forward and change them from concepts written on paper to reality.

Moderator:

Hon. Sadzi M. Oliva, Commissioner, Illinois

Panelists:

• Hon. Timothy Alan Simon, Commissioner Emeritus, California, TAS Strategies
• Laurie Dowling, Executive Director, National Utilities Diversity Council
• Nakhia Morrissette, Regulatory Counsel & Midwest Regional Director, Solar Energy Industries Association
• Robert Powelson, President & CEO, National Association of Water Companies
• Terri Oliva, Executive Director, Human Resources and Assistant Treasurer, Edison Electric Institute
• AGA
• HACU