WASHINGTON (WV News) — U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., voted to confirm a native West Virginian to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Wednesday, but said she planned to oppose a nominee Thursday who is “anti-pipeline.”
Former West Virginia Solicitor General Lindsay See was confirmed to the regulatory body by the U.S. Senate on an 83-12 vote. David Rosner was also confirmed Wednesday, and a vote on President Joe Biden’s third FERC nominee, Judy Chang, was slated for Thursday afternoon.
“Lindsay See obviously has a history of fighting for sensible energy policies in West Virginia,” Capito said. “She’s fought the ‘Clean Power Plan,’ and so I like to have that set of ears at FERC — they have a lot to do with setting the priorities for energy transmission and regulation. I think she’ll be very successful.”
See served as state solicitor general starting in 2018. She previously practiced appellate and administrative law for several years with Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher in Washington, D.C. She graduated magna cum laude from Harvard Law School and clerked for Judge Thomas B. Griffith on the D.C. Circuit.
Capito said she planned to vote against Chang’s confirmation.
“She is anti-pipeline in her statements, in her past life,” Capito said. “She is not interested in having safe infrastructure to carry one of our most valuable resources, certainly being our natural gas. If we’re going to have a hydrogen economy, we’re going to have to build these. If we’re going to have a carbon-free economy, we’re going to have to build pipelines to carry carbon, and yet she doesn’t have a realistic view about this.”
Chang is the former undersecretary of energy and climate solutions for Massachusetts. Biden nominated her in February to serve on FERC, along with See and Rosner.
U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, I-W.Va., also supported See’s confirmation.
“She is plainly a very capable and experienced lawyer and well-qualified to serve on the commission,” Manchin said on the Senate floor Wednesday.
West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, who is also the GOP nominee for governor, released a statement praising See’s qualifications.
“I am confident that Lindsay will serve the commission to the best of her abilities, just like her dedication to the people of West Virginia through the Attorney General’s Office,” he said.
FERC is composed of up to five commissioners who are appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate. Commissioners serve five-year terms and have an equal vote on regulatory matters.
The independent agency regulates the interstate transmission of electricity, natural gas and oil. It also reviews proposals to build liquefied natural gas terminals, interstate natural gas pipelines and licensing for hydropower projects, according to information on its website.