SCC News

Richmond – The State Corporation Commission (SCC) has scheduled a hearing on Dominion Energy Virginia’s 2024 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) this spring. An IRP is a document developed by an electric utility that provides a forecast of that electric utility’s load obligations and a plan to meet those obligations by supply side and demand side resources over the next 15 years to promote reasonable prices, reliable service, energy independence, and environmental responsibility. 

In its IRP, Dominion forecasts a 5.5 percent annual increase in electricity demand over the next decade, and for electricity demand to double by 2039 in the company’s delivery zone within the PJM Interconnection, LLC (PJM) region. PJM is a regional transmission organization that coordinates the movement of wholesale electricity in 13 Mid-Atlantic states and the District of Columbia.

Dominion asserts that the Company's IRP "highlights the need to address significant demand growth through resource adequacy across all functions of the utility, the balance between clean energy priorities and the paramount requirement of service reliability, and maintaining rates that continue to be affordable for [the Company's] customers…" Dominion also recognizes that the IRP is a “snapshot in time” and not a request to approve any specific resource or portfolio.

The SCC has scheduled a public witness session to begin at 10 a.m. on April 14, 2025. Public witnesses intending to provide oral testimony must pre-register with the SCC by 5 p.m. on April 8, 2025. The hearing will be webcast at: scc.virginia.gov/pages/Webcasting.  

Public witnesses wishing to provide oral testimony may pre-register in one of three ways:

• Completing a public witness form for case number PUR-2024-00184 on the SCC’s website at: scc.virginia.gov/pages/Webcasting 
• E-mailing the same form (PDF version on the same website as above) to SCCInfo@scc.virginia.gov
• Calling the SCC at 804-371-9141 during normal business hours (8:15 a.m. – 5 p.m.) and providing your name and the phone number you wish the Commission to call to reach you during the hearing.
• To promote fairness for all public witnesses, each witness will be allotted five minutes to provide testimony.

A public evidentiary hearing will follow the public witness hearing at 10 a.m. on April 15, 2025, in the SCC’s second floor courtroom at 1300 East Main Street in Richmond to receive testimony and evidence from the company, any respondents and the SCC staff.

For those who prefer, there is also an opportunity to provide comments in writing on the Dominion application. Written comments may be submitted through the SCC’s website by April 8, 2025,  at scc.virginia.gov/casecomments/Submit-Public-Comments. Simply go to the SCC website, select "Cases" and then "Submit Public Comments," and scroll down to case number PUR-2024-00184. Then select SUBMIT COMMENTS. 

Comments can also be submitted by U.S. mail to the Clerk of the State Corporation Commission, c/o Document Control Center, P.O. Box 2118, Richmond, Virginia 23218-2118. All comments must refer to case number PUR-2024-00184. 

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Contact: Andy Farmer, 804-371-9141

Case Number PUR-2024-00184 – Dominion Energy Virginia’s Integrated Resource Plan

RICHMOND – The State Corporation Commission has scheduled a technical conference to explore the effects of the increasing number of large-use retail electric customers on Virginia’s utilities, ratepayers and power grid.

The December 16, 2024, proceeding will consider current and future challenges presented by the growth of such “hyperscale” power users across the Commonwealth. Large power users such as data centers could bring an “unprecedented” amount of new load for electric utilities, creating complications and risks the utilities have not previously encountered, the Commissioners said. 

The technical conference is intended to identify potential frameworks that facilitate service; address risks and issues of the increased usage; are just and reasonable to current and future customers; and meet current Virginia statutes. In addition, this proceeding may examine, to the extent relevant, issues related to the co-location of generation resources at new large-use customer load sites.
The Commission also identified three main questions to be addressed: 

1. Should the Commission establish a tariff framework and terms of service for these large-scale customers?
2. Should certain transmission costs be directly assigned to a new large-use customer class?
3. Should certain generation costs be directly assigned to a new large-use customer class?

Anyone interested in participating as a panelist should submit a self-nomination by email to tech-conf-PUR-2024-00144@scc.virginia.gov no later than October 22, 2024. All submissions should refer to Case No. PUR-2024-00144. Following the technical conference, it is the Commission's intent to invite all interested persons to submit post-technical conference comments addressing some or all of the issues raised during the technical conference.

The technical conference will be open to the public and streamed as a webcast.

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Contact: Greg Weatherford, 804-371-9141

PUR-2024-00144-Scheduling-Order-and-Notice

RICHMOND – Wandering the rails, freight train hopping or driving around closing gates to beat an oncoming train are best left for movie thrills by Hollywood’s special effects and stunt experts. Such activity is not only extremely dangerous but also illegal.

From September 23-29, 2024, the State Corporation Commission (SCC) joins Operation Lifesaver Inc. (OLI) – a nonprofit organization dedicated to rail safety education – in raising awareness about the need for pedestrians, motorists, bicyclists and others to stay safe around railroad tracks and crossings. See Tracks? Think Train Week (formerly Rail Safety Week) promotes the critical importance of rail safety.

Every three hours in the United States, a person or vehicle is hit by a train, according to OLI. Most of these tragedies could have been prevented.

SCC Division of Utility and Railroad Safety director Lauren Govoni and Virginia OLI coordinator Tracey Lamb encourage Virginians to remain alert, use caution and obey signs and signals around railroad tracks. Always expect a train, they advise.

“Rail safety is much more than just a single tip or slogan,” Govoni said. “It’s a set of guidelines for different groups of people, including children, first responders, media professionals, photographers, personal and professional drivers, and more.”

The SCC will partner with law enforcement and other agencies and organizations to spotlight daily See Tracks? Think Train Week themes that include commuter and transit safety, crossing safety and professional drivers, trespass prevention and photographer safety. Potentially life-saving information will appear on the SCC website and social media pages.

The theme for Thursday, September 26, is Transit Safety/Professional Driver Safety. In conjunction with that, Govoni, Lamb and other SCC staff will join representatives from the Federal Transit Administration, OLI and Virginia Railway Express for a rail passenger safety event from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Alexandria Amtrak Station. They will be available to answer questions and share rail and transit safety information and visitors will have an opportunity to take the Transit Safety Pledge.

The 82% decrease in collisions nationwide at highway-rail grade crossings during the last 50 years is encouraging, but “there is still more rail safety awareness work to do,” Lamb said. “Trains can take a mile or more to come to a complete stop. If your vehicle ever stalls on the track, get out and move away; then call the phone number on the blue Emergency Notification System sign located at the crossing or call 9-1-1,” she said.

Virginia Operation Lifesaver is administered by the SCC’s Division of Utility and Railroad Safety, which offers educational sessions and can be reached by phone at 804-371-1588. To learn more about railroad safety and railroad education in Virginia, visit scc.virginia.gov/pages/Railroad-Regulation or oli.org.

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Contact: Jordan Bondurant, 804-371-9141

RICHMOND – The State Corporation Commission (SCC), partnering with the Federal Communications Commission, encourages lower income Virginians to explore opportunities for discounted voice and broadband services during National Digital Connectivity and Lifeline Awareness Week (September 8-14, 2024).

Administered by the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC), the Lifeline program offers a monthly discount of up to $9.25 on qualifying voice and broadband services for eligible subscribers.

Access to high-speed internet has become fundamental for Virginians to remain digitally connected. If your income falls below a certain level – at or below 135% of the federal poverty guidelines – you could be eligible for the Lifeline benefit. Additionally, you may qualify if you participate in one of the following federal assistance programs:

• Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
• Medicaid
• Supplemental Security Income (SSI)
• Federal Public Housing Assistance (FPHA)
• Veterans Pension and Survivors Benefit

Companies participating in the Lifeline program can help with enrollment. The National Verifier is also available to check eligibility and to sign up for the Lifeline benefit. Be sure to contact area telecommunications service providers to see if they participate in the program, as not all companies are required to offer Lifeline services.

To learn more about the Lifeline program and the National Verifier, and to see if you are eligible, call 1 800-234-9473 or email lifelinesupport@usac.org or visit www.lifelinesupport.org or the FCC website at www.fcc.gov/lifeline-consumers. You may also contact USAC at LifelineProgram@usac.org.

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Contact: Jordan Bondurant, 804-371-9141

RICHMOND – The State Corporation Commission (SCC) has denied as contrary to the public interest under Virginia law the request of Toll Road Investors Partnership II L.P., or TRIP II, to increase tolls on the Dulles Greenway.


TRIP II had requested toll increase for most cars to $8.10 during peak hours and $6.40 during off-peak hours. 
In its final order issued today, the Commission agreed with SCC Senior Examiner Michael D. Thomas that the proposed rate increases would not be reasonable for users and are likely to discourage the public’s use of the roadway. 


The Commission rejected TRIP II’s argument that the Virginia statute governing the Greenway’s tolls is unconstitutional as applied to TRIP II in this proceeding. The Commission also declined TRIP II’s proposed alternative procedures for streamlining future rate cases but invited TRIP II to convene a stakeholder working group on the subject. 


The Commission considered testimony gathered during a local hearing in Chantilly, Virginia; during a telephone hearing and evidentiary hearing; and filed by parties including Loudoun County, as well as evidence presented by SCC staff.
 

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Contact: Greg Weatherford, 804-371-9141
 

Case Number PUR-2023-00089 – Application of Toll Road Investors Partnership II for authorization for an increase in the maximum level of tolls on Dulles Greenway

RICHMOND – August 11 is 811 Day, a day on which the Commonwealth recognizes the importance of always contacting Virginia 811 before you dig. Virginia 811 is the one-call notification center created by Virginia’s utilities to protect their underground facilities from damage, prevent service interruptions to customers, and to avert injury or damage to people or property while digging.

Contacting Virginia 811 to have your underground utilities located and marked is a free and simple process. If you will be excavating at a single address, go online at www.va811.com to enter your request for the marking of utility lines. This online service is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

You may also call 8-1-1 Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., excluding state and national holidays. Emergency notification service is available 24/7, 365 days a year as well. Know What’s Below, contact Virginia 811 before you dig and Dig with C.A.R.E!

C.A.R.E. means:

• Contact Virginia 811 before you dig.
• Allow the required time for marking.
• Respect and protect the marks.
• Excavate carefully.

Taking the important first step and contacting Virginia 811 before you dig goes a long way in helping keep Virginia’s underground utility infrastructure damage-free, and our communities, business districts and environment are also kept safe in the process.

To learn more about “Digging with C.A.R.E.” and Virginia’s underground utility damage prevention program, contact the State Corporation Commission’s Division of Utility and Railroad Safety at 804-371-9980 or visit scc.virginia.gov/pages/Utility-Railroad-Safety.

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Contact: Katha Treanor, 804-371-9141

RICHMOND – The State Corporation Commission (SCC) will hold a hearing in Loudoun County on September 5, 2024, to receive public testimony on a request by Dominion Energy Virginia to build the Aspen-Golden and Apollo-Twin Creeks electric transmission facilities.

The public hearing is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. and conclude at 10 p.m. in the Belmont Ridge Middle School auditorium, 19045 Upper Belmont Place, in Leesburg. Persons intending to testify as public witnesses should arrive at least 15 minutes prior to the meeting and register with the Commission’s bailiff. Witness statements will be limited to five minutes in length.

The SCC also offers a public witness session by telephone to begin at 10 a.m. on August 6, 2024. Public witnesses intending to provide oral testimony telephonically at this hearing must pre-register with the SCC by 5 p.m. on July 31, 2024. The hearing will be webcast at:  scc.virginia.gov/pages/Webcasting.

Public witnesses wishing to provide telephonic testimony may preregister in one of three ways:

• Completing a public witness form for case number PUR-2024-00032 or PUR-2024-00044 on the SCC’s website at: scc.virginia.gov/pages/Webcasting.
• Emailing the same form (PDF version on the same website as above) to SCCInfo@scc.virginia.gov.
• Calling the SCC at 804-371-9141 during normal business hours (8:15 a.m. – 5 p.m.) and providing your name and the phone number you wish the Commission to call to reach you during the hearing.

For those who prefer, there is also an opportunity to provide comments in writing on the proposed transmission line projects. Written comments may be submitted through the SCC’s website by September 10, 2024, at scc.virginia.gov/casecomments/Submit-Public-Comments. Simply go to the SCC website, hover over the word “Cases” and select “Submit Public Comments” from the menu that appears. You will see a list of “Cases Currently Accepting Public Comments.” Scroll down to case numbers PUR-2024-00032 and PUR-2024-00044. Then select “Submit Comments.” 

Comments can also be submitted by U.S. mail to the Clerk of the State Corporation Commission, c/o Document Control Center, P.O. Box 2118, Richmond, Virginia 23218-2118. All comments must refer to case number PUR-2024-00032 or PUR-2024-00044.

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Contact: Andy Farmer, 804-371-9141

Hearing Examiner's Ruling Scheduling Local Hearing

Case Number PUR-2024-00032 – Application of Dominion Energy Virginia for certification of electric transmission facilities: Aspen-Golden Project in Loudoun County 
Case Number PUR-2024-00044– Application of Dominion Energy Virginia for certification of electric transmission facilities: Apollo-Twin Creeks Project in Loudoun County

RICHMOND – The State Corporation Commission (SCC) is offering time for members of the public to give oral comments by telephone on Appalachian Power Company’s 2024 Biennial Review of Rates. In the review, the SCC will analyze the company’s base rates as well as the terms and conditions for the provision of generation, distribution, and transmission services. 

In its application, Appalachian Power requests to increase revenues by approximately $95 million, or 5.1 percent. The company states that the factors that contributed to its request include cost recovery for restoring service during major storms, increases in capital, material and labor costs, and rising interest rates. 

The overall impact of the company’s proposals would increase the monthly bill of a residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per month by approximately $10.22, or 6 percent. 

The SCC has scheduled a public witness session to begin at 10 a.m. on September 9, 2024. Public witnesses intending to provide oral testimony must pre-register with the SCC by 5 p.m. on September 4, 2024. The hearing will be webcast at: scc.virginia.gov/pages/Webcasting.

Public witnesses wishing to provide oral testimony may pre-register in one of three ways: 

• Completing a public witness form for case number PUR-2024-00024 on the SCC’s website at: scc.virginia.gov/pages/Webcasting 
• E-mailing the same form (PDF version on the same website as above) to SCCInfo@scc.virginia.gov
• Calling the SCC at 804-371-9141 during normal business hours (8:15 a.m. – 5 p.m.) and providing your name and the phone number you wish the Commission to call to reach you during the hearing
• To promote fairness for all public witnesses, each witness will be allotted five minutes to provide testimony. 

A public evidentiary hearing will follow the public witness hearing at 10 a.m. on September 10, 2024, in the SCC’s second floor courtroom at 1300 East Main Street in Richmond to receive testimony and evidence from the company, any respondents and the SCC staff.  

For those who prefer, there is also an opportunity to provide comments in writing on the Appalachian Power application. Written comments may be submitted through the SCC’s website by September 4, 2024, at scc.virginia.gov/casecomments/Submit-Public-Comments. Simply go to the SCC website, select "Cases" and then "Submit Public Comments," and scroll down to case number PUR-2024-00024. Then select SUBMIT COMMENTS. 

Comments can also be submitted by U.S. mail to the Clerk of the State Corporation Commission, c/o Document Control Center, P.O. Box 2118, Richmond, Virginia 23218-2118. All comments must refer to case number PUR-2024-00024. 

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Contact: Andy Farmer, 804-371-9141

RICHMOND – April is National Safe Digging Month, and the State Corporation Commission’s Division of Utility and Railroad Safety (URS) is reminding all Virginians that digging with C.A.R.E. will help keep you safe and protect the Commonwealth’s underground utility infrastructure, communities, business districts and environment.

The steps to safe digging in Virginia are:

• Contact VA811 before you dig.
• Allow the required time for marking the utilities.
• Respect and protect the marks.
• Excavate carefully.

Whether you’re a professional contractor, do-it-yourselfer or homeowner, you have an important role in preventing damage to underground utilities. No matter how big or small the project, contacting VA811 to request the marking of underground utility lines before digging will help avoid physical injury, property damage, costly repairs, and service interruptions.

Contact VA811 by visiting va811.com, or calling 8-1-1 or 1-800-552-7001 Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., excluding legal state and national holidays. (Emergency notification service is available 24/7, 365 days a year.)

For more information about safe digging and demolition, contact URS at 804-371-9980 or visit the Damage Prevention page on the SCC website at scc.virginia.gov/pages/Damage-Prevention.

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Contact: Jordan Bondurant, 804-371-9141

RICHMOND – Virginia’s 804 area code region will soon have an additional area code – 686. Customers requesting new service or additional phone lines in the 804 area code region could be assigned the new 686 area code as soon as February 1, 2024, but not until all available phone numbers in the 804 area code have run out. That is expected to happen during the third quarter of 2024.

In November 2022, the State Corporation Commission (SCC) approved the implementation of the new 686 area code to be superimposed over the same geographic region covered by the existing 804 area code. This area includes the central portion of Virginia including Richmond, Ashland, Charles City, Chesterfield, Henrico, New Kent and Petersburg, as well as the Northern Neck.

The new 686 area code addresses the exhaustion of phone numbers in the 804 area code caused by increasing demand for phone lines. The relief provided by the new 686 area code is expected to last approximately 32 years.

Existing customers will keep their 804 area code and seven-digit telephone number. Customers in the 804 area code already transitioned to mandatory 10-digit dialing (three-digit area code plus seven-digit phone number) for local calls in July 2022 as a result of the national implementation of 988, the three-digit abbreviated dialing code for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. Ten-digit dialing for local calls will also be required for customers in the new 686 area code. Thus, customers in the 804 and 686 area codes will dial 10 digits for local calls within and between the overlay area codes, and 1+10 digits for long distance calls.

Under the 804/686 area code overlay, what is a local call now will remain a local call. In addition, the price of a call, coverage area or other rates and services will not change due to the 686 area code overlay. Customers can still dial just three digits to reach 911 and 988, as well as 211, 311, 411, 511, 611, 711, and 811.

The SCC encourages consumers in the 804 area code region to ensure that all services, automatic dialing equipment or other types of equipment recognize the new 686 area code as a valid area code and continue to store or program telephone numbers as 10-digit numbers.

For more information, please contact your local telephone service provider or visit the SCC website at scc.virginia.gov/pages/Area-Code-Overlays.

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Contact: Katha Treanor, 804-371-9141

Case Number: PUR-2022-00083 In the matter of the Commission's investigation into exhaust relief for the 804 area code