Vermont Legislature SmartTranscripts:

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: We're live. Alrighty. Welcome back, everybody. It's House Energy and Digital Infrastructure on February 25. We are talking about our committee bill, twenty six thousand seventy eight one. And we are here today with Catherine, is it Demetriuk? Yes. Perfect. Catherine Demetriq, executive director of the Northwest Regional Planning Commission. We'll just go around the room and introduce ourselves and then turn it over to you. I'm representative Kathleen James from Manchester.

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: Scott Campbell. I'm Scott Campbell. Bailey, Lamoille Two. Michael Southworth, Caledonia. Christopher Howland, Robin Pour.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Dara Torre, Washington Dune. Laura Sibilia, Windham And Great. And Dana Lee Perry from the group. Super. Alright. So, as you know, we have a little miscellaneous committee bill here. And we have a request to make some changes to what I understand is sort of the timing and synchronization of energy plans. So we look forward to your commentary. Great. Well, thank you so much for having me in today.

[Catherine Dimitruk, Executive Director, Northwest Regional Planning Commission]: I feel fortunate that I was able to follow yesterday when you did get a briefing from the Department of Public Service from Claire and TJ, I believe, here Yep. Going through their request. I would say if if you don't know what the regional planning commissions do and our involvement in energy planning, I'll just give a quick overview that all 11 regional planning commissions have a regional plan. And in that, we do this enhanced energy planning. When we do this additional energy planning, the Department of Public Service does a review and approves our plans, and then they get a greater weight in the public utility commission process. It's optional, but all 11 regional planning commissions do choose to do it. Additionally, we have the role of approving the local energy plans, which also give them that extra weight in the public utilities commission proceedings. And today, there's between a 120 and a 130 towns that currently qualify for that status. So it's been a really since act one seventy four was passed, it's been a very robust and active energy planning effort out there in the regions and the communities, and and I think we've seen some good results. So sorry.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Just wanna Yeah. I just wanna back up for one sec because this really is it's not a topic we've discussed much. Okay. So the RPCs Mhmm. Just just recap quickly what you said. I'm gonna take some notes to make sure I've got a Sure. Handle on the basic building blocks. So the RPCs The regional planning commissions do regional plans, and included in that is what's called an enhanced energy plan. Okay. So the regional plan is just your a big your big broad planning document. Mhmm. And then within that, it's like a part of it. Is it an optional part of it? It is optional. Okay. So But all regions do have chosen to do it. Okay. So it's an optional enhanced energy plan. So all 11 regions are doing this. Correct. Okay. And how often do you do those? Every eight years. Every and when was the last are they all in the same time cycle? They will be now. And that's one of the reasons why we are talking about this. They will be they will be if we do this? No. They will be now because of act one eighty one that was passed two sessions ago. That requires all of the regional planning commissions by the December of this year to adopt regional plans that are compliant with that point b one. And okay. And so we're all in the time frame. Same timeline. Mhmm. Okay. So everyone's gonna be on the same timeline very quickly here. Yes. Okay. Alright. I am I'm caught up. K. Alright. What's next? So what's next is through this process and through the process that we're the regional planning commissions are all now going through with the land use review board to get our regional plans approved. We have, it's been highlighted that there are some procedural changes that could be made to this section of statute that would make things move more effectively and more efficiently, especially when we think about dovetailing the Department of Public Service approval of our enhanced energy plans with the land use review board approval of our overall regional plans. So I have another question. Sorry. We were I I was anyway not prepared for yesterday. Okay. That's my big mea culpa. So alright. So it's the LERV Mhmm. Approves your regional plan. Correct. But the Department of Public Service Uh-huh. Gives what's called a positive determination, which you can also just consider an approval of our enhanced energy. Okay. And is that concurrent? Is that all happening at the same time, or is that the problem? That's one of the problems. Is they're not really lined up at this point?

[Unidentified Committee Member]: Uh-huh. Yeah. I know all of them have enhanced energy plans, but there is a required energy element. Correct. And does the PSD also approve that part of the element, or is it only enhanced energy?

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: It depends. They don't approve the element itself. It's only the enhanced energy plan, and every region structures it a little bit differently. Like, in the Northwest, we have a short energy element to make it more accessible to to people. And then we have appendix, which is our enhanced energy plan. But some regions just have the enhanced energy plan that is both their energy plan and their energy element. So, each region does what works for them. And can you talk to me about those two separate processes? What do you guys have to do to get the LERB to sign off on your regional plan? So, the LERB is a two step process. So prior to our first public hearing, we send our plan to the LRRR, and they do a review against all of the statutory requirements except for the enhanced energy, and they give us comments. So they give us comments early in the process so we can take those comments and make changes as needed. Once we then do our final public hearing and our boards adopt plans, They go back to the Land Use Review Board for final review and approval, and the Land Use Review Board has about two months to do that final review and approval. Okay. So there are two public hearings. So you're so you guys develop the the plan in your office. Yes. You've extensive public engagement. Okay. So there's there's so there's public engagement before this first public hearing? There's public engagement from the very beginning before we write a word to all the way up through final adoption of the planning. And, to date, regional planning commissions have had I think last count, we were at about 500 public meetings that have been held for our regional plans collectively since we've started this rewrite process Act one eighty one. Just for you? Just collectively across. Collectively. Yeah. In addition to lots of other means of reaching out to me. And then what's the process at the department for the enhanced energy plan? So, department's process is once our the current process is once our plan is adopted by our boards, we send it to the Department of Public Service and they review it against a checklist of requirements. They have a public hearing, and then they issue a determination. Is it once the energy plan is approved, not the overall plan? Yeah. We we usually do it as one vote. Okay. So DPS reviews it. They have a public hearing. Okay. Alright. Okay. And so the Department of Public Service and the Regional Planning Commission have been talking for a while, and the Department of Public Service was very collaborative in sharing the drafts of what they provided to you yesterday in terms of potential changes to statute. And I would say, you know, we are very much in alignment in terms of seeking these changes. They're really procedural in nature. They don't change policy. It's it can be a little it's down in the weeds, I will say, because it's all about bureaucratic processes. And so when you read it, it is very in the weeds. But suffice to say, in total, what it does is it makes things it makes the land use review board process and the partner public service process travel on the same timeline. It utilizes public hearings that are already required at the regional plan level as, or the department public service so they don't have to have their own separate process. So we're it really tries to reduce duplication and bring things on a same timeline So it's a little more efficient, effective, and understandable from the outside. Okay. Okay. So should we walk through Do you wanna walk through the changes or do you have testimony? I don't wanna derail what you're doing. I didn't know what you wanted, so I didn't provide anything in particular. I'm prepared to walk through it with you and answer questions and offer my opinions. I'm also prepared to just talk high level, whichever you, whatever you want. Well, was good high level for me. I could walk through the bill and get your feedback on the specific comments unless people

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: Okay? That's great.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Okay. Yeah. That's helpful for me. Alright. Yeah. Let's let's all walk through. Okay. Do you want me to just pretend I'm not legislative counsel, but do it something similar? Yeah. That'd be great. And just your thoughts about, you know, changes that they're suggesting. Like, this is what this does. This is how it would impact us. You know? Right. And I I I will just be taking notes. Okay. So, section twenty two zero two b, which is the state comprehensive energy plan. Right now, the way the system works is they do the update to the state comprehensive energy plan. At the same time, they update the standards for local and regional enhanced energy planning.

[Catherine Dimitruk, Executive Director, Northwest Regional Planning Commission]: This just gives the department a year from adoption of the energy plan to get those standards updated. I think that that will be very beneficial because that will enable a more thoughtful approach to looking at the standards and say, like, do we really need this? Is there something better? How can we be more effective? And right now, since this happens at the same time, there's just not this the the capital and the time to really be more introspective about it.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: So I think that's a great change. So when you are working on your enhanced energy plan, you're following a set of standards. Mhmm. And right now, they're working on the big monster state comprehensive energy plan, and it's due at the same time as these updated standards. And they're saying this work might better follow on from that. Mhmm. So let's do the big 200 page things, and then a year later, we're gonna get back to the RPCs that say, okay. Now we've had time, and here are your updated standards for the energy plans. I would say, I would add to that that it's not that an apartment coming back to us and saying, here's your standards. They're very collaborative in that process. Okay. So this usually work with Griffin.

[Unidentified Committee Member]: I was just gonna ask if you could share, like, what an example standard would be?

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: An example standard would be, they range from data requirements to policy requirements. So, an example of data requirement is that you would need to include data on weatherization that's happened in the last five years and projected needs to meet the targets over the next ten years. Required policy requirement standard may be that if you're gonna exclude a particular type of renewable energy from your an area in your region, it has to be excluded in the same way that other developments are excluded. So you can't just say, like, no wind in this one spot if every other sort of development can have it there too. So it ranges from the data to the policy. And the policy aligns with whatever policies are in the context of energy. And well, okay. Okay. Okay. Well, okay, did one. Yeah. Good. So adoption amendment of the regional plan. So this is what I was mentioning earlier in the big picture piece. So this would require in the regional plan adoption process. This is part of the alignment of pine lines. Right now, we are required to send our regional plan to land use review board sixty days before our first public hearing. This would also require us to send it to the Department of Public Service on the same timeline. So they too can do a preliminary review and say, oh, wait. You missed this one standard.

[Unidentified Committee Member]: You thought you had it, but

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: not quite. Fix it now so that we can improve your plan later. Yes. So it brings it to the same time period. I think that's a great benefit. So this is cheap. So what's optional determination of energy compliance? Is that the enhanced energy plan. Yeah. Okay. So, determination of energy compliance equals Advanced energy. Yes. It's basically that's the department's approval of our enhanced energy. So, this is saying, if you're doing this, which we now know everybody is, then it has to go to DPS. Is conformance of the draft plan with section forty three fifty two. Is that the part that syncs it up with LERV? Yes. It's a it's the section forty three fifty two is the enhanced energy plan. Yes. So we'll be sending it both to the land use review board for compliance with the basic regional plan requirements, and we'll be sending it to the Department of Public Service at the same time for their review about the enhanced energy. So, we'll put some on the same timeline. Okay. Okay. And then moving on to page two. I'm really hoping I have the same back up if that's the think we do as well.

[Catherine Dimitruk, Executive Director, Northwest Regional Planning Commission]: This is would be a new requirement for the regional planning commissions, but it's about building efficiency into the process. So when we do our first public hearing, we send out a public hearing notice that says, you were seeking comments on our regional plan and all these things, blah blah blah. This would also require us to say, and we're going to be asking for the department's approval of our enhanced energy plan, so give us your comments about that too. And by doing this in our public hearing, the Department of Public Service will no longer need to do their public hearing because they'll rely on any comments we got. So it saves a public hearing later in the process. While we're already doing one, let's get comments on that too and not have to do another whole separate process. I do have a question about that then. Mhmm. One less public hearing means there this would basically be like a joint hearing. They're gonna be doing both the regional plan and the enhanced energy plan at the same time and receiving comments on both of those aspects at the same time.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Yeah. So that there's not a separate LERB hearing and a separate DPS. There will still be a separate LERB process, but this gets rid of the separate DPS process. It folds it into the regional planning commission process. And then

[Unidentified Committee Member]: do you anticipate that your public outreach is similar to how the department does it? I

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: think ours is broader. Yours is broader. Yeah. I will say I'm I can't speak to every regional plan that's been approved department, but I'm not aware that they're extremely highly attended public hearings. So whereas we do tend to get people attending our public hearings. So I think it both adds efficiency to the process, and probably gets more people paying attention to it too. That's a good thing. And then, yeah, okay, and that way when that notification goes out, it would be clear that we're gonna be talking about the regional plan, we're gonna be talking, so here's your mom. Here's your mom. Okay. Yeah. And I think it'd be good for us too. I think it'll be good. Yeah. It's because I think we'll focus on that too and not just the others.

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: K? I'm putting check marks by all of you. That's

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Here you are. Going. Yes, please. Well I I mean terms of the Regional Planning Commission supporting the

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: That's right. That's right. That's what I'm saying.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Right. And this is a chance for committee members to I I am doing the same thing, asking questions so that I can kinda check this off and say, okay. This actually sounds okay to me. Mhmm. Okay. And we'll probably get additional written testimony. I know we've been hoping to hear from Charlie, and we'll get the LERD. But this may be it for a conversation. Yeah. And I think I don't know if Charlie can say anything different, but you're welcome to have him in too. Yeah. But Yeah. Coordinate ahead of time. Yeah. We just know often when we hear

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: said something.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Yep. So you can only get a college test. Yeah. But it's also helpful to have documentation. We like documentation on our website. Okay. I don't think Alright. So that was Okay. We're on number four now. Okay. So page More aligning, finding. The regional planning commission shall also at this time Wait. We should do that one? No. No. Okay. So first, we're gonna hold our public hearing and talk about enhanced energy planning. And then this section h one, this talks about what happens after we adopt our regional plan. So once we adopt our regional plan, this is just saying that in addition to sending it to the Land Use Review Board for their final approval, we're going to send it to the Department of Public Service for their final approval. So it just requires us to do that on the same timeline that we're getting our overall regional plan approved. So this is a positive change. It's something we pretty much would do anyway, but I think it's good to have it explicit in statute. So it's clear the expectation. Okay. And Lots of, you know, change pages. Okay. Now I'm on my page six. I don't know what it is for you, but it's section b one e in addition. Is that right now? Okay. So now we've jumped to municipal plan three. So we're gonna take a little detour into the municipal plan space. So as I mentioned in the overview, the regional planning commissions are the ones in charge of reviewing the municipal plans and granting them the enhanced energy plan approval. Okay. Let's talk about that. Okay. So we have the mother lode plan. Mhmm. We have 11 regional plans. Yeah. Which everybody's choosing to do. And then When when it Kids can choose Okay. And then if we have a if we have an approved energy plan, then we can approve the municipal plans. Municipalities as part of their town planning process have the same optional enhanced energy plan like the regional planning commissions. Not all towns choose to do it, but a good share of them do. We're up to, like, on 2,130 municipalities that have done this. We use the same checklist that we talked about being developed earlier a year after the comprehensive energy plan. It's all part of that whole standards picture. Regional planning commissions do that process of reviewing the enhanced local enhanced energy plans and granting them approval. Okay. And so towns do this, and they use the same standards, they come to you for approval. Correct. Is it also called an enhanced energy Okay. So anybody ask that question, or it's just me who's at, like, foundational level here? Rectory. So for a town that just got a plan approval this year before you guys

[Unidentified Committee Member]: do your next RTC plan, The standards checklist that was in place right now. Okay. And then any future plans, we'll have that. And this is all about the CEP next time, 2028. There'll be new standards and any because municipalities are on an eight year cycle. They're also

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: on the eight Okay.

[Unidentified Committee Member]: That, well, they're all over the place. They're all Yep. Over the Okay. And they'll just be responsible for whatever the standards are, just like in

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: a term. So whatever standards I'm facing there, it's their turn.

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: Are

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: we gonna sync up their timing? No. No. No, I don't think we want That's too much. That's crazy. Okay. Alright. I I said it out loud and I was like, okay. The towns are still gonna do their own thing on their own They're still on their own time. Yep. Okay. So municipalities, once they adopt a local plan, have the option to ask the Regional Planning Commission to approve their overall local plan, just like the regional plan goes to their municipalities can ask the Regional Planning Commission to approve their overall regional plan. And this is the section of statute that talks about that. All e is doing is explicitly adding the approval of the enhanced the option of enhancing energy plan to our list of duties here. So it's just clarifying that that is one of the things that we may be doing this part of our municipal plan approval. That's not already in statute anywhere? It's in practice. It's yeah. And it's in the enhanced energy section of statute, but it's not in this one. And this will make sure that it is aligned with the overall work that we're doing in this area. As a clarification. This is title 24 we're in? Yep. Oh, this is title 24. So it's just a clarification that this is one of the duties that the town wants us to. Okay. Alright. Okay. Then we're on to letters a through d on the next page. Okay. And these are more department ones. Oh, okay. Sorry. So, yes. Goals to requirements. I think that's just updating from the previous I I don't know what '25 by '25 goal is, but it's been replaced by the res, I guess. Right? And then These are technical updates. Yeah. Yeah. I don't

[Unidentified Committee Member]: know what e is. And then Okay.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: So okay. Alrighty. And then little d one is just another place where the standards are mentioned, and this just make sure that it was a year after the plan is adopted to do the standards. Alright. So we're on to page eight and letter e. So this is a companion piece to the addition that required the regional planning commissions to take comments at our public hearing about the enhanced energy planning. This is the companion where the requirement of the department of public service to hold a hearing is deleted. So this deletes their requirement to hold a hearing because they're instead relying on hours. And then the comments we receive. Okay. Letter app is just a technical correction because there's no more natural resources board. It's now the land use review board. If we are unhappy with the department's decision, we get to appeal the Land Use Review Board, and they get to be the final interpreters of our dispute, hasn't happened. And I I think we're collaborative enough that it shouldn't happen, but it's it's good to have now. Okay. Okay. And then letters so letter g How long does it take to log? Is deleted because it's no longer applicable. That was an interim process that's no longer applicable and expired. K. K. Probably 2018, no less. So it's been expired for quite some time. Okay. Okay. Now we get to the it's it's like a little game of Tetris here in this next section. Are we in I? G R A We are in h one and two. And I. Right. H12. Okay. HNI. So everything GIG sorry. G one and g two are all deleting that expired. Okay. Alright. So now we get to h. So h one and two are doing two different things, and there's a lot of words to get there, but I'll tell you what the two different things are. So we have this space of time between when the regional planning commission or the local planning commission has adopted a new plan, And our board or the local select board has adopted this new plan. But in the thirty to sixty days it takes to get an approval of the energy plan, you have this gap where, say, an important application through the Public Utilities Commission goes in place. You've adopted a plan that's gonna comply, but it's not approved yet, and so you don't have that additional weight in the public utility solution process. So there's this gap because of the approval timeline. What letter one does is it enables a regional planning commission to say, based on our initial review, we're going to grant you approval once we finish the process. So we're going to give you provisional approval now. So you do get that added weight, public utilities commission process if there's an application. Just to quickly remind myself. So we said so an application comes in for for what? A 30 megawatt solar field. Okay. And and the town has gone its energy plan. It's been approved by the town, but it hasn't been adopted. It's been adopted by the town. Oh, yeah. Sorry. It's been adopted by the town, but not approved by the PUC. Or by the regional banks. Or by the R. Yep. Okay. And the town wants to weigh in on that, but they might not be given substantial deference because their their plan has not been approved by the. Is this this seems like this would be an existing this a problem. Yeah. Yeah. Many of these are existing problems that have been identified in the process that have been amplified by now we have alert process happening too. But they were things that were an issue before. And so this allows the Regional Planning Commission to give provisional affirmative determination. So a provisional approval, which will give them the substantial deference in the Public Utilities Commission process. During this time frame. During this time frame. Yep.

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: Okay. We

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: did have what happens actually on Barton's. No. We're not. Can we please So are you able to do that? Sorry. No. We can't do that now. So they were between.

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: What was that again?

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: We have had this in one of our towns. This happened. Oh, okay. Where they were between approvals. They had adopted the new plan, so the old approval no longer applied, but we hadn't gotten to the new approval yet. Oh, gotcha.

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: And

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: the town wasn't given substantial difference. No. They didn't qualify. K.

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: So they had to start over again? Or

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: No. They didn't have to start over again. But during that permit proceeding and the Public Utilities Commission, they were just given due consideration, not substantial difference. So they could participate, but it it was along the lines of, you know, thanks so much for your comment. We appreciate your feedback as opposed to real consideration. Okay.

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: And, of you might be at least thirty days prior. Mhmm. Notify the appropriate body of their intent. The appropriate body, meaning whoever the next level up is, d GPS or or. Right? Mhmm. Notifying affirmative body of their intent to request a determinate energy compliance at at least thirty days prior to the first public hearing Yeah. On that plan.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Yes. Do want me to talk about them? Yeah. I guess. Sure. Okay. So Yeah. To we'll talk about the municipal level first. Municipal planning commissions are required now in statute to send the regional planning commission a draft of their regional plan thirty days prior to their first public hearing. So that's already a requirement that they do that. So all this would do would say, like, if you want us to give you this provisional authority when you do that, also tell us you're gonna be seeking enhanced energy approval, which most of them already do anyway. So this is saying, you're already a note by us, so at the same time, tell us you're gonna be seeking this enhanced energy approval, and we'll be able to give you this.

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: If they do that, then you can provide a provision.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Correct. Yeah. And then

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: And that and that presumably at least shrinks the gap. Mhmm. Doesn't eliminate altogether.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: But it gives us the opportunity to act on it prior to. And then earlier in this document, we talked about adding a requirement that we send that the regional planning commissions send the Department of Public Service our draft plan sixty days in advance of our first public hearing. So if that gets added, we will also add to that, and we'll be seeking provisional approval of our energy plan. We'll add that request along with it. So if you make that change, we're them anyway, already so we'll just add that to our request.

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: You're referring to what reason? Say that in your opinion.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: We are referring to page one. That's right. 4348 e.

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: Six days prior. Okay.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Okay. So, two, we're move on to number two. This is one where, I'll just say going in, the department and I started some conversations this morning about maybe tweaking the language, so we'll likely be providing the committee with some updates to this paragraph, but I will talk about the intent of it. Oftentimes, and especially to implement act one eighty one, regional planning commissions will adopt a new regional plan that doesn't change our energy plan. And also, the standards haven't changed. But the way statute is currently written, the department still has to do a full complete review of our energy plan and they have to grant us new approvals. What number two is attempting to do is to say, if the regional planning commission adopts a new regional plan, but the energy plan the enhanced energy plan isn't changed in a way that impacts the approval or and the standards haven't changed, then your existing enhanced energy approval gets to continue until the expiration of your plan. So it saves us doing a process that we just did, like in our case, years ago.

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: I can understand that if there's no difference in the enhanced energy plan portion. But if there is minor differences or minor changes or updates or whatever, Yeah. It seems like there would still have to be perhaps an expedited review or something, but then you get into the gray area of when is it expedited and when is it full review?

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: Yes. And we have the way the language is drafted, that we'd be seeking the department to tell us, yes, we agree that your plan hasn't changed and therefore it continues.

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: So that's sort of an expedited review.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: It's an expedited review, but it doesn't require the same extensive process that I've reviewed. I'll give you a great example.

[Rep. R. Scott Campbell (Vice Chair)]: Hearings and all of that.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: And I'll give you an example from our region, particularly as we jump from We're in the midst of it right now. So we did our enhanced energy plan two years ago as an amendment to our regional plan. We did extensive outreach and update process. It meets all the new standards. We went through our approval process. We are now going through the process of adopting our full regional plan to comply with act one eighty one. The only thing we're changing in our energy plan is the name of the land use areas that correspond to the maps because they're all changed now to mesh with act one eighty one. So we're making changes to our plan, but we're not changing data and we're not changing policy. So we're not changing anything that touches the standards. So basically we're allowing public service to determine when a change requires public presence. Yep. And we all know that early because we're sending it to them sixty days ahead of time. So they'll be able to say, actually, I know you don't want us to tell you this, but it really does need a full approval, or they'll be able to say, yeah, looks good. Okay. Okay. So if folks have more questions, could you submit written Yeah. Testimony? That would be helpful. It will. It will probably be brief and just let you know. That's great. No role. Okay. So Okay. And does she want anything more specific about anything? I don't think so. Do folks have any additional questions? No. But I just wanna express my appreciation

[Unidentified Committee Member]: for walking us through this.

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: That's right. Clear. Yeah. Yeah. Yes. Yesterday was a big whiff. So through no fault of the departments. Yeah. So There's Yeah. Louise. Alrighty. So, we'll keep you and I know So, we're late for we'll have a committee discussion later today. I think the crossroads we're at is whether committee members feel comfortable dropping this into our Your Our one and a half page You know, to make it a longer bill. Yeah.

[Unidentified Committee Member]: Yeah. I just thought of one other question. Yeah. So you're in great alignment with the department. Do you think there's anybody else we should be hearing from? Like, is there anything else about the process? Like, how are we gonna hear from the LCT or anyone from industry because it's, you know?

[Rep. Kathleen James (Chair)]: So because it doesn't really change any of the any policy. Okay. Or line type. It really is just process improvement. Yeah. Okay. Alright. Thank you so much for being here, and we can go off live, and we are back at one. Thank you so much. Alright. Thanks so much for your time.