Wednesday, September 2512:30 pm—5:00 pm Conference Registration • Sierra Pre-function Area

1:00 pm—3:00 pm NCPA Legal Committee Meeting • Emigrant Peak

Leading Legal Experts Discuss PG&E’s Bankruptcy and New Developments on Inverse Condemnation

Mark Gorton, Shareholder, Boutin Jones, Inc.

Michael Colantuono, Managing Shareholder, Colantuono, Highsmith and Whatley, PC

Wildfire liability has sent PG&E into bankruptcy. Has the California Supreme Court thrown a lifeline to public power on inverse condemnation? Beginning at 1:30 pm, bankruptcy expert Mark Gorton will describe how PG&E hopes to emerge from bankruptcy and bound its wildfire liability. Then at 2:00 pm, Michael Colantuono, who argued the recent landmark California Supreme Court case on inverse condemnation, will provide his insights on the case and what it may mean for public power liability going forward. All interested conference registrants are welcome to attend and hear what promises to be a fascinating and timely discussion.

3:00 pm—5:00 pm NCPA Legislative & Regulatory Committee Meeting • Grand Sierra C & D

Electrifying the Transportation Sector—Key Policy Issues and Challenges

Sandra Berg, Vice Chair, California Air Resources Board

Dr. Daniel Sperling, Board Member, California Air Resources; Professor of Civil Engineering—Environmental Science and Policy; and Founding Director, Institute of Transportation Studies, University of California, Davis

Moderator: Michelle Bertolino, Electric Utility Director, City of Roseville

Converting California’s 25+ million automobiles into an electric fleet of clean, emission-free vehicles requires long term strategies and goals. State and federal lawmakers must pursue policies that help pave the way for the private sector to transition toward vehicle electrification. Hear from key thought leaders as they share their views on how technology, regulation, and policymaking will help “drive” the state to meet its clean energy goals.

2019 Legislative Wrap-up and Look-ahead to 2020

Kip Lipper, Chief Policy Advisor on Energy & Environment, Office of Senate President Pro Tempore Toni Atkins

A political force in the State Legislature, Kip Lipper has influenced every major piece of energy and environmental legislation enacted in California over the past several decades. His experience and influence as the Chief Policy Advisor for several Senate Presidents Pro Tempore provide a unique backdrop as he reflects on the just-concluded legislative year and discusses the policy outlook for the upcoming 2020 session, including potential impacts to the energy sector.

5:30 pm—7:30 pm Welcome Reception • Sun and Spa Decks

Join your fellow conference participants at the Squaw Creek Resort sundeck for an outdoor reception overlooking the iconic scenery of the famed Olympic Valley.

AGENDA

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Thursday, September 26th7:30 am—4:00 pm Conference Registration • Sierra Pre-function Area

7:30 am—8:30 am Breakfast Available • Sierra Pre-function Area

8:30 am—8:45 am Welcome and Opening Remarks

Randy S. Howard, General Manager, Northern California Power Agency

Roger Frith, Councilmember, City of Biggs; Chair, Northern California Power Agency

8:45 am—9:45 am Leadership and Managing Risk in an Uncertain Future • Grand Sierra A & B

Robyn Benincasa, Founder, World Class Teams

As a world-renowned champion racer, businessperson, and full-time firefighter, Robyn Benincasa understands what it takes to build world-class teams. She explains how human synergy–“that magic that allows groups of ordinary people to accomplish extraordinary things together”—can transform our individual experiences into organizational success, and enhance our ability to manage and shape change in our business environments.

9:45 am—10:00 am Break

10:00 am—11:30 am Managing an Evolving Utility Landscape and Insights into the Industry of the Future • Grand Sierra A & B

Mark Gabriel, Administrator and Chief Executive Officer, Western Area Power Administration

Mary Leslie, Board Member, California Independent System Operator

Nancy Sutley, Chief Environmental Officer, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power

Moderator: Randy S. Howard, General Manager, Northern California Power Agency

Today’s energy markets and the policy landscape that influences them is changing rapidly in California. New market entrants, advancements in technology and customer expectations, wildfire liability, and climate policies are some of the many factors that are driving fundamental change in our industry. Hear from this panel of widely recognized thought leaders about how these dynamic issues, and the rapid pace of change we are experiencing, will shape the industry of the future.

11:30 am—12:15 pm Ensuring Transparency and Cost-Effectiveness in Transmission Policy • Grand Sierra A & B

Judy Chang, Principal, The Brattle Group

NCPA has led the effort to provide transparency and a consumer voice in the review and approval of the billions of dollars spent on transmission systems in California. This work has helped shine a light on how investor-owned utilities are making unilateral and costly transmission investment determinations without adequate oversight to assure that costs are warranted or projects are necessary to promote reliability. Recently, the internationally-recognized experts at The Brattle Group released findings that highlight the pervasive nature of this problem, not just in California but across the United States. As a co-author of this critical report, entitled Cost Savings Offered by Competition in Electric Transmission, Judy Chang will share her research and discuss the path forward toward innovative and cost-effective transmission investment to support an increasingly complex power grid.

AGENDA

12:15 pm—1:15 pm Luncheon • Pavilion

12:15 pm—12:45 pm Addressing Wildfires Through Policy in Action: Insights from the State Capitol • Pavilion

The Honorable Brian Dahle, California State Senator, 1st District

Over the past few years, the State Legislature has taken on a number of policy debates in the aftermath of devastating wildfires, many of which focus on our state environmental and energy policies. Having served as a strong leader on wildfire and forest management issues in the Assembly, and in his current role in the Senate, Senator Dahle will offer his perspectives on key forest management, wildfire mitigation, and related energy policy discussions from this past year and the remaining issues to be addressed in future years.

1:30 pm—3:00 pm How Community Choice is Changing the Game • Grand Sierra A & B

Girish Balachandran, Chief Executive Officer, Silicon Valley Clean Energy

Nick Chaset, Chief Executive Officer, East Bay Community Energy

Geof Syphers, Chief Executive Officer, Sonoma Clean Power

Moderator: Nico Procos, General Manager, Alameda Municipal Power

Community choice aggregators (CCAs) have rapidly become significant players in California’s energy marketplace, which has created newfound considerations for both investor-owned and public power utilities as the state transitions to a carbon-free grid. This panel will feature innovative and dynamic CCA leaders sharing their view of the industry, energy markets, and the policy arena—and identifying opportunities for increased collaboration with California’s publicly-owned utility community.

3:00 pm—3:45 pm Policy vs. Politics: California’s Efforts to Address Utility Wildfire Mitigation and Liability • Grand Sierra A & B

Dr. Michael Wara, Commissioner, California Commission on Catastrophic Wildfire Cost and Recovery; Senior Research Scholar, Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment

A widely-recognized scholar and thought-leader on energy and the environment, Michael Wara was appointed earlier this year by Governor Newsom to serve on California’s Commission on Catastrophic Wildfire Cost and Recovery. His contributions to the Commission’s deliberations and subsequent report helped provide the framework for the passage of state legislation to help manage utility wildfire-related liabilities. We welcome Dr. Wara back to this year’s conference to share his views on where we go from here on an issue that will continue to challenge the state in the months and years ahead.

3:45 pm—4:30 pm The Path Forward for California’s Energy Supply • Grand Sierra A & B

Mark Rothleder, Vice President, Market Quality and California Regulatory Affairs, California Independent System Operator

Just last week, the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) provided a high-profile report to its Board of Governors detailing the significant challenges the state faces as it seeks to meet its current and future energy supply demands. The report describes the impact that substantial reliance on intermittent renewables and the growth of distributed generation—combined with planned retirements of many existing generation facilities—is having on the CAISO’s ability to operate California’s energy market to meet our state’s needs. These findings are likely to reverberate throughout the State Legislature when it reconvenes next year, and are already under discussion within state regulatory agencies. The principal author of this analysis will share the report and the CAISO’s view of the path forward.

4:30 pm Closing Comments • Grand Sierra A & B

Randy S. Howard, General Manager, Northern California Power Agency

6:00 pm—7:00 pm Reception • Sierra Pre-function Area

7:00 pm—11:00 pm Saddle Up for Country Banquet Dinner & Entertainment • Grand Sierra A, B & C

Friday, September 27th8:00 am—9:00 am Breakfast Available • Sierra Pre-function Area

9:00 am—10:00 am Artificial Intelligence, Connectedness, & Preparing for the Big Data Future • Grand Sierra A & B

Jennifer Golbeck, Professor, College of Information Studies and Director of the Social Intelligence Lab, University of Maryland, College Park

It is growing increasingly clear that the future will be driven by Artificial Intelligence (AI)—and it is beginning to permeate virtually all aspects of our lives. Huge power lies in smart algorithms combined with the vast amount of big data generated by sensors, Internet of Things devices, and human behavior—from financial transactions to social interactions to increasingly trackable behavior. As Director of the University of Maryland’s Social Intelligence Lab, Dr. Golbeck creates these algorithms, and is on the front lines of this transformation. This presentation will provide a thought-provoking take on the far-reaching effects that AI already has, and the potential implications for electric utilities both today and in the future.

AGENDA