Promoting Electrotechnology Careers and Public Policy

31 October 2000

The Honorable Gordon Smith
United States Senate
404 Russell Building
Washington, DC 20510

Dear Senator Smith:

On May 24, 2000, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers – United States of America (IEEE-USA), in cooperation with the Consortium for Electrical Reliability Technology Solutions (CERTS) and the Department of Energy, held a symposium on "Ensuring Electric Power Reliability – The Challenges Ahead." Its dual goals were to educate policy makers on the key technology issues associated with the various electric power industry restructuring proposals and to develop recommendations to assure continued reliability, quality and safety of the industry as the new market develops.

The symposium included three key-note addresses provided by Craven Crowell, chief executive officer of the Tennessee Valley Authority; Dave Leiter, the principle deputy secretary in the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy at the Department of Energy; and Kurt Yeager, President and CEO, Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). The symposium also had panel sessions to examine the interconnection between technical reliability issues and policy impacts in four critical areas:

• Reliability and Markets
• Reliability Management
• Reliability Oversight
• Reliability Research and Development

For your use and future reference, we have enclosed our symposium proceedings that summarize the addresses by each of the keynote and panel speakers. The proceedings can also be found on the IEEE-USA website at http://ieeeusa.org/electricpower/index.html. We hope you will find this information both helpful and timely as Congress and the nation strive to ensure that electricity supply in America continues to be reliable as industry restructuring proceeds. For further information, contact Bill Williams at 202 785-0017 ext. 8331 or bill.williams@ieee.org.

Sincerely,

Merrill W. Buckley, Jr.
President, IEEE-USA

Richard Wakefield
Chairman, IEEE-USA Energy Policy Committee

(NOTE: Sample of Letter Sent to Members of the Senate Energy Subcommittee on Water and Power and to Members of the House Commerce Subcommittee on Energy & Power.)

 The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers - United States of America
1828 L Street, N.W., Suite 1202, Washington, DC 20036-5104
Office: (202) 785-0017 * Fax: (202) 785-0835 * E-mail: ieeeusa@ieee.org

| Top of Page | UCITA Network | Policy Log | Public Policy Forum | IEEE-USA |

Last Update:  2 Nov. 2000
Staff Contact:  Bill Williams, bill.williams@ieee.org.

Copyright © 2000, The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc.
Permission to copy IEEE-USA policy communications is granted for non-commercial uses with appropriate attribution, unless otherwise indicated.