United States DC Circuit

In a petition for review of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (FERC) order increasing the permissible return on equity for a regional organization of transmission owners, the petition is denied where: 1) nothing in the law or FERC's stated purposes required FERC to adduce evidence that the order would produce new transmission investment; and 2) FERC adduced substantial evidence for the proposition that the incentive was likely to increase the speed with which projects were completed.

Appellate Information

• Argued 12/08/2009
• Decided 01/29/2010
• Published 01/29/2010

Judges

• Before ROGERS and GARLAND, Circuit Judges, and WILLIAMS, Senior Circuit Judge.

Court

• United States DC Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Randall L. Speck argued the cause for petitioners. With him on the briefs were Harvey L. Reiter, Michael C. Wertheimer and John S. Wright, Assistant Attorneys General, Attorney General's Office of the State of Connecticut, Lisa Fink, and Bruce C. Johnson., Scott H. Strauss, Jeffrey A. Schwarz, Jesse S. Reyes, Assistant Attorney General, Attorney General's Office of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and John P. Coyle were on the briefs for intervenors Massachusetts Municipal Wholesale Electric Company, et al. in support of petitioners. Joseph W. Rogers, Assistant Attorney General, Attorney General's Office of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, entered an appearance.


• For Appellees:
  
• Lona T. Perry, Senior Attorney, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, argued the cause for respondent. With her on the brief were Cynthia A. Marlette, General Counsel, and Robert H. Solomon, Solicitor., Kenneth G. Jaffe, David B. Raskin, Elias G. Farrah, Mary E. Grover, Richard M. Lorenzo, Mary A. Murphy, Phyllis E. Lemell, G. Philip Nowak, C. Fairley Spillman, Wendy N. Reed, and Sonia C. Mendonca were on the brief for intervenors transmission Owners in support of respondent. Charles G. Cole, Alice E. Loughran, and Amanda M. Riggs entered appearances.