Austin Dawson (above), the Deputy Director of Energy Supply and Rates in the Policy Division of the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER), was this month’s Deep Dialog presenter. In his role, Austin manages DOER’s involvement in offshore wind and other clean energy procurements and oversees a team engaged in topics related to energy supply, data, resiliency, and ratemaking. He leads the development and implementation of DOER’s policies on rates and ratemaking and manages the Massachusetts Interagency Rates Working Group.
Energy affordability, and in particular the cost of electricity, is essential to incentivize electrification and decarbonization. Austin Dawson’s presentation focussed on the current status of electric rates in Massachusetts, including what is in electric rates charged to customers and how rates support generating and delivering power to homes and businesses, in addition to various programs that impact the grid and customers. He will also share how the Massachusetts Interagency Rates Working Group (IRWG), a collaborative between DOER, the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, and the Attorney General, addresses near- and long-term electric rate design and ratemaking to align with the Commonwealth’s decarbonization goals by prioritizing the reduction of energy burden while incentivizing electrification.
Here is the link to his presentation slides: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pSCwqo5lu2UDDo0A0NGIAJLJvlYy4JY2/view?usp=drive_link