Podcasts about Public Service Commission

Louisiana's Public Service Commission (PSC) is overseeing one of the biggest industrial buildouts in state history. They're considering 10 new gas plants and other infrastructure, like transmission lines, in order to power Meta's data centers in Richland Parish.Last week, the PSC voted to overturn a judge's ruling that Meta had to turn over information about how it calculated jobs and power usage. And the meeting got heated, as Michael McEwen reported for our Coastal Desk.But just ahead of that meeting, an investigation from the Gulf States Newsroom's Drew Hawkins found that an Entergy executive ghostwrote motions that some commissioners filed in support of projects like Meta's data center.Both Michael McEwen and Drew Hawkins join us for more on the latest.Louisiana's surgeon general, Dr. Evelyn Griffin, is a longtime OBGYN who is aligning herself with the Make America Healthy Again movement. She's fought against government mandates and questioned vaccine safety. Now, she's pushing for greater emphasis on wellness and disease prevention. New York Times fellow Rosemary Westwood has been reporting this story. She joins us for more on her look into Griffin's background and agenda. –Today's episode of Louisiana Considered was hosted by Adam Vos. Our managing producer is Alana Schreiber. We get production support from Garrett Pittman and our assistant producer Aubry Procell.You can listen to Louisiana Considered Monday through Friday at noon and 7 p.m. It's available on Spotify, the NPR App and wherever you get your podcasts. Louisiana Considered wants to hear from you!Please fill out our pitch line to let us know what kinds of story ideas you have for our show. And while you're at it, fill out our listener survey! We want to keep bringing you the kinds of conversations you'd like to listen to.Louisiana Considered is made possible with support from our listeners. Thank you!

A Canadian cleared to work inside NATO's military headquarters is now in Belgian custody, accused of espionage.But this episode isn't about deciding whether she's guilty. That allegation remains unproven.It's about what was already sitting in the public record before she ever got there.In 2023, the Public Service Commission of Canada found that Biwei Zhang had committed fraud during a federal hiring process after applying twice for the same CBSA position under two different names and email addresses. She challenged that finding in Federal Court. The court dismissed her application, leaving the finding in place.Roughly eleven months later, she began working inside SHAPE — NATO's military headquarters in Belgium — after going through Canadian security screening.So the question is simple: **Did the screening process find the Federal Court decision?**If it did, who decided the documented finding of dishonesty wasn't disqualifying?If it didn't, how did a published Federal Court judgment get missed?In this episode, Kelsi breaks down what Belgian authorities have actually said, Zhang's employment history, the previous fraud finding, Canada's security-clearance process, the enormous volume of screenings handled by CSIS, and why the implications go far beyond one individual case.This is not an episode about treating Chinese-Canadians with suspicion. It is about whether Canada's security-screening system is doing what Canadians — and our allies — assume it does.**CHAPTERS**0:00 The document that was public the whole time2:25 What Belgium actually said, and what it did not4:15 The resume5:45 The fraud finding7:15 Eleven months8:15 Two possible answers, and three agencies pointing at each other11:15 129,740 screenings in one year12:45 What a clearance used to mean13:45 The China question, carefully15:15 What this episode is not about16:45 What the real damage is18:45 The one question I want answeredBuy me a coffee! - https://buymeacoffee.com/kelsisherenDo No Harm? - https://www.amazon.com/dp/1683585763?ref_=cm_sw_r_ffobk_cp_ud_dp_SC8YGT87SPJ1VB8SAYP1Let's connect!Substack: https://substack.com/@kelsisherenRumble - https://rumble.com/user/TheKelsiSherenPerspectiveInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/thekelsisherenperspective?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw%3D%3DX: https://x.com/KelsisherenSUPPORT OUR PEOPLE - - - - - - - - - - - -Ketone IQ- 30% off with code KELSI - https://ketone.com/KELSIGood Livin - 20% off with code KELSI - https://www.itsgoodlivin.com/?ref=KELSIBrass & Unity - 20% off with code UNITY - http://www.brassandunity.com

The Public Service Commission voted 3-1 to overturn a judge's ruling that would've required Meta to provide details on job creation and electricity usage. We'll talk with Commissioner Davante Lewis about why he voted against overturning the decision.

* The Public Service Commission voted 3-1 to overturn a judge's ruling that would've required Meta to provide details on job creation and electricity usage. We'll talk with Commissioner Davante Lewis about why he voted against overturning the decision. * Conditions on board the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln are reportedly poor, with some service members trying to jump overboard. We'll talk with Patty Nieberg, a senior reporter with Task & Purpose, about what's going on.

Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.   In this episode, Justin interviews RIMS SERMC Member Eric Lobser about his career path at Spire Inc. They discuss his start in Budget Analysis at Laclede Gas, which eventually became Spire Inc. He moved into Operations, Treasury, and then Strategic Planning, including Acquisitions. He continued his career as VP of Enterprise Risk Management. Eric shares how he grew into that position, using knowledge he had gained from all the departments he had worked with. He tells about his early presentations to the Board. Eric explains what ERM means to him, and how ERM helps companies manage risks, including reputation, engage in opportunities, and make the resource allocation decisions that lead to success and mitigate failures.   Listen for Eric's idea to improve the ERM acronym.   Key Takeaways: [:01] About RIMS and RIMScast. [:16] About this episode of RIMScast. Our guest is Eric Lobser. He was a practitioner in the natural gas sector for 35 years. We're going to get his ERM philosophies today. But first… [:42] RIMS-CRMP Workshop. We are delighted to announce that on August 27th and 28th, RIMS President Manny Padilla will be leading the two-day in-person workshop at St. John's University at 101 Astor Place in New York City. A link to the registration is in this episode's show notes. [1:02] RIMS-CRMP Virtual Workshops. RIMS will partner with PARIMA for the RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep on September 1st and 2nd. Registration links are in this episode's show notes. [1:13] Also on the webinars page, you will see a two-part series hosted by the RIMS Membership Department. The "Classroom to Career" webinar series highlights how RIMS equips students with the knowledge, skills, and connections needed to thrive in risk management careers. [1:28] Participants will gain insights into industry trends, career pathways, and practical tools that help them confidently step into the evolving world of risk management after graduation. These sessions will be hosted on September 1st and 9th. [1:41] These sessions are member exclusives and are complimentary for RIMS members, of course. So, if you are interested in becoming a member, this would be the time. Visit RIMS.org/membership. [1:51] RIMS is back on YouTube. Our handle is @RIMSOfficialChannel. We've got plenty of videos there, including RIMScast, RIMScast Canada video podcasts, and other informative and entertaining content from RIMS. Subscribe to the channel today! [2:10] On with the Show! We will take a deep dive into Enterprise Risk Management with Eric Lobser. Eric recently retired from a 35-year career in the natural gas sector. He remained with one company that eventually became Spire Energy. [2:26] Eric is also a member of the RIMS Strategic and Enterprise Risk Management Council. [2:32] We will discuss his career journey, how one role led to the next before settling on Enterprise Risk Management, and his philosophies on what makes ERM truly valuable and why the acronym could use an upgrade. Let's get to it! [2:52] Interview! Eric Lobser, Welcome to RIMScast! [3:17] Justin and Eric met last year during a webinar. Eric has a fascinating career. His entire career was at Spire. Originally, it was Laclede Gas Company. Then it became The Laclede Group, and then Spire. Eric's career was 35 years and some months long. [3:53] Justin says that shows our audience that you can have a risk career at one company. You don't need to jump around. If you're doing well, if you're comfortable, if the company's treating you right, and you're doing a good job. [4:10] Eric says the risk career came later in his life. It was the culmination of a lot of other things he did. He had a varied set of positions at Spire. Over time, it was multiple types of companies. As you go through CEOs, things change. [4:31] Eric says he was there for about five CEOs and got to see many different sides of how business operates. [4:49] Eric says he graduated from Boston College in 1990. It was a tough job market. He wanted a job on the East Coast, but it was an expensive place not to have a job. He went back home. [5:08] His stepfather had a contact at the Laclede Gas Company. He interviewed, and they offered him a position, which he took. Within two weeks, he thought he would be crazy to stay at that company more than a couple of years. He thought it was odd they had a few computers. [5:29] Eric came from a school with a library full of computers. You had to sign up to use them. It taught him to use his mind, and it instilled patience. Those elements have been valuable to Eric's career. [6:06] Eric started as a budget analyst and did that for about a year and a half, in the corporate office in downtown St. Louis. [6:33] Then he was fortunate to move to Operations to do the same sort of work with all the department heads to help them with their budgeting, to translate things from Operations into financial terms and get better relationships with the people who ran the business. [6:53] Eric says he got to understand the business better from the view of the boots on the street. [7:04] Justin asks if risk management and ERM came onto Eric's radar in August 2001, when he became the Managing Director for Strategic Planning and Corporate Development. [7:18] Eric says that he had also worked with property insurance in Treasury. There's a big commodity risk at a natural gas company. There are also market risks and credit risks. [7:33] Eric says Strategic Planning was new to The Laclede Group, taking the budget period and extending it out three years, rolling in strategy and planning. [7:49] Eric helped them to develop software for business planning, custom-made from Access, to help support the Balance Scorecard they rolled out. It included something for Initiatives for making improvements, which were tied to Metrics.  [8:11] There were Action Items. There was a section where you laid out your different risks and what you were doing to mitigate them. The Action Items often required support from other areas. The software would put that into their business plan so they could see it and collaborate. [8:33] Eric says risk management and collaboration are hand-in-hand. [9:09] Eric speaks of a change in leadership, where they went from mostly looking at operational excellence and continual improvement to a more external look at other businesses, at ways to diversify within the gas industry: storage, pipeline, E&P, and more. [9:40] That was the beginning of the thought processes Eric would go through, looking at different businesses; what can go right with them, and what can go wrong. [9:57] Part of modeling acquisitions is taking a look at those scenarios and looking for the probability of a downside, what that downside looks like, and what will drive it. What has to go right to have the best case? What does the base case look like? What are those probabilities? [10:20] Eric says that was the beginning of understanding how risk and business go hand-in-hand. They can't have opportunity without risk. There's no reward without risk. Understanding that was an element of that job. [10:39] Eric was fortunate to have a tremendous boss during that time who helped him gain critical thinking about how things operate. [10:58] Eric says when they were looking at how other companies operate, they were companies within the gas industry, to stay within their knowledge base, and simplify their business, within the natural gas value chain, from wellhead to burner tip. [11:30] They were looking at exploration & production, gathering & processing, pipelines, underground storage, down to uses for it, including compressed natural gas for vehicles and local distribution utilities.  [11:58] Justin suggests that the 13-year period when Eric was in Strategic Planning and Corporate Development, holding several positions, was a key time in his career. Eric says yes, and it was his favorite period. He had gone to school for investment banking and acquisitions. [12:42] Eric says, at the same time, it was a tremendous amount of work. He thought maybe it wasn't the best place to spend his lifetime because of the level of work and stress involved. [13:04] Eric was married and raising a family, and that had to come into play, as well. He says while his wife was extremely patient with him during all those times, sometimes working around the clock, he felt it wasn't the right long-term opportunity for him. [13:20] Eric says one of the things he learned when he was doing acquisitions was developing models for how utilities make money. Eric worked with people who did rate cases at the company, to understand what drove cash flow. [13:47] In doing that, Eric learned how regulations work and how tariffs work. That led to asking himself, if this isn't the right career for me, taking a look at something next to it, which was regulatory and government affairs. [14:27] Eric had already started to learn about it. Once he was in charge, he based it on Missouri regulations. The first acquisition was a company in Kansas City, Missouri. [15:05] The second acquisition was Alagasco in Alabama, and that was a completely different type of ratemaking approach that was annual. They had a formal department. Eric was asked to develop something more formal for the entire company. [15:21] Eric says then they acquired Energy South, which brought them into Mobile and also Mississippi, a third rate jurisdiction. There was a mountain of information to climb. His drive and thirst for knowledge helped him up the curve pretty quickly. [15:53] Eric says relationships and the stuff between the lines are just as important as what you can read about and study. [16:12] Eric says, pulling from his enterprise risk career, one of the impacts is not just financial, but reputation. Reputation is a huge element of rate setting. Your reputation precedes you to the commission that oversees rate case litigation and the parties to the case. [16:47] The parties that are involved include industrials, AARP, low-income groups, an energy efficiency group, and other parties. [17:01] Understanding where they're coming from, and what they're trying to achieve, and working towards something that gives all parties some of what they want, is a key element. [17:18] If you were a bad operator; if you had a significant incident that showed you weren't a safe operator, or you weren't treating your customers well, then going into the rate case, people had their minds set that they wanted to give you not a rate increase but a rate reduction. [17:40] The value of the relationships and the reputation, the stuff that is gray and in between the lines, is not just about what the numbers are but who you are as a business. [17:56] A Quick Break! Many fantastic RIMS events are coming up in 2026. The 11th Annual Chicagoland Risk Forum will return to the Old Post Office on Thursday, September 24th, 2026. Visit ChicagolandRiskForum.org for more information. [18:12] The RIMS Western Regional Conference will be held from October 4th through the 7th in Seattle, Washington. The agenda is live, and registration is open. Visit RIMSWesternRegional.com and the link in this episode's show notes for more information. [18:29] Save the dates: October 18th through the 21st. We will be in Quebec City to celebrate the 50th Live RIMS Canada Conference. Booth sales are open, and sponsorship opportunities are still available. Advance registration is open now. [18:45] Visit RIMSCanadaConference.ca for more information. Also, remember to check out RIMS.org/Canada for our spinoff show, RIMScast Canada, hosted by National Conference Committee Chair, Aaron Lukoni. [19:00] The RIMS ERM Conference 2026 will be held on November 19th and 20th in Columbus, Ohio. Registration is now open. [19:10] Through August 21st, you can nominate a program for the RIMS ERM Global Award of Distinction. If you know of an ERM Program that is award-worthy, we want to hear about it. A link to the nomination form is in this episode's show notes. Visit RIMS.org/ERM2026. [19:29] We're already looking to RISKWORLD 2027, which will be held over four days in New Orleans, Louisiana, from April 18th through the 21st! The call for session proposals is now live and will stay active through August 21st. [19:44] RIMS members can exclusively register by September 4th for the best rate. And get first access to the hotel block. Hotel reservations open on October 28th, ahead of public registration. Sitting this out is the real risk! The link to registration is in this episode's show notes. [20:04] Let's Return to Our Interview with Eric Lobser! [20:31] Justin asks about compliance at a natural gas company. Eric says his career at a critical infrastructure utility delivering a relatively volatile product to people's homes was very safety-oriented with a lot of rules, regulations, and areas of compliance. [21:04] The whole industry faced a need to replace some of its aging infrastructure. That started when Eric was in Treasury and trying to think about how they would afford all the replacements they were going through. [21:22] It came again when Eric was in Regulatory, trying to understand the balance between safety and rates and what's best for the business and what's best for the customer. [21:53] Compliance is not something you can decide to do a little bit or a lot. You have to meet at least the minimum standards. Spire was always at that point but also found the benefit of going beyond that, to deal with it a little bit more strategically. [22:14] Spire was generally a group that looked at opportunities to do replacement in a way that overall was more cost-effective, exceeding requirements on their compliance. Compliance was an enterprise risk. [22:34] Eric says it was not just making sure they were in compliance, but also what the cost of compliance is and what if people change their minds and all of a sudden want us to do this or that? [22:53] Being a regulated utility, your rates are dependent on somebody deciding you deserve to have this. [23:02] Compliance was more often not physical replacement but putting in another pipe beside the old pipe and terminating the old cast iron pipe that had degraded and become a safety issue. [23:26] Spire always paid attention to where they were getting leaks or water potentially getting into the system and areas of geography that had similar types of risk. [23:39] Spire took a strategic approach to look at the information they were getting and figure out where to go and do wholesale changes rather than responding to risks as they popped up. [23:54] Eric says that was the approach where they took compliance and said if we do more, it probably can be better for us and better for the customer to take a better strategic approach. [24:19] Eric says it's inconvenient and sometimes problematic for people when there are workers in the street. Part of Eric's career was dealing with claims and issues that can happen with construction. The construction was necessary to make sure the system was safe. [24:53] Eric says the most prevalent claims were when they were doing excavation and hit something unmapped, like an underground dog fence or sprinkler system. To be cost-effective, they used reliable outside partners to replace these. [26:44] Eric says that every year, when he was in Strategic Planning, he would help put on a two-day conference for the Board to review company strategy and present new ideas. [27:01] Any time they found an acquisition opportunity that met the muster of the executives, they presented that to the Board. [27:!3] Eric says the Board is extremely interested in rate cases, which are the heart and soul of a utility's business. [27:28] Something Eric found helpful later in his career, doing regulatory work, was to pull together parties without overlapping interests, such as the Board and the Public Service Commission, to help them find agreement on why something was beneficial for the customers. [28:58] Eric says, for the first time or two, presenting to the Board was frightening. He was fortunate enough not to be leading the presentations. He reported to officers who helped develop the business planning and strategy. They helped Eric work his way into bigger roles. [29:32] Eric says when he became more involved in doing the modeling, one time he was called by the CEO to speak to the Board while he was on a family vacation. His wife reminds him of this. The Board was very interested in the upside case and downside case of a model scenario. [30:31] Eric says in that phone call he had to give the Board a rigorous view of why they should spend $1.1 billion on this acquisition. While exciting, Eric says presenting to the Board was a very stressful part of the job. They're relying on things that he's saying to them. [31:12] Eric says acquisitions have their own timeline and they develop however they want to. It's not like going to the grocery store to pick up something. When something pops, it pops, and it's all hands on deck. You don't stop until the job is done. [31:35] One more Quick Break! RIMS, The Foundation for Risk ManagementTM, is dedicated to shaping the future of the profession. By making a contribution, you are strengthening the global risk management community and investing in the future of the industry. [31:55] The Foundation also supports the Spencer Educational Foundation but has a different mission. The Foundation focuses on providing opportunities for those professionals who have already decided to enter risk management and are just getting started. [32:09] You can learn more about the Foundation by visiting www.RIMS.org/FRM.  While you're there, be sure to check out information about the Susan Meltzer Scholarship Fund, which was established to honor Ms. Meltzer, who was RIMS President in 1999 and 2000. [32:28] Susan Meltzer was a cherished RIMS President and contributed so much to RIMS and the greater risk community. Learn more at RIMS.org/FRM.  [32:36] Let's Return to Our Interview with Eric Lobser! [32:52] Eric says that it seems to him that if people viewed Enterprise Risk Management more as Enterprise Value Management, they would better understand that it's more about what you need to do to improve the value of your company. [33:19] In Eric's Strategic Planning days in Corporate Acquisitions, he learned that Expected Value is about changing probabilities, not just the impact of those probabilities. [33:32] Eric says Enterprise Risk Management does a great job of addressing both the likelihood and the impact of things going wrong and things going right. What you're building with ERM is value. You're adding to the value of the company. [33:46] Eric thinks more people would engage. It would resonate with a lot of the corporate cultures to look at ERM as a way to build value for the company. [34:08] Justin says that for almost eight years, Eric was the Spire VP of ERM. Justin asks if Eric was able to hit the ground running, going from Regulatory and Government Affairs into ERM. [34:32] Eric says the position started with Insurance, and then Commodity Risk Management, other elements of the business that helped him up the learning curve. From Acquisitions, Regulatory, Operations, and Customer Service, Eric understood a lot about the business. [34:55] Eric says having a couple of years when he was in charge of Spire's Insurance program, including Captive Management, where you retain risk instead of transferring it, was a great transition to eventually getting Enterprise Risk. [35:31] Eric says he read every book he could get his hands on in the time he had. He noticed some of the things they were doing were based on ISO 31000. Eric read through ISO and COSO. COSO felt very intricate and detailed. [36:10] Eric asked himself what the potential was that we were going to adopt something. The culture of the business manages the risk. ERM oversees how the business manages risk. Eric wanted to pick a framework that fit more with Spire's corporate culture. [36:39] Eric says ISO 31000 is adjustable. He felt like it was a good fit. It was more about strategy and enterprise than Spire's focus had been. It was not just about what could go wrong and what they should be concerned about happening, but what must go right. [37:22] Eric says that looped in what he learned in Strategy, what they have to do to be successful, and what could derail them from that. Spire transitioned a little bit less away from risks and more to strategic imperatives and what they had to do to achieve their strategic vision. [38:02] Justin asks about ERM conferences and what makes a great ERM session. Eric says it's a practitioner who has lived through it with real-world experience on what works, what doesn't work, and why it didn't work. [38:18] Eric says everything's specific to the company, so what works for one may not work for another. An experienced practitioner brings a level of credibility that is important. Eric wants a presenter who focuses on what helps a company be more successful in executing its strategy. [38:41] Eric says a lot of presentations go into risk registers and software, but in the end, risk management is change management, with very complex systems. The presenter should speak to engaging the business, getting different areas to collaborate, and making better decisions. [39:31] Eric says those decisions are about how you allocate resources. Resources are limited. You can't do everything, so you prioritize. [39:41] ERM helps you to prioritize better, using a process of identification and assessment, to help you understand how important a risk is in relation to other risks, how soon it needs to be dealt with, and what level of mitigation and controls you already have in place. [40:13] Eric says, ERM helps you determine if this risk is extremely well-managed and there are resources you can take away from it to put toward a risk that's less well-mitigated. [40:22] Eric says a good ERM session presenter talks about how ERM helps a corporation make better decisions and effectuate those resource allocations that then help that company to be more successful. That's what ERM is about, and when somebody talks about that, it resonates. [41:02] Eric says when he hears a concept that really resonates with him, he tries to pull those concepts together. He has used principles from the Enterprise Risk Oversight Committee. [41:44] Justin says the Global ERM Award of Distinction call for submissions is open. You can send in those nominations now. RIMS Global ERM Award of Distinction nominations are open through Aug. 21! [41:57] Justin asks Eric what makes an Enterprise Risk Management program award-worthy. Eric says some of it is going to be based on the eye of the beholder. Enterprise Risk should be customized to the culture. People are going to view what makes a great program differently. [42:28] Eric says that the SERMC is looking for, with the diverse perspectives of the members, a program that is well-integrated into Strategic Planning, helps the business make decisions, and most importantly, helps it be more successful, with fewer downturns, than their competitors. [43:09] Eric says the business manages risk. ERM can help oversee what they're looking at and turn its attention to important things, and help determine the best ways to mitigate or treat risk, or support what they are doing, so the strategy prevents threats from derailing the company. [43:33] Eric says, in the end, a company that is consistently successful is probably the mark of a good Enterprise Risk Management program. [43:51] Justin says, we're going to see you again on November 19th and 20th in Columbus, Ohio at the RIMS ERM Conference. You can get your nominations in now for the RIMS Global ERM Award of Distinction. We'll have a special awards ceremony, like we do every year. [44:07] Eric, it has been such a pleasure to have you on RIMScast! I look forward to seeing you in Columbus. [44:19] Special thanks again to Eric Lobser for joining us here on RIMScast. We appreciate him and all the great work he does for the RIMS SERMC. The call for nominations for the RIMS Global ERM Award of Distinction is open; a link is in this episode's show notes. [44:36] There are specific attributes that will make a nomination truly award-worthy. Submit your nominations today! [44:42] Plug Time! Become a RIMS member and get access to the tools, thought leadership, and network you need to succeed. Visit RIMS.org/membership or email membershipdept@RIMS.org for more information. [45:00] Risk Knowledge is the RIMS searchable content library that provides relevant information for today's risk professionals. Materials include RIMS executive reports, survey findings, contributed articles, industry research, benchmarking data, and more. [45:16] For the best reporting on the profession of risk management, read Risk Management Magazine at RMMagazine.com. It is written and published by the best minds in risk management. [45:29] Justin Smulison is the Business Content Manager at RIMS. Please remember to subscribe to RIMScast on your favorite podcasting app. You can email us at Content@RIMS.org. [45:41] Practice good risk management, stay safe, and thank you again for your continued support!   Links: RIMS ERM Conference 2026 | November 19‒20 in Columbus, Ohio | Registration Now Open! | www.rims.org/ERM2026 | RIMS ERM Global Award of Distinction nominations open through Aug. 21! RIMS Certification Week: Sept. 21‒24 | Complimentary For All Spencer Educational Foundation's 2026 Funding Their Future Gala | Sept. 17, 2026 RISKWORLD 2027 Registration | RIMS members can lock in 2026 rates now through Sept. 4 | Education Content Submission Through Aug. 21. ChicagoLand Risk Forum | Sept. 24, 2026 RIMS Western Regional Conference — Oct. 4‒7, 2026 | Seattle, WA | Register Today. RIMS Canada Conference — Oct. 18‒21, 2026 | Quebec City | www.rimscanadaconference.ca | Advance Registration Open | Sponsorship Opportunities Available The Strategic and Enterprise Risk Center RIMS, the Foundation for Risk Management Spencer Educational Foundation — Scholarships and Grants | Open Calls and Timelines. RIMS Now RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP) | Insights Video Series Featuring Joe Milan! RIMS Diversity Equity Inclusion Council RIMS-CRMP Stories RIMScast Canada — Episodes Now Live RISK PAC | RIMS Advocacy RIMScast on YouTube! RIMS Risk Management Magazine | Contribute | Q2 2026 Issue Now Available Sponsor RIMScast — Sales@RIMS.org Upcoming RIMS-CRMP Virtual Workshops: RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep Workshop — Live In NY — Aug 27‒28! RIMS-CRMP Exam Prep with PARIMA | Sept 1‒2 Full RIMS-CRMP Prep Course Schedule See the full calendar of RIMS Virtual Workshops Upcoming RIMS Webinars: RIMS.org/Webinars "RIMS Student Series: Classroom to Career Part 1" | Sept 1 "RIMS Student Series: Classroom to Career Part 2" | Sept 9 RIMS Certification Week: Sept. 22‒24 | Complimentary For All   Related RIMScast Episodes: "Board Reporting and ERM in 2026 with Trisha Sqrow and Suzanne Christensen" "The Future of Strategic Risk Management" with John Button "Mid-Year Risk Roundup 2026 with Morgan O'Rourke and Hilary Tuttle" "Emerging Risks and AMRAE's RMIS Panorama 2026 with François Beaume" "Strategy and Change with Ward Ching and Aaron Olson"   Sponsored RIMScast Episodes: "48 Hours From a Storm: What to Do Before A Hurricane Strikes" | Sponsored by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD Company (New!) "AI-Scale, Risk Ready: Engineering Controls for the New Data Center Boom" | Sponsored by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD Company "Facing Into Risk: Navigating the New Risk Landscape" (New!) | Sponsored by AXA XL "Secondary Perils, Major Risks: The New Face of Weather-Related Challenges" | Sponsored by AXA XL "The ART of Risk: Rethinking Risk Through Insight, Design, and Innovation" | Sponsored by Alliant "Mastering ERM: Leveraging Internal and External Risk Factors" | Sponsored by Diligent "Cyberrisk: Preparing Beyond 2025" | Sponsored by Alliant "The New Reality of Risk Engineering: From Code Compliance to Resilience" | Sponsored by AXA XL "Change Management: AI's Role in Loss Control and Property Insurance" | Sponsored by Global Risk Consultants, a TÜV SÜD Company "Demystifying Multinational Fronting Insurance Programs" | Sponsored by Zurich "Understanding Third-Party Litigation Funding" | Sponsored by Zurich "What Risk Managers Can Learn From School Shootings" | Sponsored by Merrill Herzog "Simplifying the Challenges of OSHA Recordkeeping" | Sponsored by Medcor "How Insurance Builds Resilience Against an Active Assailant Attack" | Sponsored by Merrill Herzog "Third-Party and Cyber Risk Management Tips" | Sponsored by Alliant   RIMS Publications, Content, and Links: RIMS Membership — Whether you are a new member or need to transition, be a part of the global risk management community! RIMS Virtual Workshops On-Demand Webinars RIMS-Certified Risk Management Professional (RIMS-CRMP) RISK PAC | RIMS Advocacy RIMS Strategic & Enterprise Risk Center RIMS-CRMP Stories — Featuring RIMS President Manny Padilla!   RIMS Events, Education, and Services: RIMS Risk Maturity Model®   Sponsor RIMScast: Contact sales@rims.org or pd@rims.org for more information.   Want to Learn More? Keep up with the podcast on RIMS.org, and listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.   Have a question or suggestion? Email: Content@rims.org.   Join the Conversation! Follow @RIMSorg on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.   About our guest: Eric Lobser, SERMC Member   Production and engineering provided by Podfly.

Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith has asked the Public Service Commission to undertake a rapid review into the way the Ministry of Justice handled a former employee while he was awaiting trial for criminal charges. Former Lotto host Russell Harrison was suspended on full pay for five years and only lost his job after he pleaded guilty to money laundering last month. Guidance will also be sent to all public service chief executives about managing employment cases involving criminal proceedings. Paul Goldsmith spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

RNZ's Political Editor Jo Moir spoke to John Campbell about the Public Service Commission's apid review into the way the Ministry of Justice handled a former employee while he was awaiting trial for criminal charges.

Georgia is the second-largest data center market in the country, and its grid is straining under load growth no one predicted five years ago. Michael Chanin, CEO of Cherry Street Energy, joins Tim to break down how behind-the-meter solar and storage are stepping in, why utilities need private capital to keep rates in check, and what a multi-gigawatt data center outside Savannah means for the region. Tim sits down with Michael Chanin, CEO of Cherry Street Energy, a vertically integrated power company based in Georgia that develops, owns, and operates behind-the-meter solar and storage for commercial and industrial customers across the Southeast.Georgia repealed its ban on third-party solar ownership in 2015, opening the door for "Solar Energy Procurement Agreements" (Georgia's version of a PPA). Since then, Cherry Street has built a customer base that includes Delta Air Lines, Porsche Cars North America, Gulfstream, and the City of Atlanta, offering no-cost, no-upfront-investment solar that cuts customers' energy bills and carbon footprint.Chanin and Tim dig into what is driving unprecedented load growth in Georgia: the state is now the second-largest data center market in the US after Virginia, and OpenAI recently announced its "Project Camellia" data center campus near Savannah in Effingham County, a $20 billion, 3.2-gigawatt (3,200 MW) project built in partnership with Georgia Power. On the recording, Chanin describes the project as a joint Anthropic/OpenAI announcement and cites 4,000 megawatts of capacity; public reporting on this specific project ties it to OpenAI at roughly 3,200 MW, so that detail is worth a quick check with Chanin or Cherry Street before publishing. Other topics covered:How Cherry Street's economics pencil out: average customer electricity cost of 10-12 cents/kWh, build costs under $1.50/watt, and how real-time pricing has made solar competitive even against historically cheap fossil generationCherry Street's solar-plus-storage pilot with Georgia Power and the emerging value stack for behind-the-meter batteries (capacity payments, energy payments, demand management)Georgia's Public Service Commission, including Chair Jason Shaw and newly elected Democratic commissioners Alicia Johnson and Peter HubbardCherry Street's vertically integrated delivery model: in-house engineers, general contractors, and site supervisors that take a project from signed contract to energized system in under 100 daysCherry Street Energy shows what happens when a state removes one legal barrier and lets the market do the rest. Georgia's 2015 shift on third-party ownership opened the door. Rising load growth from data centers and electrification is now forcing utilities, regulators, and private developers to work together on a scale nobody planned for a few years ago. Chanin's take is clear: solar and storage are not a side story in Georgia's power future. They are becoming part of how the state keeps the lights on and the bills manageable. Listen to the full conversation for the details on Cherry Street's build process, its storage pilot with Georgia Power, and what EPCs and developers should know before entering the Southeast market. Connect with Michael Chanin, Cherry Street Energy LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelchanin/Website: https://www.cherrystreet.com/ Support the showConnect with Tim  Clean Power Hour  Clean Power Hour on YouTubeTim on TwitterTim on LinkedIn Email tim@cleanpowerhour.com Review Clean Power Hour on Apple PodcastsThe Clean Power Hour is produced by the Clean Power Consulting Group and created by Tim Montague. Contact us by email:  CleanPowerHour@gmail.comCorporate sponsors who share our mission to speed the energy transition are invited to check out https://www.cleanpowerhour.com/support/The Clean Power Hour is brought to you by CPS America, maker of North America's number one 3-phase string inverter, with over 6GW shipped in the US. With a focus on commercial and utility-scale solar and energy storage, the company partners with customers to provide unparalleled performance and service. The CPS America product lineup includes 3-phase string inverters from 25kW to 275kW, exceptional data communication and controls, and energy storage solutions designed for seamless integration with CPS America systems.  Learn more at www.chintpowersystems.com

Bongani Bingwa speaks to Professor Somadoda Fikeni about balancing merit and diversity in public institutions, the governance questions raised by the Madlanga Commission, and why representative leadership is vital to public trust and accountability. 702 Breakfast with Bongani Bingwa is broadcast on 702, a Johannesburg based talk radio station. Bongani makes sense of the news, interviews the key newsmakers of the day, and holds those in power to account on your behalf. The team bring you all you need to know to start your day Thank you for listening to a podcast from 702 Breakfast with Bongani Bingwa Listen live on Primedia+ weekdays from 06:00 and 09:00 (SA Time) to Breakfast with Bongani Bingwa broadcast on 702: https://buff.ly/gk3y0Kj For more from the show go to https://buff.ly/36edSLV or find all the catch-up podcasts here https://buff.ly/zEcM35T Subscribe to the 702 Daily and Weekly Newsletters https://buff.ly/v5mfetc Follow us on social media: 702 on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TalkRadio702 702 on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@talkradio702 702 on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/talkradio702/ 702 on X: https://x.com/Radio702 702 on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@radio7See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Public Service Commissioner's defending a probe into controversial ads, that cost much more than the ads did. In October, the Commission paid 426 dollars and 32 cents to to boost ads on social media, opposing mass strike action. An external probe, costing roughly 60-thousand dollars, found the Commission didn't breach neutrality standards, but risked the perception of that. Sir Brian Roche told Ryan Bridge the report provided clarity. He says he felt compelled to correct the narrative from some unions - and says he'd do this again if needed, but with more thought. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Public Service Commission, which regulates Montana utilities, is closing public comment on NorthWestern Energy's controversial 20-year plan on July 28. The proposal has drawn criticism from private citizens and environmental advocacy organizations.

High electricity bills remain a front-burner issue for many Delawareans, who face rising bills with no end in sight.Just last week, the state's Public Service Commission approved a small interim rate increase for Delmarva Power that goes into effect this month while the PSC considered Delmarva's full rate increase request.This came on the heels of lawmakers passing a bill that sought to cap what Delmarva Power could recover for nonessential infrastructure spending, limit interim rate increases and require regular audits of Delmarva, and other utilities.Gov. Meyer hasn't signed that bill yet, but signaled he would. And Meyer has called out Delmarva throughout 2026 for being concerned more about profits than its customers.This week, Tom Byrne sat down with Delmarva Power Delaware Region President Marcus Beal to discuss these issues and the utility's response.

Health Officer, Dr. Brian Huggins ans PIO Marywade Burnside from the Monongalia County Health Department on their upcoming move. David McCormick, R, Monongalia, 82, on his report to the Public Service Commission about poor service from Republic Services and changes in vape regualtions statewide that go into effect tomorrow. 

A performance review by the Public Service Commission says Treasury hasn't been meeting expectations for years, and ministers don't trust the advice they are getting. Secretary to the Treasury, Iain Rennie spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.

Treasury's secretary says he knew there'd be a need for change, and now it's about making it happen. A new report's calling for Treasury to up its game, detailing a litany of blunders, including incorrect ACC deficit numbers, and costings for the Interislander ferry replacements. The Public Service Commission also finds some ministers are losing confidence in its advice. Secretary Iain Rennie told Mike Hosking the organisation has been through a tough few years. He says the leadership team built over the last 12 months can see a new direction and really care about the organisation. Rennie told Hosking Treasury needs to build some of its core skill sets, particularly in economic policy and commercial areas. He says it's challenging economic times for governments everywhere, and to make hard choices the best they can, they need really good advice. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's Thursday, and that means it's time to talk politics with The Times Picayune/New Orleans Advocate's Stephanie Grace. Today, we preview the upcoming elections for Public Service Commission and the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.  Many South Louisianans awoke early Thursday morning to the sound of  loud claps of thunder and pouring rain. The remnants of Tropical Storm Arthur drenched the region throughout the day. The storm is now headed out of our region.Meteorologist Dan Holiday joins us to cover storm damage and what to expect in the coming days.The return of the University of New Orleans to the LSU system has inspired nostalgia among alumni, as well as former and current faculty and staff.UNO Doctoral Researcher of Justice Studies, Amanda Mester-Brown, is asking the questions: Who gets to define a university's story? What does it mean for an institution to remember certain parts of its past while minimizing others? And how is that changed when community memory is invited into the storytelling.Mester-Brown invited all UNO current and former students, faculty and staff to share their stories in the UNO Community Memory Project. She joins us to share more.—Today's episode of Louisiana Considered was hosted by Bob Pavlovich. Our managing producer is Alana Schreiber. We get production and technical support from Garrett Pittman, Adam Vos and our assistant producer, Aubry Procell. You can listen to Louisiana Considered Monday through Friday at noon and 7 p.m. It's available on Spotify, Google Play and wherever you get your podcasts. Louisiana Considered wants to hear from you! Please fill out our pitch line to let us know what kinds of story ideas you have for our show. And while you're at it, fill out our listener survey! We want to keep bringing you the kinds of conversations you'd like to listen to.Louisiana Considered is made possible with support from our listeners. Thank you!

Winston Peters says MBIE's size is an issue as he calls for the officials involved in the latest scandal to be jailed. Immigration Minister Erica Stanford says she was misled about cost increases for a project to upgrade border biometric systems, wasting more than $30 million. The Public Service Commission is investigating officials' behaviour. The New Zealand First Leader told Mike Hosking MBIE is far too big and is covering far too many areas. He says the computer programme INCIS was a failure, and the National Library computer programme and Transmission Gully both went over-budget. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New Zealand First's leader claims people implicated in an MBIE scandal should be jailed. Immigration Minister Erica Stanford says she was misled about ballooning costs for a border biometrics tech upgrade, which was axed with about $33 million dollars lost. The Public Service Commission and MBIE are undertaking reviews. Newstalk ZB senior political correspondent Barry Soper explained further, and speculated on the possible consequences for the officials. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A failure in checks and balances is being highlighted as a reason for the breakdown in trust between the Immigration Minister and officials. Erica Stanford says MBIE staff misled her about cost increases for a project to upgrade border biometric systems – with nothing to show for the millions spent. The Public Service Commission is undertaking an investigation while MBIE does a stock-take of all its technology projects. MBIE Chief Executive Nic Blakeley told Mike Hosking he's going to strengthen their processes and ensure their work is more visible. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel On our political radar this week… A summer snowflake sighting in Wisconsin: Donald Trump stalked out of an NBC interview when his lies about election fraud were challenged by NBC's Kristen Welker. While Trump was attacking mainstream media as “crooked”, his allies at CBS were proving they fit that description by firing 60 Minutes anchor Scott Pelley for calling out management efforts to spin stories on behalf of Trump. Just days after proclaiming “ I don't think about Americans' financial situations,” Trump gave Democrats another campaign commercial saying that “he loves the inflation” … which has hit a 3-year high. Adding to the out-of-touch aura from the White House, he's reaching out to the average American as only an 80-year-old billionaire can do it: first by attending a basketball game where the cheapest tickets cost thousands, and then by offering a UFC 250 gold coin for $11,999.99. The Michigan sales tax on that trinket: $720. But it includes free shipping! © Clay Jones – https://claytoonz.substack.com Entertainment for Trump's 80th birthday party – the UFC concussion contests on what used to be the White House south lawn – has cost taxpayers upwards of $60-million plus thousands of hours of staff time according to the National Park Service. Add to that the $2-million or so it costs taxpayers almost every week for Trump's  weekly golf trip to Florida and you've got enough money to gift 6,000 or so Americans with Trump 250 commemorative coins. As Michigan State University looks once again for a new President, retiring U.S. Senator Gary Peters' name moves to the top of the speculation. This comes as retired Senator Debbie Stabenow and Governor Gretchen Whitmer say they're not interested in the job. All 3 are MSU alumni. CMS Energy is adding to the politics of affordability, asking for still another massive rate increase. The utility wants to raise electric rates by $486-million. This rate hike request comes less than three months after the utility received approval for a $217 million increase. Attorney General Nessel and multiple legislators are pushing back – Nessel fighting the increase through the Public Service Commission, lawmakers proposing measures to limit the frequency of rate increase requests. The battle for control of the closely divided Michigan Legislature is well underway. Democrats need to flip 4 seats to regain control of the state House; Republicans need to turn around 2 seats to win control of the state Senate. We'll get into the details with Kyle Melinn, editor of the insider newsletter MIRS News. Governor Whitmer headlined the ribbon cutting for an important bridge this week … just not THE bridge. While the Miller-Rotunda Bridge in Dearborn (important to the Ford Rouge Plant complex) is now open, the Trump administration continues to delay the opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge. The Trump roadblock for Michigan's economy is supported by state House Speaker Matt Hall, who says Michigan needs to renegotiate toll sharing for the bridge – even though Canada paid the full cost of construction. The New York Times is reporting that Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer is promoting Haley Stevens' campaign for the U.S. Senate. This comes as Abdul El-Sayed surges in internal polls … all of this two weeks before the first primary election ballots go into the mail. Ballots begin going out to Michigan voters on June 25. Every elective state and federal job will be filled in the November election. While the spotlight will be on the races for Governor and U.S. Senate, there's a lot more at stake, including control of the state Legislature. That's where we started our conversation with visiting pundit and chronicler of Michigan politics, Kyle Melinn. Kyle is editor of the MIRS Report, the go-to source for Michigan political insiders, providing in-depth coverage of all of state government and politics. He's been with MIRS for 25 years, dating back to the Engler administration. In addition to his daily reporting, he is also a political columnist for Lansing City Pulse. © Clay Jones – https://claytoonz.substack.com ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Introducing our new podcast! Greed, Grift$ and Grab$: The Trump Crime Family Chronicles ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ A Republic, If You Can Keep It is sponsored in part by

Kaitlin McCormick from NextEra Energy Transmission, Senior Project Director for the Mid- Atlantic Resiliency Link on the culmination of Public Service Commission public comment sessionsFairmont City Manager Travis Blosser on the 1 year anniverary of the Father's Day floodsClark Nicklow with Preston County Emergency Management on the Cascade Dam

Last year, progressives pulled off their biggest state-level win in Georgia in 20 years when voters elected two Democrats to the state's Public Service Commission, which oversees electricity utilities. It was the first time Democrats had won a state-level office in Georgia since 2006. This year, Democrats have a chance to take an outright majority on the board.What would that mean — and what has life been like for the state's newest power regulators? On this episode of Shift Key, Rob is joined by Peter Hubbard, a former renewables developer who won a spot on the Georgia Public Service Commission last year and will defend it this November. They discuss what a regulator's day-to-day is like, how Georgia is dealing with the data center boom, and whether regulators can ever bring powerful utilities to heel.Shift Key is hosted by Robinson Meyer, the founding executive editor of Heatmap News.You can find a full transcript of the episode here.Mentioned:Previously in Heatmap: Democrats Win 2 Key Energy Races in Georgia--This episode of Shift Key is sponsored by ...Heatmap Pro brings all of our research, reporting, and insights down to the local level. The software platform tracks all local opposition to clean energy and data centers, forecasts community sentiment, and guides data-driven engagement campaigns. Book a demo today to see the premier intelligence platform for project permitting and community engagement.Music for Shift Key is by Adam Kromelow. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Public Service Commission of West Virginia is currently conducting public comment hearings concerning developer NextEra Energy's application to construct a new 107.5-mile-long transmission line from Pennsylvania through West Virginia to Virginia. WVPB spoke with NextEra about the project. The post A Discussion On The NextEra Transmission Line Proposal, This West Virginia Morning appeared first on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

Former Congressman Peter Roskam, who leads BakerHostetler's Federal Policy team, provides listeners with a front-row seat to the most important policy and political debates in Congress. In this episode of “The Cloakroom with Peter Roskam,” Peter is joined at the 37th Annual Legislative Seminar in Washington D.C., by his BakerHostetler colleague, former Congressman Heath Shuler. Also joining is Senator Kevin Cramer, a Republican from North Dakota. Cramer was first elected to the Senate in 2018 after serving in the House for six years. A leader on energy policy, he previously served on the state's Public Service Commission overseeing public utilities and telecommunications. In the Senate, he's active on the Banking Committee, where he has promoted policies to prevent “debanking” of legal industries, ensure fair access to financial services, integrate digital assets into the existing financial infrastructure and reauthorize the Export-Import Bank long term. Cramer also serves on the Armed Services Committee, the Environment and Public Works Committee and the Veterans' Affairs Committee.Questions & Comments: proskam@bakerlaw.com

05/27/26: Tyler Axness is filling in for Joel Heitkamp, and is joined in the KFGO studio by Chris Olson. Chris is running for the 2 year Public Service Commission for North Dakota. (Joel Heitkamp is a talk show host on the Mighty 790 KFGO in Fargo-Moorhead. His award-winning program, “News & Views,” can be heard weekdays from 8 – 11 a.m. Follow Joel on X/Twitter @JoelKFGO.)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Wisconsin continues to move forward with the goal of connecting everyone to the internet. Ben Jarboe finds out that the path has been rife with challenges. Alyssa Kenney, State Broadband and Digital Equity Director for Public Service Commission of Wisconsin says the goal remains to achieve full broadband access statewide by 2030. The state has had a broadband expansion grant program in place since 2014. Early funding was modest, but investments increased significantly starting in 2019 and surged during the pandemic. State and federal funding (including the American Rescue Plan Act) have driven major broadband expansion. Over $365 million has been invested, supporting more than 400 broadband projects. Nearly 1 million people (about 300,000 locations) have gained improved broadband access in the last five years. Heat has returned to Wisconsin! Stu Muck says now everyone needs to stay aware of the possibility for severe weather as the week unfolds. Career opportunities abound with the Steffes Group. Ashley Huhn visits with Pam Jahnke about some of the areas they need staff that may not first come to mind for people. Paid for by Steffes Group. The fertilizer industry is as anxious as consumers to find out what damage has been caused in the Strait of Hormuz. Corey Rosenbush, President and CEO of the Fertilizer Institute says about a third of the world’s urea, 20 percent of the phosphate, and more than half of the sulfur moves through the Strait of Hormuz effectively blocked by Iran since March 2nd. Unfortunately, says Rosenbusch, there are no simple or quick answers to bringing those prices back down. Oil prices did take a break over the holiday weekend. John Heinberg, market advisor with Total Farm Marketing our of West Bend says traders will watch that today. He also notes that China has told Brazil they're not accepting their beef until after detecting hormones in some packages, but thinks there's some gamesmanship there. He also recaps Friday's April Milk Production figures. Big cow numbers and big production. That'll keep the pressure on Wisconsin dairy operations.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What if you could lower your utility bill at the polls? In Georgia, that's exactly what voters have had the opportunity to do. By flipping two Public Service Commission seats in 2025, they've shown that elected officials can be held accountable for rising energy costs. In this episode, host Gloria Riviera speaks with Leslie Palomino, Georgia State Director at Poder Latinx, about how the organization has been mobilizing Latino voters around energy affordability and what's at stake for upcoming elections later this year.  This episode was made in partnership with Poder Latinx. To learn more about their work, visit poderlatinx.org Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kerry Lutz and Gregory Mannarino discuss why they believe the financial, political, and media systems are rapidly breaking down — and what individuals can still do to protect themselves before the next major crisis hits. From currency debasement and market manipulation to AI surveillance, stablecoins, and centralized control, they warn that the system is becoming increasingly rigged against the average person. The conversation covers perpetual war, Federal Reserve policy, asset inflation, and the growing transfer of wealth away from the middle class. Greg and Kerry explain why higher interest rates, hard assets, financial independence, and emotional discipline may become critical in the years ahead. Kerry also details ongoing legal and regulatory efforts, including federal lawsuits, petitions with Florida regulators, and a Public Service Commission hearing focused on forcing utility companies to provide access to real customer service representatives instead of endless automation. They also discuss media manipulation, censorship, independent media platforms like Substack, and why grassroots action and personal responsibility may be the only path left to restoring economic freedom. Find Greg here: https://substack.com/@gregorymannarino Find Kerry here :https://khlfsn.substack.com and here: https://inflation.cafe    Kerry's New Book "The Armstrong Economic Code: The 5 Truths Investors Must Never Forget" is out now on Amazon!  Get your copy here:   https://a.co/d/bvYbZOz  "The World According to Martin Armstrong – Conversations with the Master Forecaster" is a #1 Best Seller on Amazon. . Get your copy here: https://amzn.to/4kuC5p5

Governor Brian Kemp scheduled a summer special session to reassess GA's 2028 maps after the recent Supreme Court ruling on the Voting Rights Act; local energy groups join a lawsuit against the federal Environmental Protection Agency for not maintaining clean air; and what's at stake during the Public Service Commission election this yearSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of The Electric Wire, host Kristin Gilkes sits down with Public Service Commission of Wisconsin Chairperson Summer Strand to discuss the evolving role of utility regulation at a time of rising scrutiny, growing energy demand, and increasing conversations around affordability and reliability.Chairperson Strand shares insights into her experience leading the PSCW and previews the upcoming Mid-America Regulatory Conference (MARC) in Madison, where regulators from across the country will gather to discuss the most pressing issues facing the utility industry today. The conversation explores how regulators balance technical analysis with public policy debates, why forums like MARC matter, and what attendees can expect from this year's conference agenda.MARC 2026 Registration Link: https://marc-conference.org/marc-conference/registration/

Matt Epling with the Transportation Division of the Public Service Commission about their participation in the 2026 International Roadcheck on I-68 just outside Morgantown. Director of University Events at WVU- Kelly Saunders Flanagan on May Commencement this weekend. Bill Walker, Executive Director of National Security and Cyberspace Programs, and of WVU Cyber on the partnership with the company Twnety. , 

On this AgCast Extra, we will hear highlights from our previous interviews with  FarmPAC-endorsed candidates. The primary election is May 19th, so be sure to vote for these pro-ag candidates and encourage your friends and family to support them.For statewide offices, we will hear from Matt Gentry (0:54), running for Public Service Commission, Place 1; Corey Hill (7:02), candidate for Commissioner of Ag & Industry; Derek Chen (12:47), for State Auditor; Caroleene Dobson (18:47), for Secretary of State; Katherine Robertson (24:22), candidate for Attorney General; and Wes Allen (29:45), running for Lt. Governor.Running for Federal offices, on the AgCast, will be Jerry Carl (35:09), candidate for US House, District 1, and Steve Marshall (40:58), running for the US Senate.

We talk about drivers and motorcycle operators using care when sharing the road with large farm equipment. We also must focus attention on the farm youth that could be operating those implements. Ben Jarboe talks with Brittany Marquard, the education and programing manager at The Food and Farm Exploration Center in Plover. She says the with distracted drivers causing more accidents then ever before, it's important that young operators receive some training before operating. Marquard says even for 'farm kids', there's training necessary. Parents need to also have realistic expectations on what their kids can do. Understanding their body size and maturity are key components. Marquard says with all the increased horsepower on today's farm, even a small string on a hoodie can become a lethal entanglement that youth need to be aware of. Nice day on the way - and dry! Stu Muck says he's been seeing some seeders out, fertilizers getting spread - all thanks to drier conditions. Temperatures will cool a bit today, and there's still a chance of frost in the forecast through Thursday mid-morning. Auctioneering is a people to people service. Ashley Huhn from the Steffes Group joins Pam Jahnke to recap some comments from clients that have worked with the group. Huhn says every employee in their firm makes a human connection with the client. That's a difference maker. Paid for by Steffes Group. Weather is causing problems for more than just Wisconsin farmers. Alyssa Kenney, State Broadband and Digital Equity Director for Public Service Commission of Wisconsin says some broadband internet projects got held up too. Kenney notes that Wisconsin has about 92% of their connectivity projects complete, but areas in Door County that received a lot of late snow are delayed. Still, she believes the state is well on its way to attaining statewide connectivity by 2030. Crop progress report had a few items of note this week. John Heinberg, market advisor with Total Farm Marketing in West Bend joins Pam Jahnke to review. Lots of risk for Wisconsin farmers to monitor and manage coming up over the next 10 days according to Heinberg.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the April 30 edition: An Atlanta Hawks executive is sentenced for embezzlement; A man accuses the Fulton County Jail of severe neglect; And the rising cost of power takes central stage at the Public Service Commission debate.

A packed U.S. Supreme Court guts what is left of the Voting Rights Act while cynically claiming not to overturn it. We delve into the the implications for civil rights and for the 2026 and 2028 elections We welcome Christine Neuman Ortiz, the Executive Director of Voces de la Frontera to discuss their huge May Day marches and rallies in Milwaukee and Madison. Christine educates our listeners on the federal and state agenda for immigrant rights and urges everyone to attend one of the May Day events. Attend a May Day Strong event near you Robert reviews a wild week in A.I. data center news, including: (1) the Public Service Commission makes major changes to the We Energies proposed rates for data centers; (2) Wisconsin data center tax break to cost the state more than $2 billion in lost revenue; and (3) a new Marquette national poll shows the same public opposition to data centers it has found in state polling. Meanwhile on the health care cost crisis, Citizen Action and allies continue with well attended Health Care Town Halls, this week in Wisconsin's Northern Tier in Superior and Ashland. Robert explains why politicians saying it is no longer possible for Wisconsin to expand Medicaid or enact a BadgerCare Public Option miss the mark. Global warming sparks surge in tick bites, lymes disease, in Wisconsin. Robert provides us with the latest tick report for hikers and campers for the outdoor season. We close with more on the “electability” debate in the Democratic Gubernatorial Primary, as a new “leaked” memo from Tiffany consultants touts the electoral strengths of Francesca Hong. Is their claim that Hong's populist appeal could supercharge Democratic turnout and cut into the GOP rural base mere subterfuge to aid a less electable opponent, or a compelling indictment of the conventional wisdom of the Democratic consultant class?

Here's your local news for Monday, April 27, 2026:We dig into the Public Service Commission's landmark ruling last week on data centers,Discuss the latest election-related news from around the state,Share the local government's calendar for the week ahead,Mark the anniversary of the Birmingham Children's Crusade,Teach you how to mix up an “Ocean Breeze” cocktail,Review two more movies from the Wisconsin Film Festival,And much more.

On this episode of Discover Lafayette, we welcome Nancy Landry, Louisiana's 45th Secretary of State and the state's chief elections officer. A Lafayette native and former State Representative for District 31, Landry brings both institutional knowledge and a deep personal connection to Acadiana as she returns home to discuss a pivotal moment in Louisiana's election landscape. Landry opens with a reminder that while most people associate her office with elections, its responsibilities extend far beyond the ballot box. “We administer all the elections in the state,” she explains, “but we also are in charge of registering businesses, we administer and run nine museums, and we're in charge of keeping and preserving the state's archives.” She emphasizes the office's goal of providing “a one-stop shop” for businesses, with accessible and largely free public records, a resource many, including those in the legal community, rely upon daily. The heart of the conversation centers on significant changes to Louisiana's election system. Beginning with the May 16 primary, the state will implement a partially closed party primary for five specific races: U.S. House, U.S. Senate, Louisiana Supreme Court, Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE), and the Public Service Commission. Landry explains clearly: “If you are a registered Republican, you will get a Republican ballot and if you're a Democrat, you'll get the Democrat ballot. And if you are an unaffiliated “No Party” voter, you will get to choose which primary you participate in when you arrive at your precinct to vote.” She stresses that this selection of Democrat or Republican, once made, carries through any runoff election. This shift marks a notable departure from Louisiana's long-standing “jungle primary” system and introduces new responsibilities for voters. Landry underscores the importance of awareness: “Even though you've been voting a certain way your whole life, if you've not officially changed your party registration, that official registration is what determines which ballot you get.” The deadline to update voter registration or party affiliation for the upcoming May 16 primary election is April 25. She strongly encourages voters to verify their party status using the Secretary of State’s GeauxVote webpage or mobile app. The conversation also offers a behind-the-scenes look at the complexity of administering elections across Louisiana's 64 parishes. Landry describes a highly coordinated system of training, logistics, and oversight, calling poll workers “the backbone of elections.” She candidly shares that election days are rarely without incident—“There is a fire somewhere at some precinct in almost every single election,” highlighting the adaptability required to ensure voting continues uninterrupted. Louisiana's election system, she notes, is nationally recognized for its integrity. “We're ranked number four in the nation in election integrity,” Landry says, pointing to what she calls the “four P's”: people, policies, procedures, and physical security. Among those safeguards: voting machines that are never connected to the internet, public testing and sealing procedures, and strict enforcement of election laws. Looking ahead, Landry discusses efforts to modernize Louisiana's voting infrastructure. The current system is more than 30 years old, and the state is working toward a new model that combines efficiency with accountability. “We want the speed and accuracy that we're used to, but we also want to have that paper ballot to provide a check and balance,” she explains, describing plans for risk-limiting audits as the “gold standard” for verifying election results. Photo of Secretary of State Nancy Landry by Javier Gallegos of Nola.com Beyond policy and process, Landry speaks passionately about civic engagement. From serving as a poll worker to contacting elected officials, she encourages citizens to take an active role in shaping their communities. “The number one people that we listen to are our constituents,” she says, reflecting on her own experience as a legislator. She also reminds listeners that even local elections, often overlooked, can have the most direct impact on daily life. At its core, this conversation is a timely and practical guide for Louisiana voters navigating meaningful change. Landry's message is clear: stay informed, verify your registration, and most importantly—show up. We thank Secretary of State Nancy Landry for her service to our state and devotion to making her office the best in the U. S.

We discuss the death of long-time Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel political reporter Daniel Bice and reflect on his unique combination of skilled writing, muckraking journalism, and even-handedness, and the respect he engendered from the politicians and political actors he exposed. Dan's passing also forces us to take stock on the dying newspaper industry that was once so central to Wisconsin politics. The inevitable debate over “electability” emerged this week in the Democratic governor primary election when candidate Sara Rodriguez questioned the electability of the other Democratic candidates who are polling well ahead of her. We dive into the debate and its perils. We lament the dissolution of the Hustisford school district after another failed referendum to make up for inadequate state funding and expose new research revealing among the highest racial disparities in the U.S. in Wisconsin's incarceration rates. We blast news that UnitedHealth boosted their 2026 earnings after increasing prices, proving monopolized health insurance is doing well denying care and overcharing for coverage, all made possible and encouraged by bi-partisan policy choices. Wisconsin toothless regulators, the Public Service Commission, to decide on We Energies' data center electric rates and workers at two Rogers mental health clinics elect union by large majorities, despite a sleazy union busting campaign from the employer.

New Zealand police are facing serious integrity and conduct issues and a reset is mission critical according to a scathing review by the Public Service Commission. The report details a perceived culture that holds seniors to a lesser standard than juniors and calls for urgent action. Tribalism at senior levels is also indentified as an issue along with a complaints system that can fail at all levels. Police Commissioner Richard Chambers spoke to Lisa Owen.

The state Public Service Commission on Wednesday voted 4-1 to fast-track Entergy and Meta's application for seven new gas power plants and billions of dollars worth of other investments in infrastructure to power the big data center being built in northeast Louisiana. Davante Lewis, Public Service Commissioner and the sole dissenter, joins Ian Hoch to explain why he voted against it.

The Trump Economy On our political radar this week… J.D. Vance went 0-for-2 on his European trip. Victor Orban, campaigning with Vance at his side, got dumped as President of Hungary…despite ringing endorsements from Donald Trump and his BFF Vladimir Putin. Then Vance led negotiations with Iran over ending Trump's Middle East War and struck out, calling it quits after all of one day of talks. Facing multiple allegations of sexual improprieties, Eric Swalwell has resigned from Congress and pulled out of the California gubernatorial race while denying the accusations. There was bipartisan condemnation of Swalwell's behavior but, when asked if the same standard should be applied to pussy-grabbing Donald Trump, Republicans suddenly had a problem answering. Also resigning in disgrace: Texas Republican Tony Gonzalez, like Swalwell facing allegations of sexual misconduct against him. Republicans are worried that a special election to replace him could result in a Democratic flip thanks, in part, to the new GOP gerrymander of the state. The Trump politicizing of the Justice Department continues. Two federal civil rights prosecutors in Detroit who secured convictions against a group of Christian protestors accused of blocking access to abortion clinics were fired as part of a Trump administration crackdown on what it says were politically motivated cases under former President Joe Biden. Donald Trump is redirecting his demented rage at Pope Leo, who had the temerity to note that Jesus wasn't a fan of war or genocide. All that's been missing so far: Trump calling the Pope “Low IQ”. And then, there’s that AI image of “Dr. Jesus of Palm Beach” which was quickly deleted from Trump's Truth Social account. The field is effectively set for Michigan's U.S. Senate race. On the Democratic side, Haley Stevens, Mallory McMorrow and Abdul El Sayed each submitted their nominating petitions to the Elections Bureau in the last few days. Republican Mike Rogers' campaign says he has his petitions ready to go and will file shortly. All four candidates are submitting around 30,000 signatures, the maximum allowed under state law. John James has joined with all the Republican candidates for Governor making a campaign promise they can't keep: repealing the state income tax. The repeal would basically eliminate the entire General Fund budget. Since Michigan has a flat-rate tax, the biggest winners with repeal would be the state's wealthiest taxpayers. Attorney General Dana Nessel has blasted on one of the many offsets that's raising your cost of living: utility rates run amuck. She joined with other Democratic and community leaders to deride the state's Public Service Commission for rolling over on behalf of the state's two major utilities. Michigan Democrats are holding their candidate endorsement convention this weekend. The events can be seen as a prelude to the 2028 national campaign with potential presidential candidates Kamala Harris, Andy Beshear and Cory Booker all doing some speechifying in the Motor City. The Dems are focusing on growing inflation brought about by Donald Trump's Mideast War, and his obsession with tariffs. Congresswoman Debbie Dingell led a news conference addressing the most fundamental “kitchen table” issue: the cost of living, noting that tax cuts in the Republicans' Big Beautiful Bill are more than offset by the cost of groceries, gasoline, electricity and healthcare. It's a mantra we'll hear a lot between now and November.  Thank you for your attention to this matter. We’re now on YouTube every week! Click here to subscribe. A Republic, If You Can Keep It is sponsored by  

This week on Truth to Power, we conclude or mini-series of highlights from the Metropolitan Housing Coalition's conference held on April 7, 2026 at the Muhammad Ali Center, entitled "Beyond The Rent: Policy Driven Solutions for Housing and Utility Burdens." Today we'll hear the Lunch Keynote: Kent Chandler, R Street Research Fellow and former KY Public Service Commission Chair on "How Utility Policy Works And Why It Matters for Kentucky." Hear from an expert with experience at the Public Service Commission and in utility policy, including current work at R Street. Gain a behind-the-scenes look at how good utility policy is shaped, what's happening in Kentucky's energy landscape, and the impact on housing affordability and utility costs. Learn more about the conference and speakers at https://beyondtherent.org Truth to Power airs every Friday at 9pm, Saturday at 11am, and Sunday at 7pm on Louisville's grassroots, community radio station, Forward Radio 106.5fm WFMP and live streams at https://www.forwardradio.org

Democratic House candidates try to separate from the pack. Senate Republican candidate Kurt Alme tries to downplay the last-minute maneuver that put him into the race. Senate Democratic candidate Reilly Neill promises to hold President Trump accountable if she's elected. And this may be the last time voters elect members of the state Public Service Commission.

Democratic House candidates try to separate from the pack. Senate Republican candidate Kurt Alme tries to downplay the last-minute maneuver that put him into the race. Senate Democratic candidate Reilly Neill promises to hold President Trump accountable if she's elected. And this may be the last time voters elect members of the state Public Service Commission.

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What if you could lower your utility bill at the polls? In Georgia, that’s exactly what voters have had the opportunity to do. By flipping two Public Service Commission seats in 2025, they’ve shown that elected officials can be held accountable for rising energy costs. In this episode, host Gloria Riviera speaks with Leslie Palomino, Georgia State Director at Poder Latinx, about how the organization has been mobilizing Latino voters around energy affordability and what’s at stake for upcoming elections later this year. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today we have politicians lining up on one side or another of the bill to revamp the selection of the Public Service Commission. Also, we items on a construction-worker academy, a big contract for the Alabama Institute of the Deaf and Blind, and "Protect the MoonPie." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices