Democratic-Controlled General Assembly Poised to Elect SCC Judges After Long Vacancies

Two seats on the Virginia State Corporation Commission that have been vacant for over a year because of a political standoff are on the way to getting filled by the Democratic-controlled legislature.

The House Labor and Commerce Committee and Senate Commerce and Labor Committee, in a joint decision Tuesday, unanimously backed two candidates for the body: Kelsey Bagot, an energy company attorney and former legal adviser with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and Sam Towell, a Smithfield Foods attorney who previously was with the Virginia Office of the Attorney General.

The two must now be elected by a majority of both chambers, a vote that could occur as soon as Wednesday.

Democrats, who assumed control of the House while retaining control of the Senate in November, chose Bagot and Towell after reviewing resumes from 23 candidates, according to Senate Commerce and Labor Chairman Creigh Deeds, D-Charlottesville. He and House Labor and Commerce Chairwoman Jeion Ward, D-Hampton, were tasked by the party with finding candidates to fill the vacancies.

Sam Towell, left, and Kelsey Bagot, right, speak with State Corporation Commission staff, lobbyists and attorneys Tuesday. (Charlie Paullin/Virginia Mercury)

In a text message, Deeds said five candidates were interviewed, and the party “picked the two we thought would bring the right experience, intellect, and balance to the Commission.”

House Republican Caucus spokesperson Garren Shipley said his caucus had “zero involvement” with the choice of candidates.

The SCC is responsible for regulating public utilities, banking, business, and insurance in Virginia. In particular, it oversees Virginia’s two largest electric utilities, Dominion Energy and Appalachian Power Company. However, conflicts between Democrats and Republicans about who to appoint to vacant slots have left the commission short of two of its three required members since December 2022. One seat hasn’t been filled since 2021.

Bagot currently works as an attorney for energy company NextEra Energy and previously was a legal adviser to Mark Christie, a former SCC judge who was appointed to FERC.

Democratic control of legislature opens up chance for long-delayed SCC appointments

In her previous role at FERC, Bagot said she worked on “a number of technically complex and legally complex issues that are similar to the kinds of issues that before the Virginia State Corporation Commission.”

Towell is currently an attorney for Smithfield Foods and previously was a state deputy attorney general.

During his time with the attorney general’s office, Towell said his team was “involved in every major rate case that came before the commission primarily from a  ratepayer perspective, that’s for the eclectic utilities but also the water and gas utilities as well.”

Only one legislator made any comment during the certification meeting on Tuesday. Del. Tony Wilt, R-Rockingham, asked Bagot whether, given her work with NextEra, she would be able “to look at not just solar but all energy issues from an impartial standpoint?”

Bagot responded, “My role as commissioner is to be open-minded, to build a robust record to make sure that I’m asking the right questions.”

Albert Pollard, a former Democratic delegate who lobbies on behalf of the Virginia Poverty Law Center, a nonprofit that advocates for ratepayer protections, said the selection process “has been fairly deliberate and thoughtful.”

Walton Shepherd, Virginia policy director with the Natural Resources Defense Council, said Bagot and Towell were “two eminently qualified jurists who can steer Virginia’s clean energy economy forward.”

University of Richmond School of Law Professor Carl Tobias, who studies judge selections at the federal and state levels, said he was impressed with the two candidates’ backgrounds and the appearance of bipartisan support for them during the joint meeting Tuesday.

“It seems like if Republicans were upset, the time to object or criticize Democrats was in that interview,” Tobias said. “They lost the election. They knew whoever won was going to be able to name the people.”

by Charlie Paullin, Virginia Mercury

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