Northern Virginia Daily, August 20, 2008

by Garren Shipley

Democratic Gov. Timothy M. Kaine's should reconsider his decision to appoint a lawyer representing Dominion Virginia to the State Corporation Commission, according to a local congressman.

Rep. Frank Wolf, R-10th, wrote to Kaine this week asking him to reconsider his appointment of James C. Dimitri, of Richmond-based law firm McGuire Woods, to a long-standing vacancy on the three-member regulatory body.

Dimitri is the lead attorney representing Dominion Virginia in the utility's effort to build a controversial 500-kilovolt power line from Frederick to Loudoun county.

"Virginians deserve an impartial SCC that will act in the consumer interest," Wolf wrote. "I believe that the Commonwealth deserves better than a nominee who has fought to put special interest above the common interest.

Kaine announced the appointment late Friday, filling a long-standing vacancy on the panel and also ends a legislative deadlock over who should fill the seat.

Commissioner Theo-dore V. Morrison, Jr. a former Democratic delegate from Newport News, retired at the end of 2007, leaving his seat for the General Assembly to fill.

But after haggling through three sessions in one year, lawmakers couldn't come up with the votes to fill the seat, leaving it to Kaine.

Dimitri will serve until the next regular session of the General Assembly in 2009, when his appointment will either be ratified or rejected.

The three-member commission will make the ultimate decision as to whether the Virginia portion of the $1 billion-plus Pennsylvania to Loudoun County line is built.

Both Dominion Virginia and Allegheny Power argue that the line is necessary to avoid rolling blackouts in Northern Virginia as early as 2011, a position backed by an SCC hearing examiner's report earlier this month.

Opponents say the line is unnecessary and simply a way for the utilities to make more money by selling more electricity, rather than implementing conservation and demand management efforts.

Wolf is apparently judging Dimitri based on just one part of his resume, said Gordon Hickey, a spokesman for Kaine.

In addition to his work for Dominion and the attorney general's office, he has also been counsel to the commission and the Virginia Poverty Law Center — often opposing utilities like Dominion and Allegheny Power.

"The fact is that Mr. Dimitri is unique in that he has the broadest perspective on the work of the State Corporation Commission that an individual could have," Hickey said.

Also, three environmental organization who have opposed Dimitri's clients wrote to Kaine and asked for the appointment.

"There is no higher compliment a lawyer can receive than to be publicly recommended for a judicial position by those who have been adversaries in important litigation," Hickey said.

It's easy to see it both ways, according to Del. Clifford L. "Clay" Athey, R-Front Royal, who serves on one of the committees responsible for filling SCC vacancies.

"I think it calls into question the efficacy of the appointment when the individual is that closely involved in probably the biggest SCC case during my tenure in the General Assembly," Athey said.

On the other hand, just because a lawyer represented a certain client doesn't mean that his views will always align with those of his former clients.

"We'll have to carefully weight [Kaine's] appointments to the [Virginia Supreme Court], the [Virginia Court of Appeals] and particularly the SCC," Athey said. "Let's be clear. They serve only until the next time the legislature meets."