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Whirlpool Corporation is honored to have been chosen as a recipient of a U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Smart Grid Investment Grant program grant of $19.3 million over a two year period - which the company will match with its own investments. Whirlpool Corporation recently announced that in 2011 it would deliver one million U.S. manufactured smart dryers capable of reacting intelligently to signals from the smart grid by modifying their energy consumption to save consumers money on their home electric bills. In addition, the funds will complement the company's commitment that by 2015 all of the electronically controlled appliances it produces - everywhere in the world - will be capable of receiving and responding to signals from the smart grid. This commitment is dependent on two important public-private partnerships: the development by the end of 2010 of an open, global standard for transmitting signals to and receiving signals from a home appliance; and appropriate policies that reward consumers, manufacturers and utilities for using and adding these new peak demand reduction capabilities. The ability to access, analyze and respond to much more precise and detailed data from all levels of the electric grid is one of the major benefits of the Smart Grid, but those benefits could be lost or substantially delayed unless consumers recognize that Smart Grid technologies also respect their reasonable expectations of privacy and data security, particularly when usage data and data extrapolations can be associated with individual consumers or locations.

These comments are submitted on behalf of the National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates (NASUCA) in response to the request for information (RFI) of the Department of Energy (DOE) entitled “Implementing the National Broadband Plan by Studying the Communications Requirements of Electric Utilities to Inform Federal Smart Grid Policy.” See 75 Fed. Reg. 26206 (May 11, 2010).1 NASUCA is a voluntary organization comprised of offices from 40 states and the District of Columbia, charged by their respective state laws to represent utility consumers before federal and state utility regulatory commissions, before other federal and state agencies, and before federal and state courts. Many NASUCA members have extensive experience with regulatory policies governing the utility industry and have participated in proceedings concerning smart grid and consumer privacy issues. NASUCA members’ primary interest is the protection of residential and other small utility consumers.

Motorola, Inc. (“Motorola”) hereby responds to the National Broadband Plan Request for Information (“ NBP RFI”) on the communications requirements of utilities, including but not limited to requirements for Smart Grid.1 Motorola supports the efforts of the Department of Energy (“DOE”) to fully assess utilities’ requirements before the communications solutions for Smart Grid and other requirements are addressed. Based on Motorola’s experience in providing communications systems for utilities, public safety, enterprise, and business users, as well as for commercial carriers and the general public, it is clear that there is no substitute for understanding the user needs first and then applying viable technology solutions to meet those needs.

Tropos Networks is pleased to submit the following commentary and information to the DOE regarding the communication requirements of utilities for Smart Grid applications based on its experience with utility customers.

Comments of Southern California Edison on Implementing the National Broadband Plan by Studying the Communications Requirements of Electric Utilities to Inform Federal Smart Grid Policy

Exelon Corporation (Exelon) hereby submits the following comments in response to the request by the Department of Energy ("DOE" or "Department") for information on state efforts to enact Smart Grid privacy and data collection policies; utility practices and policies regarding data access and collection; third party access to detailed energy information; the role of the consumer in balancing benefits of data access and privacy; and policies and practices that should guide policymakers in determining who can access consumer energy information and under what conditions.1 Exelon Corporation is a holding company, located at 10 South Dearborn Street, Chicago, Illinois. Exelon Corporation owns Commonwealth Edison Company (ComEd) and PECO Energy Company (PECO). Together ComEd and PECO own transmission and distribution systems and serve over five million retail electric customers in northern Illinois and the Philadelphia area. Exelon Corporation also owns Exelon Generation, LLC (ExGen), which owns or controls approximately 33,000 MW of generating facilities.

Comments of Baltimore Gas & Electric Company on Implementing the National Broadband Plan by Studying the Communications Requirements of Electric Utilities to Inform Federal Smart Grid Policy

Comments from Building Owners and Managers Association International on DOE Request for Information—Implementing the National Broadband Plan by Empowering Customers and the Smart Grid: Data Access, Third Party Use, and Privacy

EnerNOC, Inc. (“EnerNOC”) is pleased to provide these comments to the Department of Energy in response to the Request for Information “Implementing the National Broadband Plan by Empowering Consumers and the Smart Grid: Data Access, Third Party Use, and Privacy.” EnerNOC is a provider of demand response and energy efficiency solutions to utilities, Independent System Operators (“ISOs”) and customers in the commercial, industrial and institutional (“CI&I”) sectors. EnerNOC uses near real-time data collected from utility meters at CI&I customers to monitor and coach performance during demand response events as well as to spot excursions outside normal building operating parameters in our SiteSMART energy efficiency service for large buildings.

Neustar, Inc. (“Neustar”) hereby submits comments in response to the captioned Request for Information (“RFI”) of the Department of Energy (“DOE”). The RFI seeks information on smart grid privacy and data collection policies, as well as third-party access to smart grid data and the role of the consumer in balancing the benefits of access and privacy.