Public agencies nationwide face unprecedented pressure from rising and increasingly volatile energy costs. While the cost to generate electricity is decreasing, the cost to deliver it continues to climb, driven by utility investment cycles, infrastructure strain, climate events and growing demand. For public agencies, every spike in utility rates can translate into significant budget strain, which translates directly into tough choices: delayed maintenance, reduced services, hiring freezes or diverted funding from core community priorities.
Drawing from real-world examples, this session, hosted by NLC and Schneider Electric, will illustrate how these models deliver measurable community benefits: enhanced resilience during climate events, reduced O&M burden on understaffed departments, accelerated sustainability progress and meaningful taxpayer savings over decades. Participants will also gain a simple messaging framework they can use to communicate energy affordability and budget stability to council members, constituents and other stakeholders.
Key Takeaways for City Leaders:
- What public agencies can do to take control amid growing energy rate volatility.
- How cities can modernize critical infrastructure with no upfront capital, predictable long-term pricing and guaranteed performance.
- Strategies to reduce operational, technology and political risk through public-private delivery models.
- Replicable case studies showing how U.S. cities are insulating their budgets, advancing climate goals and improving community resilience today.
Speakers:
- Ann Simon, Deputy Director, Policy & Sustainability Officer, Albuquerque, NM
- Christian Edwards, Vice President, Business Development & Strategy, Budderfly
- Christine Weydig, Industry Principal, Schneider Electric
- Hal Corin, Head of Development, Viridi
Note: Registration link will take you to a non-NLC web page.