The U.S. Senate on Tuesday confirmed Laura Swett and David LaCerte to fill vacant seats at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, giving the independent agency a 3-2 Republican majority.
LaCerte’s term expires June 30, 2026, and Swett’s term ends June 30, 2030.
Swett is an energy attorney at Vinson & Elkins and former FERC staffer. She worked in FERC’s enforcement office and as an advisor to former Commissioner Bernard McNamee and former Chairman Kevin McIntyre.
LaCerte is an official in the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Previously, he was acting managing director at the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board and a special counsel at the Baker Botts law firm for two years, starting in January 2023, working mainly on Clean Air Act-related litigation.
Swett and LaCerte are joining FERC during a shutdown of the federal government. So far, FERC appears to be operating normally but could shift to a skeleton staff if its fund balances run out, according to Akin Gump.
Once Swett and LaCerte are sworn in, FERC will have three Republicans, including Commissioner Lindsay See, and two Democrats, Chairman David Rosner and Commissioner Judy Chang. It is unclear if Rosner will remain the agency’s chairman.
One of the top issues facing FERC is ensuring that the United States has enough power supplies to meet growing demand for electricity, mainly driven by data center development.
Currently, FERC is considering potential rules for colocating data centers at power plants in the PJM Interconnection footprint.
The Trump administration is also taking steps to support fossil-fueled and nuclear generation while hampering the development of wind and solar. Agency observers say they will watch to see whether FERC joins in that effort by changing power market rules in ways that favor fossil-fueled power plants.
