D.C.'s Top Energy Regulator Resigns Days Before His Ouster, Leaving a Power Vacuum at the Worst Possible Moment

Why This Matters to Every D.C. Ratepayer

Your Pepco bill, your Washington Gas bill, your ability to afford heat in January and air conditioning in August — all of it flows through a single, largely invisible three-person board: the D.C. Public Service Commission (PSC). As of August 14, 2026, that board will be without a permanent chair. Emile C. Thompson, who has led the PSC since 2022, is resigning — and the circumstances surrounding his departure reveal a District at a crossroads over who controls utility costs, and what kind of energy future D.C. residents will actually get.

The resignation lands at a moment of maximum pressure. Residents are grappling with years of rate increases. The D.C. Court of Appeals recently voided a major Pepco rate hike the PSC approved. The D.C. Attorney General has urged the commission to block a costly Washington Gas pipeline expansion. And a well-organized grassroots campaign successfully blocked Thompson's reappointment — effectively forcing him out before the Council could act. Meanwhile, the District's broader fiscal house is in open dispute, with an outgoing mayor and an incoming one squaring off over an unsigned $22 billion budget. The person who eventually chairs the PSC will help determine whether any of that translates into lower bills for the roughly 700,000 residents the commission serves.

How Thompson's Tenure Unraveled

The chair of the District's Public Service Commission is resigning. Emile Thompson wrote his letter of resignation to Mayor Muriel Bowser on the same day as the commission's second hearing on a major Washington Gas pipeline project. Thompson's last day as chair is August 14.

Thompson was appointed to the Public Service Commission by Mayor Muriel Bowser in 2021 and re-appointed as Interim Chairman on December 1, 2021; he was confirmed as Chairman on June 7, 2022. Before the Commission, Chairman Thompson was an Assistant United States Attorney in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia, serving as a Deputy Chief.

The pressure had been building for months. We Power DC and coalition partners had been pressuring the Council to reject the reappointment of two PSC commissioners — Thompson and Commissioner Ted Trabue — arguing they had spent years rubberstamping Pepco's rate hikes. Organizing was extensive and public hearings were intense. At the end of July, Thompson announced his resignation rather than continue to face pushback on his reappointment. As of early August, Trabue's reappointment is still under consideration.

Since 2021, under Chair Emile Thompson's leadership, the commission approved $398.5 million in utility spending by both Pepco and Washington Gas. That included a controversial multiyear electric rate hike approved in November 2024 that increased D.C. electric bills by $7.54 per month in 2025 and $3.80 per month in 2026, and a 13% gas rate hike approved in December 2025 that boosted Washington Gas' return on equity to 9.65%.

Utility watchdogs and activists scored a major victory at the D.C. Court of Appeals in their battle to stop soaring electrical bills, when judges agreed with claims filed by the Office of the People's Counsel that the city's Public Service Commission had improperly approved rate hikes for Pepco. The OPC originally filed its lawsuit against the PSC in March 2025 after the three-member commission approved a $123.4 million rate hike for D.C. consumers. The hike included increased delivery rates that would be implemented from 2024 to 2026. The vote came after the PSC approved another rate hike in 2019 that netted Pepco $108 million; OPC and analysts alleged those funds were misspent.

The court loss proved decisive for Thompson's political standing. PSC Chair Emile Thompson, in particular, drew the ire of witnesses at reappointment hearings; he and Commissioner Ted Trabue, both of whom voted in favor of the Pepco rate hike, were up for reappointment.

The Washington Gas Pipeline Fight — and the AG's Intervention

Thompson's resignation was timed to a pivotal moment in another contested proceeding. Earlier in the same week, D.C.'s attorney general called on the commission to reject the third phase of the Washington Gas project. The AG's office said it would raise rates for those who live in the city.

The commission has continued to approve spending requests from Pepco and Washington Gas even as both utilities face lawsuits from consumer advocates alleging mismanagement of ratepayer dollars and research showing utility infrastructure spending has failed to measurably reduce gas leak risks. (attributed — Washington Informer reporting)

That pipeline proceeding — formally before the PSC — is now in limbo. With Thompson departing and the two-remaining-commissioner panel potentially lacking a permanent chair, critical regulatory decisions may be delayed or complicated until Mayor Bowser, in her final months in office, or her successor makes a new appointment.

A "Levelheaded" Leader Who Couldn't Survive the Politics

Those who worked alongside Thompson were caught off guard. Those on the commission with Thompson applaud his leadership and say they didn't see the resignation coming. "Over the four years that I've worked with him, I really found him to be a very levelheaded person, a very intelligent person who led the community and led the commission," said Ted Trabue, commissioner on DC's Public Service Commission. "There were a lot of people yesterday who, like myself, were very surprised when he announced his resignation."

In his resignation letter, Thompson pushed back on the narrative that the PSC is to blame for Washingtonians' high bills. Thompson wrote: "Rising energy prices are not attributable to any one agency, group or thing. This phenomenon is occurring across the nation. To meet this moment, a finger-pointing approach will not work. All stakeholders must be willing to engage in honest conversations." (verified — DC News Now reporting of Thompson's letter)

The commission says that until a permanent successor is appointed, they will continue to operate without interruption. In practice, that means the two remaining commissioners — Trabue (whose own reappointment is pending) and Commissioner Richard Beverly — will carry the PSC's caseload, including the still-unresolved Washington Gas pipeline case. (analysis)

Grassroots Power: How We Power DC Forced the Issue

The campaign that drove Thompson to the exit reflects a new kind of D.C. civic organizing. According to We Power DC, "The current leadership at the PSC has allowed utility bills to reach sky-high levels to the point that 1 in 5 DC residents are in debt to Pepco. Meanwhile, Pepco and Washington Gas have been allowed to dodge accountability, side-step fines, and offer a middling service for luxury prices."

Claire Hacker, organizer with Extinction Rebellion DC, noted: "Decisions about utilities affect DC residents every single day, yet we have limited power over how those decisions are made, since PSC commissioners are appointed and not elected." That democratic gap is precisely why activists targeted the reappointment process — one of the few public leverage points available. (analysis)

Having two Public Power Pledge-committed councilmembers join longtime utility reform advocate Charles Allen — who also won his primary re-election for the Ward 6 DC Council race in June — will create a critical voting bloc working toward a public power future. This emerging Council coalition is poised to shape who fills the PSC chair vacancy, representing a potential inflection point for the District's energy policy. (analysis)

The Bigger Fiscal Picture: A Budget in Limbo

Thompson's resignation does not exist in a vacuum. It arrives as D.C.'s broader finances are in a contested state. Mayor Bowser has repeatedly expressed concerns over the budget funding recurring programs with one-time money, which she said will leave the next mayor and council with an "$837 million budget cliff." Her initial, proposed budget made major cuts to District programs, many of which the council reincorporated in their amended budget, including childcare subsidies, grants to nonprofits, and housing vouchers.

By returning the budget unsigned, Bowser put her objections on the record while allowing the spending plan to continue moving forward. The budget now heads into congressional review, where the split between the mayor and council could attract extra attention — but Bowser's decision does not prevent it from becoming law.

Council Chairman Mendelson warned that the mayor's failure to sign the budget was harmful because "criticizing the Council and the budget gives succor to our detractors in Congress." Presumptive Mayor-elect Janeese Lewis George also voiced concerns in a statement, noting that the District is facing "unprecedented attacks on home rule from the federal government" and that refusing to sign the budget is "not reflective of the unified leadership we need from our executive at this moment." (attributed — The Georgetowner)

Together, the PSC vacancy and the budget standoff mean that Janeese Lewis George, who is widely expected to win the November general election, will inherit both an energy regulatory commission in transition and a budget carrying what her predecessor warns is an embedded fiscal time bomb. (analysis)

What Comes Next at the PSC

Under the D.C. Home Rule Charter, the PSC is a three-person board appointed by the DC mayor and approved by the DC Council. Mayor Bowser, who leaves office in January 2027, has the authority to nominate a new chair before her term ends — but any nominee would require Council confirmation. Given the Council's newly energized pro-consumer bloc, any nominee seen as utility-friendly is likely to face intense scrutiny. Alternatively, Bowser could leave the appointment to her successor, who may have very different priorities. (analysis)

Advocates are already framing what they want. We Power DC, the local campaign for a publicly owned utility, envisions a system with lower rates, community control, and investments in clean, reliable energy, and asks DC residents, candidates for public office, and elected officials to sign on to their Public Power Pledge.

• The Washington Gas pipeline proceeding continues without a permanent PSC chair, potentially slowing or altering the outcome.
• The pending Pepco rate case — ordered back to the PSC by the D.C. Court of Appeals for a full evidentiary hearing — must be adjudicated by whoever leads the commission next.
• Commissioner Ted Trabue's reappointment remains unresolved as of early August, meaning the PSC could face two vacancies simultaneously. (attributed — Washington Socialist/MDCDSA)
• Mayor Bowser's nomination window is shrinking as her term nears its end in January 2027.

What D.C. Residents Should Watch

• August 14, 2026: Chair Thompson's last official day. Watch for any interim designation by Mayor Bowser — the commission will need at least a temporary leader to conduct official business and sign orders.
• Ted Trabue's reappointment hearing: The D.C. Council has not yet acted on Commissioner Trabue's nomination. With Thompson gone, the Council's progressive bloc is likely to apply equal or greater pressure on this confirmation.
• The Washington Gas PROJECTpipes Phase 3 proceeding: The D.C. AG has formally intervened to block it. Track filings at edocket.dcpsc.org to follow how the two-person commission handles this high-stakes case in the interim.
• The Pepco rate-case evidentiary hearing: The D.C. Court of Appeals threw out the $123.4 million Pepco rate hike and ordered a do-over. The new PSC leadership will preside over that hearing — making the chair appointment one of the most consequential energy decisions of the next administration.
• Congressional review of the FY2027 budget: The unsigned budget is now before Congress. Given Bowser's public criticism of the spending plan, House Oversight Republicans may use her objections as an opening to intervene in D.C.'s fiscal affairs — a scenario that the Council chair and mayor-elect have both flagged as a serious risk.
• Who Janeese Lewis George names as her PSC pick: The presumptive next mayor has called Bowser's budget approach "irresponsible" and signaled she wants to protect affordable services. Her choice for PSC chair will be a signal of how aggressively she plans to regulate utilities and pursue the District's clean-energy commitments.

Sources

• DC News Now — "Chair of DC electric, natural gas regulatory agency resigns"
• Washington Socialist/MDCDSA — "Public Power Advocates Take Hold in DC Government"
• Washington City Paper — "D.C. Court of Appeals Strikes Down Pepco Rate Hike"
• Washington Informer — "Advocates to D.C. Council: We Need New Leaders at PSC"
• CCAN Action Fund — "Nearly 100 DC Residents & Advocates Call for New PSC Leaders"
• WTOP News — "Mayor cites '$837 million fiscal cliff' as she declines to sign DC budget"
• WUSA9 — "DC mayor returns 2027 budget unsigned"
• The Georgetowner — "Mayor Refuses to Sign D.C. Budget"
• Axios Washington D.C. — "D.C. Mayor Bowser declines to sign Council's budget"
• DC Public Service Commission — dcpsc.org
• mayor.dc.gov — "Statement from Mayor Bowser on the Reappointment of Public Service Commission Members"