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Recognizing and honoring Janet Parrish from the Philadelphia Gas Commission on the occasion of her retirement for her decades of service to the citizens and City of Philadelphia.
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WHEREAS, Janet Parrish, valedictorian of her high school class and graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and Penn Law, was licensed to practice law in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1976; and
WHEREAS, Janet began her legal career as an attorney for legal services programs in Cincinnati and Philadelphia, first representing tenants and homeowners in housing matters, then representing individual utility customers and advocacy groups in utility rate and rulemaking proceedings before the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission and the Philadelphia Gas Commission ("Gas Commission"); and
WHEREAS, By law, the Gas Commission is responsible for oversight of the management and operation of the City-owned Philadelphia Gas Works ("PGW") by the City's contractor, the Philadelphia Facilities Management Corporation; and
WHEREAS, In 1986, Janet became Executive Director of the Utility Emergency Services Fund of Philadelphia, responsible for the agency's fundraising, public awareness and legislative advocacy initiatives, primarily at the state and federal levels; and
WHEREAS, During that time, as a leader in various national and statewide low-income energy advocacy organizations, Janet worked closely with Philadelphia utilities to develop and evaluate a pilot payment program, which was the precursor to the well-established income-based affordable payment plans of today; and
WHEREAS, From 1990 to 1992, Janet consulted with Philadelphia utilities, primarily the Philadelphia Electric Company, on the design, implementation and evaluation of customer assistance programs for low-income ratepayers. During the same period, she did legal research and writing for a national resource center for battered women charged with crimes, did grant writing and...
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