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Clean Virginia: Spanberger Trades One Ethics Problem for Another at Virginia Tech
Governor Fires Rector for Ethics Violations, Installs Top Dominion Executive While His Utility Awaits Approval of $67 Billion Merger
Charlottesville, VA — Governor Abigail Spanberger yesterday fired Virginia Tech Board of Visitors rector John Rocovich, citing ethics violations, and immediately replaced him with Edward Baine, the Executive Vice President of Utility Operations and President of Dominion Energy Virginia. Clean Virginia said the appointment raised major ethical concerns and demanded that it be rescinded immediately.
“Governor Spanberger says she removed rector Rocovich over ethical concerns,” said Brennan Gilmore, Executive Director of Clean Virginia. “But the person she chose to replace him has spent years at the top of a utility that has overcharged Virginia customers by billions of dollars and corrupted our political system. Dominion is now trying to push through a $67 billion merger deal that could enrich Dominion executives on the backs of its customers, a deal that Gov. Spanberger’s administration should subject to the highest level of scrutiny.”
A Record Built on Ratepayer Harm
Dominion Energy has compiled one of the most damaging records of any regulated utility in the country. The State Corporation Commission (SCC) found that Dominion repeatedly overcharged ratepayers by an estimated $2.9 billion between 2009 and 2020 alone. Laws the company helped write blocked the SCC from resetting rates and ensured customers were refunded only a fraction of what they were owed. SCC auditors have repeatedly uncovered improper charges buried in customer bills — including millions in lobbying, advertising, political purpose industry association dues, and charitable donations misclassified as operating costs. These are not allegations – they are findings by Virginia’s own regulators. During this period, Edward Baine held leadership positions in the utility, becoming president of Dominion Energy Virginia in 2020.
A Political Machine Paid for by Ratepayers
Dominion Energy donated a record-breaking $19.3 million to Democratic and Republican-affiliated campaigns during the 2024-2025 election cycle. The company also spent over $40 million in agenda-driven advertising and $155 million in dues to industry associations that often lobby and engage in political activity between 2013 and 2023. Those investments, paid for directly or indirectly by customers, ensured the failure of energy affordability legislation and the passage of laws that protected Dominion’s profits at the expense of everyday Virginia families and businesses.
The Money Behind This Appointment
The financial relationships surrounding this appointment demand scrutiny. Governor Spanberger’s inaugural committee accepted $100,000 from Dominion Energy. Secretary of the Commonwealth Candi Mundon King, who oversees gubernatorial board appointments, accepted $550,000 from Dominion Energy over her legislative career, making the utility her single largest donor by a significant margin, according to the Virginia Public Access Project.
A Merger That Makes This Worse
The timing is not incidental. Dominion Energy is currently seeking state and federal approval for a $67 billion acquisition by NextEra Energy, a transaction that stands to further enrich Dominion executives and that requires the Governor’s office, the SCC, and the General Assembly to approach the matter with complete neutrality, giving careful consideration to the protection of consumers and the public interest.
“Elevating Dominion’s president to a prominent public appointment in the middle of that review is not a neutral act. It signals to regulators, to the public, and to Dominion itself whose interests this administration will protect when the pressure is on,” Gilmore said.
Clean Virginia calls on the Governor to reverse this appointment immediately and to seek an alternative candidate capable of upholding the Commonwealth’s ethics and integrity standards.
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Clean Virginia is a nonprofit advocacy organization dedicated to removing corporate money from Virginia politics and reforming utility regulation to put customers first. Learn more at cleanvirginia.org.