The Montana state capitol pictured after a late-night Senate vote on Jan. 9, 2025. (Micah Drew/Daily Montanan)
Lawmakers on Wednesday tabled a bill in an 11-4 vote that would change how the Public Service Commission members are selected.
House Bill 363, introduced by Rep. Larry Brewster, R-Billings, sought to change what is now an elected process for the five PSC members, selected by districts, and instead allow the governor to appoint three seats while keeping two as elected positions, aligned with the current Congressional districts.
The bill also would have added requirements for appointed commissioners to have some form of professional expertise in an industry, extended terms on the commission from four to six years, and allow regulated utilities to submit their own candidates for consideration.
In a hearing before the House Energy, Technology and Federal Relations Committee on Feb. 5, Brewster said that he didn’t work with industry lobbyists to craft the legislation, but looked at the public utility commissions of nearby states and was “impressed by the quality of the people who had been appointed.”
“I thought that would be a tremendous influence on our PSC,” Brewster said. “And I bought into the hybrid part because I do think we need some voices that are elected.”
Across the country, 39 states have public utility commissions appointed by the governor, most with provision to prevent a single political party from holding all seats on the commission.
In Montana, all five PSC members are currently Republicans.
Two commissioners, President Brad Molnar and vice president Jennifer Fielder, testified in opposition to the bill. Molnar said the commission voted unanimously to oppose the legislation. Molnar served on the commission from 2005-2012, and was reelected last fall. Fielder also won reelection as an incumbent and is now term-limited — she said she wouldn’t be affected by the proposed changes.
Molnar emphasized that having elected commissioners accountable to local constituents was a way to provide a check on the commission and prevent runaway rate increases.
“Rate payers pay for affordable, reliable, safe and useful energy, not the wishlist of utility boards,” he said. “Utilities owe their allegiance to their shareholders by law. However, if you’re elected, you owe your allegiance to the people who elected you, and fair treatment to the utilities.”
Fielder said she felt the requirement in the bill to have industry experience was disingenuous, and commissioners bring more the the table with myriad backgrounds. And, she added, the agency has enough industry experts to consult with.
“The elected commissioners, importantly, bring layman’s questions and views to the table – just like legislators do in the decisions you’re making,” she told the committee. “If the experts were the only ones sitting in your seats, imagine the difference in the outcomes of the legislation versus the people who are elected to represent their people.”
Proponents for the bill included Todd O’Hair, president of the Montana Chamber of Commerce, who said public utility commissioners with expertise in finance, economics and business would present a friendlier business climate for companies looking to invest in Montana.
“A PSC that functions like that provides a bit of regulatory certainty, a bit of predictability for investment community,” he said. And that commission would not “be beholden to political principles.”
The committee tabled the bill in an 11-4 vote, with Brewster, and Reps. Gary Parry, R-Colstrip, Bob Carter, D-Missoula, and Alanah Griffith, D-Big Sky, in support of keeping it alive.