Finance Committee approves Margaret Cheney for Public Utility Commission

The Finance Committee voted 7-0 April 4 to approve Governor Scott's nomination of Margaret Cheney to the state Public Utility Commission for a six-year term running March 1, 2025, through Feb. 28, 2031.

Cheney, who was introduced to the committee as the governor's appointment, told members she previously served in the state House and on energy-related legislative committees and was first appointed to the Public Service Board in October 2013. "We regulate public utilities, their rates, quality of service, and siting any infrastructure that's connected to the grid," Cheney said, describing the commission's responsibilities.

The nomination matters because the Public Utility Commission (PUC) oversees energy and utility decisions that affect rates, project siting and distributed generation across the state. Cheney told the committee the commission's work has shifted in recent years from large utility rate cases to many siting and distributed-generation matters — including cell towers, wind and solar projects — and that public participation in those cases has grown.

Cheney said she worked to change the commission's approach to public hearings so that developers and agencies present information before contested-case deadlines, and the commission produced materials to help citizens participate. She described the commission as a three-commissioner panel with a staff of about 27, most of them attorneys.

Committee discussion also touched on the commission's recent clean heat standard report and how to pay for direct services and incentives if a statewide clean-heat program does not move forward. Cheney said she views the clean heat standard as administratively complex and expensive and favored directing funds to pay for specific services or incentives instead of adding costs to existing electric-efficiency mechanisms. The committee also heard concerns about federal LIHEAP administration and the potential effect on fuel-assistance funding.

Senator Hardy moved approval of the nomination; the motion passed on a roll call with yes votes recorded from Senators Ernie, Babb, Gulick, Verhaack, Chitnick, Maddox and Cummings (7-0). The commissioner's term was confirmed to run from March 1, 2025, to Feb. 28, 2031, and to continue until a successor is appointed and qualified.

Cheney told the committee she wants to continue serving on the commission to provide a perspective shaped by both legislative experience and local public engagement. With the committee's approval, Cheney's appointment will proceed according to the statutory confirmation process for the PUC.