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House confirms three utility- and review-board nominees amid brief floor objections
Summary
The House approved three Senate joint resolutions confirming nominees to the Utilities Commission, the Public Staff executive director post, and a review board appointment after brief floor discussion and recorded votes.
The North Carolina House considered several Senate joint resolutions confirming nominees to state boards and commissions.
Senate Joint Resolution 763, concerning an appointment to the Utilities Commission, drew substantive floor remarks from Representative Harrison who described the nominee's past public writings and administrative rulings on energy and environmental issues and said she would vote no. After floor debate, the House proceeded to recorded votes and the resolution passed.
Two subsequent confirmations drew less controversy. The House approved Senate Joint Resolution 764 confirming Christopher J. Ayers as executive director of the Public Staff (Utilities Commission) after a brief floor statement of support, and Senate Joint Resolution 765 confirming Regina Smith Adams to the review board. Both passed on recorded second- and third-reading votes as announced from the floor.
Why it matters: Appointments to the Utilities Commission and to the Public Staff shape oversight and regulatory directions for electricity, gas and related utilities in the state. The confirmation votes followed standard floor procedure; one nomination prompted policy criticism during debate.
What happens next: The confirmed nominees were recognized in the chamber and invited to the gallery for recognition; the records show the House ordered the resolutions rolled as passed and moved on to the Appropriations Act.
Representative Harrison said of one nominee: "I am reluctantly a no vote...I think he is the wrong person for the job," while supporters on the floor said the nominees had been vetted and urged colleagues to confirm.
