Senator calls for election of PUC commissioners
Thursday December 19, 2002
SACRAMENTO (AP) In an attempt to make the Public Utilities
Commission more responsive to consumers, a state senator said
Thursday he plans to introduce legislation that would allow voters
to elect PUC commissioners.
The move by Sen. Jim Battin, R-Palm Desert, would require a
constitutional amendment, meaning two-thirds of the legislature and
the voters would have to approve the plan.
Currently, PUC commissioners are appointed by the governor.
However, Gov. Gray Davis has been criticized for his decision to
appoint Michael Peevey, an Edison International and Southern
California Edison executive, to the commission in March.
(Copyright 2002 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)