A second chance to apply to be a utility regulator

A vote last night by a legislative committee in Columbia will give South Carolinians a second chance to fill four seats on the South Carolina Public Service Commission, which has regulatory authority over utilities doing business in the state. The job pays a salary of about $129 thousand annually. The state’s Public Utilities Review Committee started hearings this week to evaluate the men and women who previously applied for PSC seats 1, 3, 5, and 7. Oconee is represented by the District Three commissioner. Rep. Bill Sandifer of Seneca, committee vice chairman, says, “Ultimately, we felt that we didn’t have a sufficient number of candidates qualified by our committee. But we voted to re-open the filing so that we might attract some other candidates….” Sandifer is hopeful that, based on action to be taken next week, a new filing period can be announced shortly. One of the more important components of the commissioners’ duties is a good grasp of financial matters because such matters as rate increases come before the commission.