The Commission staff is approximately 50 permanent full-time staff members organized into the following units:
The Business Services Office is responsible for human resources administrative support in the areas of recruitment, selection, personnel and benefit transactions processing, job classification, compensation administration, labor relations, diversity, health/safety promotion and facilities management. The unit is responsible for the Telephone Assistance Program (TAP) administration, financial analysis, program audit and utility assessment. In addition, this office provides general accounting, procurement and budget/fiscal and administrative support services to the Commission.
The Consumer Affairs Office (CAO) serves as the Commission's information, consumer education, and dispute resolution hub. Consumer Affairs staff provide mediation assistance to consumers filing complaints against utilities under the Commission's jurisdiction. The CAO administers the Cold and Hot Weather laws governing natural gas and electric service terminations, the telephone Lifeline discount programs, and serves as key public contact office for the Commission.
The Executive Secretary is the chief of staff for the agency.
The Assistant Executive Secretary is the Deputy Director of the Agency, carrying out the duties of Executive Secretary in its absence. The Assistant Executive Secretary provides support to Commissioners and the Executive Secretary and assists in the direction and support of multiple agency divisions, including regulatory, consumer affairs, communications and operations.
The Communications Director While the Commission speaks through its formal Orders, our Communications Director oversees our agency’s communications plan, supports public engagement efforts, and implements media outreach to share timely updates on the work of the Commission. The Communications Director also ensures coordinated communications across partner agencies when appropriate.
The Legal Unit provides legal perspective to assist the Commissioners in their decision-making process. The unit drafts the Commission's decisions and orders, leads and coordinates the Commission's rulemakings, and documents the Commission's actions through the minutes process.
The Minnesota Office of the Attorney General serves as the attorney for all state agencies. Commission Counsel provides legal advice to the Commission and represents the Commission in matters before the Courts. Commission Counsel are administratively part of the staff of the Minnesota Office of the Attorney General.
The Regulatory Analysis Division includes four major units within the Commission: Economic Analysis and Telecommunications, Financial Analysis, Regional Energy Program and Energy Facilities Permitting. The Economic and Financial Analysis units review all natural gas, telecommunication, and electric matters coming before the Commission. Cases investigated fall into several broad categories including rate changes, energy resource planning, service area matters, mergers and acquisitions, and formal complaints. The Economic and Financial units have also been actively engaged in monitoring the structural changes occurring in these industries. The Regional Energy Program monitors regional and federal energy issues and engages at the Midcontinent Independent Service Operator (MISO), Southwest Power Pool (SPP), and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). The Energy Facilities Permitting unit is responsible for the need, site and route permitting of certain energy facilities, including power plant and wind turbine siting, transmission line and pipeline routing. The Energy Facilities Permitting unit also has responsibilities for certain electric transmission planning activities. For more information, https://mn.gov/puc/activities/.
