Gov. Kemp appoints new member to elected board that regulates electric bills

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has named businessman Fitz Johnson to fill a vacancy on an elected state panel that regulates utilities.

Kemp on Wednesday announced he would tap Johnson, a Republican who ran unsuccessfully for the Cobb County Commission last year, to fill a vacancy on the Public Service Commission created when Kemp on Tuesday named commissioner Chuck Eaton to fill a superior court vacancy in Fulton County.

The five-member commission regulates private, for-profit utilities including Georgia Power Co. and Atlanta Gas Light Co., meaning its decisions affect the pocketbooks of millions of Georgians.

The all-Republican commission faces upcoming decisions about how much more consumers will have to pay for the troubled expansion of nuclear Plant Vogtle, which is about five years behind schedule and $16 billion over its initial cost estimate.

Johnson is the former owner of the Atlanta Beat women’s professional soccer team and a retired Army officer. He also ran unsuccessfully for state school superintendent in 2014. Johnson has been a trustee of the Cobb-based Wellstar Health System and the Kennesaw State University Foundation and a state charter school commissioner.

The commissioners are elected statewide but must reside in particular districts. Johnson would represent the 3rd District, which includes Fulton, DeKalb, Clayton and Rockdale counties. Johnson lived in Cobb County when he ran for the county commission, but Kemp spokesperson Cody Hall says Johnson now lives in Fulton County.

State law says a public service commissioner must live in the district he or she represents for at least a year before being elected. It also says a commissioner “must continue to reside in that district during the person’s term of office or that office shall thereupon become vacant.” However, the law does not address residency requirements before an appointment.

Eaton’s third six-year term runs until 2024, but Johnson would have to run for the remainder of the term in 2022 if he wants to remain on the commission. Eaton was the chairman. On Thursday the PSC members, including Eaton, unanimously elected Commissioner Tricia Pridemore as the Chairman of the Commission.

“With his diverse background and real-world leadership credentials, I know Fitz will work hard every day to ensure Georgia remains the top state for business and the best place to live, work, and raise a family,” Kemp said.

Johnson would be the only current African American member of the commission. Only one Black has ever served previously on the PSC. That was David Burgess who was appointed to the board in 1999 and then elected in 2000 to serve a 6-year term. A lawsuit is challenging whether electing commissioners statewide discriminates against Black people. Eaton’s district would be heavily Democratic if only voters in its four counties chose the commissioner.

Less unusual about the new commissioner is how he's arriving on the panel. Including Johnson, four of the five commissioners serving on the panel first arrived at their post through appointment. The others who were initially appointed are Patricia Pridemore, Jason Shaw, Lauren "Bubba" McDonald. These three have since been elected for subsequent terms.

Patty Durand, the former CEO and president of the nonprofit Smart Energy consumer collaborative, opposes what's become a regular practice of appointments.

"It's a known tactic," said Durand, who announced Wednesday she's running for the PSC Commission District 2 seat held by Tim Echols. "They've resigned early, so that the governor can appoint a friendly replacement, either as a political favor to himself or to Georgia Power. And then the person that was appointed has the power of incumbency. I think it's dirty because it keeps people from being able to fairly elect their representative."

Eaton was appointed to replace Shawn Ellen LaGrua as a Fulton County Superior Court judge. Kemp named La Grua to the state Supreme Court in January. Hall said Tuesday the court will determine when Eaton is sworn in.

Eaton had been serving his third stint chairing the commission.

Like many down-ticket Republicans, Eaton narrowly won reelection in 2018, being forced into a runoff with Democrat Lindy Miller before beating her by about 50,000 votes, a 52% to 48% margin.

That runoff campaign became a pricey one when a nuclear energy trade association that counts Georgia Power among its members funded $1 million-worth of last-minute mailers and Facebook ads for Eaton.

Eaton earned his law degree at night from Georgia State University in 2012 while serving as a Public Service Commissioner. He was admitted to the Georgia Bar Association but has never practiced law.

Fulton Superior Court hears cases generated by PSC decisions, Durand pointed out on Twitter.

"Both Chuck Eaton's appointment to Fulton Superior Court and Fitz Johnson's appointment to Eaton's seat were disrespectful to the people of Georgia, because neither man has experience in the post in which they were appointed," she said.

Savannah Morning News Health and Environment Reporter Mary Landers contributed to this article. Contact her at 912-655-8295. Twitter: @MaryLandersSMN

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Gov. Kemp appoints new member to elected board that regulates electric bills