October/November 2026 Issue

Also in this issue: The MGS Public Utility Status Case Is About More Than Just a Power Line     |     The PSC’s Decision in Docket 5-BS-296: Regional Cooperation, Utility Regulation, and the Limits of Traditional Cost-Of-Service Ratemaking     |     A Refresher On Attorney-Client Privilege

Governor’s Race Could Reshape Wisconsin’s Utility and Natural-Resources Leadership

Jared Walker Smith | 11.11.26

For the first time since 2010, Wisconsin voters will choose a governor without an incumbent on the ballot. The result of that election could significantly influence the leadership of the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin ("PSC") and the Natural Resources Board ("NRB").

Treatment of Unconfirmed Appointive State Officials

Two of the three current PSC commissioners and all seven sitting NRB members are serving without Senate confirmation for their current terms. When the Senate confirms an appointee to serve, that appointee generally may only be removed by the governor “for cause.” Wis. Stat. § 17.07. Conversely, an appointee serving without confirmation is subject to a governor withdrawing their nomination or removing the official from office at the governor’s pleasure. However, chapter 17 is not always clear about the extent of a governor’s authority and past attempts to exercise executive control over appointments to executive agencies has led to significant litigation, including in League of Women Voters of Wisconsin v. Evers, 2019 WI 75, 387 Wis. 2d 511, 929 N.W.2d 209, and State ex rel. Kaul v. Prehn, 2022 WI 50, 402 Wis. 2d 539, 976 N.W.2d 821.

Public Service Commission

The PSC’s three commissioners interpret and apply Wisconsin statutes and administrative rules governing utility rates and the provision of safe, reliable, reasonable, and adequate utility service in Wisconsin. Commissioners are nominated by the governor and appointed with the Senate’s advice and consent to staggered six-year terms. This schedule allows a new administration to influence the Commission gradually, with the governor ordinarily having the opportunity to appoint a new majority during the third year of a four-year term.

Two of the PSC’s current three commissioner appointments remain pending before the Senate. Marcus Hawkins’s appointment remains pending for the remainder of a term ending March 1, 2027. Kristy Nieto’s appointment also remains pending for a term ending March 1, 2031. This opens the possibility for the next governor to replace at least one, if not both, of these commissioners upon taking office.

The next governor will also select the PSC chair. The chair administers the PSC’s administrative duties including oversight of PSC staff-related activities. Chair Summer Strand was confirmed for a commissioner term ending March 1, 2029, but her current two-year term as chair ends March 1, 2027. The governor designates the chair from among the commissioners for a two-year term ending March 1 of each odd-numbered year. The chair designation does not require separate Senate confirmation.

Natural Resources Board

The seven-member NRB reviews and approves proposed rules, land acquisitions, property-management master plans, and budget proposals for the Department of Natural Resources. NRB members are nominated by the governor and appointed with the Senate’s advice and consent to staggered six-year terms. Currently, two seats have terms ending May 1, 2027, three end May 1, 2029, and two end May 1, 2031. Like the PSC, the terms of the NRB members are designed to be gradually influenced by a new governor.

The potential effect on the NRB is broader because none of its seven sitting members has received full Senate confirmation for the member’s current term. As a result, the next governor may have an opportunity, perhaps unprecedented in recent decades, to nominate replacements for all of the sitting NRB members early in the new administration. Any replacements would remain subject to Senate confirmation.

What Municipalities Should Watch

The next governor will have an opportunity to make a substantial statement about the oversight of public utilities and the state’s natural resources through decisions involving the pending PSC and NRB appointments. Those appointments could significantly affect the direction of utility regulation and DNR policymaking early in the 2027–2028 legislative session.