AUGUSTA, Maine — Gov. Paul LePage has nominated an engineer from Waldoboro to serve as a commissioner of the Maine Public Utilities Commission.
Mark Vannoy, an engineer with Wright-Pierce of Topsham, would fill the seat that recently was vacated by Vendean Vafiades, who resigned earlier this year.
Vannoy still needs to be confirmed by two-thirds of the Senate. He likely will appear before the Energy, Utilities and Technology Committee in the next two weeks.
If confirmed, Vannoy would serve through March 31, 2013, to complete Vafiades’ term.
The PUC’s board of commissioners has just three members but is responsible for making regulatory rulings and recommendations to the Legislature on electricity, natural gas, water utilities and telecommunications.
The commission also regulates water taxis and ferries in Casco Bay and promotes safe digging through the “Dig Safe” underground utility damage prevention program.
The other commissioners are David Littell, former commissioner of the Maine Department of Environmental Protection under Gov. John Baldacci, and Tom Welch, who was chairman of the commission from 1993-2005 and returned in 2011.
Littell’s term expires in 2015; Welch’s in 2017.
Vannoy is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, served on active duty from 1993 to 1999 and is still a commander in the Navy Reserve. He also has a master’s degree in civil engineering from Cornell University.
Is the guy a relative:)
Maybe a brother inlaw. But I wonder what the pay is. Appointed jobs like this after your term is up you can draw your pension. I think thats how it works.
Or someone who knows a relative, who knows another relative…..
The moon bats are out!
No, not a relative. He won’t be receiving mere subsistence pay like his daughter.
Go Navy!
Keep it up Gov LePage.
Very encouraging that you have appointed a PUC Commissioner
with an engineering background.
Hopefully this means that PUC decisions will now be more
technically sound and in the interest of Maine instead of the wind
developers.
The politically connected lawyer commissioners appointed by
Baldacci have shown exceptional skill in skirting the law and
ignoring PUC staff, but little skill or interest in helping the Governor reduce energy costs for Maine.
Lol, ask people who actually work on things engineers design and see what they think of engineers. Simply being an engineer does not mean he has the abilities needed to do this job. I hope he does of course, but his degree is no guarantee. Besides, he’d have to be a little off to want to work for LePage anyway.
In defense of engineers I will say many issues on the “design of things” you speak of is sometimes based on accountants adding their input into a project. LOL Certainly a degree is no guarantee for common sense but a technical background should add to it.
As a PUC Commissioner, my assumption is that he’s supposed to be working for Maine ratepayers, not the governor.
While an engineering degree doesn’t automatically make one qualified for the position, it might tend to make one a bit more pragmatic, analytical, and dispassionate when it comes to the types of matters the PUC handles – (assuming he/she hasn’t been tainted by politics or self-interest). I’ll take an engineer over an attorney any day for the PUC job – less likely to get decisions infused with social engineering.
Should be a great choice as Gov. LePage has a knack for picking right people of right jobs, a trait of him being a great leader. Better than another liberal arts college professor in charge of most departments, like the Obama admin.
Ok…..”picking the right people of right jobs…” let’s talk about the DHHS commissioner, that wasn’t even a nice try! Mary Mayhew is NOT the right person for a department that is constantly under scrutiny……no way! “Well, I shoulda let them know about this, and my numbers are wrong”…..on and on and on ….where will it stop?
I suppose finding someone to take a beating every so often for that positon kind of limited LP’s picks. I give her credit for at least admitting there are accounting problems that have been swept under the rug for decades.
And don’t forget Stephen Bowen.
Picking the right people? LaPage is a narcissist. LaPage picks people that he can use for his advantage down the road. When he is no longer governor.
You are correct, he is a man of great stature…
Yeah – he picked his daughter and an in-law for the right jobs – and Mary Mayhew is doing such a great job at DHHS (not).
Man of Stature fail.
Yessah
Don’t know squat about this one. But, given Paulie’s past history, the State Senate needs to look REAL HARD at any possible conflict’s of interest. We all saw what happened when that issue was conveniently ‘forgotten’ with Adams and First Wind. The PUC is supposed to work for the PUBLIC’S BENEFIT, not whatever campaign contributor’s are out there looking for some Candidate to throw money at. And given the coming Northern Maine Internet mess that the PUC is going to have to go to war with Fairpoint, ConnectMaine and Maine Fiber over come this October, the Senate needs to make sure that the new Commissioner is thoughly ‘vetted’ for these Conflict’s and is going to be looking out for the public’s interest, not just someone who has ‘blind trust’ stock option’s in the same companies that the PUC oversee’s and regulate’s. As it has been said so frequently in numerous confirmation hearing’s “Sir, you have both your virtue and the truth here. One of them is gonna stay when you leave. Decide now which one it’s gonna be”. Maine voter’s didn’t do so well last election cycle. The neverending DHHS mess is public proof of that. This PUC confirmation is going to give us all a good preview for November’s State Senate election’s. How well we look is what we all need to do, and soon !
Mike, you’re still wrong about your so-called Northern Maine Internet mess, whatever that is. If you are referring to the Three Ring Binder project, FairPoint and ConnectME have nothing to do with it. And the PUC has no jurisdiction over it or any other broadband internet service. Maine Fiber received $25 million (not $3 m) from NTIA to build the Three Ring Binder and they are more than half done. A lot has already been lit by private providers. See their website for accurate information, http://www.mainefiberco.com/.
Then Sir we have all been lied to, on TV no less, by both Connect Maine and Fairpoint, when they declared that they were partnered with Maine Fiber in this whole project. And as far as the amount, fine, I’ll concede it’s $ 25 MILLION, not $ 3 MILLION dollars. But so far as I’ve seen or asked about, the whole project is a ghost whenever I call Fairpoint and ask when it’s coming on line here on the Rt 2A corridor from Lincoln to Linneus. If it’s here working, fine. Like the man from Missouri said,’Show me’. To this point all I’ve seen is a bunch of promises, press release’s and cable trucks doing nothing more than burning up diesel. There are any number of business’s in the Rt 2A corridor that are waiting for this to show. So far as anyone has seen to this point it’s all either smoke and mirror’s or plain ole ‘moosepoop’.
And if they are only half done at this point, well, someone had better get moving pretty dammed quick since they have until Sept 30 to get this project done since by the terms of the Grant they had 36 months to get it done. The clock runs out on Sept 30. The grant terms aren’t met means that all $ 25 MILLION has to be repaid to NITA for failure to meet the terms of the Grant, and all of the Grant participants are on the hook for their share of the $ 25 MILLION. $ 25 MILLION by anyone’s accounting standards is gonna get someone’s Board of Director’s more than slightly unhappy. If this is an example of Federal support, please, someone had better call Suzie Collins and get her people in DC moving. This Grant goes up in smoke and whoever has their name on it is gonna have some serious explaining to do.
Calling FP about Maine Fiber’s project is useless, as they are not involved. Check with Maine Fiber or their website and you will see that the project will be done ahead of schedule. A little research and some fundamental reading skills will provide the answers you seek. Again, slowly, FP and ConnectME have nothing to do with the Three Ring Binder. I do believe I saw where ConnectME and numerous other organizations supported and encouraged the project, but actual partners, not. FP actually fought the project in the beginning. Maine Fiber Company is apparently a private company with individual investors. The 3RB will be a much needed middle-mile network when completed this summer.
Mr. LePage is a Pillar of the Community..
There will be a statue of him someday in Augusta..
And God help him if the local bird population starts watching the Military Channel. Makes the term ‘Ground Zero’ a whole new concept, don’t it ! I wonder if Augusta has a bird poop clean-up contract open ?
He must be a Canadian or at least paid off by Canadian companies.
I know this is off topic but when the post office bill goes to the house both dem an reps are going to try to water it down that i read on the news. Because they are up for relection so they are going after the ones that will vote aence it because they are up for relection . So what the senate voted on my be down the drain..http://news.yahoo.com/lawmakers-push-vote-limit-post-office-closures-002027964.html
Yes off Topic However. My opinion is that what the Senate did really does not matter anymore. The Postmaster General says they are losing 25 Million Dollars a day. They had to borrow 12.1 Billion Dollars from the US Treasury to make payroll. The 11 Billion dollars the Postal Service got back from overpaid pensions will go to incentives to retire more people. The Postmaster General said he will start to close plants and Post Offices anyway no matter what the Senate passed a 2 year moratorium on closing facilities. The Postal Service is bankrupt and that is the real story. The joy ride is over. It closes the 223 plants and go to a 5 day delivery or it is all over for the Postal Service. I have been involved with the Postal service for 71 years and know if something major isn’t done soon like yesterday it is all over. BANKRUPTCY.
So what you are saying is no matter what the vote is an what both the house an senate votes on he will do as he sees fit if thats the case why have a voter ?