Arkansas Public Service Commissioner Kimberly O’Guinn named to national executive committee

by Talk Business & Politics staff ([email protected]) 514 views 

The National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners President Brandon Presley of Mississippi has made two new appointments to the Executive Committee. Arkansas Public Service Commissioner Kimberly A. O’Guinn was tapped to sit on the committee, along with North Carolina Commissioner ToNola Brown-Bland, who will serve as treasurer.

“Commissioners O’Guinn and Brown-Bland each possess the experience and competency needed for these vital positions that lead the Association,” said Presley. “Moreover, they are committed to working to help NARUC achieve the goals necessary to better serve our members and the communities that rely on the decisions of each commission.

O’Guinn has served on the Arkansas PSC since November 2016, when she was appointed by Gov. Asa Hutchinson.

She served previously as the director of communications for the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality and was also an engineer in the ADEQ’s Office of Air Quality for 16 years.

She serves on NARUC’s Committee on Energy Resources and the Environment, the Washington Action Program and the Committee on International Relations. O’Guinn is also the president of Southwest Power Pool’s Regional State Committee, co-chair of the National Utilities Diversity Council, serves on the Financial Research Institute Board and on the Center for Public Utilities Advisory Council.

She received a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Engineering from the University of Oklahoma and was an Engineering Fellowship Recipient with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s NASA Space Grant Consortium/NASA Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research.

“I am honored to have been tapped by President Presley for this important leadership role,” said O’Guinn. “I look forward to working with my NARUC colleagues to maintain our momentum, identify and address challenges and support results-oriented activities.”

The Executive Committee includes NARUC’s principal officers — the president, first vice president, second vice president, treasurer and two appointed members. They are responsible for the overall direction of the organization, provide day-to-day policy guidance to the executive director within the framework of policies adopted by the Board and recommend policy revisions to the board.