Public Utilities Commission history

The County boards were consolidated into a State Board of Railroad Commissioners in 1844, the first such board in the nation.

April 13, 1864: Board of Railroad Commissioners established to prescribe conditions for grade crossings (Chapter 152 of the Acts of 1864).

Utility and transportation regulation began in Ohio in 1867 when the General Assembly established the Office of the Commissioner of Railroads and Telegraphs.

October 1, 1883: World’s first three-phase central electric generating station goes into operation in Brockton, Massachusetts.

June 11, 1885: Board of Gas Commissioners established to exercise general supervision over gas companies.

March 6, 1886: First alternating current streetlighting system demonstrated in Great Barrington, Massachusetts by William Stanley.

June 8, 1887: Name of Board of Gas Commissioners changed to Board of Gas and Electric Light Commissioners; board acquires general supervisory authority over electric companies consistent with that held for gas companies.

In 1888 the Ohio General Assembly created additional responsibilities to secure the safe operation of railroads.

June 10, 1893: Highway Commission established to review local ordinances regarding effect of telephone and telegraph companies on state highways (Chapter 476 of the Acts of 1893).

In 1906, the Ohio General Assembly passed legislation restructuring the office as the Railroad Commission and expanding its duties.

In 1907, the state General Assembly created the Pennsylvania State Railroad Commission as the Commonwealth’s first public utility regulatory agency and precursor to today's PUC. It held jurisdiction over railroad, streetcar and telegraph corporations.

May 19, 1908: Board of Gas and Electric Light Commissioners authorized to review and approve of mergers between operating companies (Chapter 529 of the Acts of 1908).

In 1911, the New Hampshire Legislature enacted comprehensive legislation which instituted a new system for the establishment and regulation of public utilities and railroads in the state.

The Colorado Legislature did not officially define such services as public utilities and bring them under state regulation until 1913, when it established the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to replace its predecessor agency, the Railroad Commission.

The Utah State Legislature, in its Public Utilities Act of 1917, created the Public Utilities Commission of Utah.

November 1, 1919: Public Service Commission and Board of Gas and Electric Light Commissioners abolished and replaced with Department of Public Utilities, with functions of previous commissions transferred to the new agency; five-member commission established (Chapter 350 of the Acts of 1919).

September 1, 1929: Department of Public Utilities acquires jurisdiction over securities brokers because the Department is the only state agency with the powers to hold administrative-type hearings (Chapter 287 of the Acts of 1929).

In 1935, the Legislature changed the name of the Public Utilities Commission to the Public Service Commission.

Conducting a major reorganization of Utah State Government, the 1941 Legislature created the Department of Business Regulation of Utah, which included a three-member Commission known as the Commission of Business Regulation.

1952: Natural gas pipelines extended into Massachusetts; gas companies begin shutting down their manufactured gas plants and converting customer appliances to work with the higher Btu content of natural gas.

The 1961 Hawaii Administrative Procedure Act set forth the general requirement for the formulation and adoption of rules and the conduct of administrative hearings.

The Division of Public Utilities (The Division) Is formed — In 1969, the Utah Legislature reorganized the administrative powers of the Department of Business Regulation, now known as the Department of Commerce.

November 16, 1971: Community Antenna Television Commission established with general supervisory authority over cable television providers (Chapter 1103 of the Acts of 1971).

The Commission gained power to hire their own attorney again in 1972 as it proved a conflict of interest for the Attorney General to represent both the Commission and the PUD given that the PUD now assisted the director of the DRA rather than the Commission.

December 31, 1974: Energy Facility Siting Council established to review and approve forecast and supply needs of gas and electric companies.

Helen B. O’Bannon became the first female Commissioner in 1975.

Acts 215 and 216 of 1976 made a number of changes to the PUC including moving Commissioners from part-time to full-time positions.

The Committee of Consumer Services (The Committee) is Formed — 1977 was also the year of the creation of the Committee of Consumer Services.

Reorganization Forms the PSC as it is Today — In 1983, the Legislature reorganized utility regulation again, establishing the Public Service Commission as an independent state agency.

On June 26, 1985, Governor John Sununu established the Department of Transportation (DOT) to which the Commission's transportation functions were transferred.

Although the PUC originally regulated water utilities, jurisdiction was transferred to the Texas Water Commission in 1986.

In 1990, the PUC implemented the Telecommunications Relay Service, which allows people who are deaf, hard of hearing or speech disabled to communicate with anyone using a regular telephone.

The PUC began working toward providing broadband internet service to all Pennsylvanians in 1993.

In 1996, the legislature enacted RSA 374-F which initiated the restructuring of the electric utility industry in New Hampshire.

November 25, 1997: As part of extensive electric restructuring legislation, name of Department of Public Utilities changes to Department of Telecommunications and Energy.

In 1999, the Texas Legislature provided for the restructuring of the electric utility industry, allowing certain customers electric choice.

In 2000, the PUC moved its offices from the Capitol Complex’s North Office Building to the new Commonwealth Keystone Building.

In 2002, in the wake of the Enron collapse, the PUC reviewed corporate governance controls and auditing practices of the 27 major Pennsylvania utilities.

The PUC helped ensure at least 58% of Pennsylvania telephone lines were broadband capable as of 2004.

In 2010, the Commission launched PAPowerSwitch.com to allow customers to shop online for an electric supplier.

Act 127 (Pipeline Act) of 2011 expand the Commission’s authority to enforce the federal pipeline safety laws.