At the annual Kansas Corporation Commission organizational meeting Jan. 11, Commissioner Shari Feist Albrecht was elected to serve as chair of the commission. Albrecht was first appointed to the KCC by Gov. Sam Brownback on June 25, 2012. She was reappointed to a second four-year term, which expires March 15, 2020.
Commissioner Albrecht served at the Kansas Department of Health and Environment from 1993 to 2012. Previously at the KCC, Albrecht held the positions of director and deputy director of the Conservation Division, chairing numerous committees, including the Oil and Gas Advisory Committee. She also served as acting general counsel, assistant general counsel, and staff attorney for the Transportation Division.
Albrecht is president of the Regional State Committee of the Southwest Power Pool and serves on the advisory board of the Financial Resources Institute. She is a member of NARUC, serving on the Gas Committee, Subcommittee on Pipeline Safety and the Washington Action Committee. She is also a member of the Advisory Council of the New Mexico State University Center for Public Utilities and of the Energy Bar Association.
Commissioners are appointed by the governor and serve staggered four-year terms. State law provides that no more than two of the three commissioners may belong to the same political party. The commission acts as an independent regulatory agency with authority to render judgments and decisions on regulated utilities.
The KCC regulates the state’s electric, natural gas, telecommunications, oil and gas, and transportation industries with the responsibility of ensuring safe, adequate, and reliable services at reasonable rates for the citizens of Kansas.