Mr. Wilkinson is a member of Cozen O’Connor in its Philadelphia office, where he concentrates his practice in commercial and appellate litigation in federal and state courts and in lawyer professional responsibility and liability matters. He is also a leader of the firm’s Legal Profession Services practice group. He is a past President of the Pennsylvania Bar Association (PBA) and Pennsylvania Bar Institute (PBI). He is a former PBA Zone Governor, a member of the PBA House of Delegates, and is active in various other PBA and Philadelphia Bar Association committees and sections. Mr. Wilkinson is a past Chair of the PBA Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility Committee, and is a past Chair of the Civil Litigation Section. He is a Co-Chair of the PBA Civility in the Profession Committee. Mr. Wilkinson is the co-editor of the Pennsylvania Ethics Handbook (5th ed. 2017-PBI Press) and has for many years edited ethics opinion summaries for publication in The Pennsylvania Lawyer. He was a Lecturer in Law on professional responsibility at Villanova Law School and has written and presented extensively on various civil litigation and professional responsibility topics. He is a member of the Board of Governors of the American Bar Association (ABA) and previously served as the Pennsylvania State Delegate to the ABA House of Delegates. He is active in the ABA Section of Litigation and its Ethics and Professionalism Committee. He has served as a member and Board liaison to the ABA Standing Committee on Professionalism, and the Profession, Public Service and Diversity Committee. He is a member of the Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers (APRL). He also has served in various leadership capacities with the Villanova Law J. Willard O’Brien American Inn of Court. He is frequently retained as counsel to lawyers and law firms on risk management and disciplinary matters and as an expert witness in lawyer professional liability actions. He is a contributing author for the book entitled The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania: Life and Law in the Commonwealth 1684-2017. Mr. Wilkinson is admitted to the U.S. Supreme Court, and various other federal courts. He received his law degree from Villanova University School of Law where he was managing editor of the Law Review, and thereafter served as a law clerk in the U.S. District for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

Jessica O’Neill is a Senior Attorney at PennFuture. She is based out of Philadelphia, and her work focuses on water quality and watershed protection as well as the creation and protection of green space for all. She also works on issues related to the petrochemical and fracking industries that threaten our health and environment across Pennsylvania. Prior to joining PennFuture, she was an Assistant United States Attorney with the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey. She also worked as an environmental lawyer in private practice, where she primarily focused on clean water issues, and as an Assistant Regional Counsel for the Environmental Protection Agency in its Mid-Atlantic office, bringing administrative enforcement actions under federal hazardous waste and toxic chemical regulations. In 2010, she served as an assistant counsel to the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling. Ms. O’Neill clerked for the Honorable Louis H. Pollak on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and the Honorable Robert B. Kugler on the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. She has an undergraduate degree in environmental studies from Brown University and graduated magna cum laude from the Georgetown University Law Center. 

Elizabeth Marx serves as Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Utility Law Project (PULP), where leads PULP’s policy, litigation, training, and specialized projects in furtherance of its mission to secure just and equitable access to safe and affordable utility services for Pennsylvanians experiencing poverty. She currently serves as Chairperson of the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services’ LIHEAP Advisory Committee, the Department of Community and Economic Development’s Weatherization Assistance Program Policy Advisory Council, and the Department of Environmental Protection’s Climate Change Advisory Committee. She is also a member of the Public Utility Commission’s Consumer Advisory Council. She holds a BS, cum laude, in Political Science from Temple University, and JD, magna cum laude, from Widener University Commonwealth Law School.

Mr. Screven presently serves as Chief Counsel in the Law Bureau of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission. As the Commission’s senior legal official, David counsels the Commission in all appellate and original jurisdiction matters involving gas, electric, telephone, transportation, and water/wastewater utilities before state courts and federal courts and agencies.  As Chief Counsel, he manages the Commission’s Law Bureau, with additional responsibility for drafting policies, procedures, and regulations, developing Commission responses to Right-to-Know and Confidential Security Information requests, and supervision of contracted legal counsel in a variety of matters.  He joined the PUC Law Bureau in 1998 after graduating from Messiah College with a B.A. in political science and a J.D. from Widener University School of Law, Harrisburg.

Mr. Scott has served as an Assistant Counsel in the Law Bureau of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission since June 2012, representing the Commission in both state and federal matters concerning various regulated utility sectors, most recently pole attachment disputes and water cases.  He has served on iterations of the Commission’s Cyber Team, the Small Gas Task Force, and as counsel to the Consumer Advisory Council.  Currently, he works with the Pole Attachment Working Group, as a solicitor for the Damage Prevention Committee, and has been involved with several of the Commission’s ongoing rulemaking proceedings.  Mr. Scott received his J.D. in 2011 from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, where he was a K. Leroy Irvis Fellowship recipient, and a B.A. in Criminology, magna cum laude, from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Mr. Mandelbaum is a shareholder in Greenberg Traurig’s Environmental Practice. His principal offices are in Philadelphia and Boston. His practice tends toward environmental litigation of various sorts, including some Superfund matters that the government characterizes as among its most significant. He also advises on compliance, regulatory and transactional issues. He served as Vice-Chair of the Pennsylvania Statewide Water Resources Committee and as a member of the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission. Mr. Mandelbaum teaches “Superfund Litigation” and “Oil and Gas Law” in rotation at Temple Law School and the Superfund course at Suffolk (Boston) Law School. He was educated at Harvard University (A.B. 1980; J.D. 1983) and served as law clerk to Hon. Louis H. Pollak, then-United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. He is a Fellow of the American College of Environmental Lawyers.

Ria Pereira, Esq. is the Supervising Attorney at the Pennsylvania Utility Law Project (PULP) located in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. As an Attorney at PULP, Ria provides legal representation, advocacy, training, consultation, and support services to assist Pennsylvania’s low-income residential utility and energy consumers connect to and maintain affordable utility and energy services in their homes. Prior to joining PULP, Ria worked as an attorney for a domestic violence agency representing survivors of domestic violence on a range of legal issues. Ria received her B.S. and B.A. in Psychology and Policial Science from the University of Florida, and her J.D. from the Pennsylvania State University, Dickinson School of Law.

Christine Maloni Hoover is currently Of Counsel at the Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate (OCA) after retiring in March 2024. During her 37 year tenure at the OCA, Ms. Hoover worked on all aspects of utility law and regulation. At the time of her retirement, she was the Deputy Consumer Advocate overseeing the advocacy efforts of the OCA. For over 25 years, she had responsibility over water and wastewater cases, consumer education and outreach, as well as working on policy issues and supervising administrative, IT and support staff as a Senior Assistant Consumer Advocate. In addition, she is a former chair and member of the Water Committee of the National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates (NASUCA). Ms. Hoover received a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and a Juris Doctor from American University’s Washington College of Law.

Judge Rainey was appointed Chief Administrative Law Judge of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission on September 16, 2010. He leads the Office of Administrative Law Judge, which includes administrative law judges, mediators, lawyers and support staff in Harrisburg, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Judge Rainey has 43 years of experience in public utility law. Prior to his current position, he served as Administrative Law Judge and Office Manager in Philadelphia. In 2008 he was presented the Golden Gavel Award by the Office of Administrative Law Judge for his decision, which was adopted by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, in the Verizon/MCI merger case. In his 35 years at the PUC he has also served as Executive Deputy Chief Counsel in the Law Bureau and Legal Counsel to a Commissioner. In the Philadelphia City Solicitor’s Office, Judge Rainey served as Chief Assistant City Solicitor and Counsel to the Philadelphia Gas Commission. He has also served as an Assistant Consumer Advocate in the Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate. Judge Rainey has presented on public utility law in Ghana, India and Pakistan, and to delegations from Russia, South Korea, El Salvador, Uruguay, Zambia and Armenia. He earned his B.A. from the College of the Holy Cross and his J.D. from Antioch University School of Law.

Judge Vero was appointed as an administrative law judge in January of 2011 and is assigned to the Commission’s Philadelphia office. Prior to becoming an ALJ, she served for four years as a Special Agent in the Legal Division of the Commission’s Office of Administrative Law Judge. She received her B.A. from Temple University, summa cum laude, and her J.D. from Penn State University, The Dickinson School of Law.

Mr. Povilaitis is a Shareholder in the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania office of Buchanan, Ingersoll & Rooney, P.C., where he focuses on administrative law matters before various state and federal courts and agencies in the areas of energy, water, transportation and telecommunications, as well as agreements for transactions involving energy production and services. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Povilaitis served as chief counsel of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission and successively served as assistant counsel, deputy chief counsel, and first deputy chief counsel, before assuming the position of chief counsel which he held for eight years. Mr. Povilaitis is a past chairperson of the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Public Utility Law Section and past editor of the Section’s newsletter. Since 1990, he has been a course planner and speaker at the Pennsylvania Bar Institute’s biannual Public Utility Law Conference, and is also a planner for the biannual PA PUC Bench Bar Conference. Mr. Povilaitis is a graduate of LaSalle University and earned his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. He is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, several United States Federal District Courts, in addition to the several Courts of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Mr. Povilaitis is a member of the American Bar Association, Pennsylvania Bar Association, Dauphin County Bar Association and the Energy Bar Association. 

Mr. Brown is the Executive Deputy Chief Counsel responsible for energy matters in the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission law Bureau, as well as the Deputy Director of the Commission’s Office of Competitive Market Oversight. He has been with the Commission since 2006 and has advised the Commission and individual bureaus on the implementation of the Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards Act, the Act 129 Energy Efficiency and Conservation Program and smart meters, as well as other energy, water, transportation and natural gas safety issues. Mr. Brown has also represented the Commission before FERC, as well as, State and Federal Courts. Prior to joining the Commission Mr. Brown was in private practice and served in the United States Air Force as an Electronic Warfare Officer. He earned a B.S. degree in History at Arizona State University, a M.A.S. degree from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and his J.D. from the Dickinson School of Law, of the Pennsylvania State University.

Ms. Winokur is Professional Responsibility Counsel at Cozen O’Connor.  She advises clients on risk management, ethics, and professional responsibility issues arising within their law firms and practices. Deborah also works with stakeholders within the firm to advise on ethical aspects of pending matters and to assure adherence to ethical standards and compliance with firm policies. In addition, she advises firm management on lateral recruitment and integration. Deborah handles pro bono representations, including representing clients through the Support Center for Child Advocates, Defender Association of Philadelphia, Campaign for Working Families Tax Clinic, Volunteers for the Indigent Program and Homeless Advocacy Project. She is a lecturer in law and teaches a course in Professional Responsibility and Ethics at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School. Deborah earned her bachelor’s degree, cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania and her law degree from Columbia University School of Law. She is Co-chair of the Professional Responsibility Committee of the Philadelphia Bar Association and serves on the Philadelphia Bar Association Professional Guidance Committee. She also serves on the Pennsylvania Bar Association Committee on Legal Ethics and Professional Responsibility, Pennsylvania Bar Association Professional Liability Committee, and the Pennsylvania Bar Association Civility in the Professional Committee.

Elizabeth Barnes has been Deputy Chief Counsel in the Law Bureau of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission since July 2022. She is primarily responsible for federal energy matters as well as regulatory review. Prior to her appointment, she served as an Administrative Law Judge in the Harrisburg office of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission from July 2010 – July 2022. From December 1998 – July 2010, she was Assistant Counsel in the Commission’s Law Bureau. Ms. Barnes holds a B.S. in Marketing/Pre-Law from Juniata College and a J.D. from Widener University Delaware Law School.

Melanie Joy El Atieh serves as the Deputy Consumer Advocate at the Office of Consumer Advocate (OCA) since April 2024. She served as a Senior Assistant Consumer Advocate between October 2023 and March 2024. Prior to joining the OCA, Mel served as Assistant Counsel at the Public Utility Commission (PUC), in the Law Bureau between 2021-2023, and in the Office of Special Assistants between 2017 and 2021. At the PUC, Mel successfully represented the agency in complex appellate cases before the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court and the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. Between 2005 – 2017, Mel obtained experience in the natural gas, electricity, water, and wastewater industries within the regulated utility and competitive market spaces, as follows: as in-house counsel at American Water, where she advised on complex rate, regulatory, litigation, and transactional matters to utility business units in Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Maryland (2015-2017); as the manager, rates & regulatory planning at UGI Utilities, Inc. (2014-2015), where she oversaw the preparation of base rate, purchased gas cost, default service, and DSIC rate filings; as in-house counsel at UGI Corporation, where she provided legal, business, and ethics counsel on complex matters to diverse business units (2010-2014); and, as an associate (2008-2010), summer associate (2007), and part-time law clerk (2005-2007) at Blank Rome LLP. In 2008, she graduated from Temple University Beasley School of Law. Before law school, between 2002 – 2005, Mel worked for the PUC as an executive policy analyst in the Office of the Honorable Glen R. Thomas. In 2002, she graduated from Temple University with a B.A. in Economics, highest distinction. Mel served in the following leadership roles in the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s (PBA’s) Public Utility Law Section from 2018 through 2024: Immediate Past Chair & Section Delegate to the PBA House of Delegates, Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, and Young Lawyers’ Division Liaison.

Mr. Zambito is the Harrisburg Office Managing Partner of Cozen O’Connor, a 925-attorney, full-service law firm with offices in 33 cities on two continents. The firm is ranked among the top 100 law firms in the country. He is Chair of the firm’s Utility & Energy Group and concentrates his practice on water/wastewater, natural gas, electric, telecommunications, transportation, and large development project matters. He is a member of the firm’s Board of Directors, Political Action Committee and Marketing Committee, and has served on the firm’s Management Committee and chaired the firm’s Shareholder Nominating Committee. Among other awards and recognitions, Mr. Zambito has been named to 2024 Power List for Law, Best Lawyers in America for 2024-25 and Energy & Environment Power 100 by City & State Pennsylvania in 2023. He received his B.A. from Grove City College, magna cum laude, and his J.D. from The Dickinson School of Law, where he was a member of the Dickinson Law Review and Appellate Moot Court Board. Following law school, he served three years as a Captain in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps, stationed at Fort Knox, Kentucky. In addition to prosecuting courts-martial and acting as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney, he instructed courses on military justice, the law of war, and government employee ethics. Following his military service, Mr. Zambito served as legal counsel to Glen Thomas, former Chairman of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission. His clients include American Water and its subsidiary Pennsylvania-American Water Company, Veolia Water Pennsylvania f/k/a SUEZ Water Pennsylvania, PJM Interconnection, National Association of Water Companies – PA Chapter, Amazon.com, Talen Energy, Cordia Energy, SteelRiver Infrastructure Fund North America, IFM Global Infrastructure Fund, Riverstone Holdings, Securus Technologies, SpaceX, Saracen Energy, The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania/University of Pennsylvania Health System, The Westover Companies, and Perdue AgriBusiness.

Chairman Stephen M. DeFrank was nominated by Governor Wolf on September 20, 2022, and confirmed by the Senate on October 19, 2022. He was appointed as Chairman on August 30, 2023, by Governor Josh Shapiro. His term expires on April 1, 2025. Prior to joining the PaPUC, the Chairman was a principal in the government relations practice at Buchannan Ingersoll & Rooney.  He also spent 24 years in state government, primarily in the state Senate, serving in several roles with Senate leadership, including Chief of Staff for two members, Special Assistant for Policy to the Democratic Leader, and Democratic Executive Director of the Senate Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure Committee.  As Committee Director, the Chairman developed policy initiatives impacting the utility sector, including the creation of the Distribution System Improvement Charge (DSIC), authorization of Transportation Network Companies, and modernizing the Public Utility Code relative to energy, water, wastewater and telecommunications. Chairman DeFrank resides in Harrisburg with his family.

Teri-Lee Rhoades is an Attorney/Mediator with the Office of Administrative Law Judge (“OALJ”). Before joining the OALJ, she served as an Attorney 3 with the Office of General Counsel for the Department of Revenue. In her current post, with the OALJ, Ms. Rhoades focuses exclusively on mediation of matters that the PUC regulates which includes electric, natural gas, pipeline, motor carrier, rail, telecom, water and wastewater cases. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree and her Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Tennessee. Since graduation and prior to serving the Commonwealth, Ms. Rhoades has served as: the Chairwoman of the Tennessee Commission on Indian Affairs; a registered lobbyist in Pennsylvania; a solo practitioner with Rhoades OLMS, LLC; Director of Development, Small Business Advisor, Project Director for tribal nations including the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma and United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians; a mediator for the Supreme Court of Oklahoma’s Early Settlement Program; a board member and general manager of a small water utility; and an arbitrator for Cherokee Nation Tribal Courts. She is admitted to practice before the bars of Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, Eastern District of Kentucky, the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokees, and Cherokee Nation Tribal Courts. Her practice areas have included civil, criminal, and appellate practice with a focus on indigenous law, mediation, arbitration, entity formation, non-profit law, family law, estate planning, probate matters, and utility law.

Ms. Tran joined the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission in 2015 as a Special Agent in the Office of Administrative Law Judge, where she served as a presiding officer, and reviewed and drafted ALJ decisions. Since 2017 she has been an Assistant Counsel in the Commission’s Law Bureau, representing the Commission in trial and appellate courts, and providing advice on a variety of legal issues. She currently serves as staff counsel assigned to the Commission’s Consumer Advisory Council and the Telecommunications Relay Service Advisory Board. Ms. Tran received her J.D. from the Penn State University Dickinson School of Law and holds a B.A. in Fine Arts from Saint Joseph’s University.

Michael Mroczka is a special agent in the OALJ. A graduate of Keystone College and New England Law, he worked several years with North Penn Legal Services as a Contract Attorney and Staff Attorney where he represented low-income clients in several fields, including but not limited to, custody, protection from abuse, landlord/tenant, Unemployment Compensation and debt collection defense. He also spent time as an adjunct professor at Johnson College where he instructed business students in the subject of Business Law.  Michael began his career with the PUC in September 2022. 

Shelby currently serves as PPL Electric Utilities’ Senior Director of Government, Regulatory and External Affairs. In this role, Linton-Keddie leads PPL Electric’s advocacy strategy and relationships with key stakeholders.  A dynamic thinker, Shelby has provided innovative and effective strategy on a wide range of utility regulatory and legislative issues for almost two decades. Shelby came to PPL Electric from the Edison Electric Institute (EEI), where she served as Executive Director of State Regulatory Affairs and oversaw EEI’s national engagement and strategy on state regulatory issues before public utility commissions.  She also co-led EEI’s cross-functional state practice team, which focused on emerging industry policy trends on key topics.  Prior to her time with EEI, Linton-Keddie has held various regulatory and legal counsel positions, including serving as Manager of Regulatory Strategy at Duquesne Light Company and at the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, where she was legal counsel to Commissioner Pamela Witmer.  She also has served in various advocate roles, both as an intern at the Office of Consumer Advocate and as an Assistant Small Business Advocate. In all these roles, Shelby has experience actively managing utility strategies and making policy decisions on a variety of issues. Ms. Linton-Keddie received her J.D. from the Dickinson School of Law of The Pennsylvania State University, where she served as Managing Editor of the Penn State International Law Review. In addition, Ms. Linton-Keddie holds a B.S., cum laude, and a M.Ed. from Millersville University. 

Rosemary Chiavetta was appointed Secretary of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission on April 15, 2010. She retired after 35 years of service with the Commonwealth on April 18, 2025, and served as Secretary of the Commission for the past 15 years. Prior to her return to the Commission, Secretary Chiavetta was the sole proprietor of Chiavetta Consulting from 1999 to 2010, specializing in legal advice and government relations for clients in the areas of public utilities, labor, health care, education, financial investments, mergers and acquisitions, and the environment. Before entering private practice, Secretary Chiavetta served in the Commission between March of 1993 and April of 1999 as an Assistant Counsel in the Commission’s Law Bureau, as Counsel to former PUC Chairman John M. Quain from 1995 to 1997, and as the Commission’s Director of Legislative Affairs from 1997 to 1999. Secretary Chiavetta was instrumental in both the deregulation, passage, and implementation of the electric industry (the 1996 Customer Choice Act), and the telecommunications industry (the 1997 Federal Telecommunications Act), resulting in the creation of new area codes throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Prior to her first tour of duty with the Commission, Secretary Chiavetta served as a Legislative Assistant and Counsel in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Secretary Chiavetta is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame of Maryland in 1976 and holds her juris doctorate from the Dickinson School of Law in 1992 and is a member of the Pennsylvania Bar since November of 1992.

Patrick M. Cicero, Esq., has dedicated his legal career to advocating for the rights of Pennsylvania’s consumers, particularly in the realm of public utilities. Patrick currently serves as Chief Counsel to the Pennsylvania Utility Law Project (PULP), a specialized legal aid office that provides advocacy, training, and legal representation on energy and utility matters affecting low-income Pennsylvanians. Patrick also worked at PULP from 2011-2020 initially as a staff attorney and ultimately as the Executive Director. From December 2021 through January 2025, Patrick served as Pennsylvania’s Consumer Advocate, a role for which he was confirmed by the Pennsylvania Senate. During his tenure, Patrick was known for his vigorous representation of consumers, challenging utility rate hikes and opposing the privatization of public water systems when it was not in the public’s best interest. His efforts included testifying before the state legislature for more robust utility protections and successfully contesting certain municipal water system sales in court. Patrick earned his Juris Doctor from Temple University Beasley School of Law in 2002 and subsequently served as a judicial law clerk for the Honorable Sylvia H. Rambo in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. Following his clerkship, Patrick joined MidPenn Legal Services, where he led the Consumer Unit, focusing on litigating consumer and housing cases related to anti-predatory mortgage lending, consumer bankruptcy, and defending clients against unscrupulous debt collection practices. Patrick also served as the Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Legal Aid Network (PLAN) for slightly less than 2 years. Patrick has taught as an adjunct professor at Messiah University, his alma mater. He lives in Mechanicsburg with his wife, their two children, and his in-laws.

Teresa Harrold is a Director, Corporate Counsel at American Water, the largest U.S. publicly traded water and wastewater utility company. The company, based in Camden, New Jersey, employs more than 7,000 dedicated professionals who provide water and wastewater service to more than 15 million people in 46 states. Ms. Harrold represents American Water in various regulatory proceedings, acquisitions, and litigation in state and federal courts. Ms. Harrold has practiced public utility law for nearly 15 years as in-house counsel and in private practice. Ms. Harrold received her B.S. in Psychology and Political Science from the University of Pittsburgh and J.D. from Duke University School of Law. In her free time, Ms. Harrold enjoys traveling, mineral collection, and spending quality time with her husband, son, and two dogs.

Gina L. Miller is an attorney with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission’s Office of Special Assistants. Prior to her current role, Gina served as a Senior Assistant Consumer Advocate at the Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate, and she also served for over eight years as a Prosecutor within the Rates Division the Public Utility Commission’s Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement. Prior to her work within the public utility field, Gina worked as a litigator at a general practice law firm in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Gina earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication from the University of Pittsburgh and her Juris Doctor degree from Widener University School of Law in Harrisburg. Gina currently serves as a Co-Chair of Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Commission on Women in the Profession, and she served as the Chair of the Public Utility Law Section from 2020-2021. Gina also serves as both the Mentoring Committee Co-Chair and as a Barrister member of the James S. Bowman American Inn of Court. In 2022, Gina became a certified Spinning© instructor and she teaches classes in the Harrisburg area in her spare time.

Glen Thomas is the former chairman of the Pennsylvania Utility Commission (PUC), where he oversaw the restructuring of Pennsylvania’s electricity, natural gas, and local telephone markets. Before his appointment to the PUC, Mr. Thomas served as deputy director of Governor Ridge’s Policy Office, where he advised the governor on energy and environmental issues. In addition, Mr. Thomas was appointed by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to serve on the governor’s transition team for energy related issues in 2003. Mr. Thomas is also a former partner at the law firm of Blank Rome. Mr. Thomas currently serves as President of the PJM Power Providers Group, a non-profit organization dedicated to properly designed and well-functioning markets in the PJM region. Mr. Thomas has served as president of the Mid-Atlantic Association of Regulatory Utilities Commissioners; chairman of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners Washington Action Committee; and a member of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Electricity Advisory Board, the National Regulatory Research Institute’s Board of Directors, the Keystone Center Energy Board, the Organization of MISO States Board of Directors, and the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners Committee on International Relations, Telecommunications and Critical Infrastructure. Mr. Thomas received his J.D. from Dickinson School of Law and his Bachelor of Arts in philosophy/religion and political science from Colgate University. He attended the Governors Center of the Terry Sanford Institute of Public Policy at Duke University, the John F. Kennedy School of Government, and the Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government at Harvard University. He was one of the 60 civilians chosen by the Secretary of Defense to participate in the U.S. Department of Defense Joint Civilian Orientation Conference. Mr. Thomas has been honored by the Philadelphia Business Journal and the Central Pennsylvania Business Journal as recipient of the “40 Under 40” Award. He is also a member of the Wilson High School Academic Hall of Fame.

Mr. Van de Verg joined the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission in 2021 as an Assistant Counsel in the Law Bureau, representing the Commission in federal and state trial and appellate courts, and providing advice to the Commission and its bureaus on a variety of legal issues, including cybersecurity, federal energy, pole attachments and telecommunications. He represents the Commission on the NARUC Staff Subcommittee on Telecommunications. He was promoted to Deputy Chief Counsel in May, 2024 and assumed oversight of matters relating to Right-to-Know Law requests, subpoenas, motor carriers and railroads. Prior to joining the Commission, he served as in-house counsel at a telecommunications service provider and as a solo practitioner in Baltimore, Maryland. Mr. Van de Verg received his J.D. and MSL (Cybersecurity Law & Policy) from the University of Maryland School of Law and holds a B.A. in History from the University of Virginia.

Ms. Appleby is a Senior Assistant Consumer Advocate with the Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate. Ms. Appleby joined the Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate (OCA) in 2000. During her time with the OCA, Ms. Appleby has worked on cases involving electric, natural gas, water/wastewater, and telecommunications utilities before the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission. Ms. Appleby has also participated in related appeals. In recent years, Ms. Appleby has focused on low-income customer issues; consumer issues, including water and electric high bill complaints and reliability issues; and consumer requests for water main extensions. As a part of this work, Ms. Appleby supervises the OCA’s Call Center. On behalf of the office, Ms. Appleby also participates in the individual electric and natural gas Universal Services Advisory Committees. Ms. Appleby was also recently named co-chair of the NASUCA Consumer Protection Committee and participates as a member of the NASUCA Gas Committee. Prior to joining the Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate, Ms. Appleby interned for two years at MidPenn Legal Services. Ms. Appleby received a B.A. in History and English from Boston College and a J.D. from the Dickinson School of Law at the Pennsylvania State University.

Whitney focuses her legal practice at Hawke, McKeon & Sniscak LLP on administrative litigation in the public utility, pipeline safety, natural gas, electricity and municipal and private water and wastewater sectors, practicing predominantly before the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission for the past ten years. Whitney has substantial experience in assisting: public utilities with utility regulatory compliance and administrative litigation including rate cases, service complaints, procurement planning, mergers and acquisitions, tariff interpretation and changes, comment proceedings regarding policy and regulation proposals; pipeline operators with compliance and litigation involving Act 127 Pipeline Safety matters and application of PHMSA regulations; utility customers and property developers with disputes with public utilities and natural gas and electricity suppliers; unregulated entities with questions of PUC oversight and compliance; and municipalities with disputes with public utilities. Whitney also practices in the areas of appellate litigation and argues appeals before the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court. Whitney is Vice Chair of the Administrative Law Section, a past Chair of the Public Utility Law Section, and is a member of the Commission on Women in the Profession of the Pennsylvania Bar Association. Whitney joined HMS in 2013 after graduating from Widener Commonwealth School of Law. Prior to working at HMS, Whitney interned at the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. Whitney also interned as a Law Clerk in the PUC’s Law Bureau.

Brigid Landy Khuri is a member of the Energy and Environmental Law Group at McNees Wallace & Nurick in Harrisburg. Brigid focuses her practice in the area of environmental regulation. She advises clients from a variety of industries regarding air, water, waste, land use, and remediation issues, as well as in related litigation and administrative proceedings. Brigid guides clients seeking environmental permits and those responding to enforcement actions brought by state and federal agencies. She has also conducted comprehensive internal investigations stemming from alleged criminal environmental compliance issues. Brigid has significant experience litigating in Pennsylvania’s Commonwealth Court and has argued before Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court. Brigid has been a regular speaker at Pennsylvania’s Environmental Law Forum and contributed to several environmental law treatises, including Pennsylvania Oil and Gas Practice. Brigid been named to the Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch lists for Energy Law and for Natural Resources Law each year since 2021. Prior to joining McNees, Brigid was an associate at a global Am Law 100 firm where she primarily advised large energy clients. She also served as a law clerk for the Honorable J. Michael Eakin of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and in the chambers of U.S. Federal Magistrate Judge Timothy R. Rice. While in law school, Brigid interned at the Pennsylvania PA DEP. Prior to that, she spent time at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the Philadelphia Defenders Association. Brigid was born and raised in Bradford County, Pa. She now lives in Camp Hill with her husband, two sons, and rescue dog.

Darryl Lawrence is the Acting Pennsylvania Consumer Advocate and has worked at the Office of Consumer Advocate (OCA) since 2005. Mr. Lawrence’s current state practice for the OCA focuses on energy matters. Mr. Lawrence also leads the OCA’s efforts in participating in major energy cases that come before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission that may have an impact on Pennsylvania ratepayers, including interstate natural gas pipeline and electric transmission rate cases, and various rulemakings as to matters of national importance on energy issues. In 2011, Mr. Lawrence was elected to a seat on the Planning Committee, which has since been reformed as the Reliability and Security Technical Committee (RSTC) of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC). Mr. Lawrence is the only voting member on the Reliability and Security Technical Committee solely representing small end-use customers for the entire NERC footprint, which encompasses the continental United States, five Canadian Provinces and a part of Mexico. In 2020, Mr. Lawrence was elected to the Member Representative Committee of NERC, representing small end-use customers. Mr. Lawrence received his undergraduate and graduate degrees in business administration from Lebanon Valley College, graduating Summa Cum Laude from both programs. Mr. Lawrence received his J.D. Cum Laude from the Widener University School of Law, where he served as the Business/External Managing Editor for the Widener Law Journal. Prior to attending law school, Mr. Lawrence had a successful career in the automotive industry as a Certified Master Auto Technician, Service Manager, and also provided consulting services to Chevrolet Motor Division on quality of service and customer satisfaction issues.

Ms. Joyce is Vice President, Regulatory Counsel and Corporate Secretary at Essential Utilities, where she leads regulatory affairs for the natural gas, water and wastewater operating divisions in nine states.Joyce works closely with the finance and operations teams across the business to align and integrate the organization’s regulatory and legislative strategy. As Regulatory Counsel for the Company, she manages regulatory filings including base rate cases, acquisition applications, and the implementation of state and federal legislative and regulatory policy at the public utility commissions for Essential’s regulated natural gas, water, and wastewater subsidiaries. As Corporate Secretary, Ms. Joyce assists in the preparation of SEC filings, corporate governance matters and board related matters. Joyce spent five years with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) before joining the Company. She previously clerked for Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court President Judge James Gardner Colins. She earned her B.A. in economics and M.B.A. at Villanova University and her J.D. at the University of Pittsburgh. Joyce serves on the board of St. Christopher’s Hospital, the Economy League of Greater Philadelphia and leads the Company’s partnership with Villanova’s engineering school service learning initiatives.

Mrs. Roth is the motor carrier supervisor of the Transportation Division with the Public Utility Commission. She was born and raised in East-Germany and received her business degree abroad. She immigrated to the United States in 1998. She worked for the printing company Fry Communications Inc. in Mechanicsburg for 11 years. She drove school bus for 2 years. She has been with the Commission since 2013 and became supervisor of the motor carrier section in 2019. Her responsibilities include the processing of all motor carrier and broker applications, insurance compliance, furnishing of tariffs and rate change approvals.

Mr. Bender is the manager of the Transportation Division with the Public Utility Commission. He started with the Commission in 1998, as a senior civil engineer in the Rail Safety Section. In 2011, he became manager of the Transportation Division. One of his responsibilities includes oversight of the Rail Safety Section, which includes both an engineering unit as well as an inspections unit. Mr. Bender holds a B.S. degree in civil engineering technology from the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown and is a licensed professional engineer in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Sam Robinson serves as Deputy Chief of Staff for Consumers and the Environment in the administration of Governor Josh Shapiro. Prior to joining the current administration, Robinson served in numerous positions in the prior administration, including as Deputy Chief of Staff for the four years of Governor Wolf’s second term. Robinson works closely with Pennsylvania’s environmental and energy agencies, as well as a number of administrative and regulatory agencies. Prior to joining the Wolf administration, Robinson served as an Assistant City Solicitor with the City of Philadelphia Law Department working in the Regulatory Affairs group. A proud Philadelphian, Robinson received his law degree from The College of William & Mary and his bachelor’s degree from Earlham College.

Mr. Thomas has been an Assistant Counsel with the PA Public Utility Commission’s Law Bureau since 2017. Much of his work for the Law Bureau focuses on responding to Right to Know requests and Office of Open Records appeals. Prio to this position, he worked as an Assistant Public Defender in the Franklin County Public Defender’s Office. He is a graduate of The Pennsylvania State University Dickinson School of Law.

Christine M. Martin is president of PPL Electric Utilities, the subsidiary that provides electric delivery services to 1.5 million customers in eastern and central Pennsylvania. PPL Electric Utilities operates and maintains a vast electric delivery system that spans 10,000 square miles and serves a population of more than 3 million. Martin joined PPL in June 2003. Prior to becoming president of PPL Electric Utilities in September 2023, Martin was PPL’s senior vice president–Public Affairs and chief sustainability officer, overseeing the corporation’s advocacy and policy development, corporate communications and sustainability efforts. Before coming to PPL, Martin was deputy secretary for water management in Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection, where she was responsible for statewide water resources management and policy. Martin also served as senior policy manager for environmental, infrastructure, energy and regulatory issues for Governors Tom Ridge and Mark Schweiker and as executive policy specialist for Governor Ridge. Martin holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science/International Studies with minors in Economics and French from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and a Master of Public Administration from The Pennsylvania State University. She also completed studies at the University of Nancy in France. A native of Pennsylvania, Martin is co-chair of the Edison Electric Institute’s Operating Company Leadership Work Group. She also serves on the boards for the Energy Association of Pennsylvania, the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation, the Pennsylvania Chamber and the Baum School Board of Trustees. Martin is also an officer of the PPL Foundation and she serves on the PBS Good Neighbor Awards Committee.

David A. Quier is Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of PPL Electric Utilities, the subsidiary that provides electric delivery services to 1.5 million customers over 10,000 square miles in Pennsylvania. He oversees asset management, planning, operations, project development, compliance, and field personnel for Transmission and Distribution. He also manages new transmission business ventures. Prior to becoming vice president, Quier was director of asset management in the Transmission and Substations organization of PPL Electric Utilities. In this role, he oversaw planning, system reliability, standards, strategic initiatives, regulatory policy, special projects and capital development. Since joining PPL in 2007, Quier has been instrumental in helping to refocus the distribution system automation strategy to improve reliability performance. This includes directing the efforts to fully deploy smart grid switches on PPL Electric Utilities’ power grid. Before coming to PPL, Quier was a project engineer at F.L. Smidth, where he managed new mill installations in three different South American countries. Prior to that, he was a power plant engineer at WorleyParsons. Quier received a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from Lehigh University, a Masters of Business Administration from the Pennsylvania State University and is a licensed professional engineer. He is currently a member of several industry organizations, including the North American Transmission Forum, the Association of Edison Illuminating Companies, and WIRES Group. He is also a member of REACH, PPL’s Business Resource Group that focuses on improving the well-being of differently-abled employees. He is a native of Allentown, Pennsylvania, where he currently resides with his wife and two daughters.

Mr. Tubbs is the the President and CEO of the Energy Association of Pennsylvania, where he spearheads the EAP’s initiatives to advocate for the energy industry and strengthen collaboration among policymakers, regulators and utility providers. EAP is a leader in energy policy, balancing economic growth, sustainability, reliability and customer affordability, including Chapter 14 protections for energy customers in Pennsylvania. Previously, he was Director of Regulatory Strategy for NiSource, Inc. where he led a team in developing and advancing regulatory initiatives to support NiSource’s corporate objectives by aligning regulatory efforts across the six states served by NiSource’s electric and gas affiliates. Prior to this role, Mr. Tubbs oversaw legislative and regulatory policy for Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania. Tubbs, an attorney, previously served as Senior Counsel for Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania where he represented Columbia in matters before the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission. Prior to joining NiSource, Mr. Tubbs was an attorney in Post & Schell P.C. Energy Practice Group, where he represented gas and electric utilities clients in various state and federal regulatory and transactional matters before the Commission and the FERC. In addition, Mr. Tubbs spent nearly eight years with the Pennsylvania PUC where he advised the Commission on a variety of electric and gas matters and defended Commission orders before state and federal courts. Mr. Tubbs earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Pittsburgh and his Juris Doctor form Widener University School of Law.

Ms. Wimer is counsel to Chairman Stephen M. DeFrank. She has worked at the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission since 2009 in various positions, including as assistant counsel in the Law Bureau and senior prosecutor in the Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement. where she was responsible for investigating and prosecuting violations of the Public Utility Code, the Commission’s regulations and orders, and federal pipeline safety laws and regulations. Ms. Wimer is the chair of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners’ Staff Subcommittee on Gas and a member of the Public Utility Law Section of the Pennsylvania Bar Association. She received a B.A. from Loyola University Maryland and a J.D. from Widener University Commonwealth Law School.

Julie Lewis joined Corning Natural Gas as a business analyst in August of 2016, was appointed corporate secretary in October of 2021, and became vice-president of energy supply on January 2, 2024. Ms. Lewis manages energy supply for Leatherstocking Gas, Pike County Light & Power, and Corning Natural Gas, the public awareness team, business development and marketing, some regulatory reporting, handles all board of directors governance and administrative activities for Corning Energy Corporation and its subsidiaries, and formerly handled the annual shareholder meeting and investor relations for Corning Natural Gas Holding Corporation when it was a publicly traded corporation. From 2000-2015, she was a substitute teacher for the Johnson City School District. Ms. Lewis was a Broome County Legislator from 2011-2012, and a candidate for state assembly in 2012. From 1998 through today, she has had her own photography business. She also serves on the boards of Pike County Light & Power and Leatherstocking Gas Company. Julie has held multiple volunteer leadership roles throughout her life and enjoys learning as a lifelong hobby, photography, clay shoots, horseback riding, traveling, bicycling, and gardening.

J.J. Livingston currently serves as Director of Legislative Affairs for the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC), a role he has held since appointment by the Commissioners in January 2023. J.J. joined the PUC in April of 2022 as Deputy Director of Legislative Affairs, and was named acting director in September of 2022. Prior to joining the PUC, J.J. served as the Democratic Executive Director of the Senate Consumer Protection & Professional Licensure Committee for Senator Lisa Boscola for six years. Additionally, he served as research analyst to the Democratic Chair of the House Consumer Affairs Committee from 2011-2017 under Representatives Joe Preston and Pete Daley, respectively. From 2009 until 2011, he served the House Democratic Caucus in various research and policy positions, including for the Majority Chair of the House Transportation Committee Representative Joe Markosek during the 2010 Special Session on Transportation. After graduating from Penn State in 2007 and serving as the president of the Council of Commonwealth Student Governments, he worked various campaigns including several in Southwestern Pennsylvania during the 2008 general election. Originally from Johnstown, PA, J.J. resides in the Harrisburg area with his wife and two daughters.

Chris enjoys using his prior experience as a software engineer to solve clients’ concerns where technology intersects with the law. As a member of the Technology, Privacy, & Data Security practice at Cozen O’Connor, Chris advises clients on privacy and cybersecurity regulations, handles matters involving artificial intelligence, and negotiates technology contracts and data licenses. A leader in the area of technology, privacy, and data security, Chris has extensive experience advising clients on federal, state, and European privacy laws, including U.S. state comprehensive privacy laws, U.S. state biometric privacy laws, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, the NYDFS Cybersecurity Regulation, and FFIEC and FTC privacy and cybersecurity regimes. He is leading efforts to develop technology-based defenses in BIPA actions. Chris works with large and small clients that use or provide technology solutions, including companies in sectors such as financial services, financial technology, health care, online retail, brick-and-mortar retail, cloud services, software as a service (SaaS), software, mobile apps, blockchain, logistics, aviation, and more. He assists clients on a variety of transactional matters, including data processing agreements, artificial intelligence licenses, electric vehicle charging station agreements, SaaS agreements, platform as a service (PaaS) agreements, infrastructure as a service (IaaS) agreements, technology services and licensing agreements, proprietary and open source software licenses, independent contractor agreements, professional services agreements, nondisclosure agreements, online marketplace agreements, and drop shipment agreements. In his spare time, you may find Chris engaged in pursuits such as gardening, skiing, lumberjacking, and even bull riding.

Michael J. Shafer is Senior Counsel at PPL Services Corporation, with responsibilities for the Pennsylvania state regulatory work focusing on customer service programs, and transmission siting. Before joining PPL, Michael worked at Zator Law, where he specialized in land use and municipal law. He holds a B.S. in Business Administration/Finance from Millersville University. Michael additionally obtained a J.D. from Villanova University School of Law. In addition to his professional responsibilities, he also serves on the Board of the Upper Saucon Township Municipal Authority and Sewer Treatment Authority.

Ms. Wright is the Deputy Chief Prosecutor of the Rates Division of the Public Utility Commission’s Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement. She joined the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission in 2009 representing the public interest in all matters that have an impact on rates including base rate cases, Section 1307(f) proceedings, acquisitions and various other public utility filings. Ms. Wright graduated in 2008 from Widener University School of Law with a Law and Government Institute Administrative Law Certificate. Ms. Wright received a B.S. in Biology from West Virginia University in 2005.

Mark Kempic serves as President and Chief Operating Officer of Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania and Maryland, both NiSource subsidiaries. He is responsible for profit and loss and designing and executing both companies’ legislative, regulatory, commercial, and external strategies. Kempic also oversees a program that has invested more than $2.8 billion since 2007 to modernize and expand NiSource’s natural gas distribution systems across Pennsylvania and Maryland. Kempic previously served as President and Chief Operating Officer of Columbia Gas of Massachusetts, responsible for the company’s day-to-day operation. He was the lead executive in all aspects of the restoration efforts in the Merrimack Valley and helped guide leadership and employees through the sale of the company. Kempic began his career with Columbia Gas in 1979 and served in roles of increasing responsibility. He served as NiSource’s Chief Transformation Officer and a member of the Executive Council, where he built on NiSource’s efforts to integrate processes and technology across the company’s entire footprint. In 2006, Kempic was named assistant general counsel for NiSource Corporate Services, where he managed staff providing legal support in multiple jurisdictions and advised the subsidiary presidents and their teams on various regulatory and legal matters. Earlier in his career, he represented large industrial electricity and gas consumers as an associate attorney for a Columbus, Ohio, law firm and was a regulatory counsel for a Cleveland electric company. Kempic is a member of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development and the Energy Association of Pennsylvania. He currently serves on the boards of the American Red Cross of Southwestern Pennsylvania and the Humane Animal Rescue of Pittsburgh. Kempic previously served on the board of the United Way of Washington County. Kempic earned a bachelor’s degree in computer and information science from the University of Pittsburgh and an associate engineering degree in solar heating and cooling from Pennsylvania State University. He has a juris doctor degree from Capital University School of Law. Kempic is a native of Uniontown, Pennsylvania, and currently resides in Pittsburgh.

Ms. Moore is a Senior Attorney with PNG Companies LLC, a subsidiary of Essential Utilities, where she focuses on regulatory matters for its natural gas utilities. Moore works closely with the rates, finance and operations teams across the business to align and integrate the organization’s regulatory strategy. In her role, she manages regulatory filings including base rate cases, gas cost filings, and the implementation of state and federal regulatory policy at the public utility commissions for Essential’s regulated natural gas subsidiaries. Moore was with NiSource Inc. in a Regulatory Counsel role for seven years before joining the Company in 2022. She began her career in the upstream gas sector working for an Appalachian producer from 2012-2015. She earned her B.A. in both English and Political Science from Penn State University in 2008 and her J.D. at Case Western Reserve University in 2011. Moore currently serves on the Advisory Board of the Salvation Army of the Western Pennsylvania Division.

Allison Kaster has served as Director and Chief Prosecutor of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission’s Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement since January 2024. In this role, she is responsible for enforcing state and federal pipeline safety, electric safety and motor carrier safety laws and regulations, and represents the public interest in ratemaking and service matters before the Commission’s Office of Administrative Law Judge. Ms. Kaster joined the Commission as a prosecutor in I&E’s Rates Division in 2004. She was promoted to Deputy Chief Prosecutor of I&E’s Rates Division in 2016, where she supervised a team of attorneys and coordinated litigation strategy for all cases impacting utility rates. She received her J.D. from the Penn State Dickinson School of Law and holds a B.A. in Government from the University of Virginia.

Joe Hicks is a Partner at Venable LLP in Washington, DC where he is part of the Energy Group. Joe provides legal counsel and representation to major energy companies, commercial airlines, and trade associations in matters involving crude oil, petroleum products, natural gas, hydrogen, and electric utility regulation, including litigation, infrastructure development, and compliance. Joe has fifteen years’ experience in energy, administrative, and constitutional law, with an emphasis on practice before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), state public utilities commissions, and federal appellate courts. Joe graduated, cum laude, with a J.D. from Emory University School of Law, where he was an Articles Editor of the Emory Law Journal. He holds an M.A. from the University of Chicago and a B.A. from Emory University.

Erich Evans serves as the Director of Strategy at NiSource, the parent company for Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania, bringing over 25 years of experience in the energy sector. Since joining NiSource in 2003, he has held various leadership roles, including overseeing regulatory strategy, commodity sales, and gas transportation. In his current position, Evans is responsible for shaping the strategic direction of NiSource and its Columbia Gas and NIPSCO brands. His extensive experience in both regulated and unregulated markets equips him to navigate and prepare the energy industry for future challenges. Evans collaborates closely with senior leaders to identify, refine, and analyze strategic issues impacting the gas and electric industries. His deep understanding of the complexities within these sectors allows him to provide valuable insights and drive informed decision-making processes. Under his leadership, NiSource has successfully implemented a hydrogen blending project, which aims to decarbonize natural gas pipelines by integrating hydrogen into the gas supply. Evans holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. He is also a frequent speaker at industry conferences.

Ed Chescattie is Director of the Bureau of Safe Drinking Water at PA DEP. He currently has over 29 years of Commonwealth service. Over the course of his career, he has been involved with the in-depth evaluation of more than 300 surface water treatment plants throughout PA and seven other states, focusing on optimizing operational practices within the drinking water filtration plant and distribution system. In 1992 Ed began his career in water working as a laborer at his home-town municipal authority wastewater treatment plant.He continued to work part time for the next five years while working through college as an assistant operator at two small wastewater systems and drinking water systems. In 1998 he transitioned to the PA Department of Environmental Protection Safe Drinking Water Program where he has held several job titles over the past 27 years.From 2016 through 2023, Ed was the Program Manager for Division of Training, Technical, and Financial Services in the Bureau of Safe Drinking Water. In this position, he managed Safe Drinking Waters Compliance Assistance Efforts, Filter Plant Performance Evaluations (FPPE’s), Training, Operator Certification, EPA Grant Agreements, Capacity Development, and the overall Fiscal Planning for the Bureau of Safe Drinking Water. In February 2024, Ed was promoted to Director of the Bureau of Safe Drinking Water in PADEP Central Office.Ed enjoys meeting the daily challenges of directing one of the largest drinking water programs in the country.He is a published author of several technical articles within American Water Works Association (AWWA) magazines and AWWA Research Foundation guidance manuals. A 1995 graduate of Penn State University, he has a B.S. in Environmental Resource Management. He is licensed in Pennsylvania as both a Drinking Water Treatment Plant Operator and Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator.Ed maintains a PA Class A Drinking Water Operator’s license and Wastewater Operator license for all treatment subclasses. He has maintained his wastewater license for the past 27 years and his drinking water license for the past 25 years.

Mr. Swerling is Senior Counsel for Energy & Regulation for UGI Corporation. Prior to this position, he was Assistant General Counsel for Exelon.

Alan M. Seltzer focuses his practice on electric, gas, water, transportation and renewable energy matters with a concentration on transactions and litigation before various state and federal courts and administrative agencies. He represents public utilities and other stakeholders before the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission. His current emphasis is on obtaining the state regulatory approvals for the merger or acquisition of public utilities, and addressing the real estate, regulatory, tax and financing phases of renewable energy project development. He is the leader of the Power Generation, Renewable & Utility Practice Group at Buchanan. In July 2015, Alan was appointed to the Siting and Routing Workgroup of the Pennsylvania Pipeline Infrastructure Task Force – a stakeholder-driven effort that developed policies, guidelines and tools to assist in pipeline development, as well as long-term operation and maintenance. In this role, he worked collaboratively to develop best practices related to planning, sitting and routing oil and gas pipelines in ways that avoid, minimize or mitigate environmental and community impacts from pipelines across the Commonwealth. He is a graduate of Temple University Beasley School of Law, J.D., and Albright College, B.A., Political Science.

Roger Colton is a partner in the firm Fisher, Sheehan & Colton, Public Finance and General Economics (FSC) of Belmont, Massachusetts. An attorney and an economist, Roger engages in legal and technical research, program design and program evaluation. His work on helping to design, implement and fund low-income affordability programs has been with state and local governments; with the federal government; with natural gas, electric and water utilities; and with a variety of community-based organizations in more than 40 states and five Canadian provinces. Roger was the recipient of the 1998 National Low-Income Energy Consortium (NLIEC) individual achievement award for career accomplishment with respect to low-income energy issues. He received the 2001 Sister Pat Kelley Award from the National Fuel Funds Network (NFFN) for his career-long work in helping to create and support fuel funds nationwide. In 2004, he received the “Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. ‘Continuing the Dream’” Award from the Town of Belmont. Outside his professional work, Roger writes a biweekly column (“Community Conversations”) for his local community newspaper, and, as a professional juggler, is a member of the International Jugglers Association. He has reportedly been seen rooting for the Boston Red Sox.

Tony Nokovich is the Vice President of Engineering responsible for the administration of engineering services, including but not limited to the planning, design and construction of water and wastewater capital investment projects for Pennsylvania American Water’s (PAWC) systems and facilities. In this role, he has overall responsibility for capital improvement projects involving water supply, treatment, and distribution systems and wastewater treatment and collection systems. Mr. Nokovich has 30 years of experience in the field of civil engineering and has been involved in all aspects of dam safety, water supply, water and wastewater treatment, water distribution, and wastewater collection. Prior to joining PAWC in 2006, Tony worked for eleven years as a geotechnical engineer for Gannett Fleming Inc. Mr. Nokovich received a BS degree in Civil Engineering from the Pennsylvania State University in 1995 and is a registered PE in Pennsylvania. He is a member of American Water Works Association, American Society of Civil Engineers, Association of State Dam Safety Officials, and the United States Society on Dams.

Christopher Crockett is vice president, chief environmental officer for Essential Utilities, Inc. (NYSE: WTRG), one of the largest publicly traded water, wastewater and natural gas providers in the U.S., serving approximately 5.5 million people across 9 states. Crockett joined the company in June 2016. He is responsible for overseeing water quality and environmental compliance, safety, and sustainability for all of Essential’s drinking water, wastewater and gas systems. In addition, he manages the company’s in-house water and wastewater laboratory as well as the company’s water quality services and water resources engineering departments. Crockett has more than 25 years of experience in the water, storm water and wastewater industry and has participated in and led several innovative projects, including many that improve the environment and have a positive impact on water quality and operations performance. Prior to joining the company, he was previously deputy commissioner for planning and environmental services at the Philadelphia Water Department (PWD), where he worked since 1995. Crockett, a licensed professional engineer in Pennsylvania, is a Drexel University alumnus who earned his Bachelor of Science in civil engineering, and his Master of Science and doctorate in environmental engineering from the university where he also served as an adjunct professor. Crockett is the 2019 recipient of the George Warren Fuller Award from AWWA for his distinguished service to the water supply field in commemoration of the sound engineering skill, brilliant diplomatic talent and the constructive leadership. He has been involved in a variety of industry organization committees and has reviewed and published journal articles. He is also a regular resource for news media looking to understand drinking water and environmental issues.

Ms. Hissner is the Environmental Program Manager for the Operations, Monitoring & Compliance Division in the Safe Drinking Water Program at DEP. She oversees coordination and implementation of program planning and regulation, policy, and training development to assure consistency and effective program enforcement used in the statewide Safe Drinking Water Program. Before joining the SDW program administration in DEP’s Harrisburg office, Ms. Hissner was a water supply field inspector in both the Poconos and the Reading area. Throughout her 32 years with DEP’s Safe Drinking Water Program, she has provided technical assistance and guidance to field staff, co-workers, facility operators and owners, accredited laboratory staff, professional organizations and the public relating to compliance with the applicable statutes and regulations covering the operation of public water systems. Ms. Hissner earned a B.S. from Penn State University.

Jimmy Dempsey brings over 15 years of experience leading drone technology and aerial operations across highly regulated industries. He works closely with energy leaders to design and deploy autonomous drone solutions that enhance pipeline monitoring, improve safety, and support regulatory compliance. As an FAA Part 107 certified remote pilot, Jimmy brings hands-on knowledge of airspace regulations and advanced drone operations. He leads a team of certified professionals at Overlay Aerials, ensuring every operation meets the highest standards of safety, compliance, and technical execution. Jimmy also plays an active role in helping critical infrastructure operators navigate evolving industry standards like PHMSA’s leak detection rule. As CEO of Overlay Aerials, Jimmy drives the company’s mission to help energy and utility partners leverage autonomous systems for safer, more eQicient operations. Overlay Aerials takes a technology-first approach selecting the optimal equipment for each mission rather than relying on a fixed inventory ensuring the best-fit solution for every client’s needs.

Steve came to the PTA in 1996 after twelve years in the Senate of Pennsylvania as Executive Director of the Senate Communications and High Technology and Senate Finance Committees. He was the Republican Executive Director of the Communications and High Technology Committee when that body considered and passed the Chapter 30 legislation which laid the groundwork for the deployment of the broadband telecommunications network in the state. Steve became PTA’s President in 2008 after more than 11 years as PTA’s Vice President. Steve is responsible for lobbying local exchange industry positions before the House, Senate, Governor’s Office and all state-level policy-making and regulatory bodies. Steve also oversees the association’s weekly publications. Steve and his wife Kris live in New Cumberland with their two sons Matt and Zach. Steve is Secretary/Treasurer of the Harrisburg Trade Association Executives, a member of the Pennsylvania Relay Service Advisory Board, and the Pennsylvania 911 Board. He also serves as a volunteer with the Hugh O’Brian Youth Foundation.

Robert Routh is an attorney and advocate working to advance decarbonization efforts in Pennsylvania across the power, transportation, industrial, and buildings sectors. His particular areas of focus include the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), oil and gas methane mitigation, and the equitable and efficient implementation of IRA/IIJA funds in-state. Prior to joining NRDC, Routh served as a policy and regulatory attorney for Clean Air Council, and he previously clerked for two federal judges of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Routh holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Pennsylvania and a JD from the University of Michigan Law School. He is based in Philadelphia and attached to the Washington, D.C., office.

Mr. Levitt is a Senior Consultant with Brattle. He is an expert in wholesale electricity policy, with a focus on evolving system needs. He has worked with a wide variety of stakeholders – including utilities, regional transmission organizations (RTOs), and regulators – to address wholesale electricity policies in light of a changing operational and infrastructure environment. With hands-on expertise in power system processes and operations, he has provided training and consulting for several regional and national utilities. In the RTO sphere, Mr. Levitt’s experience includes the development of capacity value accreditation rules for renewable and storage; foundational market access rules for hybrids and storage; a new reactive power compensation approach; and an initial design concept for a capacity market overhaul. As a member of the balloting committee for IEEE Standard 1547-2018, Mr. Levitt offers special expertise in policies that recognize the operational challenges and opportunities associated with the widespread deployment of inverters. A lecturer in Johns Hopkins University’s Energy Policy and Climate program, Mr. Levitt is also a frequent speaker and panelist at industry conferences. His research has been published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and Energy Policy, and he is the co-author of a chapter that appeared in Future of Utilities – Utilities of the Future. Prior to joining Brattle, Mr. Levitt was Senior Lead Market Designer at PJM, where he led reforms to efficiently and reliably integrate emerging resource types, including capacity market reforms, as well as development of market participation models for hybrid resources, distributed energy resources (DERs), and energy storage resources. He also participated in efforts to study and enhance the provision of essential reliability services from inverter-based resources. Prior to PJM, Mr. Levitt managed vehicle-to-grid R&D projects for a national energy provider.

Kimberly M. Barrow was nominated to serve as Public Utility Commissioner by Gov. Josh Shapiro on April 14, 2023, and subsequently confirmed by the Pennsylvania Senate on August 30, 2023. Her term will expire on April 1, 2028. She was elected Vice Chair by her fellow commissioners on August 31, 2023. Vice Chair Barrow has been involved in the utility regulation industry for more than two decades. Vice Chair Barrow has been appointed to serve on the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) Board of Directors and a new national utility issues collaborative established by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and NARUC. Additionally, she is a member of the NARUC Committee on Electricity, along with the Pennsylvania Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council, as well as the Pennsylvania Energy Development Authority. She also has served as a member of the NARUC Joint Federal-State Task Force on Electric Transmission. Prior to her appointment as Commissioner, Barrow worked as Chief of Staff for Chairman Gladys Brown Dutrieuille since 2013. As part of her service in the Chairman’s Office, she provided advice regarding the legal and policy implications of electric, gas, water and transportation matters pending before the Commission; evaluated the impact of state and federal legislation on ratepayers, utility operations, and Commission functions; and communicated with consumers, utility executives and government officials regarding the Commission’s role and initiatives. From 2008 to 2013, Barrow served as Chief of Staff in the Office of Commissioner Wayne E. Gardner, where she provided legal advice regarding utility regulation, reviewed draft public utility legislation, and authored statements of policy for the Commissioner. Vice Chair Barrow started as a staff attorney at the Commission in 2001, she spent several years practicing administrative regulatory law. In this role, Barrow prepared reports, final orders and statutory interpretations; drafted recommendations to the Commission; and investigated appeals of Administrative Law Judge decisions to advise the Commission regarding resolution. Vice Chair Barrow is an alumna of the University of Georgia with a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Spanish. She received her law degree from the University of Georgia School of Law.

Mr. Sinick is a Senior Civil Engineer Manager that supervises the Engineering Section within the Bureau of Technical Utility Services, Rail Safety Division of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission. He has worked for the Commonwealth for 26 years and has been with the Commission’s Rail Safety Division since June of 2015. Previously he was employed for 3 plus years at the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection as a Hydraulic Engineer approving bridge waterway permits for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and worked for approximately 13 years at the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation as a Bridge and Transportation Engineer. He has been a licensed professional engineer in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania since June of 2005 and has been a certified bridge safety inspector since March of 2011. He has B.S. Degree in Civil Engineering Technology from the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, PA.

Mr. Mehus joined the PA Public Utility Commission in September 2005 as an Enforcement Officer assigned to Indiana and Cambria Counties. In 2016, he was promoted to the position of Altoona District Supervisor, then in June of 2021 was promoted to the Western Regional Manager position, then to his current position as Chief of Motor Carrier Enforcement in April 2024.

Nicole Luciano is Director of Policy for the Energy Association of PA, a trade association that represents and promotes the interests of regulated electric and natural gas distribution companies in Pennsylvania. Ms. Luciano represents utility interests before the PA PUC, Department of Human Services, Department of Environmental Protection, and the General Assembly. Ms. Luciano is EAP’s subject matter expert for utility consumer service issues and serves on DHS’s LIHEAP Advisory Committee. She completed the U.S. Chamber’s Institute for Organization Management (IOM) program and earned her Certified Association Executive (CAE) in 2024.Ms. Luciano received her B.A. in Political Science from Gettysburg College and M.A. from Lehigh University. She currently serves on the Board of Trustees for the Cleve J. Fredericksen Library in Camp Hill.

Lisa R. Youngers has more than 30 years providing legal, policy and strategic counsel in the telecommunications, technology and infrastructure space. Most recently, Ms. Youngers served as International General Counsel with Tata Communications, overseeing International commercial contracts, litigation, regulatory, cybersecurity, HR legal, product counsel, Intellectual Property, Artificial Intelligence, M&A, and business Integration covering Tata’s business globally. Before joining Tata, Ms. Youngers was President and CEO of the Fiber Broadband Association (FBA) – the only all-fiber trade association in the Americas. Ms. Youngers drove the association’s development, business, and advocacy, representing members around the globe in legislative/ regulatory meetings and industry events, including testifying before the United States Senate, Japan’s Ministry of Telecommunications and speaking at other venues around the world. Before the FBA, Ms. Youngers served as Chief Executive Officer of Nextlink Wireless, LLC, a spectrum management firm and 5G wireless network. Ms. Youngers oversaw all aspects of the business including financial, operational and technical matters, legal/compliance, and M&A activity with a focus on 5G roll-out and a sale of assets to a global MNO. Prior to Nextlink, Ms. Youngers was Vice President and Assistant General Counsel – Federal Affairs/Strategy at XO Communications leading federal policy, regulatory, and legislative activities, regulatory compliance, corporate PR, and messaging for the company. She also was a principal on M&A activities, litigation, crisis management, and other corporate governance. Prior to joining XO, Ms. Youngers was Federal Regulatory Counsel for General Communication, Inc. (“GCI”), and MCI, both in Washington D.C., representing the companies’ interests, respectively, before the FCC on competition, enforcement, wireline, wireless, universal service, telehealth, and school access issues. Ms. Youngers is a former Assistant Attorney General for the state of Minnesota where she served as legal counsel and litigator to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission and an Infrastructure Safety Board. A former television news producer and satellite coordinator, Ms. Youngers is a frequent presenter at industry events and has been quoted in several publications regarding regulatory and public policy matters. Ms. Youngers earned her B.A. from the University of Wisconsin and received her J.D. magna cum laude from Mitchell Hamline College of Law. She is a member of the Minnesota and District of Columbia Bars and currently resides in suburban Washington, DC.

Lucas Fykes is director of energy policy for the Data Center Coalition (DCC), the membership association serving as the voice of the data center industry. Lucas has represented community choice aggregation providers, clean energy companies, and transportation sector clients in administrative litigation, rulemakings, and other regulatory matters. Lucas’ practice also involved counseling clients on a range of energy and utility law issues, as well as the development and implementation of policies advancing distributed energy resource deployment. Lucas represented utilities and retail electric suppliers before the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, Illinois Commerce Commission, and Appellate Courts in rate case, regulatory compliance, rider, complaint, and rulemaking proceedings. Lucas also has extensive experience consulting and brokering electric and natural gas procurement agreements for commercial, governmental, and residential clients. Lucas served as Chair of the Columbus Bar Association Energy Law Committee, the Ohio Liaison for the Energy Bar Association’s Midwest chapter, and a member of the Energy Bar Association’s Taskforce on Law Students, Young Professionals, and Diversity.

Elizabeth Rose Triscari (she/her/hers) is Senior Director, Corporate Counsel for American Water, the largest U.S. publicly traded water and wastewater utility company. The company, based in Camden, New Jersey, employs more than 7,000 dedicated professionals who provide water, wastewater and other related services to more than 15 million people in 46 states. Ms. Triscari represents American Water in various regulatory proceedings, as well as in connection with acquisitions and litigation in state and federal courts. Ms. Triscari serves on the Executive Council of the PBA Commission on Women in the Profession and as Vice Chair of the PBA In-House Counsel Committee. She is a past member of PBI’s Board of Directors and past Chair of the PBA Public Utility Law Section. Ms. Triscari received her B.A. in Government from Cornell University and J.D. from Boston College Law School. Prior to joining American Water, Ms. Triscari served as Pennsylvania’s Deputy Small Business Advocate representing small business interests before the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission.