DENVER—Public Utilities Commission member Carl Miller will retire next month, a year before his term ends, Gov. Bill Ritter said Tuesday.
Miller, 69, a former Democratic state representative from Leadville, said he wants to spend more time on leisure activities with his wife and family.
The three-member commission regulates Colorado’s investor-owned gas, electric and telecommunications utilities, including Qwest and Xcel Energy, as well as railroads and motor carriers. Its members are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the state Senate.
Miller’s departure means Ritter will have appointed all three commission members in his first year in office.
Shortly after Ritter was sworn in last January, he appointed the current chairman, Ron Binz. The third commissioner, Polly Page, will leave office when her term ends.
Ritter said he expects to appoint Miller’s replacement soon.
Key Colorado regulatory agencies have taken a more consumer-friendly complexion in the past year with Democrats in control of the governorship and both houses of the Legislature.
Binz had served as the state’s utility consumer advocate from 1984 to 1995.
The state Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, which regulates oil and gas production, was reorganized this year after complaints that regulators were too cozy with the industry.
The Legislature passed a bill expanding the Oil and Gas Commission to nine members from seven, requiring more expertise in environmental issues and directing it to cooperate with state health and wildlife officials.
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