What is your full name as it will appear on ballots?
Elena Evans
What is your age?
40
Where do you live?
Missoula, MT
What is your education background?
Undergraduate Degree in Geology, Macalester College, Master’s Degree in Geology, University of Montana
Please list your current and previous occupations.
Environmental Health Manager, Missoula County
Hydrogeologist, Missoula Valley Water Quality District
Permit Review Supervisor, City of Missoula
Executive Director, Montana Association of Conservation Districts
What motivated you to seek a seat on the Public Service Commission?
I’m a working mom with two kids. Last year, after the PSC approved the 28% rate hike, I had to sign up for budget billing to manage the monthly cost.
Then, I realized that my Public Service Commissioner was running unopposed. Although I’ve never run for office before, I soon earned the support of over 150 volunteers to help me qualify for the ballot as an Independent.
As a lifelong public servant, I value professional conduct, honesty, and transparency. I’m a trained geologist, a water quality expert, and the former Director of the Montana Association of Conservation Districts. I know how to build a budget and stick to it, I always read the fine print, and I believe we need an Independent voice on the PSC.
What are your top three priorities for the Public Service Commission and how would you focus on these in your role?
First, Montanans pay higher energy rates than neighboring states despite exporting 40% of the energy made in Montana. My top priority is to bring those costs down for working families and small businesses. My opponent voted against a $9.1 million rebate for NorthWestern customers and for a 28% rate hike, which is a $240 annual increase for the average ratepayer. I will push Northwestern Energy to expand opportunities for Montanans to benefit from our state’s role as a cornerstone of the energy grid and use well established technology to bring costs down.
Second, I want to create a culture of transparency at the Public Service Commission. Recently, Lee Newspapers sued the PSC because they were charging huge fees, in one case $31,000, to access public records. When she was a legislator, my opponent was also sued for not turning over public records. As taxpayers, we have a right to know what commissioners are doing with our money, and we shouldn’t have to pay huge fees to find out.
Editor’s note: Lee Enterprises sued the PSC in 2021
Third, I want to make sure monopoly utilities are doing absolutely everything within their power to provide affordable, reliable, and sustainable power. NorthWestern Energy refused to let the PSC review its plan to build a natural gas plant in Laurel, and now they’re refusing to provide balance sheets to justify another rate increase. The PSC simply must do a better job holding monopoly utility companies accountable.
Do you think the PSC has a role in addressing climate change and, if so, what is it?
The PSC is supposed to make sure utilities serve customers in the face of unprecedented wildfire, cold snaps, storms, and drought. But instead of asking hard questions, the current PSC rubber stamps decisions that have big impacts on consumers and businesses.
Why does Colstrip fail during cold snaps, costing ratepayers millions? What are we doing to adequately prepare for wildfire? How are we preparing our hydropower resources for drought? What improvements will result from the big storm that recently left people in Missoula and Mineral Counties without power for days?
The first step is making sure utilities are making solid plans about how to deliver affordable, sustainable, and reliable power. Then, it’s equally important to hold them accountable to those plans. Most importantly, the public needs to be involved and influential every step of the way.
It’s important to be sure to make decisions with the appropriate data and in the decision-making space provided by statute and the constitution. It’s also important to use the authority of the PSC to its fullest extent in order to achieve the mission.
What does effective regulation of the state’s monopoly utilities look like?
Effective regulation requires transparency and public participation. Right now, it’s clear that transparency and public participation are not priorities for the current Public Service Commission or NorthWestern Energy.
Recently, our state legislature discovered that some members of our current Public Service Commission were making biased decisions in rate cases, that one commissioner had stolen another’s emails, and that other commissioners were lying about their travel expenses. Then, just last month, we learned that NorthWestern did not disclose balance sheets to justify their request for another huge increase in our power bills. We also learned that NorthWestern appears to be violating state law by refusing to disclose the members of its Electric Technical Advisory Committee.
So, above all, effective utility regulation requires listening to the public and acting on their requests and concerns. It looks like following the law and defending the Montana Constitution. It looks like balancing NorthWestern’s profit with Montanan’s pocketbooks.
What can commissioners do to build public trust and transparency in the PSC’s work?
Three years ago, a routine legislative audit revealed that Public Service Commissioners were spending tax dollars on flight upgrades and expensive computer gear. The audit proved that some commissioners even falsified documents so they wouldn’t get caught wasting our money. A Republican State Senator called the behavior “despicable”. This year, a new audit revealed more problems, including high staff turnover, and suggested that commissioners needed a code of conduct to ensure good behavior.
Taxpayers deserve better. As a lifelong public servant, I’ve always stressed professional conduct, honesty, and transparency. If elected, I will hold other commissioners to the same standard. I would work to implement the recommendations of auditors and respect the concerns of staff members who are working hard to make sure the public gets the services they pay for.
The PSC mission is to ensure an affordable, reliable, and sustainable power supply to utility customers, and there is no room for unprofessional conduct as we pursue that goal.