press releases
Contact: Regina L. Davis, 202-898-9382, rdavis@naruc.org
Wyoming PSC Commissioner Brighton Fornstrom Appointed as Vice Chair of NARUC’s Subcommittee on Pipeline Safety
WASHINGTON—The National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners has appointed Wyoming Public Service Commission Deputy Chair Kara Brighton Fornstrom as the vice chair of the Subcommittee on Pipeline Safety. Fornstrom joins Michigan Commissioner Norm Saari, who chairs the subcommittee.
State regulators oversee the safety and reliability of 84 percent of natural gas pipelines in the U.S. The subcommittee represents the interests of state regulators before federal agencies such as the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.
Governor Mead appointed Commissioner Fornstrom to the Public Service Commission on March 1, 2013. Her legal career began at the Wyoming Attorney General’s Office, Water Division and she was later a founding partner of Hageman & Brighton, P.C., where she focused her practice exclusively on water issues, including representation of several irrigation districts, agricultural interests and municipalities. She serves on NARUC’s Board of Directors, is the Vice President of the Western Conference of Public Service Commissioners, Co-Vice Chair of NARUC’s Clean Coal & Carbon Management Subcommittee, serves on NARUC’s Committee on Gas and Subcommittee on Pipeline Safety, is a Class 5 Member of the Western Electricity Coordinating Council Advisory Committee and a member on the GTI Public Interest Advisory Committee. She was a member of NARUC’s delegation to China for the U.S. Department of Energy's Regulatory, Policy & Technology Mission.
“Commissioner Fornstrom has an extensive portfolio of energy and utility experience and she has served NARUC well in many capacities,” said NARUC President John Betkoski III. “Her active participation as a member of the NARUC-DOE Natural Gas Infrastructure Modernization Partnership will, no doubt, be invaluable as she assumes her new leadership position on the Subcommittee on Pipeline Safety.”
“I am grateful for this opportunity and anxious to serve in this expanded role on the Pipeline Safety Subcommittee,” said Commissioner Fornstrom. “I believe ensuring safety is one of the most important functions of state commissions. I look forward to working with members of the subcommittee, NARUC, NAPSR, PHMSA and other stakeholders to assure the public safety of our country’s expanding pipeline infrastructure.”
Commissioner Fornstrom received her Bachelor of Science Degree from the University of Wyoming in Small Business Management and her Juris Doctorate from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Law.
The Subcommittee on Pipeline Safety is part of the Committee on Gas. NARUC’s eight standing committees propose resolutions that, if approved by the Board of Directors, set Association policy on congressional, federal, and industry matters. The committees, populated by state public service commissioners, also hold educational sessions and panel discussions on relevant issues to best serve NARUC members. Committee chairs are appointed by the NARUC President for a one-year term and may be reappointed for a maximum of three consecutive terms.
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About NARUC
NARUC is a non-profit organization founded in 1889 whose members include the governmental agencies that are engaged in the regulation of utilities and carriers in the fifty States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. NARUC's member agencies regulate telecommunications, energy, and water utilities. NARUC represents the interests of State public utility commissions before the three branches of the Federal government.