One of the most influential organizations in utility regulation is seeking a new executive after its director of more than 30 years resigned in the midst of strategic planning that could change the group's future.
Paul Rodgers, executive director and general counsel for the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC), made his July 25 resignation effective August 9. He was given two year's pay as severance.
Charles D. Gray, assistant general counsel, has taken over as acting general counsel. Michael Foley, director of financial analysis, has stepped in as acting executive director.
A NARUC search committee or a contracted headhunter will seek a replacement, one with a strong presence in Washington, DC, and connections on Capitol Hill. "I'm sure there are lots of rumors," says Cheryl L. Parrino, NARUC president and chair of the Wisconsin Public Service Commission. "My expectation is there'll be a lot of ex-commissioners who might be interested in the job."
She adds: "Paul has done a super job managing the organization, leaving us financially in very strong shape going forward."
Rodgers's announcement came on the last day of NARUC's summer committee meetings in Los Angeles, where strategic planning sessions initiated changes that will alter the duties of NARUC's entire administration.
"I would hate to say there was a disagreement," Parrino says of Rodgers's leave-taking. "The job was changing. We had laid out what the new job would look like. I would hate to speculate on why Paul came to the decision that he wanted to seek early retirement."