Governor Greg Abbott today named Kathleen Jackson as the interim Chair of the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC). The PUC regulates the state’s electric, telecommunication, and water and sewer utilities, implements respective legislation, and offers customer assistance in resolving consumer complaints.
“Kathleen and her fellow PUC commissioners are doing a terrific job implementing the 14 bipartisan reforms that were passed and signed into law in 2021 and working with the legislature in the regular session this year on the PCM design,” said Governor Abbott. “She is appointed on an interim basis to serve as chairman until such time as a permanent chairman is announced.”
Kathleen Jackson of Beaumont has served as PUC commissioner since August 2022. Previously, she was a member of the Texas Water Development Board from 2014 to 2022. Jackson is a registered Professional Engineer and former chairman of the Southeast Texas Section of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers. She is a member of the Texas Farm Bureau, board member and former president of the Lamar Institute of Technology Foundation, and sustaining member of the Junior League of Beaumont. She is also a former member of the Environmental Flows Advisory Group, former president of the American Cancer Society of North Jefferson County, former board member of Junior Achievement of the Golden Triangle, former member of the Lower Neches Valley Authority Board of Directors, and former member of the Texas Water Conservation Association. Additionally, she has participated on the Sabine and Neches Rivers Bay and Estuary Environmental Flows Assessment Program Stakeholders Committee. Jackson received a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from North Carolina State University.