The Commission is a body of five elected officials who make decisions worth billions of dollars that impact every resident and business in the state. Historically, the Commission has done its work in relative anonymity, thanks to little media coverage and the technical nature of their work.
This election is different from the past. For the first time, Commission candidates will be subjected to closed partisan primaries using a new election calendar. As such, this LPSC election cycle will include closed party primaries in May (with a primary runoff in June, if no Republican or Democratic candidates earn a majority of the vote in their respective primaries), and will resolve with the November general election.
For the first time, third party and No Party candidates will only be included on the general election ballot if they are able to collect 1,000 petition signatures from No Party and third party voters in their districts.
Now in our 40th year, the Alliance for Affordable Energy is committed to partnering with organizations that are advocating to make Louisianans lives better, including advocates for better democracy, affordable housing, and labor rights, and cleaner air and water.
We know that educated and engaged residents can work with regulators to push for a system that is lower in cost and cleaner in practice.
Along with other partners in both north and south Louisiana The Alliance is working with Bill Robertson, a seasoned campaigner who worked alongside Foster Campbell for 18 years at both the Commission and Louisiana Legislature.
“Commissioner Campbell and I worked tirelessly to educate the people of North Louisiana on the work of the Public Service Commission,” Robertson said. “It is a work in progress, and The Alliance project is another chapter in that never-ending story. The more consumers know, the better they will be served by their elected regulators and by the utility companies.”
District 5 of the LPSC consists of 24 parishes and roughly 900,000 residents. It runs from Shreveport in the northwest to Lake Providence in the northeast, and Many on the west to Vidalia on the east.
District 1 includes parts of 9 parishes and touches the whole of Southeast Louisiana, from the Mississippi border of the Florida parishes all the way down to Plaquemines.
Robertson will lead The Alliance’s education campaign in North Louisiana, teaching residents, businesses, and community groups about the role of the LPSC and how people can best advocate for themselves before the commission. He will also work with partner organizations to ensure voters understand what’s at stake in this election. The Alliance looks forward to sponsoring events and participating in events across North Louisiana throughout the year.
As always, we have a consumer-focused and environmentally positive agenda, but The Alliance is not here to tell people in North or Southeast Louisiana who to vote for. We are here to make sure that voters know what is at stake (your bill is on the ballot) and provide opportunities for community members to hear from candidates about their positions and how they intend to serve their constituents.
