Gov. Nixon Appoints Ex-Senator Maida Coleman to the Missouri Public Service Commission, A Long-Time Heatupstlouis.org Board Member

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Gov. Jay Nixon today announced that he will be appointing former Senator Maida Coleman, of St. Louis, to serve on the Missouri Public Service Commission effective Aug. 10. Coleman, a former state representative and senator, is currently the director of the Missouri Office of Community Engagement (OCE). Former St. Louis City Municipal Judge Marvin Teer, currently the deputy director of the OCE, will serve as the office’s new director.

“Throughout her distinguished career in public service, Maida Coleman has demonstrated strong leadership abilities and a steadfast dedication to Missouri families,” Gov. Nixon said. “Her intelligence, integrity and experience have earned her the respect of leaders on both sides of the aisle and will make her an outstanding asset to the people of Missouri on the PSC.”

A native of Sikeston, Sen. Coleman previously served as the executive director of the Missouri Workforce Investment Board at the Department of Economic Development, where she oversaw the state’s 37 member-business-led workforce policy-making boards. From 2001 to 2009, Sen. Coleman served first as a state representative and then as state senator from St. Louis, and became the first African-American woman in state history to serve as Senate Minority Leader.

Sen. Coleman previously held management level positions at the office of the Missouri Secretary of State and the St. Louis Housing Authority. She is a former member of the board of directors of Heat-Up St. Louis/Cool Down St. Louis, a regional all-volunteer charity that provides utility assistance for the needy, advocates for Missouri and Illinois ratepayers, and does community outreach on energy efficiency and weatherization. In addition, in the early 1980s Sen. Coleman worked for the transportation division of the Public Service Commission. She holds a B.A. in Journalism from Lincoln University in Jefferson City.

Sen. Coleman will replace Robert Kenney, who has served as a member of the PSC since July 2009 and was appointed by the Governor as its chairman in March 2013. During his tenure, Kenney emerged as a nationally-recognized leader in public utility regulation, and led the creation of the PSC’s Speakers Bureau, the annual Public Utility Law Symposium, and a dedicated Consumer Outreach and Education Specialist.

In the Senate, Sen. Coleman sponsored a “hot weather rule” to protect Missourians, particularly those who are older or low-income. A companion to the “cold weather rule,” the hot weather rule prevents utilities from disconnecting service for residential customers during summer weather extremes. She also sponsored legislation that became law to protect children from lead poisoning.

The Office of Community Engagement was created last September by the Governor to facilitate communication with Missourians and inform policy solutions for the unique challenges facing low-income and minority communities.  While at the OCE, Judge Teer has helped to develop and execute a number of successful initiatives at the Office of Community Engagement, including the Summer Job League, the Youth Empowerment Summit, and the Governor’s Collegiate Fellows program, a leadership program for at-risk youth in the St. Louis region.

Judge Teer, an attorney, previously served as the Senior Counsel of Boards & Commissions in the Office of the Governor. He served two terms as a municipal judge in the City of St. Louis from 2005 to 2013 before the Governor appointed him to serve on the Administrative Hearing Commission. He previously was assistant city counselor for St. Louis City, a Missouri assistant attorney general, and an assistant St. Louis City circuit attorney. Judge Teer serves on the Board of Curators for Lincoln University and has also held numerous leadership positions with the Mound City Bar Association. He earned his undergraduate degree from Lincoln University and his law degree from the University of Missouri.

“Over the past 10 months, the Office of Community Engagement has taken meaningful steps to foster greater economic opportunity and empowerment, especially for young people in low-income communities,” Gov. Nixon said. “I thank Marvin Teer for his strong and continued leadership in this effort, which will pay dividends for families and communities for years to come.”

The five-member Public Service Commission is responsible for deciding utility cases brought before it, and for the promulgation and enforcement of administrative rules. The PSC conducts hearings in contested cases and renders decisions in a timely manner to afford all parties procedural and substantive due process and to comply with statutory time limits. The PSC also regulates the mobile home, modular unit and recreational vehicle industries to ensure compliance with uniform manufacturer and dealer standards established for the protection of the consumer.

The Governor will be appointing Sen. Coleman for a term ending Aug. 10, 2021. The appointment is subject to confirmation by the Missouri Senate.