Paul Kjellander

Hon. Paul Kjellander

President, Idaho Public Utilities Commission

Paul Kjellander rejoined the Idaho Public Utilities Commission in April 2011 following his service as Administrator of the Office of Energy Resources (OER). Commissioner Kjellander, who serves as Commission President, was appointed to his current six year term by Idaho Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter.

Paul Kjellander previously served on the Idaho Public Utilities Commission from January 1999 until October 2007. In 2007 Governor Otter appointed Commissioner Kjellander to head up the newly created OER. During his 3.5 years as the head of OER, Commissioner Kjellander created an aggressive energy efficiency program funded through the federal stimulus act. Commissioner Kjellander was also elected to serve as a board member on the National Association of State Energy Officials.

Commissioner Kjellander was elected to three terms (1994-1999) in the Idaho House of Representatives, where he served as a member of the House State Affairs, Judiciary and Rules, Ways and Means, Local Government and Transportation committees. During his last term in office, Commissioner Kjellander was elected House Majority Caucus Chairman. His legislative service includes membership on the Legislature’s Information Technology Advisory Council and the House/Senate Joint Committee on Technology. He also served as co-chairman of the Legislative Task Force on the Federal Telecommunications Act of 1996 and vice chairman of the Council of State Governments-West “Smart States Committee.” His interim legislative committee assignments included the Optional Forms of County Government Committee, Capital Crimes Committee and the Private Property Rights Committee.

Commissioner Kjellander has also served as director of Boise State University’s College of Applied Technology Distance Learning, program head of broadcast technology, station manager of BSU Radio Network, director of the Special Projects Unit for BSU Radio, and BSU Radio’s director of News and Public Affairs.

Commissioner Kjellander’s undergraduate degrees from Muskingum College, Ohio, were in communications, psychology and art. He holds a master’s degree in telecommunications from Ohio University.

As a member of the National Association of Regulatory Commissioners, Commissioner Kjellander has served on the Telecommunications, Consumer Affairs, and Electricity Committees. He also served as Chairman of the Joint Board on Jurisdictional Separations. Commissioner Kjellander is a member of the NARUC Presidential Federalism Task Force and serves as vice chairman of the NARUC Telecommunications Committee. He is currently serving as a NARUC representative to the North American Numbering Council (NANC).

Commissioner Kjellander is a licensed youth soccer coach and has qualified teams for various state and regional tournaments.



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