Governor Tim Pawlenty today announced the appointment of Dr. David Boyd, Ph.D., and the reappointment of Phyllis Reha to the Public Utilities Commission (PUC).

“As the PUC broadens its responsibilities to include planning for Minnesota’s energy future, it is important that commissioners have the intellect, vision and balance to carry out that role,” Governor Pawlenty said. “Phyllis and David fit the bill.”

Boyd, of Lakeville, is a professor of chemistry and chair of the Chemistry Department at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul. He has been department chair since 2001, a full professor since 2003, an associate professor from 1994 to 2003, and an assistant professor from 1989 to 1994. Boyd serves on the College of Arts and Sciences Curriculum Committee, and has served on the Educational Policy Committee, and the Task Force on Undergraduate Engineering. Boyd was named the Aquinas Scholars Professor of the Year in 1994.

A member of the American Chemical Society, Boyd was elected to two terms as treasurer of the Minnesota Section. He is also a member of the Materials Research Society and the Minnesota Academy of Science. Boyd earned his doctorate degree in inorganic chemistry from the University of Minnesota in 1987, and his bachelor of arts degree with a double major in chemistry and biology in 1982 from St. Olaf College. Boyd replaces Kenneth Nickolai on the commission to complete a six-year term that expires on January 5, 2009.

Reha, of Eagan, has been a member of the commission since 2001 and is currently its vice-chair. Since her appointment to the PUC, Reha has distinguished herself among national utility regulatory bodies and associations. She is currently president of the Mid-America Regulatory Conference, chair of the National Association of Regulatory Commissioners’ Committee on Energy Resources and the Environment, co-chair of a Federal/State Collaborative Dialogue on Coordination of Electricity Demand Response Policies, and was a member of the National Action Plan for Energy Efficiency Leadership Group convened by the federal Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Energy.

Prior to her appointment to the PUC, Reha was an administrative law judge at the Minnesota Office of Administrative Hearings from 1980 to 2001, where she also became a mediator in 1984, a supervisor in the Complex Case Unit Appellate Section with the Minnesota Department of Economic Security from 1978 to 1980, an administrative appeals referee with the department from 1975 to 1978, the managing attorney for the Michigan Migrant legal Assistance Project from 1974 to 1975, and a staff attorney with the project from 1972 to 1974. Reha earned her juris doctorate degree from the University of Minnesota (U of M) Law School in 1972, and her bachelor of arts degree from the U of M in 1969. Reha is reappointed to another six-year term that expires on January 7, 2013.

The Public Utilities Commission is comprised of five commissioners who serve in full-time, paid positions at an annual salary of $88,448. The PUC regulates the rates and services of electric, natural gas and telephone companies. The Commission acts through public hearings, contested case hearings, rule-making hearings, and informal complaint resolutions.