Helpful for our look at the revolving door.
DeAnn T. Walker
Governor Greg Abbott appointed DeAnn T. Walker to serve as chair of the Public Utility Commission of Texas on September 20, 2017, for a term set to expire on September 1, 2021. Before her appointment, Chairman Walker served as the Senior Policy Advisor to Governor Abbott on matters related to regulated industries. Her career in the electric industry began at the Commission in 1988 where she served, first, as an Assistant General Counsel and, later, as an Administrative Law Judge until 1997. Before joining the Governor’s staff, she served as Associate General Counsel and Director of Regulatory Affairs at CenterPoint Energy.
DeAnn is an ex-officio member of the Board of Directors of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas and the Texas Reliability Entity and a member of the Regional State Committee for the Southwest Power Pool. She is a member of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners, serving on the Electricity Committee, and the Advisory Council of the New Mexico State University Center for Public Utilities.
Arthur D'Andrea
Governor Greg Abbott appointed Arthur D'Andrea to serve as a commissioner on the Public Utility Commission of Texas on November 14, 2017, for a term set to expire on September 1, 2023. Before his appointment, Commissioner D'Andrea served as Assistant General Counsel to Governor Abbott. His career has been primarily focused on the law, including his role as Assistant Solicitor General in the Texas Attorney General’s office where he served as lead appellate counsel in matters including constitutional challenges to state statutes, public-utilities regulation, antitrust, tax disputes, insurance regulation, regulatory takings, and petitions for writ of habeas corpus. There he argued thirteen cases in the Second and Fifth Circuits, the Texas Supreme Court, and in the intermediate state courts of appeals.
Prior to joining the Attorney General's team, Arthur worked in the Supreme Court and Appellate Litigation Practice Group for a private law firm where he represented clients before the United States Supreme Court and in federal and state courts of appeals nationwide in matters including white-collar criminal prosecutions, international-trade disputes, patent infringement, trademark disputes, bankruptcy, international arbitration, and securities litigation.
Shelly Botkin
Governor Greg Abbott appointed Shelly Botkin to serve as a commissioner on the Public Utility Commission of Texas on June 11, 2018, for a term set to expire on September 1, 2025. Before her appointment, Commissioner Botkin served as Director of Corporate Communications and Government Relations for the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) where she worked to build awareness of the organization’s vital role in managing the electric grid for most of Texas.
Prior to joining ERCOT, Shelly worked ten years in the Texas capitol as a senior policy analyst on business, regulatory, and environmental issues for two state senators and for both the Lieutenant Governor and Speaker of the House.
