§ 54-1-6. Employment of staff -- Status and compensation -- Employees not to be parties or witnesses and may not appeal commission decisions.

(1) The annual budget of the Public Service Commission shall provide sufficient funds for the commission to hire, develop, and organize an advisory staff to assist the commission in performing the powers, duties, and functions committed to it by statute.

(a) The commission may hire:

(i) economists, accountants, engineers, statisticians, lawyers, law clerks, and other professional and technical experts;

(ii) court reporters, transcribers of tape recordings, clerks, secretaries, and other administrative and support staff;

(iii) additional experts as required for a particular matter; and

(iv) administrative law judges, who shall be members of the Utah State Bar, and constitute a separate organizational unit reporting directly to the commission.

(b) The commission may provide for funds in the annual budget to acquire suitable electronic recording equipment to maintain a verbatim record of proceedings before the commission, any commissioner, or any administrative law judge.

(2)

(a) With the exception of clerical workers in nonconfidential positions, all staff of the Public Service Commission are exempt employees under the State Personnel Management Act and serve at the pleasure of the commission.

(b) Administrative law judges are exempt employees under the State Personnel Management Act and may only be removed from office upon due notice and by a unanimous vote of the commission.

(c)

(i) The Department of Human Resource Management shall determine pay schedules using standard techniques for determining compensation.

(ii) The Department of Human Resource Management may make its compensation determinations based upon compensation practices common to utility companies throughout the United States.

(3)

(a) The staff or other employees of the commission may not appear as parties or witnesses in any proceeding before the commission, any commissioner, or any administrative law judge.

(b) The staff or other employees of the commission may not appeal any finding, order, or decision of the commission.

Amended by Chapter 139, 2006 General Session