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Colette Honorable Resigns PSC For Federal Position, Beebe To Name Replacement

Colette Honorable
Arkansas Times

Arkansas Public Service Commission chair Colette Honorable has officially resigned from her post and will be sworn in as early as this afternoon to her new role on powerful Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Honorable was approved by the U.S. Senate before Christmas for the FERC position.

"I am honored to have the opportunity to serve as Commissioner at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission," Honorable said in a statement.

I’m grateful to President Barack Obama for the nomination and to the U.S. Senate for a swift confirmation. I’m also grateful to Senators Mark Pryor and John Boozman for their incredible support and efforts to move the nomination so quickly, and in their strong bipartisan tradition. I’d like to express my appreciation to Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chairman Mary Landrieu and Ranking Member Lisa Murkowski for their strong leadership and support. I’d be remiss if I didn’t thank Governor Mike Beebe for his confidence and support, as well as my colleagues at the Arkansas Public Service Commission and the Governor’s Office who are family to me. As this chapter of Arkansas public service draws to a close, I look forward to working with my new colleagues at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Chairman Cheryl LaFleur, Commissioners Philip Moeller, Tony Clark and Norman Bay have been so gracious in welcoming me to FERC. I look forward to transitioning to FERC the week of January 12, 2015.

Honorable’s resignation from the PSC will allow Gov. Mike Beebe to appoint a replacement for Honorable on the state regulatory panel. Her term on the Arkansas PSC is through January 2017, so her successor would serve for the next two years conceivably.

Speculation has centered that Beebe deputy chief of staff Lamar Davis is the prime candidate for the appointment. Beebe’s office has previously said they are working through details related to Honorable’s transition before any announcement will be made. A spokesman for Beebe said that the governor will announce the appointment on Tuesday (Jan. 6). 

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