The Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSC) is composed of three full-time Commissioners who decide the cases brought to the PSC for changes in utility operations, rates and for construction projects after a complete and thorough review of all the records compiled in the case, including public comments. Commissioners are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the State Senate for staggered, six-year terms.
One of these Commissioners is appointed Chairperson by the Governor for a two-year term. The Commissioners’ Office, under the direction of the Chairperson, has oversight of all PSC staff-related activities.
Staff of the Commissioners' Office may be reached by contacting the Executive Staff Assistants at [email protected].
Warning: rules regarding ex parte communications
Any communications with individual Commissioners on contested cases before the commission may constitute a prohibited ex parte communication [Wis. Stat. § 227.50]. If you wish to comment on the record on a pending matter, please do not contact individual commissioners. The PSC has established an official method for receiving public comments that can be accessed at the
PSC Comments page on our web site. Only comments submitted in this manner will be officially recorded and reviewed by Commissioners before deciding pending cases.
Chairperson
Summer Strand
Kara Pennoyer
Chief of Staff
Commissioner
Kristy Nieto
Matt Sweeney
Executive Assistant
Commissioner
Marcus Hawkins
Mikhaila Calice
Executive Assistant
Commissioner Chairperson Summer Strand
Summer Strand was appointed by Governor Tony Evers to serve as a Commissioner at the PSC on March 2, 2023 for a six-year term. In January 2024, she was appointed Commission Chairperson. Summer is a member of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners and its Committee on Electricity. She also serves as a member of the Executive Committee of the Mid-America Regulatory Conference. Summer is also a proud member of the Honorary Committee of the National Utilities Diversity Council.
Prior to joining the PSC, Summer was the Director of Government Affairs for the Walbec Group, a Wisconsin-based construction and engineering firm. Previously, she oversaw the State of Wisconsin Building Program as Administrator of the Division of Facilities Development at the Wisconsin Department of Administration. She has also served as an advisor to and citizen member of the State Building Commission.
Summer began her career in the Wisconsin State Senate. She earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and her law degree from the Arizona State University Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law. Summer lives in Waunakee, WI with her husband Brandon and their two children.
Chief of Staff Kara Pennoyer
Kara Pennoyer joined the PSC in March 2023 as Chief of Staff. Previously, Kara served in state government for 13 years, working in the offices of Governor Tony Evers and Senator Jennifer Shilling.
As a member of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners, Kara serves on the Staff Subcommittee on Energy Resources and the Staff Subcommittee on Executive Management. Kara also serves on the Governor Evers’ Green Ribbon Commission on Clean Energy and Environmental Innovation and the Homeland Security Council. Previously, Kara served on the boards of the Wisconsin Women’s Network, Wisconsin Women in Government, and the UW-La Crosse Alumni Association. In 2017, Kara was named a Community Shares of Wisconsin Backyard Hero and in 2020, she received the UW-La Crosse Rada Distinguished Alumni Award.
Kara earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse and her master’s degree in public administration from the University of Illinois at Chicago’s College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs.
Commissioner Kristy Nieto
Kristy Nieto was appointed by Governor Tony Evers to serve as a Commissioner on February 3, 2024. Kristy served in a variety of roles at the PSC for more than a decade before being appointed to the Commission. She previously served as Administrator of the Division of Energy Regulation and Analysis (DERA), Administrator of the Division of Digital Access, Consumer and Environmental Affairs (DACEA), Deputy Administrator of the Commission’s business operations division, and Director of the Consumer Affairs Bureau. Prior to her work at the Commission, Kristy managed the bilingual consumer protection program for the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.
Kristy is a member of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) where she serves on the Committee on Consumers and the Public Interest and the Committee on Energy Resources and the Environment and represents Wisconsin on the Task Force on Natural Gas Resource Planning. She previously served as a Wisconsin representative on the NARUC Advanced Nuclear States Collaborative.
Kristy holds a bachelor’s degree from Hamline University in St. Paul in Spanish and Writing, and a master’s degree from UW–Madison in Spanish Literature and Linguistics. Kristy lives in Monona with her husband, Sergio, and their son.
Executive Assistant Matt Sweeney
Matt Sweeney has served as Executive Assistant to Commissioner Nieto since February of 2024 and is a key advisor to her in all matters. Prior to that, he was the PSC’s Director of Public and External Affairs where he oversaw the agency’s public communications, external stakeholder outreach, and legislative affairs. Before joining the PSC, Matt held policy advisor and legislative affairs positions at the Wisconsin Department of Revenue and the Office of the Governor. He has over 17 years of experience working in Wisconsin State Government and has been with the PSC since May of 2019.
Matt earned degrees in Public Administration and Political Science from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. He lives in Sun Prairie with his wife Becky and their two children.
Commissioner Marcus Hawkins
Marcus Hawkins was appointed by Governor Tony Evers to serve as a Commissioner on April 8, 2024. Prior to joining the PSC, Marcus was the Executive Director of the Organization of MISO States (OMS), a regional association of state utility commissions, where he represented state interests before the regional grid operator and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Previously, Marcus was a Senior Engineer at the PSC within the Division of Regional Energy Markets. He has additional experience working at Wisconsin Energy Conservation Corporation and PA Consulting Group.
Marcus holds a bachelor’s degree in nuclear engineering and a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Wisconsin – Madison, where he also earned certificates in Technical Communication and Energy Analysis and Policy. Marcus lives in Madison with his partner Fred.
Executive Assistant Mikhaila Calice
Mikhaila joined the PSC in April 2024 as Executive Assistant to Commissioner Hawkins and advises him on all matters. Previously, Mikhaila was a Postdoctoral Researcher at UW-Madison where her research examined communication dynamics and public perceptions of risks related to science and technology issues such as artificial intelligence and the energy industry. In this role she collaborated on the Clean Energy Community Initiative (CECI), developing partnerships with a wide range of stakeholders to support community-led clean energy solutions with Wisconsin communities.
Mikhaila received a PhD in Mass Communications from the Department of Life Sciences Communication and a Master of Public Affairs with a certificate in Energy Analysis and Policy from the La Follette School of Public Affairs at UW-Madison. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and International Studies from Randolph-Macon College.