Georgia Watch welcomes Clare McGuire as director of the Consumer Energy Program

Georgia Watch welcomed today a new addition to its watchdog team. Clare McGuire joins the organization as Senior Counsel and Director of the Consumer Energy Program, bringing with her years of experience as a staff attorney for the Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) and the Governor’s Office of Consumer Affairs.

As the Director of the Consumer Energy Program (CEP), McGuire will intervene on behalf of consumers in rate cases and cases involving the state’s energy portfolio heard before the Public Service Commission. Georgia Watch’s presence at these hearings will allow for more transparency at the commission, a panel of five statewide elected officials that decides billion dollar rate cases.

“Clare is one of the most respected, knowledgeable attorneys in our state,” Georgia Watch Executive Director Angela Speir Phelps said. “Her experience at the Governor’s Office of Consumer Affairs, the PSC and the Consumer’s Utility Counsel provides a strong cornerstone for the Consumer Energy Program and the consumer protection issues we work on at Georgia Watch. The residents of our state have another strong ally at Georgia Watch looking out for them.”

All told, McGuire has almost two decades of legal and professional experience in utility and energy matters that have come before the PSC. As a staff attorney at several of Georgia’s regulatory bodies, she has a vast working knowledge of the bureaucratic process that occurs within the state’s utility industry. And as an advocate fighting for fair procedure and equitable rates, McGuire has represented the interests of approximately nine million Georgians.

“Joining Georgia Watch as senior counsel and director of the Consumer Energy Program feels like a natural progression, given my background in utility, regulatory and consumer protection matters,” McGuire said. “The organization’s reputation of integrity and consumer protection precedes it. I will strive to maintain this impressive standard with my work here.”

Georgia Watch plans to formally intervene in upcoming cases at the PSC including, but not limited to, a Georgia Power Integrated Resource Plan, a Georgia Power rate case and an Atlanta Gas Light rate case. If either of the utility giants receives approval from the commission for their tentative plans, customers stand to see increased monthly energy bills.