Mississippi Public Service Commission

Mississippi Public Service Commission
General information
Office Type:	Partisan
Office website:	Official Link
Compensation:	$146,600
2025 FY Budget:	$5,481,816
Total Seats:	3
Term limits:	None
Structure
Length of term:	4 years
Authority:	Mississippi Code, Title 77, Chapter 1
Selection Method:	Elected
Current Officeholder(s)
Chris Brown, Nelson Carr, De'Keither Stamps
Elections
Next election:	November 2, 2027
Last election:	November 7, 2023
Other Mississippi Executive Offices
Governor • Lieutenant Governor • Secretary of State • Attorney General • Treasurer • Auditor • Superintendent of Education • Agriculture Commissioner • Insurance Commissioner • Executive Director of Environmental Quality • Executive Director of Employment Security • Public Service Commission • Transportation Commission

The Mississippi Public Service Commission is a three-member executive board in the Mississippi state government. The commission regulates telecommunications, electric, gas, water, and sewer utilities in the state of Mississippi. The commission was established in 1884.

Current officeholder

Office	Name	Party
Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District	De'Keither Stamps	Democratic
Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District	Chris Brown	Republican
Mississippi Public Service Commission Southern District	Nelson Carr	Republican

Authority

The Public Service Commission is created under Title 77-1-1 of the Mississippi Code.

A public service commission, hereinafter referred to in this chapter as the commission, is hereby created, consisting of three (3) members, one (1) to be elected from each of the three (3) Supreme Court districts by the qualified electors of such district.

Qualifications

In order to serve on the Public Service Commission, a person must be:

• A qualified elector
• At least 25 years of age
• A resident of the state for five years proceeding election
• A resident of the Supreme Court district in which election is sought

Elections

Public service commissioners are elected to four-year terms with no term limits. Mississippi belongs to the handful of states that hold off-year elections, that is, elections in off-numbered years that are neither presidential nor midterm years. In Mississippi's case, elections are held in the year after a midterm and before a presidential; thus, 2019, 2023, and 2027 are all public service commissioner election years.

2023

See also: Mississippi Public Service Commission election, 2023

General election

General election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District

Chris Brown won election in the general election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District on November 7, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Chris Brown (R)	100.0	215,257

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 215,257
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District

Chris Brown defeated Tanner Newman in the Republican primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District on August 8, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Chris Brown	61.3	78,272
		Tanner Newman	38.7	49,472

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 127,744
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Mandy Gunasekara (R)

General election

General election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District

De'Keither Stamps defeated incumbent Brent Bailey in the general election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District on November 7, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		De'Keither Stamps (D)	51.1	138,741
		Brent Bailey (R)	48.9	132,853

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 271,594
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District

De'Keither Stamps advanced from the Democratic primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District on August 8, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		De'Keither Stamps	100.0	84,476

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2 Source 3	Total votes: 84,476
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District

Incumbent Brent Bailey advanced from the Republican primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District on August 8, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Brent Bailey	100.0	85,778

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 85,778
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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General election

General election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Southern District

Nelson Carr won election in the general election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Southern District on November 7, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Nelson Carr (R)	100.0	216,698

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 216,698
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Southern District

Nelson Carr defeated incumbent Dane Maxwell in the Republican primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Southern District on August 8, 2023.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Nelson Carr	52.9	76,162
		Dane Maxwell	47.1	67,849

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 144,011
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Past elections

Expand All

2019

See also: Mississippi Public Service Commission election, 2019

Northern District

General election

General election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District

Incumbent Brandon Presley won election in the general election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District on November 5, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Brandon Presley (D)	100.0	222,167

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 222,167
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District

Incumbent Brandon Presley advanced from the Democratic primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Northern District on August 6, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Brandon Presley	100.0	95,783

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 95,783
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Central District

General election

General election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District

Brent Bailey defeated De'Keither Stamps in the general election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District on November 5, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Brent Bailey (R)	50.3	146,596
		De'Keither Stamps (D)	49.7	144,574

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 291,170
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Democratic primary runoff election

Democratic primary runoff for Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District

De'Keither Stamps defeated Dorothy Benford in the Democratic primary runoff for Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District on August 27, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		De'Keither Stamps	58.8	38,314
	Submit photo	Dorothy Benford	41.2	26,864

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 65,178
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District

De'Keither Stamps and Dorothy Benford advanced to a runoff. They defeated Ryan Brown and Bruce Burton in the Democratic primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District on August 6, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		De'Keither Stamps	39.5	42,967
✔	Submit photo	Dorothy Benford	33.7	36,641
		Ryan Brown	15.6	16,989
		Bruce Burton	11.2	12,157

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2 Source 3	Total votes: 108,754
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District

Brent Bailey defeated Nic Lott in the Republican primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Central District on August 6, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Brent Bailey	74.4	73,726
		Nic Lott	25.6	25,363

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source 1 Source 2 Source 3	Total votes: 99,089
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Southern District

General election

General election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Southern District

Dane Maxwell defeated Connie Moran in the general election for Mississippi Public Service Commission Southern District on November 5, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Dane Maxwell (R)	62.6	181,083
		Connie Moran (D)	37.4	108,074

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 289,157
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Southern District

Connie Moran defeated Sugar Stallings in the Democratic primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Southern District on August 6, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Connie Moran	79.0	52,957
	Submit photo	Sugar Stallings	21.0	14,082

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 67,039
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Southern District

Dane Maxwell defeated Kelvin Schulz in the Republican primary for Mississippi Public Service Commission Southern District on August 6, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Dane Maxwell	68.1	99,495
		Kelvin Schulz	31.9	46,545

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 146,040
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Perry Parker (R)

2015

See also: Mississippi Public Service Commission election, 2015

There was a regularly scheduled election for all three seats on the commission in 2015. Lynn Posey (R), Brandon Presley (D) and Steve Renfroe were eligible for re-election. The primary election was occurred on August 4, 2015, with the general election on November 3, 2015.

Northern District

Mississippi Public Service Commission, Northern District, 2015
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Brandon Presley Incumbent	60.7%	146,518
	Republican	Mike Maynard	39.3%	94,793
Total Votes				241,311
Election results via Mississippi Secretary of State

Central District

Mississippi Public Service Commission, Central District, 2015
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Cecil Brown	53.4%	124,789
	Republican	Brent Bailey	45.5%	106,314
	Reform	LaTrice D. Notree	1.2%	2,742
Total Votes				233,845
Election results via Mississippi Secretary of State

Southern District

Mississippi Public Service Commission, Southern District, 2015
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Tom Blanton	37.4%	89,146
	Republican	Sam Britton	60.5%	144,194
	Reform	Lonny Kenneth Spence	2%	4,867
Total Votes				238,207
Election results via Mississippi Secretary of State

Vacancies

Note: Ballotpedia's state executive officials project researches the constitutional or statutory text that details the process of filling vacancies for a state executive office. That information for the Mississippi Public Service Commission has not yet been added. After extensive research, we were unable to identify any relevant information on state official websites. If you have any additional information about this office for inclusion on this section and/or page, please email us.

Duties

As outlined on the PSC website, the duties of the commissioners are as follows:

• Regulate telecommunications, electric, gas, water and sewer utilities
• Assure rates and charges for services are just and reasonable
• Assure service rendered is reasonably adequate
• Assure any facilities constructed or acquired are required for the convenience and necessity of the public
• Exercise safety jurisdiction over gas pipelines and area jurisdiction over all public utilities
• Answer complaints, make investigation and conduct formal and informal hearings.

Divisions

As of February 2021, the Public Service Commission had six main divisions.

Natural Gas Division

The Natural Gas Division "represents the public interest with regard to the regulation of investor-owned and certain municipal natural gas utilities in Mississippi."

Electric Division

The Electric Division "represents the public interest with regard to the regulation of the two major investor-owned electric utilities in the state, Entergy Mississippi, Inc. and Mississippi Power Company."

Sewer Division

The Sewer Division "investigates all sewer filings before the Public Service Commission and makes recommendations thereon. Filings reviewed include applications for construction of facilities, applications to serve customers, and notices to revise the rates and charges authorized by the Commission."

Water Division

The Water Division "investigates all water filings before the Public Service Commission and makes recommendations thereon. Filings reviewed include applications for construction of facilities, applications to serve customers, and notices to revise the rates and charges authorized by the Commission."

Telecommunications Division

The Telecommunications Division "represents the public interest with regard to the regulation of incumbent and competitive local exchange carriers and intrastate long distance carriers in Mississippi."

Pipeline Safety Division

The Pipeline Safety Division's mission is "to protect the public and environment from the accidental release of natural gas with a compliance program that promotes educational standards for the industry and contributes to the health and security of Mississippi."

State budget

See also: Mississippi state budget and finances

The Public Service Commission's budget for fiscal year 2025 was $5,481,816.

Compensation

See also: Compensation of state executive officers

2023

In 2023, each commissioner received a salary of $146,600, according to the Council of State Governments.

2022

In 2022, each commissioner received a salary of $135,000, according to the Council of State Governments.

2021

In 2021, each commissioner received a salary of $135,000, according to the Council of State Governments.

2020

In 2020, each commissioner received a salary of $120,745, according to the Council of State Governments.

2019

In 2019, each commissioner received a salary of $120,745, according to the Council of State Governments.

2018

In 2018, each commissioner received a salary of $120,745, according to the Council of State Governments.

2017

In 2017, each commissioner received a salary of $108,850, according to the Council of State Governments.

2016

In 2016, each commissioner received a salary of $108,850, according to the Council of State Governments.

2015

In 2015, each commissioner received a salary of $108,850, according to the Council of State Governments.

2014

In 2014, each commissioner received a salary of $141,505, according to the Council of State Governments.

2013

In 2013, each commissioner received a salary of $141,505, according to the Council of State Governments.

2012

In 2012, each commissioner received a salary of $141,505, according to the Council of State Governments.

Historical officeholders

Note: Ballotpedia's state executive officials project researches state official websites for chronological lists of historical officeholders; information for the Mississippi Public Service Commission has not yet been added because the information was unavailable on the relevant state official websites, or we are currently in the process of formatting the list for this office. If you have any additional information about this office for inclusion on this section and/or page, please email us.

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Mississippi Public Service Commission. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Mississippi Public Service Commission - Google News

Contact information

Phone: 601-961-5434

See also

• Mississippi state executive offices
• Energy policy in Mississippi

External links

Suggest a link

• Mississippi Public Service Commission

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