Utility Engineering Analyst

The Public Service Commission seeks a utility engineering analyst to aid our agency in exercising regulatory oversight of some of the largest essential industries within Montana to ensure fair prices, responsible business practices, and safe and reliable services for Montana customers who rely upon them. This position offers a unique opportunity to work with an innovative state agency. The successful candidate will join our team of Utility Analysts who find the work to be interesting, meaningful, and critical to our agency’s goal of serving the citizens of Montana extraordinarily well.

Duties:

• Develops and applies engineering, economic, statistical, financial, and public policy methods and processes for evaluating and regulating a wide range of public utility matters, including emerging technology.
• Provides advice and recommendations regarding financial, economic, technical, and public policy issues related to regulation of public utility system operations and rates.
• Analyzes and evaluates utility wildfire mitigation plans, long-range supply plans, rate applications, economic forecasts,  and other regulatory filings, and issues engineering, financial, economic, and policy perspectives to evaluate the reasonableness of planning assumptions and methods, cost allocation methods, rate structures, and other proposals.
• Assists in the discovery process as appropriate in contested case proceedings.
• Prepares questions and information for the cross-examination of utility and intervener witnesses for rate hearings.
• Prepares documents that summarize testimony and issues that may be examined during public hearings; analyzes record evidence; formulates conclusions and recommendations on ratemaking and policy issues; presents conclusions and recommendations in writing and verbally at Commission business meetings and work sessions.
• Prepares reports to support analysis and assists in preparing Commission orders and notices.
• Assists in the ongoing process of reviewing agency regulations and, when appropriate, implementing revised or new regulations.
• Assesses the regulatory impacts of draft legislation and as directed by the Commission, represents the Commission in outside proceedings.

Required Application Materials:

A completed Montana state application.
A cover letter describing how your professional career, experience, and education prepared you to meet the requirements of this position.
A resume detailing relevant work experience including employer, dates of employment (month & year-start & end), and reason for leaving. 

All applicants selected for interviews will be required to submit educational certificates. 
 

Competencies:

•    General knowledge of engineering principles and methods.
•    General knowledge of economic, accounting, and business principles and statistical analysis.
•    Strong organizational, analytical, investigative, problem-solving, and critical thinking abilities.
•    Strong written and oral communication skills
•    Microsoft Office including proficiency creating and managing spreadsheets.
•    Flexibility, impartiality, and attention to detail.
•    Ability to maintain a strong work ethic and commitment to high standards of professional integrity.
•    Ability to work independently and with a team.
•    Ability to build and maintain good interpersonal relationships with work associates and internal and external constituencies.
•    Ability to stay current with industry events, federal regulatory policies and laws, and PSC policies.
•    Ability to learn and apply electric and natural gas utility engineering/economics principles and regulatory theory and law.                                     
•    Ability to provide oral and written presentations of complex topics to non-expert audiences is essential.
•    Ability to organize workloads in such a manner that assignments are completed on time with minimal supervision.
•    Ability to publicly present information in front of cameras and audiences.

Qualifications:

A bachelor’s degree in electrical, mechanical, or civil engineering, economics, accounting, finance, or related field of study.  Two years of job-related experience performing economic, accounting, statistical or engineering analysis OR research analyzing information and preparing written reports may be considered with a training assignment. Related combinations of education, training, and experience may be considered. Preferred experience with assessing compliance with state and federal regulations.

Salary : $73,006 - $80,000