Voters Appeal Controversial Georgia Public Service Commission Term Extension

A federal judge Monday dismissed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a 2024 Georgia law extending the term length of Georgia Public Service Commission members. The plaintiffs intend to appeal the decision.
The commission regulates public utilities and plays an important role in determining electricity prices and energy sources for Georgia Power customers. Commissioners are elected in statewide partisan elections, though they are required to reside in one of five districts prescribed by law.
The lawsuit stems from a separate case, filed in 2020, challenging the at-large method of electing commissioners. Plaintiffs in that case said the at-large system violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act by diluting the Black community’s voting power.
According to the complaint, “Commissioners have been chosen by statewide election since 1906. Yet no African American has ever been elected to the Public Service Commission without having first been appointed by the governor. And even then, only one African American has ever served on the Commission.”
After four years of court battles and appeals, the at-large method ultimately prevailed.
During those long years of litigation, however, the commissioner elections were postponed by court order. Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) cancelled the 2022 and 2024 commission elections. In April 2024, shortly before an appeals court lifted the order that paused elections, the state legislature passed House Bill 1312 to extend every commissioner’s term by at least one year and shorten the terms of the next commissioners elected from two of the five districts. Before H.B. 1312, the commissioners served staggered six-year terms.
In July 2024, the Georgia Conservation Voters Education Fund, Georgia WAND Education Fund and a voter filed a lawsuit against Raffensperger challenging H.B. 1312. The plaintiffs argued that the state constitution, not state law, sets the term length for commissioners. H.B. 1312’s term extensions therefore denied voters the opportunity to elect commissioners, in violation of the 14th Amendment’s Due Process Clause. The plaintiffs asked the court to strike down the new law and hold elections as soon as possible for the three seats that were to be contested in 2022 and 2024.
On Monday, federal district Judge William M. Ray II dismissed the complaint, ruling that it belonged in state court and concluding that the plaintiffs lacked standing. The plaintiffs immediately appealed the decision and asked the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to block H.B. 1312 while the appeal is pending. Blocking H.B. 1312 would cancel the first election set to take place under the law in June, and instead require Raffensperger to call special elections to fill the three seats that were set to expire in 2022 and 2024.