All the Governor's Men

Maryland's utility regulator ditches his independence.

KENNETH D. SCHISLER, chairman of the agency charged with regulating Maryland's public utilities, is clearly in the wrong job. The agency he leads, the Public Service Commission, is supposed to be an impartial, apolitical arbiter looking out for the state's consumers and beholden to no one. Instead, Mr. Schisler and his aides behave as loyalists of Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R) and as confidants of the very industry the agency regulates.

In one telling exchange of e-mails made public recently, Mr. Schisler's chief of staff, Craig Chesek, writing on his boss's behalf, asked for and received the green light from the governor's appointments office to fire a high-ranking commission employee -- one of five who were ousted and escorted from their offices by armed guards two years ago. Mr. Schisler insists he was alerting the governor's office of his intentions, not asking its permission. But the e-mails clearly indicate the opposite.

On Thursday state lawmakers grilled Mr. Schisler and Mr. Chesek about the e-mails and other indications that they were doing the governor's bidding by firing senior commission officials to make room for Ehrlich loyalists. The questions are legitimate; the PSC's independence is critical. In response, Mr. Schisler repeatedly flew off the handle and insulted state Sen. Brian E. Frosh (D-Montgomery). "E.T. phone home, Senator, you and your wild conspiracy theories," Mr. Schisler spluttered, demonstrating his own utter lack of self-control.

Just as remarkable was Mr. Schisler's explanation for his decision to fire several of his agency's most experienced officials, whose job performance he characterized as subpar. Pressed for details, he said one of the officials, the PSC's former chief engineer, wore ripped jeans and "dorky" old ties at work.

In previously released e-mails, Mr. Schisler and his top aides were shown asking and receiving favors from Reliant Energy, a huge electricity producer. The favors themselves were petty -- on one occasion, tickets to see the Houston Astros; on another, a dozen seats to watch President Bush's 2005 inaugural parade. Still, those e-mails, and others, suggested an unsuitable coziness between regulators and regulated.

Having misconstrued his role in the public sector, Mr. Schisler might be better off seeking employment in the private one. Perhaps, as a proven sartorial stickler, he could find work as a tailor of fine men's clothing; that way he could cater to the tastes of the wealthy and powerful without having to worry about compromising a public agency's independence -- or the interests of consumers.