Tennessee Public Service Commission

The Tennessee Public Service Commission, also called Tennessee Railroad and Public Utilities Commission, was a three-member elected body which regulated private utilities, trucking firms, and railroads within the state of Tennessee. It was dissolved in 1996 when its functions were transferred to the Tennessee Regulatory Authority.

The body consisted of three commissioners, one from each of the state's three "Grand Divisions" (East, Middle, and West Tennessee). While one member of the body was required to be from each Grand Division, each was elected on a statewide basis to staggered six-year terms, resulting in the election of one commissioner in each even-numbered year. This body was somewhat less powerful than some similar bodies in most other states in that, with the exception of the Kingsport area, it had no jurisdiction over electric rates since the vast majority of the state received its power from the Tennessee Valley Authority, which as part of the federal government was not subject to state regulation.

The Tennessee Public Service Commission originated in 1897 as an elected three-member state Railroad Commission, vested with the authority to investigate the rates and practices of railroads and to approve rail tariffs. In 1919 the Railroad Commission's responsibilities were expanded to include the regulation of street railways and public utilities, and the Tennessee General Assembly changed the body's name to the Railroad and Public Utilities Commission. Jurisdiction over was added in 1933. With the creation of the Tennessee Valley Authority in the 1930s the commission lost its jurisdiction over electric utilities; street railways were removed from commission jurisdiction in 1943. The commission's name was changed to the Public Service Commission in 1955.

...
Wikipedia