New Boss at BCUC

October 2, 2023

By Bill Andrews and Tom Hackney

On September 14, 2023, the BC Government appointed Dr. Mark Jaccard as the Chair and Chief Executive Officer of the BC Utilities Commission, replacing David Morton, who had been a commissioner since 2010 and the Chair and CEO of the BCUC since 2015. Dr. Jaccard is well known in Canadian energy sustainability circles and he is eminently qualified to lead the BCUC (see his biography on Wikipedia). In announcing the change, the Government also gave full praise to Mr. Morton for his leadership of the BCUC.

BCSEA is enthusiastic that Dr. Jaccard’s arrival as Chair will facilitate the BCUC’s role in the clean energy transition in BC. This enthusiasm, however, is tempered by concern for the continued independence of the BCUC. As an independent regulatory agency, commissioners have security of tenure and their appointments (by Cabinet) cannot be terminated without cause. If Mr. Morton’s appointment was rescinded to make room for Dr. Jaccard, then Dr. Jaccard’s appointment would be vulnerable to termination according to a future government’s preferences.