Lamont predicts victory for Gillett in reappointment fight.

Governor Ned Lamont appeared on Brian Shactman’s Brian & Company morning program on WTIC 1080 Tuesday morning as part of his administration’s campaign to rescue Marissa Gillett’s reappointment to lead the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA). (A clip is posted above.)

Lamont said he believes Gillett will win another term. The Greenwich Democrat once more stated his opposition to complying with the 2019 legislation expanding the membership of PURA to five from three. Lamont signed that bill when it reached it desk in his first year in office.

Eversource, the governor said, wants Gillett out and enjoys a lot of influence at the legislature. Lamont pointed to Gillett’s experience at a crucial time and said he does not “want three or five rookies on that board.” This appeared to be a reference to support for placing state Senator John Fonfara and former state Representative Holly Cheeseman on PURA. Fonfara spent more than a decade as co-chair of the legislature’s energy committee. Cheeseman is widely regarded as a talented utility player who would not hesitate to exercise authority independent of Gillett.

The campaign to rescue Gillett from responsibility for electricity rates that are among the highest in the nation has accelerated as Lamont’s office and a handful of Democratic legislators have started counting votes. Gillett’s supporters have claimed that she is the target of sexism, signaling they have abandoned making the case for her based on her record in office.

Lamont blotted his copy when he told Shactman that Gillett is kind of, sort of a consumer advocate. State statutes provide for an independent consumer advocate at PURA who is not a member of the commission. Lamont has previously said that it is not PURA’s chair’s job to be a consumer advocate but to call balls and strikes.

Gillett’s renomination was submitted to the Senate weeks ago but has not yet been scheduled for a public hearing by the Executive and Legislative Nominations Committee. The delay is unusual in the normal course of legislative business.

Published February 11, 2025.