State lawmakers are likely to fill a Public Service Commission seat with an insider.

After nearly 18 months of delays, lawmakers are ready to fill a $107,822 commission seat with either:

• Elliott Elam, Jr., a Lexington resident and incumbent who voted for $2 billion in electric rate hikes for the failed SC Electric & Gas nuclear reactor project.

• Florence Belser, an Office of Regulatory Staff attorney who provides legal counsel for the utility watchdog agency.

Belser scored 95 on the PSC test all candidates take and Elam scored 91.

The ORS confirmed that Belser makes $113,110. On the PSC, she faces a $5,288 pay cut.

A “qualified but not nominated” candidate, marine biologist James “Buddy” Atkins, scored 91 on the test.

No other candidates came close to those scores.

2 rejected candidates for the seat which covers Lexington County have asked why the Public Utilities Review Committee voted to find them “not qualified.”

Town of North Mayor Patty Carson, scored 53. Bruce Cole of Forest Acres, a PSC nominee in 2018, scored 74.

Candidates are tested for their knowledge of issues the PSC will deal with, but it is only one of the measures lawmakers use in deciding who to nominate.

Both said no PURC members or staff gave specific reasons for rejecting them.

“It’s not transparent and it should be,” said Cole who earned degrees in economics at Harvard University, accounting at Northeastern, business administration at Stanford and a doctoral degree at Clemson University.

Carson holds a degree in engineering from the Missouri School of Mines.

“The vote was unanimous regarding the finding of not qualified,” Heather Anderson, the PURC lawyer, said in an email to Carson.

Carson said she had concerns about how she was treated in her hearing.

“All these older gentlemen are just leaning back in their chairs with their arms crossed,” she said. “They didn’t look like they were even interested.”

Belser worked for the PSC from 1993 to 2003 and since 2004 has been with the ORS which signed off on SCE&G’s 9 rate hikes for the failed $9 billion project.

At the time, the ORS was required by law to protect the interests of investors.

That has since changed to protect utility ratepayers.

PSC records show that Elam voted to approve 3 rate hikes for SCE&G’s 727,000 ratepayers.

Elam declined requests for comment on his candidacy.

Belser did not respond.

Brundrett is news editor of The Nerve. Contact him at 803-254-4411 or rick@thenerve.org.