Alan Russell Erwin (September 4, 1944 – November 12, 2019) was a Texas

public relations Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing and disseminating information from an individual or an organization (such as a business, government agency, or a nonprofit organization) to the public in order to influence their perception. ...

professional who served as chairman of the

Public Utility Commission of Texas The Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC or PUCT) is a state agency that regulates the state’s electric, water and telecommunication utilities, implements respective legislation, and offers customer assistance in resolving consumer complaints ...

from 1983 to 1984.

Early life, education, and career

Born in

Greenville, Texas Greenville is a city in Hunt County, Texas, United States, about northeast of Dallas. It is the county seat and largest city of Hunt County. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 25,557, and in 2019, its estimated population was 28,827 ...

, Erwin received a B.A. in Communications from the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

in 1967.Briscoe Names Bureaucrat
, ''Valley Morning Star'' (May 12, 1973), p. 9. he joined the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

, eventually becoming an "advisor to the Vietnamese Navy's Swift Boat division" in 1969. In July 1969, it was reported that Erwin, then residing in Boston with his wife, would travel to

Saigon , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...

towards the end of October "to work for the Joint U.S. Public Affairs Office". Erwin also worked at times as administrative assistant to Congressman

Robert R. Casey Robert Randolph Casey (July 27, 1915 – April 17, 1986) was a member of the United States House of Representatives. He was a Democrat from Texas. Early life Casey was born in Joplin, Missouri, but moved to Houston, Texas, as a teenager, ...

, and as an assistant to the editor and publisher of '' The Beaumont Enterprise and Journal''. In 1973, Governor

Dolph Briscoe Dolph Briscoe Jr. (April 23, 1923 – June 27, 2010) was an American rancher and businessman from Uvalde, Texas, who was the 41st governor of Texas between 1973 and 1979. He was a member of the Democratic Party. Because of his re-election foll ...

named Erwin director of the Office of State-Federal Relations, in Washington, D.C..

Public Utility Commission service and later life

In August 1975, Governor Briscoe named Erwin to the newly established

, along with

George Cowden George Malcolm Cowden (born December 29, 1930) is a Texas lawyer and politician who served in the Texas House of Representatives from 1963 to 1967, and was the second chairman of the Public Utility Commission of Texas from 1978 to 1982. Early li ...

and William Garrett Morris. As one of "Gov. Briscoe's first appointed PUC commissioners", Alan received the shortest of the three appointed terms, set to expire in 1979. Erwin then returned to private practice, and in the 1982 election helped gubernatorial candidate Mark White to "draft his utility reform program", and also "filmed TV spots during White's campaign to unseat Clements", in which Erwin said that elected PUC commissioners "could help restore public confidence in regulation". After winning the election and taking office, Governor White reappointed Erwin to the PUC in 1983, along with Peggy Rosson.PUC appointees to fight for public
, ''Fort Worth Star-Telegram'' (February 16, 1983), p. 1
2
Erwin served as chair of the commission for the remainder of this tenure. After leaving the commission, Erwin sought to become a novelist,Pete Szilagyi,
Ex-utility panel chief Erwin turns to literary pursuits
, ''

Austin American-Statesman The ''Austin American-Statesman'' is the major daily newspaper for Austin, the capital city of Texas. It is owned by Gannett. The paper prints Associated Press, ''New York Times'', ''The Washington Post'', and ''Los Angeles Times'' internation ...

'' (July 22, 1984), B6. publishing ''The Power Exchange'' in 1984. In January 1985, he was named to a panel that investigated water quality in the

Colorado River The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. s ...

in Texas. He worked for a time for the international public relations firm of Hill and Knowlton, announcing the opening of his own public relations firm in April 1985.Today's digest
, ''Austin American-Statesman'' (April 13, 1985), p. C1.

Personal life and death

In December 1967, Erwin married Gay Taylor, with whom he had three sons. In 2010, Gay successfully donated a kidney to Erwin, which "defied compatibility odds of 50 million-to-one regarding organ donation between spouses". Erwin died in 2019, at the age of 75, and was interred at the Texas State Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Erwin, Alan 1944 births 2019 deaths People from Greenville, Texas University of Texas at Austin alumni United States Navy personnel of the Vietnam War Chairs of the Public Utility Commission of Texas American public relations people