Kenneth D. Schisler
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Kenneth D. Schisler (born July 31, 1969) is a former member of the
Maryland House of Delegates The Maryland House of Delegates is the lower house of the Maryland General Assembly, legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland. It consists of 141 delegates elected from 47 districts. The House of Delegates Chamber is in the Maryland State House ...
and former chair of the
Maryland Public Service Commission The Maryland Public Service Commission (PSC) is an independent administrative agency within the state government which regulates public utilities and certain taxi cab and other passenger services in Maryland. Similar to other state public utilitie ...
.


Background

Schisler was first elected to office in 1990 when he was only 21 years old. He was elected to represent District 37, which covered Caroline, Dorchester,
Talbot Talbot is a dormant automobile marque introduced in 1902 by British-French company Clément-Talbot. The founders, Charles Chetwynd-Talbot, 20th Earl of Shrewsbury and Adolphe Clément-Bayard, reduced their financial interests in their Clément ...
, and Wicomico counties. He was elected along with three Democrats - Don William Bradley, Samuel Q. Johnson III, and Robert A. Thornton, Jr. He replaced Republican Richard F. Colburn, who eventually returned to the General Assembly in 1995 as a State Senator. In 1994, District 37 was divided into 37A (Dorchester and Wicomico Counties) and District 37B (Caroline, Dorchester, Talbot, and Wicomico Counties). In this reconfigured district, Schisler won reelection along with fellow Republican Adelaide C. Eckardt, one of the candidates he defeated in 1990. Schisler and Eckardt defeated Democratic incumbent Robert Thornton, Jr. and challenger Philip Carey Foster. In 1998, Schisler and Eckardt again won reelection, this time defeating Democratic challenger William Steven Brohawn. The next general election in 2002 had similar results, except there was no formal Democratic challenger.


Education

Schisler attended St. Michaels High School in St. Michaels in Talbot County, MD. He went to
Salisbury State University Salisbury University is a public university in Salisbury, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1925, Salisbury University is a member of the University System of Maryland, with a fall 2022 enrollment of 7,123. Salisbury University offers unde ...
where he earned his B.S. in biology in 1992. He later returned to college and to get his J.D. from the
University of Maryland School of Law The University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law (formerly University of Maryland School of Law from 1924 to 2011) is the law school of the University of Maryland, Baltimore and is located in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1816, it i ...
in 1998. During his undergraduate years at Salisbury State, Schisler was initiated into the
Sigma Alpha Epsilon Sigma Alpha Epsilon () is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. It was founded at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on March 9, 1856.Baird, William Raimond, ed. (1905).Baird's Manual of American College Fratern ...
fraternity.


Career

Schisler was admitted to the Maryland Bar in 1999 and began practicing as an attorney. He is also a member of the Talbot County Bar Association. In 1992, he was selected as a delegate for the
Republican National Convention The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the Republican Party in the United States. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal o ...
. In 1993 he got to serve as a delegate to
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and
Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
as part of the American Council of Young Political Leaders. In addition, Schisler is a charter member of the Talbot County Young Republicans club. Outside of his political activities, Schisler is a member of
Ducks Unlimited Ducks Unlimited (DU) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the conservation of wetlands and associated upland habitats for waterfowl, other wildlife, and people. History and profile In 1927, an offshoot of the Boone and ...
, an "international non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation of wetlands and associated upland habitats for waterfowl". He is active member in several environmental groups including the Maryland Ornithological Society, a group that focuses on the protection of birds, and Nature Conservancy. Schisler is also a member of the
National Rifle Association of America The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent Gun politics in the United States, gun rights ...
, and the
Sigma Alpha Epsilon Sigma Alpha Epsilon () is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. It was founded at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on March 9, 1856.Baird, William Raimond, ed. (1905).Baird's Manual of American College Fratern ...
fraternity. He was once a participant in Boys State, a leadership action program, which was sponsored by the
American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is an Voluntary association, organization of United States, U.S. war veterans headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. It comprises U.S. state, state, Territories of the United States, U.S. terr ...
of Maryland. Schisler has earned numerous awards including the
Phi Eta Sigma Phi Eta Sigma () is an American freshman honor society. Founded at the University of Illinois in 1923, it is the oldest and largest freshman honor society. It is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies. History Phi Eta Sigma was f ...
Honor Society, (1987), the Outstanding Academics Award and The Humanitarian Award from
Sigma Alpha Epsilon Sigma Alpha Epsilon () is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. It was founded at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on March 9, 1856.Baird, William Raimond, ed. (1905).Baird's Manual of American College Fratern ...
in the 1989-90 school year, and the Outstanding Greek Scholar from
Salisbury State University Salisbury University is a public university in Salisbury, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1925, Salisbury University is a member of the University System of Maryland, with a fall 2022 enrollment of 7,123. Salisbury University offers unde ...
, also during the 1989-90 school year.


House of Delegates

As a member of the
Maryland House of Delegates The Maryland House of Delegates is the lower house of the Maryland General Assembly, legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland. It consists of 141 delegates elected from 47 districts. The House of Delegates Chamber is in the Maryland State House ...
, he was a Minority Whip from 2002 until 2003, Deputy Minority Whip from 1994 until 1997, a member of the Environmental Matters Committee, several subcommittees, and the Joint Committee on Chesapeake Bay Critical Areas from 1992 until 2003. He resigned as Whip in 2003 after his appointment to the Maryland Public Service Commission. He served as a member of the Department of Natural Resources Special Funds Work Group from 2002 and 2003 and the Joint Committee on the Selection of the State Treasurer in 2003. Schisler was the chair of the Talbot County Delegation and the Eastern Shore Delegation in 2003. He also served on the
American Legislative Exchange Council The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is a nonprofit organization of conservatism in the United States, conservative state legislature (United States), state legislators and private sector representatives who draft and share Model act, ...
, a task force on energy, environment, & natural resources. Furthermore, he served on a Solid Waste Management Task Force in 1998, the Governor's Task Force on Eastern Shore Economic Development from 1999 until 2001, and the Mid-Shore Regional Council from 2001 until 2003. Finally, he was on the Tri-County Council for the Lower Eastern Shore of Maryland from 2001 until 2003.


Legislative notes

*voted for electric deregulation in 1999 (HB70


Public Service Commission

From 1997 until 1998 he served on the Task Force to Study Retail Electric Competition and the Restructuring of the Electric Utility Industry. This is relevant to the work in his next position, the chair of the
Maryland Public Service Commission The Maryland Public Service Commission (PSC) is an independent administrative agency within the state government which regulates public utilities and certain taxi cab and other passenger services in Maryland. Similar to other state public utilitie ...
(PSC). Schisler was appointed to the five year position by Governor
Bob Ehrlich Robert Leroy Ehrlich Jr. (born November 25, 1957) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 60th governor of Maryland from 2003 to 2007. A Republican, Ehrlich represented Maryland's 10th legislative district in the House of Del ...
in 2003 to succeed Catherine I. Riley. This appointment was approved by the
Maryland General Assembly The Maryland General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland that convenes within the State House in Annapolis. It is a bicameral body: the upper chamber, the Maryland Senate, has 47 representatives, and the lower ...
. During the 2006 gubernatorial election, Schisler came under fire by the Maryland General Assembly and Democratic candidate
Martin O'Malley Martin Joseph O'Malley (born January 18, 1963) is an American politician who served as the 17th commissioner of the Social Security Administration from 2023 to 2024. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he was th ...
for approving a 72% rate hike by utility provider Baltimore Gas & Electric (BGE). Schisler's defended his position by stating that the rate hike was the long-term result to the deregulation plan enacted by the Maryland legislature in 1999 during the term of the previous governor,
Parris Glendening Parris Nelson Glendening (born June 11, 1942) is an American politician and academic who served as the 59th governor of Maryland from 1995 to 2003. He previously served as the county executive of Prince George's County, Maryland from 1982 to 19 ...
, and approved by the former members of the PSC. One of the members of the PSC that approved the rate cap was Joseph Curran III, the brother-in-law of Baltimore mayor and gubernatorial candidate Martin O'Malley, and son of the Maryland Attorney General,
Joseph Curran Joseph Curran (March 1, 1906 – August 14, 1981) was a merchant seaman and an American labor leader. He was founding president of the National Maritime Union (or NMU, now part of the Seafarers International Union of North America) from 1937 t ...
. The 1999 plan would allow for competition for electricity in Maryland, but called for a rate cap to last until 2006, which turned out to be a rate so low that it discouraged competition. The original plan also would allow for rates to be reset at the end of the capped period, at which time the market forces would determine the going rate for electricity. In the criticism of Schisler, O'Malley stated that the PSC was a "lapdog for special interests" and demanded that Schisler be removed from his position. In a similar vein, Michael E. Busch, the Speaker of the House for the Maryland House of Delegates, criticized the casual relationship between Schisler and Carville Collins, an industry representative who represented BGE and
Pepco The Potomac Electric Power Company (PEPCO) is an American utility company that supplies electric power to the city of Washington, D.C., and to surrounding communities in Maryland. It is owned by Exelon. The company's current trademarked slogan ...
Electric. The Democrat's argument was that the Schisler and the rest of the appointees on the commission were too friendly with the industry and not looking out for the interest of the consumers, thus having lost their independence. In June 2006, the Democratic-controlled Maryland General Assembly passed a law that included the removal of the current members of the PSC. Ken Schisler sued (''Kenneth D. Schisler, et al. v. State of Maryland'') and won the right to keep his job arguing that only the governor could fire the members of the PSC. The law, had it taken effect, would have allowed the General Assembly to appoint 2 members each by the
House A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...
and
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
to the PSC, while only allowing the Governor to appoint one member. Currently, the appointment of members of the PSC belongs to the executive branch. Martin O'Malley won the gubernatorial election in 2006, thus Schisler lost his advocate, Governor Bob Ehrlich. State Senate President Mike Miller tried to negotiate an amicable deal which would have had Schisler removed, but Schisler turned down the offer. O'Malley's chief council, Ralph S. Tyler, said that if Schisler would not resign his position, he could be fired. Under pressure, Schisler eventually resigned on February 2, 2007. Governor Martin O'Malley appointed Steven Larsen to replace Schisler. Larsen is a former Insurance Commissioner for the Maryland Insurance Agency. Larsen was given a salary of $185,000, 58% more than Schisler's salary of $117,000. The PSC approved a 15% increase that would take effect in July 2006 and be in place for 11 months. This was during the final months of Governor Ehrlich's term. A future increase was to be determined after the election. However, Ehrlich was defeated by Martin O'Malley. With the 11-month period nearly over, a 48% rate hike has been proposed, which when calculated along with the original 15%, is nearly identical to the originally proposed 72% rate hike from 2006. Ironically, the new commissioners under Governor O'Malley accepted this proposal stating that there was no legal way to change these new rates.


Election results

*2002 electionfor Maryland House of Delegates – District 37B Retrieved on Sept. 30, 2007 ::Voters to choose two: : *1998 election for Maryland House of Delegates – District 37B Retrieved on Sept. 30, 2007 ::Voters to choose two: : *1994 election for Maryland House of Delegates – District 37B Retrieved on Sept. 30, 2007 ::Voters to choose two: : *1990 election for Maryland House of Delegates – District 37 Retrieved on Sept. 30, 2007 ::Voters to choose three: :


References


External links


Maryland House of Delegates: Kenneth D. Schisler
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schisler, Kenneth D. 1969 births Living people Republican Party members of the Maryland House of Delegates People from Kent County, Maryland Salisbury University alumni University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law alumni Sigma Alpha Epsilon members 20th-century members of the Maryland General Assembly 21st-century members of the Maryland General Assembly