Kathryn L. Zerfuss was nominated by Governor Tom Wolf on Sept. 20, 2022, and confirmed by the Pennsylvania Senate on October 19, 2022. Her term will expire on April 1, 2026.
With over two decades of experience in government affairs and public service, Commissioner Zerfuss has been a strong leader on regulatory and policy issues, focusing on education, workforce development, tax fairness, and energy and environmental concerns. As Commissioner, she upholds the mission of the PUC and has made workforce development a hallmark of her tenure on the Commission.
Commissioner Zerfuss’s career has spanned many roles throughout Pennsylvania state government, including service as a Deputy Secretary for Legislative Affairs to Governor Tom Wolf, where she advanced the state’s It’s On Us initiative to combat sexual violence at postsecondary schools, secured Pennsylvania’s first tax credit to help working families with childcare, and created the state’s free school breakfast program that serves students in all public and private schools. Prior to that, she held positions in the PA House of Representatives, the PA Gaming Control Board, and the PA Departments of Revenue, Agriculture, and Transportation.
She is a member of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC), a non-profit organization dedicated to representing state public service commissions that regulate public utilities. Commissioner Zerfuss has been an active participant in NARUC initiatives, most recently appointed to serve as Vice Chair of the Select Committee on Regulatory and Industry Diversity. She also serves on a national utility issues collaborative by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and NARUC addressing and finding solutions for critical challenges in the utility sector. She serves on the Committees on Energy Resources and the Environment, Gas, and the Subcommittee on Pipeline Safety. She is the co-vice chair of the NARUC–U.S. Department of Energy Task Force on Evolving Gas Infrastructure Planning. In this leadership role, Commissioner Zerfuss helps facilitate the discussion, review, and development of gas infrastructure planning as emerging technologies and decarbonization goals continue to evolve.
Commissioner Zerfuss is also a member of the Advisory Board of the National Energy and Utility Affordability Coalition (NEUAC), where she participates in committee discussions on critical energy and utility affordability issues.
Commissioner Zerfuss serves on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Farm, Ranch, and Rural Communities Federal Advisory Committee (FRRCC) where she advises the EPA on crucial environmental issues that impact agriculture and rural communities. Additionally, she is the PUC designee to the Pennsylvania Environmental Quality Board and the Agrivoltaic Farming Advisory Board.
Commissioner Zerfuss is only the ninth woman to serve on the PUC in its 87-year history. She currently serves with Vice Chair Kimberly Barrow making it only the fourth time two women commissioners have served concurrently.
Commissioner Zerfuss grew up in Tamaqua, Schuylkill County. She is an alumna of Elizabethtown College in Lancaster County with a bachelor’s degree in Political Science. She lives in Mechanicsburg and is married with three children.