State of Maryland

STD0019

PROFESSIONAL SERVICE      BARGAINING UNIT: X       NCP

A Public Service Commission (PSC) Assistant Staff Counsel I is the entry-level of work providing legal services to the technical staff of the PSC. Employees in this classification do not supervise other employees.

Employees in this classification receive close supervision from the PSC Deputy Staff Counsel. Employees in this classification may be required to travel throughout the State to attend evening and weekend hearings and may be required to work overtime to meet deadlines. Employees may be subject to work evenings, weekends, and holidays.

Positions in this classification are evaluated by using the classification job evaluation methodology. The use of this method involves comparing the assigned duties and responsibilities of a position to the job criteria found in the Nature of Work and Examples of Work sections of the class specification.

The PSC Assistant Staff Counsel I, PSC Assistant Staff Counsel II, and PSC Assistant Staff Counsel III, are differentiated on the basis of the degree of supervisory control exercised by the supervisor over these employees and by the complexity of the work being performed. The PSC Assistant Staff Counsel I learns to perform duties under close supervision and is assigned selected cases of limited complexity only. The PSC Assistant Staff Counsel II performs duties under close supervision at times and under general supervision at other times, depending on the complexity of the specific duty being performed. The PSC Assistant Staff Counsel III performs the full range of duties and responsibilities under general supervision.

Learns to analyze applications and documents filed by public service companies and others in order to identify issues and make recommendations regarding necessary staff and Commission actions;

Learns to consult, review and edit staff testimony and coordinates the testimony of witnesses in order to convey the staff position on issues before the Commission;

Learns to draft and answer data requests in order to formally communicate with other parties in Public Service Commission cases;

Learns to initiate and negotiate settlement discussions in accordance with prior review by the Chief Staff Counsel, Public Service Commission;

Learns to performs legal research to discover precedent;

Learns to prepare and present cases before the Public Service Commission;

Learns to prepare legal documents such as briefs, memoranda of law, reports, summaries and appeals, and drafts motions and arguments in order to convey the staff position on issues before the Commission;

Learns to present arguments regarding motions and evidentiary objections and conducts cross examinations and direct examinations of witnesses in order to convey the staff position on issues before the Commission;

Learns to review and evaluate evidence in the record of Commission proceedings;

May participate in stakeholder groups;

Performs other related duties.

Knowledge of legal procedures and substantive legal rules;

Skill in presenting and documenting information;

Ability to become Bar-certified and duly admitted and enrolled to practice before the Court of Appeals in the State of Maryland;

Ability to learn and apply Public Service Commission procedures and regulations;

Ability to learns to follow Public Service Commission procedures in the preparation and presentation of selected cases before the Commission;

Ability to learn and apply complex engineering, finance and public administration concepts as they interact in regulated public service industries such as the natural gas, electricity and telecommunications industries;

Ability to learn how to provide advice and guidance to lower-level Staff Attorneys, Public Service Commission.

Ability to obtain a working knowledge of current issues and proceedings in the field of public regulation of utilities;

Ability to identify important issues regarding specific cases before the Commission.

Education: A Juris Doctorate degree or equivalent degree from an accredited school of law.

Experience: None.

Note: Candidates may substitute U.S. Armed Forces military service experience as a commissioned officer in general attorney classification or general attorney specialty codes in the legal and kindred group field of work on a year-for-year basis for the required experience and education.

1. Candidates for a position in this classification must be a member of the Bar in any state or federal jurisdiction, at the time of appointment.

2. Employees in this classification must be Attorneys-at-law, who are duly admitted and enrolled to practice before the Court of Appeals of this State within 18 months of appointment. Failure to obtain Court of Appeals admission and enrollment within 18 months of appointment will constitute grounds for termination from the position. This requirement is set by the Public Service Commission in accordance with Code of Maryland Regulation 20.07.01.04.[K-1.1]

3. Employees in this classification may be assigned duties which require the operation of a motor vehicle. Employees assigned such duties will be required to possess a motor vehicle operator's license valid in the State of Maryland.

State law prohibits employees in this classification from engaging in certain transactions with or having interest in public service companies which may fall under the purview of the Public Service Commission, in accordance with Public Utilities Article, Title 2. Public Service Commission and People's Counsel, Subtitle 303 Ethics-Relationship with public service company and Title 13. Prohibited Acts; Penalties, Subtitle 101 and 204 of the Annotated Code of Maryland.

Class specifications are broad descriptions covering groups of positions used by various State departments and agencies. Position descriptions maintained by the using department or agency specifically address the essential job functions of each position.

This is a Professional Service classification in the State Personnel Management System. All positions in this classification are Professional Service positions. Some positions in Professional Service classifications may be designated as Special Appointment in accordance with the State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 6-405, Annotated Code of Maryland.

This classification is not assigned to a bargaining unit, as indicated by the designation of M (Manager), T (Agency Head), U (Board or Commission Member), W (Student), X (Used by Agency or Excluded by Executive Order), or Z (Confidential). As provided by State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 3-102, special appointment, temporary, contractual, managerial and confidential employees are excluded collective bargaining. Additionally, certain executive branch agencies are exempt from collective bargaining and all positions in those agencies are excluded from collective bargaining.

This classification is one level in a Non-Competitive Promotion (NCP) series. NCP promotions are promotions by which employees may advance in grade and class level from trainee to full performance level in a classification series. In order to be non-competitively promoted to the next level in a NCP series, an employee must: 1) perform the main purpose of the class, as defined by the Nature of Work section of the class specification; 2) receive the type of supervision defined in the class specification and 3) meet the minimum qualifications of the classification.

Oct 1 1996 12:00AM

October 1, 2025

Director, Division of Classification and Salary