PBA Honors Retired Acting Consumer Advocate of the Pa. Office of Consumer Advocate

HARRISBURG (May 4, 2022) — The Pennsylvania Bar Association (PBA) Public Utility Law Section will present its Christianson Award to Tanya J. McCloskey, retired acting consumer advocate of the Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate (OCA) in Harrisburg during the May 20 Public Utility Bench Bar Conference in Mechanicsburg.

The Christianson Award is named in honor of Robert A. Christianson, a former chief administrative law judge for the PUC, and recognizes an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the development, improvement and advancement of the profession of public utility law.

McCloskey worked for the OCA from 1987 until her retirement in 2021. In her role as acting consumer advocate, she was responsible for achieving the statutory mission of the OCA to represent the interests of consumers before the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, similar federal agencies and state and federal courts. Previously, McCloskey was a senior assistant consumer advocate responsible for coordinating energy and telecommunications activities within the OCA.

One nominator noted: “Tanya’s steadfast leadership at the Office of Consumer Advocate has made an indelible mark on our profession. I … have seen firsthand her unflappable, steadfast commitment to ensuring all Pennsylvanians can access fair, just and affordable utility services. Tanya’s work has helped shape the future of public utility law for the better — carving new policies and practices that best center the needs of Pennsylvanians through carefully developed precedent and thoughtful policy advocacy.”

An expert on public utility matters, McCloskey has presented testimony before committees of the Pennsylvania Senate and House of Representatives. She also has lectured at numerous continuing legal education seminars, forums and symposiums.

For several years, McCloskey served on the National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates (NASUCA) Executive Committee. The association presented her with its Irwin A. Popowsky Outstanding Service Award in 2019 in recognition of her dedication and contribution to NASUCA, and its Robert F. Manifold Lifetime Service Award in 2021 in recognition of her dedication and meritorious lifetime of service to utility consumers. In addition, McCloskey served on the National Council on Electricity Policy Executive Committee.

McCloskey received her B.A. from Dickinson College in 1977 and her J.D. from Dickinson School of Law in 1987.

For more information on the Public Utility Bench Bar Conference, visit https://www.pbi.org/Meetings/Meeting.aspx?ID=41869.