Engineer

Salary Grade: Banded- Contributing Level (SG Equivalent: 74)

Recruitment Range: $43,030.00 – $51,000.00

The North Carolina Department of Commerce is the state’s lead agency for economic, community and workforce development. The Department works with local, regional, national and international organizations to fulfill its mission to improve the economic well-being and quality of life for all North Carolinians.

The Public Staff is an independent agency created in 1977 to review, investigate, and make appropriate recommendations to the North Carolina Utilities Commission with respect to the reasonableness of rates charged and adequacy of service provided by any public utility and with respect to the consistency with the public policy of assuring an energy supply adequate to protect the public health and safety.

The employee in this position will work with other members of the Public Staff to investigate, review, and analyze periodic filings by utilities including general rate cases, annual review of energy cost filings, utility expansion projects, rulemaking proceedings, complaint proceedings, incentive programs, purchased gas cost adjustments, and special investigations. The employee will also provide technical input to other engineers and the division director as well as other members of the public staff, as needed, to assist in the development of public staff policy decisions. The employee will also serve as a team member with accountants, economists, and attorneys on various petitions filed by utilities and is expected to perform under the supervision of the Division Director.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities / Competencies

• General knowledge of the principles and practices of engineering principles and practices
• Demonstrated skill of evaluating information to determine compliance with standards
• Demonstrated analytical skills to gather facts and evidence, evaluate, summarize findings, and make recommendations for efficient energy consumption methods
• Experience performing technical calculations and analysis
• Efficient negotiation skills to assist in negotiating settlements between utilities and customers regarding rate designs and utility practices
• Disciplined time management skills to work independently or as part of a team and manage multiple project assignments within established time frames
• Excellent communication skills to express, in writing and verbally, the Public Staff’s position on various issues involving utilities proposals and service

Minimum Education and Experience Requirements
Bachelor’s degree in the engineering discipline related to the area of assignment; or equivalent combination of training and experience some positions may require licensure by the North Carolina board of examiners for engineers and surveyors. All degrees must be received from appropriately accredited institutions.

NOTE: This is a Career-Banded position. Recruitment for this position will target the Contributing level of the Engineer class. Salary will be commensurate with the applicant’s competencies, as well as, the budget, equity, and market conditions. This position is considered to be equivalent to salary grade 74 .