Financial Research Institute

The Financial Research Institute (FRI) was established in 1988 within the Robert J. Trulaske, Sr. College of Business at the University of Missouri to promote education, research and service across various areas of finance. Today the FRI, through its public utility division, provides a neutral environment for stakeholders in the regulated public utility industry to come together to examine, understand, and debate current issues relating to public utility policy.

Mission Statement

Under the academic leadership of the Robert J. Trulaske, Sr. College of Business at the University of Missouri, the Financial Research Institute, through its Public Utilities Division, serves as a neutral environment for the comprehensive examination of sound regulatory policy. The FRI provides interactive forums for consumers, regulators, industry and educators to facilitate innovation, understanding, and education in public utility policy issues.

Annual Public Utility Symposium

The most visible program is the annual Symposium. This is a unique event where the content and speakers are brought together with the cooperation of commissioners, industry, and consumer advocates – resulting in a timely topic that is relevant and equally represented amongst public utility policy stakeholders. Approximately 200 utility executives, regulators and staff, and consumer advocates attend the Symposium which is held at University of Missouri.

5-22-2020 UPDATE: Due to the national impact of the COVID-19 virus, the 2020 Annual Public Utility Symposium will be transformed into a four-part webinar series scheduled to take place in October. Each webinar will feature a 90-minute virtual conversation designed to explore The Forces Driving Public Utility Regulatory Policy Redesign and Innovation, and will be structured around one of four primary driving forces: technological, market, legal, and physical. Speakers will identify the underlying trends within each of the driving forces. They will examine current practices in these areas, identify emerging new solutions, and offer thoughts regarding developments in the near-term future. Additional details to come.

FRI Crystal Award for Distinguished Contribution

The FRI Crystal Award for Distinguished Contribution recognizes an individual who has made recent outstanding and significant contributions to the design, implementation, or analysis of public utility regulatory policy. It provides an opportunity to recognize excellence and achievement across regulated industries and further promotes the mission and purpose of the FRI.

Learn more about this award

Read about Kenneth A. Colburn

State Commission Board Representation

• Arkansas ~ Commissioner Kimberly A. O'Guinn
• California ~ Commissioner Clifford Rechtschaffen
• Connecticut ~ Vice Chairman John W. "Jack" Betkoski III
• Florida ~ Commissioner Julie I. Brown
• Georgia ~ Commissioner Tricia Pridemore
• Idaho ~ Commissioner Paul Kjellander
• Illinois ~ Commissioner Sadzi Oliva
• Indiana ~ Commissioner Sarah Freeman
• Iowa ~ Commissioner Richard W. Lozier, Jr.
• Kansas ~ Commissioner Shari Feist Albrecht
• Kentucky ~ Commissioner Talina R. Mathews, PhD
• Mississippi ~ Chairman Brandon Presley
• Missouri  ~ TBA
• Montana ~ Chairman Brad Johnson
• New Jersey ~ Commissioner Mary-Anna Holden ~ FRI Advisory Board Chair
• Ohio ~ Vice Chair M. Beth Trombold
• Oklahoma ~ Commissioner Dana L. Murphy
• South Carolina ~ Commissioner John "Butch" Howard

Associate Membership

To further advance the FRI mission, the associate membership program was developed to include a wider set of companies, organizations, and individuals with an interest in the water, gas, and electric industries.