Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey has appointed Cynthia Lee Almond to serve as president of the state’s Public Service Commission.

“Cynthia has proven to be an extremely effective public servant and leader, and I am confident the people of Alabama will be even better served when she takes the helm at the Public Service Commission,” Ivey said in a press release.

Almond, a Republican from Tuscaloosa, currently serves in the Alabama House of Representatives. She also owns a title company and works as an attorney specializing in estate planning, probate, business law and real estate.

She replaces Twinkle Cavanaugh, who resigned her position as commission president last week in order to take a job with the U.S. Department of Agriculture under President Donald Trump.

Cavanaugh was first elected to the commission in 2010 and was elected president in 2012.

The public service commission is a three-person board tasked with regulating utilities—including electrical utilities—in the state, including setting rates for customers. The commission has been scrutinized by the public for high bills.

“I am honored to have been asked by Governor Ivey to fill this important position. It is one I accept with great enthusiasm,” Almond said in the news release. “I know how important this commission is to the people of Alabama and to the industry sectors it regulates. I believe my training as an attorney and legislator will prove to be helpful in performing this role.”

Prior to her election to the legislature in 2021, Almond served on the Tuscaloosa City Council for four terms and was elected president pro tempore of the council. Almond is a native of Tuscaloosa and graduated from the University of Alabama School of Law, according to the news release.

She will vacate her seat in the house of representatives on June 15, the news release said. Ivey will swear in Almond to her seat on the commission on June 16.

“Since 2021, I have been able to count on Cynthia to get real, meaningful work done in the Legislature,” Ivey said in the release, “and while I know the people of Tuscaloosa will miss her representation in the State House, every person across this state will now benefit from her leadership on the Public Service Commission.”