North Dakota PSC Staff Member to Fill Open Seat on Commission

Kringstad, the commission’s director of business operations, replaces Julie Fedorchak, who was sworn in as North Dakota’s sole member of the U.S. House of Representatives. Kringstad’s appointment is effective immediately.

“Having worked at the Public Service Commission for the past eight years, I know the important role our agency plays to ensure our state and nation have abundant, reliable, affordable power and to provide a stable regulatory framework for our state’s vital industries,” she said during a Bismarck press conference announcing her appointment.

She is a certified public accountant and has previous experience working as an accountant and auditor for Basin Electric Power Cooperative, according to a Monday release from the governor’s office. She also did seasonal work at Cody Oil and Gas Corp.

Kringstad also interned for two of North Dakota’s congressional delegates — U.S. Sen. John Hoeven and former U.S. Rep. Rick Berg, Armstrong said during the press conference.

“Given her background with the agency, she will fit right in,” he said.

Kringstad joins Public Service Commission chair Randy Christmann and fellow commissioner Sheri Haugen-Hoffart.

Fedorchak served roughly two years of a six-year term that began in 2022. Kringstad will fill that seat for about two years until a November 2026 special election will determine who will finish off the remainder of Fedorchak’s term.