Millions of dollars have been spent over the last two months to support Republican Josh Tolbert’s run for a seat on the Georgia Public Service Commission, dwarfing spending on the other three candidates. Where that money came from is a mystery even to Tolbert.
“I knew nothing about it other than me seeing the ads,” Tolbert told The Current GA in a phone interview Friday. “I don’t know who’s paying for it.”
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Tolbert is running for one of two seats up for grabs on the PSC, the five-person board that regulates investor-owned utilities in the state. His opponent is Democrat Shelia Edwards. The other race pits incumbent Democrat Peter Hubbard against Republican Fitz Johnson. With electricity prices squeezing family budgets and energy-hungry data centers facing community pushback around Georgia, these races are attracting more attention than ever.
DARK MONEY FOR UTILITY REGULATION
Most money in the four Georgia Public Service Commission campaigns in 2026 doesn’t come from traditional candidate committees, each of which has spent less than $200,000.
Instead, dark money expenditures made by “independent committees” dominate spending, made in 2026 on behalf of:
A 2-month-old pro-industry nonprofit called Powering Georgia’s Future bought the Tolbert ads, which have appeared on Facebook, TikTok, Instagram and elsewhere. Under campaign finance law, Powering Georgia’s Future is an independent committee, which can raise and spend unlimited sums for or against candidates as long as it doesn’t coordinate with them. All of the group’s $2.4 milion in spending has supported Tolbert, and all of that money came from another nonprofit, Competence Matters, which was formed in July.
Neither of these two nonprofit corporations is required to disclose its donors, making their $2.4 million the largest dark money campaign in the history of the Georgia PSC. Special interests have tried to influence these races before, though. In 2020, the Nuclear Energy Institute’s advocacy arm pumped $1 million into a runoff that saw the victory of pro-nuclear Republican Chuck Eaton, who voted repeatedly to complete the construction of Plant Vogtle.
Powering Georgia’s Future describes its goal as “fighting for affordable energy, a stronger industrial base, and pro-growth policies that keep Georgia jobs in Georgia – and a business climate where investment and opportunity can thrive.” Its only endorsement is of Tolbert. Rick Thompson is listed as the CEO of the nonprofit. Thompson, founder and CEO of political management group RTA Strategy Solutions, is also Vice Chairman of the State Ethics Commission, which investigates potential campaign finance violations.
Thompson told The Current he operates as the group’s compliance officer.
“I don’t have any internal information or knowledge about what they’re doing or where they’re doing it prior to them doing it and giving me the information to file,” he said.
Tolbert said the U.S. Postal Service made him aware of Powering Georgia’s Future.
“I’ve learned about it the same way everybody else has,” Tolbert said of the ads. “I’ve gotten mailers in my mailboxes. I’ve had friends text me and say, ‘Hey, I got this text.’”
Competence Matters was organized by election lawyer Bryan Tyson to operate as a 501(c)(4) to support “reliable and affordable energy rates for Georgia residents,” according to its articles of incorporation.
Tyson did not respond to requests for comment.
Tolbert said he knew nothing about Competence Matters.
“Unlike the other group, I haven’t gotten a text or a mailer from them, so I have no idea of any kind about them,” he said.
Tolbert, a mechanical engineer whose campaign is based largely on his technical expertise, said he has no concerns over people influencing him or wanting him to repay them for support.
“I make decisions based on data, facts, and information,” he said. “I’ll tell you the same thing I would tell anybody else: if it’s a good proposal, it’s a yes. It’s a bad proposal, it’s a no. I know enough to know the difference, and I know how to ask the hard questions and push back.”
Spending by more than half a dozen independent committees for the two Democrats totals just over $1 million, with clean energy groups including Georgia Conservation Voters Action Fund and Good Power PAC leading the giving.
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