Jason McMillan has been with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) for 11 years, working out of Sacramento. He supervises a team of utility engineers responsible for safety and compliance inspections of Natural Gas and Liquified Petroleum Gas (LPG) operators across California. In addition to his supervisory role, he oversees the Master-Meter Gas and Small LPG Inspection program and manages the CPUC’s Mobile Home Park Utility Conversion program, which transitions mobile home park-owned utility systems to direct public utility natural gas and electric service.
Describing his motivation for joining the CPUC, McMillan said, “I have always believed that the greatest calling we can feel is the service to others. I felt that working for California, specifically within a safety assurance position, was a way to use my time and talents to serve people and to ensure the safety of my family, friends, and neighbors.”
McMillan highlighted his involvement in improving inspection programs as a notable achievement. “The Small Operator Inspection program has really been rewarding. Before the revised workplan was established, we consistently had a backlog of past-due inspections – about 30 percent of the systems had not been inspected on time,” he explained. “Since we established new workplans and requirements for our engineers, we have increased our annual inspections and decreased our backlog. Since 2022, the number of systems past due inspections has decreased to less than two percent.”
Regarding his contribution to the agency’s mission, McMillan said, “Our work within the Safety and Enforcement Division really focuses on making sure that Californians have safe utility service. Our inspection findings and enforcement actions help confirm that natural gas operators are using ratepayer funds as designed; that they operate their systems in a way that mitigates risks; and that they keep their employees and the public safe.”
Outside of work, McMillan enjoys outdoor activities such as hiking, cycling, and kayaking around Sacramento. He shared an unexpected detail about his background: before joining CPUC he worked as a maintenance technician for banks where his duties included picking locks and opening safes.
He also recommended a podcast for horror movie enthusiasts: “If you like horror movies like I do, I would recommend the podcast, ‘Random Number Generator Horror Podcast Number 9.’ They discuss horror movies in a very thoughtful way, while still being very fun.”
The programs overseen by McMillan are part of broader efforts at CPUC aimed at improving energy safety standards statewide by reducing overdue system inspections from approximately 30 percent prior to 2022 down to less than two percent currently.
