Whereas, Joseph P. Mettner was born on December 21, 1963, in De Pere, Wisconsin, and died on October 3, 2009; and

Whereas, Joe attended Notre Dame Elementary School in 1978, graduated as valedictorian from Abbott Pennings High School in DePere in 1982, and received a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1986, as well as a juris doctorate in 1992, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison; and

Whereas, Joe had a passion and commitment to public service and, after working for Governor Tommy Thompson during law school, was appointed to serve as a commissioner on the Tax Appeals Commission in 1993 where he served until 1996; and

Whereas, in 1996, Joe was appointed as one of three members, and later served as chairman, of the Public Service Commission; and

Whereas, Joe's leadership at the Public Service Commission was most critical in the 1990's when Wisconsin was facing a crisis in its existing energy reserve, and Joe successfully worked through and approved projects to meet the public demand for vital system reliability; and

Whereas, Joe was appointed a leader within the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners on public policy to restructure the telecommunications industry in order to promote competition in the telephone market; and

Whereas, in 2003, Joe left the Public Service Commission to form his own utility-regulation consulting firm, Found Lake Consulting; and

Whereas, Joe cultivated a deep understanding of the complicated utilities industry, and whether his time was devoted to telecommunications policy or tax policy, he was a leader and a force for the public interest; and

Whereas, Joe married Michelle Intrater in 2002 and was a dedicated husband and father to their two daughters, Sara Therese and Kelsey Emma; and

Whereas, Joe was the consummate storyteller, lover of literature and poetry, devoted friend and brother, man of nuanced humor, and outdoor enthusiast and will be dearly missed by those whose lives he touched; now, therefore, be it