Bob Rowe, a nationally recognized leader in telecom and utility issues with deep roots in the Northwest, has joined The Gallatin Group as "Of Counsel." Rowe will work with Gallatin on joint projects with Balhoff & Rowe, the telecommunications and utility consulting firm he formed in January with Mike Balhoff, who for sixteen years was head of telecommunications investor research at Legg Mason.

"I am extremely pleased to be associated with The Gallatin Group," Rowe said. "I have admired Gallatin's public affairs skills, regional reach and their bipartisan approach to problem solving. Their can-do savvy in D. C. and the Northwest will complement Balhoff & Rowe's strengths."

Rowe served as a Montana Public Service Commissioner from 1993 to 2004, and chaired the Commission in 2003 and 2004. In addition, he served as President of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) and Chaired the NARUC Telecommunications Committee where he led the efforts of state commissioners to implement the federal Telecommunications Act of 1996. He also served on the Federal-State Joint Board on Universal Service.

"Bob is a perfect fit with The Gallatin Group," noted John Etchart, Partner in Gallatin's Helena, Montana office. "Congress is amending the federal Telecommunications Act, the telecom industry is in the midst of great flux, and energy projects such as siting pipelines and new transmission facilities for electricity are increasingly high profile issues that require regulatory expertise, political insight, and strategic communication. The stakes are high, and Bob's knowledge and expertise in these issues will greatly benefit companies throughout the Northwest," Etchart concluded.

Rowe is highly regarded throughout the Northwest and in Washington, D. C. Upon his departure from public service, U.S. Senator Conrad Burns, a leading lawmaker on telecom issues, said, "He was probably as good a [commissioner] as we've had for a long time. I've never seen a guy get as immersed in issues as Bob Rowe did. He's a very capable guy with a good heart.'' And Senator Max Baucus, Ranking Member of the Finance Committee, said, "I've never met anybody working in our state that had so much the consumers' best interests at heart, both in energy and especially telecommunications. He is so respected nationally. He was both brilliant and savvy fundamentally because he knew the subject so well, and he was fighting for consumers."